SURPRISE, Ariz. — If the subject is team culture and chemistry – and it has been front and center for the Rangers out in the desert – then there is no better test subject than a team’s best player.
And so we present the Seager Spring.
There were always going to be a lot of eyes on Corey Seager this spring. After the Rangers broke up the Seager-Marcus Semien middle infield, there was the matter of a fractured relationship between the players. There were his last two seasons, which ended prematurely due to frustrating injuries. There was the presence of a new manager, Skip Schumaker, and a renewed emphasis on culture.
How has that played out? Well, consider the scene from the final Sunday morning in Arizona:
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Boxes are littered around the clubhouse, a reminder that the trip back to Arlington is coming, but still a long week away. Seager is itching to play ping-pong in the middle of the clubhouse on the fancy table the Rangers installed this spring to help promote group activity. He asks Jack Leiter – loudly – but the pitcher wants to grab something to eat. He eventually finds his partner for the team’s doubles’ tournament, Jake Burger, and they pair off against a duo led by Josh Smith. The ensuing match is also loud, filled with laughter, smack talk and maybe an occasional profanity. And when Leiter says he’s ready to play, Seager playfully puts him in his place.
Is that the Corey Seager you think you know?
“Honestly,” Seager said, “I don’t feel like I’ve really changed anything.”
Perhaps not. What plays out in front of outsiders in the clubhouse is hardly a complete glimpse into the inner workings of a team. But what we outsiders have seen this spring looks a lot like a man who is simply acting more free and at ease.
In the spring opener, Seager took a walk in his first at-bat, then sprinted to first base, stealing from Brandon Nimmo’s shtick as a playful welcome to the team’s newest member. The team’s ping-pong tournament, an exercise in team bonding, was switched from singles to doubles – at Seager’s suggestion. All games are played in front of the entire clubhouse.
“I thought it was a little more team involved instead of one-on-one games,” Seager said. “Some of those were a little tough to watch. It’s just more involved and a better game in front of people.”
All we think we know is this: This Seager is reminiscent of the one that was visible during the Rangers’ 2023 run to and through the playoffs, when he was involved regularly in loud clubhouse card games and when he punctuated that World Series homer with a primal scream. It wasn’t something we saw much of the last two years, whether that was related to butting heads with Semien or his injuries or the team’s poor performance.
Seager doesn’t want to deal in that stuff. He’s not big on talking about emotions or deep-diving into team dynamics. He said his relationship with Semien was “fine,” at the start of spring training and has no further intention of discussing it. What he is focused on is playing more games this year after averaging 115 a season the last three years due to an array of injuries.
What he will allow is this:
“Everyone’s moving in the right direction,” said Seager, hitting .300 with a 1.017 OPS for 23 March plate appearances heading into Monday. “Everyone’s starting to dial it in. We talked about starting to do different things to actually, like, get into season play and winning games. [Willie MacIver] had a sac bunt the other day, so like, everyone’s doing the right thing and trying to get ready for the season.
“I think [Schumaker] has done a great job of conveying specific messages about where we want to be. He’s precise. He’s direct, which I think translates extremely well with people. He almost over communicates, rather than under communicates, which is phenomenal. It goes a long way with a lot of people. I think he’s really connected with people and got it moving the way it should.”
The feeling is mutual. As a senior adviser, Schumaker was around the big league clubhouse infrequently last season. He’s also tried to consider everything a clean start for every player.
“I’ve only seen one version, and it’s pretty dang good,” Schumaker said. “He is having fun. He’s out there, joking around, being himself, but also diligent in his work, and he’s helping the young guys get better. So if you take all of those things together, that’s what leadership really looks like. I’m excited about the impact he’s making on some of these young infielders. I can’t say enough good things about where Corey is at. It’s everything and more that I hoped he would be.
“We’re just trying to get him to play a lot this year and that would be even better. I think that’s where his mind is at. This version of Corey is the dangerous version of Corey in the middle of the lineup with hopefully a couple guys on base.”
And then Seager can express himself with his bat, which is where he’s always expressed himself best.
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