Texas Rangers’ Jake Burger, left rear, Evan Carter and Cody Freeman, right rear, celebrate as Elias Díaz (35) approaches the plate after hitting a grand slam that scored the trio during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Tony Gutierrez/AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez
SEATTLE — The standings say the Texas Rangers don’t control their own destiny as this playoff race winds down.
We beg to suggest an, um, alternate interpretation.
No, the Rangers can’t control what happens with AL West leader Houston or wild card leader Cleveland and have only a three-game series with Toronto, which currently sits right behind the Guardians, to make up ground on anyone. The Houston deficit is two games in the standings — three games in reality because the Astros own the tiebreaker between the teams. In the wild card race, the Rangers entered the week 1 ½ games behind Cleveland. Their only remaining head-to-head opportunity against a direct competitor is a three-game series with Toronto, which sits right behind the Guardians. The Rangers do own all head-to-head and three-way tiebreakers with Cleveland and Toronto.
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Technically, they may not control the standings, but practically, their playoff chances still depend mostly on what they do. And there is a path to create the kind of late-season surge that can push them right into October. All they have to do is adhere to this five-step plan:
End the road nightmare: We’ve been over this a time or two. Maybe more. The Rangers have to find a way to win on the road. The rest of their season is split equally between home and road games at nine apiece. They have lost seven consecutive road series since July 1. In that span, two of the team’s biggest overall contributors have had woeful road numbers. Ezequiel Duran entered the Seattle series hitting .216 with a .581 OPS on the road since July 1 and Justin Foscue was hitting .217 with a .606 OPS.
To make things more complicated, this stretch starts with a place that has been harder on the Rangers than any other road location the last six years: T-Mobile Park. They are 3-14 in Seattle since 2024 and 10-40 since 2020. Part of the issue is that T-Mobile vexes Corey Seager like no other park. In the house where his brother played his whole career, Seager is just a .149/.243/.228/.471 hitter. Is big brother haunting him from retirement?
Stars gotta come out: When Corey Seager returned from three IL stints between May and July, the thought was that a Seager-Wyatt Langford duo in the top of the lineup would get this offense going. It hasn’t. And that’s not on Seager. After a slow start to his year, he’s put up an .853 OPS over the last five weeks, which is right in line with his career numbers. Langford, however, has taken an inexplicable dive at the plate. Since Seager returned on July 31, Langford had slashed just .183/.347/.300/.647 entering the Seattle series.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – AUGUST 25: Wyatt Langford #36 of the Texas Rangers commits a fielding error allowing a run to score during the first inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on August 25, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Michael Reaves/Getty Images
It’s clear his arm, which sent him to the IL earlier this season, is compromised just from watching recent throws. Perhaps that also has an impact on his offense. If so, the Rangers need to consider other options in left. It’s one thing to play through pain, but if it is going to significantly impact the offense, that’s something else entirely. The Rangers need more than they are getting.
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Score first: The Rangers have to make it a top priority to score first, preferably to push across a run in the first inning. When this team does it, it changes the complexion of a game. Consider these situational stats and what they beget:
When the Rangers score in the first inning, they are 32-9, which is the best record for that circumstance in baseball. When the Rangers score first, regardless of the inning, they are 52-18, which is the fourth-best record under those parameters. And when they score first and get to at least four runs, they are 46-4, which is second to the New York Yankees.
If it takes playing small ball early and even some lineup tweaks, it’s an imperative. Nothing so favors the Rangers as getting out to an early lead.
Shore up the middle innings: The Rangers have done remarkable work with a bullpen built with pennies, but it’s pretty obvious the middle of that bullpen is running on fumes. Outside of Jacob Latz, the bullpen has a 5.18 ERA since Aug. 1. There have been too many games where big early leads have disappeared, necessitating extra work for Latz, and too many games that have become untenable due to the bullpen failing to keep it close.
Texas Rangers pitcher Chase Silseth (63) turns the ball over to manager Skip Schumaker as Cody Freeman, left, and Elias Díaz, right, stand by during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Tony Gutierrez/AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez
When the Rangers had bullpen issues going into the postseason in 2023, they shortened the rotation and used starters such as Andrew Heaney and Cody Bradford out of the bullpen. Well, this is essentially the playoffs and a similar approach might be necessary. The return of Robert Garcia and potentially the return of Nathan Eovaldi may give the Rangers more options. One other possibility: With off days in each of the final three weeks of the season, maybe Kumar Rocker could be moved into more of a 2-3-inning power reliever. After all, that would almost certainly be his role if the Rangers reach the postseason.
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Clean it up: By all metrics, the Rangers have been a middle-of-the-road fielding team in 2026, which isn’t disastrous by itself. But when the offense is inconsistent and the pitching only average, there isn’t room for extra outs, free bases and gift runs. In half of their last eight losses heading into the Seattle series, they allowed at least one unearned run. When the Rangers allow at least one unearned run in a game, it’s a tipping point against them. They are just 4-19 in those games, the worst winning percentage in the majors. The good news: They and the Los Angeles Dodgers are tied for the fewest games allowing unearned runs. Play clean, fundamental baseball and eliminate the opportunity for opponents to steal wins with gift runs.
The Rangers may not control the standings. Over these final 18 games, though, they still control whether their old problems finish them off.