Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
The Rangers don’t have a set closer heading into spring training, but Chris Young has indicated it’s a two-man race.
Robert Garcia
Garcia was acquired in a trade for Nathaniel Lowe last offseason. He is a hard-throwing lefty with great stuff. He posted a 2.95 ERA in 64 innings with 68 strikeouts against 22 walks.
Those stats aren’t too bad on paper, but Garcia struggled when he came in during the ninth.
Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
He converted nine of his 16 save opportunities. The Rangers didn’t know what to expect when he took the ninth inning and tried to close it out. His ERA varied heavily depending on what inning he came in. His advanced splits back this up.
He posted a 4.09 ERA in the ninth inning compared to the eighth inning, where he posted just a 1.47 ERA. The seventh inning wasn’t too good either, but it was still better than the ninth. Extra innings were even more difficult for him with a 6.23 ERA in 4.1 innings.
Whenever the pressure got high last year, Garcia seemed unable to handle it. His stuff is good; he just needs to handle the pressure. He could definitely show growth and take a step forward.
Chris Martin
Martin was good too last year, with a sub-3 ERA like Garcia’s. He posted a 2.98 ERA in 42.1 innings with 43 strikeouts and eight walks. He had two saves in five opportunities last year. He doesn’t have much experience as a closer, with just four saves as a career high.
He is also on the older side and dealt with several injuries last year that could lead to him missing time. It was a good reliever, but there is concern that injuries could affect him now that he is 39 years old.
Verdict
These two are both good candidates to be closers for the Rangers, and each has its claim to the spot.
Spring Training will be the time for them to win the battle.
I would not be surprised to see him split time at the closer job, and I would count out Alexis Diaz as an option, either.
Tags: 2026 Spring Training AL Chris Martin Chris Young Closer MLB Nationals Robert Garcia Spring Training Texas Rangers Washington Nationals