Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker looks out from the dugout before a spring training game against the Los Angeles Angels on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, in Tempe, Ariz.
Smiley Pool/The Dallas Morning News
In the spring of 1988, when yours truly was SportsDay’s national baseball writer, the Baltimore Orioles opened the season with 21 straight losses, then and now a record. The streak grew a tail from New York to Tokyo, the kind of media following generally reserved for a world champion. Or at least a Kardashian. Us buzzards circling the Orioles only wanted to see how bad it could get.
Finally, on April 29, 16 games out of first place and champagne on ice, the O’s beat the White Sox at old Comiskey Park, 9-0. Pete Stanicek, called up just that morning, led off and got two hits, then kept his head even with the monkey off their backs.
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“You don’t lose 21 in a row,” he said of their prospects, “and then win 17 in a row.”
Believe it or not, the memory came up while considering the Rangers’ belated home opener this weekend. They return to the Globe with a fine 4-2 record after winning series against the Phillies and Orioles, kicking off the Skip Schumaker era in high style.
Of course, they started the 2024 season by winning their first two series, as well. Last year, they won eight of their first 10 games.
Didn’t get them any closer to a parade either season.
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All we know for sure about Schumaker’s Rangers is that they make a good first impression, just as they did under Bruce Bochy.
So why should this team be any different?
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Let’s consider the possibilities.
The good news is they’ve won two series in which neither Jacob deGrom nor Nathan Eovaldi helped much, or at all. I have a hard time believing they’ll remain this bad. My concern going forward isn’t the quality of their starts, just the quantity. Both have notable injury histories. Eovaldi is 36, and deGrom turns 38 in June. Doesn’t seem like the kind of foundation on which to rest your fragile hopes, which might suggest why I picked them to win just 82 games.
But, after watching the Rangers this spring, the question seems to be if the Rangers’ co-aces need to be as good as they were last year. Effective, no question. At least 25 starts and 150 innings apiece. But Cy Young worthy? Not if the London fog has finally lifted around the offense.
The Marcus Semien for Brandon Nimmo deal has worked out better for the Rangers than most analysts predicted. Frankly, I wasn’t sure what to make of Nimmo in Surprise. He got a late start, and when he turned up on the field, every square inch was covered in cloth or pads. Looked like one of Darth Vader’s storm troopers.
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Count me as a believer in what he brings to the table. He’s transformed the top of the Rangers’ lineup and remains, at 33, as bubbly as Topo Chico.
Speaking of which: If you know where a brother can buy a case, slip me a note.
Andrew McCutchen has made a similar impact, pretty much from the get-go. Even came up with a little team roping routine after reaching base, adapted by his teammates with varying degrees of success. He’s been so good for the club, I can’t for the life of me figure why no one else was interested.
Unless it’s because he’ll turn 40 during the playoffs. If the Rangers are still roping then, that is.
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Expecting McCutchen to sustain the level of play he’s demonstrated so far seems a lot to ask. But, however his season ends, I’m guessing his numbers will be an improvement over Joc Pederson’s last year, and reason enough to keep Joc on the shelf.
Josh Jung is another area of concern, though he finally put together a couple of good at bats in the loss to the Orioles. His clock also may be ticking. Especially if Ezekiel Duran continues his career turnaround.
Wyatt Langford’s slow start shouldn’t bother anyone at the moment. He got some MVP buzz this spring, and he may yet live up to it. But if the Rangers get numbers no better than what he put up last year, that’s good enough.
Otherwise, Jake Burger looks like the hitter Schumaker remembered from Miami; Danny Jansen is a big-time upgrade over Jonah Heim; Josh Smith is holding his own replacing Semien; and Evan Carter is still healthy.
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Meanwhile, Corey Seager looks his usual monstrous self at the plate, and he seems to be having a nice time.
My only complaint with the offense so far is that not enough hitters are taking advantage of the new ABS system. No lineup has seen more balls called strikes. Yet they remain reluctant ever since Carter challenged with two outs and no one on base. A no-no. But, with multiple baserunners, or from the seventh inning on? Somebody needs to tell the Rangers that, if you win a challenge, you retain the right.
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The Rangers’ biggest concern, though, is the back end of the bullpen. Ray Davis needs to get out his wallet and let Chris Young find a closer.
Could Jung and a couple mid-level prospects do it, if it comes to that?
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If the Rangers come up with a legit closer, my guess is I underestimated them. This club feels different from the last two. Sometimes you don’t need long to tell. Not even 21 games, in the case of the ’88 Orioles. Pete Stanicek was right. They didn’t win 17 in a row on the way to 107 losses. Heck, it made worldwide news when they just won once.
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