The Texas Rangers ended the team’s World Series drought this past season. Texas went 11-0 on the road in the MLB Postseason and took down three of the AL’s best in the regular season. Then in the World Series, the Rangers took down the Diamondbacks in five to bring a championship to Arlington for the first time. Here’s our recap of the Rangers’ 2023 season.
Related: 2023 MLB Season Recap: Washington Nationals
The Offense
| Stat | Figure | MLB Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Runs Scored | 881 | 3rd |
| Home Runs | 233 | t-3rd |
| OPS | .790 | 3rd |
| Whiff% | 24.4 | 8th |
| Hard Hit% | 41.6% | 4th |
The Pitching
| Stat | Figure | MLB Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Starters’ ERA | 3.96 | 7th |
| Relievers’ ERA | 4.77 | 24th |
| Strikeouts | 1,351 | t-23rd |
| Whiff% | 26.1% | 13th |
| Chase% | 29.7% | 7th |
The Good
The Rangers offense was a force to be reckoned with in 2023. Texas finished first in the American League in team OPS, and third behind only the Dodgers and Braves.
It’s not hard to see why that was the case. Ten Rangers reached double digits in home runs and four hit at least 20. However, the big stars in Lone Star State proved to be Adolis Garcia and Corey Seager.
It was an incredible season for Garcia. The 30-year-old reached career-highs in home runs (39) and RBI (107), then followed that up with 22 RBI in the playoffs and surpassed David Freese for the most runs batted in during a single postseason.
As for Seager, the 29-year-old hit an eye-popping .327/.390/.623 (1.013 OPS) with 33 home runs and 75 extra-base hits in just 119 games. That campaign earned Seager an AL Silver Slugger.
Those two weren’t alone, though. 2B Marcus Semien hit 29 home runs and played in all 162 regular season games. Catcher Jonah Heim played steady defense behind the plate and drove in 95, while Josh Jung hit 23 home runs in his rookie season.
On the pitching side of things, Nathan Eovaldi was sensational throughout the 2023 regular season and playoffs. Eovaldi went 12-5 with a 3.63 ERA and 132 strikeouts over 144 innings in the regular season, then followed that up with a 2.95 ERA (2.98 FIP, .606 OPS) and 41 strikeouts over 36.2 postseason innings.
The Rangers invested heavily into the rotation over the past two offseasons. Texas added Eovaldi, as well as Jacob deGrom, Jon Gray, and Andrew Heaney. deGrom didn’t factor into the equation after he underwent Tommy John earlier, but Dane Dunning (3.70 ERA, 140 K in 172.2 IP) filled in well.
We also have to mention what Jordan Montgomery did for the Rangers. Montgomery, acquired from St. Louis in the summer, was dominant both in the regular season (2.79 ERA, 58 K in 67.2 IP) and playoffs (2.90 ERA, 3-1 record) for the Rangers.
The Bad
Given that the Rangers won it all in 2023, there weren’t many negatives. However, the Rangers bullpen did prove to be a rollercoaster at various points in the regular season.
The Rangers got uneven results from Will Smith (4.40 ERA, 55 K in 57.1 IP) and Josh Sborz (5.50 ERA, 66 K in 52.1 IP) in the regular season. However, both did have solid FIP figures.
In Sborz’s case, he had a chance to shake the regular season and made the most of it. The right-hander struck out 13 over 12 innings and gave up just one run.
Sborz was part of a strong postseason bullpen that included Aroldis Chapman, Cody Bradford, and Jose Leclerc.
What to Look For in 2024
The Rangers are obviously in a good position heading into 2024, as Texas is set to bring back virtually all of the team’s lineup. However, Mitch Garver is a free agent.
Texas’ pitching, though, is a different story. Andrew Heaney will be back after he exercised his player option, but Texas will need to sort out a potential replacement for Jordan Montgomery should he opt to not re-sign with the Rangers.
Nonetheless, the Rangers enter the winter as an early favorite to win it all in 2024.