SURPRISE, Ariz. — It’s impossible to get too excited about spring training performances.
Nevertheless …
Rangers 22, Padres 2 on Saturday at Surprise Stadium.
Now, we can run through all the reasons why this game was a laugher, mostly having to do with San Diego, playing split squads on Saturday, definitely sending the B-team to Surprise. It included soft-tossing lefty Marco Gonzales, who didn’t pitch in 2025 after arm surgery, being the opposing starter. And there wasn’t much depth behind him.
Rangers
All those qualifiers mentioned, it’s still impressive to score 22 runs even on a day when the wind is gusting out. And it really only was a pleasant breeze Saturday. The Rangers hit six homers, four in the 13-run third inning, the biggest inning for the team in a spring game since records were kept in 2006.
What has become clear, regardless of quality of opponent, is that the Ranger hitters aren’t just there to get things over with. Even when the score is out of hand. The Rangers walked 16 times on Saturday, their second consecutive game with double-digit walks. That’s also their highest total in a spring training game since records were kept.
They walked 11 times against Colorado on Friday and have had double-figure walks three times in 22 games this spring. They have walked 121 times this spring, most in the majors. They are simply refusing to chase wildly and seem to be better about attacking their own personal “nitro” zones. Self-awareness is important.
Also Saturday, the Rangers’ B-team lost 4-3 against Cincinnati in Goodyear. Alejandro Osuna, just back from the WBC, had three hits in the loss in which Tyler Alexander was charged with three runs while trying to get through a four-inning relief outing.
But we’re all about the glass being half-full here, so back to the big day in Surprise with some observations:
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Brandon’s big day: Hard to pick out one offensive performance that stuck out when four of the first five hitters in the Rangers lineup each reached base four times. But let us rest our gaze on leadoff hitter Brandon Nimmo, who reached in five plate appearances with a walk, two homers, a double and a single. Nimmo scored five runs and drove in four.
The other guys: Wyatt Langford (3-for-3 with a homer and walk), Andrew McCutchen (3-for-3 with a walk) and Josh Smith (1-for-1 with a grand slam and three walks). The slacker was No. 3 hitter Corey Seager, who managed to only go 1-for-3 with a homer and a walk.
Locking it down? It has also been a very good week for Ezequiel Duran, who may have solidified his role as the utility player. Duran, who hasn’t homered in a regular-season game since Sept. 8, 2024, homered for the second time this week and was 3-for-4; he was a triple shy of the cycle.
Duran, who played first base on Saturday, is 5-for-13 this week with three walks and no strikeouts. Can’t overlook those last two stats for a guy who has a career strikeout rate of 25% and a career walk rate of just 4.9%. If he’s getting the message about plate discipline, then everybody is.
No slacking for Nate: There is a lot to rave about in Nathan Eovaldi’s pitching, but that plays out with stats. But his second inning on Saturday also illustrated why he is so valued as a teammate: He never slacks.
After allowing consecutive hits to start the inning, Eovaldi hustled to make sure he was in place to back up a throw. On the next batter, he was in perfect position to take the throw on a ground ball that took first baseman Ezequiel Duran too far off the bag. And he finished it off by landing in proper position to field a scorched one-hopper back to the mound for the final out. You can’t execute every pitch perfectly every time, but you can be in the proper place on fielding plays, and Eovaldi always is.
Twitter/X: @Evan_P_Grant
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