The Rangers have strengthened the top of their rotation at left tackle MacKenzie Gore in a trade with the Nationals. Gore, Jacob deGromagain Nathan Eovaldi will form what should be an outstanding trio, as long as everyone stays healthy. The former’s high hopes Jack Leiter he delivered a solid campaign in his first full appearance at the big league level, which likely earned him the 4th spot. After that, it gets dark.
Texas starters led the league with a 3.41 ERA last season, but the club will have to replace a lot of reliable innings in 2026. A veteran. Patrick Corbin The much-matched deGrom debuted on the team at age 30. He is now a free agent. Tyler Mahle and trade deadline acquisitions Merrill Kelly they both walked freely.
Here’s a look at the remaining combinations of rotation options.
Kumar Rocker
According to the pedigree, Rocker will be the favorite for the fifth starting job. The 26-year-old was third in the 2022 election. Eric Longenhagen and James Fegan of FanGraphs only had Rocker behind Sebastian Walcott among the Rangers’ prospects midway through last season. That was after the highly-touted righty gave up 18 runs in 20 innings to open the year. He came to IL with a shoulder issue in late April.
Rocker also returned to the majors for nine seasons in June and July. He posted a 4.67 ERA, though a 4.14 xFIP and 4.34 SIERA suggest he was slightly better than that mark. Rocker found himself back in Triple-A in August. He has yet to impress at the highest level for a long time, but he may get a chance to continue the rotation this spring.
Jacob Latz
Texas used Latz in a Swiss Army Knife role last year, and he played well whenever called upon. The 29-year-old lefty had eight starts and 25 relief appearances last season. Latz’s flexible gig includes a quality start and three save innings in a span of a week. He compiled a 2.84 ERA in 85 2/3 innings. He came in with an xERA and SIERA above 4.00, so expectations should be lowered, but there may be enough here for Latz to be a full-time starter.
Latz relies on a three-pitch combination that includes a fastball, switchup, and slider. He also mixed the curveball with right-handed hitters. Latz used each of his three main pitches more than 20% of the time, so the repertoire is deeper than that of a regular release. The fastball was dominant, holding hitters to a .193 batting average while recording a +11 Run Value. The change received whiffs at a clip of more than 40%. Latz will play a role in this team in some capacity.
Cal Quantrill, Austin Gomber, Nabil Crismatt
The Rangers brought in this veteran team in minor league deals. They will act as deep cuts if an injury occurs. One of them could find a way to switch if Rocker jumps in the spring and the club picks Latz out of the bullpen.
Quantrill spent 2025 with the Marlins and Braves, posting an ERA over 6.00 in 26 starts. He finished last season in the Rangers’ minor league program. Gomber was cut by the Rockies in August after a number of fumbles. He pitched with the Cubs on a minor league deal, but never made it to the big league club. Crismatt pitched well last year, compiling a 2.70 ERA in his first six games with the Diamondbacks. He was pulled from the bullpen in his final outing of the year, which cleared the finish line.
Bring back Corbin
The veteran lefty revived his career in his one season as a Ranger. After four brutal years to cap his time in Washington, Corbyn was one of the biggest surprises in the first half of 2025. He notched an ERA under 4.00 through July with subpar metrics to back it up. Corbin’s performance dipped in the last two months of the season, but he still put up a decent streak. Whatever the Rangers did with him, it seemed to work, and he might be brought back for a small sacrifice.
Photo courtesy of Steven Bisig, Imagn Images
