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Josh Smith Josh Smith Will not be in strict platoon
Mon, Mar 9, 2026, 3:19 PM
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker indicated Monday that Smith will not be a strict platoon at second base, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: The left-handed-hitting Smith has hit only .223/.309/.322 against lefty hurlers in his career, but Schumaker plans to give Smith some starts at the keystone versus left-handed pitching. Smith entered play Monday slashing .333/.429/.542 with one home run and a 4:5 BB:K in his first 10 Cactus League contests. |
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Evan Carter Evan Carter Expected to see some reps vs. LHP
Mon, Mar 9, 2026, 3:05 PM
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker indicated Monday that Carter will be given some chances to start against left-handed pitching early on in the season, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: The left-handed-hitting Carter is just 5-for-60 (.083) against left-handed pitching in his major-league career, but Schumaker likes how Carter has looked versus southpaws this spring. While it sounds like Carter will not be in a strict platoon, he will likely have to get off to a good start against lefties in order to avoid sitting versus them most days. Carter has a 1.159 OPS with two home runs and one stolen base in his first eight Cactus League contests. |
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Joc Pederson Joc Pederson Limited impact in spring
Mon, Mar 9, 2026, 3:04 PM
Pederson, who will start at first base and bat second in Monday's game against the Padres, has gone 4-for-17 with one walk and four strikeouts through his first eight Cactus League contests.
Analysis: Coming off a rough first season with Texas in which he posted a career-low .614 OPS over 305 plate appearances, Pederson decided against becoming a free agent over the winter and picked up his $18.5 million player option to remain with the Rangers for 2026, per Kennedi Landry of MLB.com. While Pederson is likely to maintain a regular spot in the lineup as the Rangers' primary designated hitter against right-handed pitching, he hasn't shown many early signs of reclaiming the power production that eluded him in 2025. All four of his hits so far in spring training have been singles. |
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Michel Otanez Michel Otanez Removed from bullpen competition
Mon, Mar 9, 2026, 11:45 AM
The Rangers optioned Otanez to Triple-A Round Rock on Monday.
Analysis: Otanez took himself out of contention for a spot in the Rangers' Opening Day bullpen after yielding four earned runs on four hits and one walk over 2.1 innings across his three Cactus League appearances. The 28-year-old righty will serve as a leverage arm at Round Rock to begin the season while he waits for an opening to re-emerge in the Texas bullpen. |
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Dairon Blanco Dairon Blanco Headed to Triple-A
Mon, Mar 9, 2026, 11:42 AM
The Rangers optioned Blanco to Triple-A Round Rock after claiming him off waivers from the Royals on Sunday.
Analysis: The right-handed-hitting Blanco looked like a potential candidate to fill out a short-side platoon role in the Texas outfield, but he won't end up reporting to big-league camp and will instead head to Triple-A to begin the upcoming season. Though Blanco has been a near-league-average hitter over his first four MLB seasons with a 99 wRC+, he fell out of favor with the Royals in 2025, logging just eight plate appearances in the majors while mustering a middling .253/.332/.405 slash line over 77 games at Triple-A Omaha. The Rangers may want to see Blanco show some improvement as a hitter at the Triple-A level before giving him another look in the big leagues. |
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Kyle Higashioka Kyle Higashioka Should return Monday
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 4:26 PM
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said Sunday that Higashioka (back) is feeling better and is expected to return to the spring lineup Monday against the Padres, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: The 35-year-old backstop was scratched from the lineup Saturday due to back spasms but is on track for a quick return to the lineup. Higashioka had a .694 OPS in 94 games last season and is expected to split playing time with Danny Jansen behind the plate for the Rangers this year. |
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Leandro Lopez Leandro Lopez Bound for Double-A
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 2:41 PM
The Rangers optioned Lopez to Double-A Frisco on Sunday.
Analysis: Texas awarded Lopez a spot on its 40-man roster over the winter after he compiled a 2.40 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 116:41 K:BB between Frisco and High-A Hub City in 2025. The 23-year-old righty will head back to Frisco to begin the upcoming campaign, but a strong start to the season could put him on track for an early promotion to Triple-A Round Rock. |
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David Davalillo David Davalillo Opening season in Frisco
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 2:37 PM
The Rangers optioned Davalillo to Double-A Frisco on Sunday.
Analysis: Texas added Davalillo to its 40-man roster over the winter, but the 23-year-old righty is still in need of further seasoning in the minors. He'll return to Frisco to open the upcoming campaign after logging a 2.73 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 58:17 K:BB across 56 frames in the Texas League in 2025. |
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Jordan Montgomery Jordan Montgomery Moved to 60-day IL
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 1:54 PM
The Rangers placed Montgomery (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Sunday.
Analysis: The transaction frees up a spot on the 40-man roster for outfielder Dairon Blanco, whom the Rangers claimed off waivers from the Royals. The move to the 60-day IL won't affect Montgomery's return timeline; the veteran southpaw was already expected to miss multiple months to begin the 2026 campaign after undergoing a hybrid UCL reconstruction surgery in April 2025. |
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Dairon Blanco Dairon Blanco Lands in Arlington
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 1:51 PM
The Rangers claimed Blanco off waivers from the Royals on Sunday.
Analysis: Though Kansas City him expendable after signing free-agent outfielder Starling Marte, Blanco should be in good position to secure a spot on the Rangers' Opening Day roster. A right-handed hitter with exceptional speed, Blanco could profile as an ideal short-side platoon mate in the outfield for Evan Carter, a career .083 hitter versus left-handed pitching. |
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Jake Burger Jake Burger Goes deep again
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 12:38 PM
Burger 1-for-2 with a walk, a home run and two RBI in Saturday's spring game against San Francisco.
Analysis: Burger homered for the third consecutive game, although the first of those three was a contest against Team Brazil and does not officially count. He did homer in a February Cactus League game and officially is 7-for-20 with three home runs and seven RBI through nine spring contests. He's looking for a bounce-back season after falling to 16 home runs in 2025. |
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Jacob Latz Jacob Latz Battles into fourth inning
Sun, Mar 8, 2026, 12:28 PM
Latz allowed three runs on two hits and three walks while striking out three over 3.1 innings in Saturday's spring start against the Giants.
Analysis: Latz's third Cactus League start was a grind. After an efficient 1-2-3 first inning, the left-hander needed 18 pitches for the second frame. The walks also drove up his pitch count, and by the time he started the fourth inning, Latz's velocity diminished. Per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, the Rangers have been concerned about Latz being a viable starter and his ability to carry velocity throughout a game. He's currently being evaluated along with Kumar Rocker for the final spot in the rotation. |
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Kyle Higashioka Kyle Higashioka Late scratch Saturday
Sat, Mar 7, 2026, 2:36 PM
Higashioka was scratched from the lineup for Saturday's Cactus League game against the Giants, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: The Rangers haven't specified why Higashioka was erased from the starting nine, but an explanation should arise in the near future. In the meantime, Willie MacIver will pick up a bonus spring start behind the dish. |
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Evan Carter Evan Carter Returns to big-league action
Sat, Mar 7, 2026, 9:37 AM
Carter started in center field and went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Friday's spring game against Seattle.
Analysis: Carter was scratched from the lineup Wednesday due to illness but was playing on the back fields Thursday before joining the Rangers' main squad Friday. The homer, which came off a right-hander, was the first of the spring for Carter, who is 3-for-15 with two extra-base hits and three walks over seven Cactus League games. He's expected to be a lineup regular whenever Texas faces a right-hander, but Carter needs to be better against lefties to be an everyday starter. Thus far, he's 0-for-4 against southpaws this spring. |
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Jack Leiter Jack Leiter Makes third spring start
Sat, Mar 7, 2026, 9:25 AM
Leiter allowed two runs on five hits while striking out four over 3.2 innings in Friday's spring start against the Mariners.
Analysis: Leiter navigated the first two innings without much stress before the right-hander was touched for solo home runs in the third and fourth innings. He ran his pitch count to 61 (40 strikes) and didn't walk a batter for the first time this spring during his third Cactus League start. Leiter told Kane McCutchen of Yahoo! Sports that he was focused on working on specific pitches, as is the case for many pitchers during spring outings. On Friday, it was his changeup, which he threw 10 times (three swinging strikes) after using it just twice in his previous outing. Leiter has a 5.14 ERA with three walks, six strikeouts and three homers allowed over seven spring innings. |
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Evan Carter Evan Carter Back in action in backfields game
Thu, Mar 5, 2026, 4:00 PM
Carter (illness) returned to action in a backfields game Thursday, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: Carter had to be scratched from the lineup for Wednesday's exhibition versus Team Brazil after falling ill, but he felt well enough to play in a "B" game a day later. The outfielder is 2-for-12 with a stolen base and a 3:5 BB:K in his first six Cactus League contests. |
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Josh Jung Josh Jung Fielding grounders
Thu, Mar 5, 2026, 2:22 PM
Jung (hamstring) began fielding groundballs Thursday, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: Thursday marked the first time Jung had done any work in the field since being diagnosed with a Grade 1 adductor strain Saturday. The Rangers don't have a timeline in place for the 28-year-old third baseman, but there's a decent chance he returns in time for Opening Day. |
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Andrew McCutchen Andrew McCutchen Inks NRI deal with Rangers
Thu, Mar 5, 2026, 9:16 AM
The Rangers signed McCutchen to a minor-league contract Thursday that includes an invitation to spring training, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Analysis: Entering his age-39 season, McCutchen slashed .239/.333/.367 with 13 home runs across 135 games for the Pirates last season. He collected a solid .267/.353/.389 batting line against left-handed pitching, and the five-time All-Star could carve out a role as a short-side platoon designated hitter and occasional outfielder. |
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Brandon Nimmo Brandon Nimmo Makes spring debut
Thu, Mar 5, 2026, 8:31 AM
Nimmo started in right field and batted leadoff, going 1-for-2 with a walk and a run scored in Wednesday's spring exhibition against Team Brazil.
Analysis: Nimmo made his spring debut as part of a plan to gradually build up the veteran outfielder. He's expected to be the primary leadoff hitter for the Rangers in 2026. |
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Kumar Rocker Kumar Rocker Works three innings
Thu, Mar 5, 2026, 8:24 AM
Rocker allowed one run on seven hits while striking out one over three innings in Wednesday's spring exhibition against Team Brazil.
Analysis: This was the third time on a mound this spring for Rocker, who followed starter Jacob deGrom. The statistics in World Baseball Classic exhibitions don't count against an MLB player's results, but it should be noted that Rocker has allowed 14 hits over 7.2 innings of work thus far. He also allowed five hits on two-strike counts. On a more positive note, the right-hander used an in-development changeup six times and mixed in all five of his offerings. Rocker remains in the mix for the final spot in the rotation with Jacob Latz. |
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