To hear Texas Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young tell it, the budget will be different for 2026.
So far, the moves made feel like a net neutral in terms of finance. The Rangers non-tendered four players, including Adolis Garcia and Jonah Heim, to save roughly $20 million. While the Rangers took on payroll for a longer term in the Brandon Nimmo trade, flipping Marcus Semien to the New York Mets saves the Rangers about $4 million a year.
The savings are essentially accounted for with the signings of catcher Danny Jansen, along with relief pitchers Tyler Alexander, Alexis Diaz and Chris Martin. Young still wants to add a right-handed bat and a starting pitcher. Only budget options need apply, unless the Rangers are presented with an opportunity too good to pass up.
Young has been clear that the budget will look different, but it’s not a rebuild, he insists.
Why Rangers Are Approaching Offseason Moves as Retool
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Young was asked during a media call recently why Rangers fans shouldn’t be concerned that a lower payroll means a less competitive team. If it was, he said, the offseason moves would look much different.
“f we felt like we weren’t going to be competitive, we would take multiple steps back and really assess, you know, how to build for the future, long term,” Young said. “We feel really good about the core of this team.”
The moves made in the lineup are designed to boost the team’s on-base percentage and to get hitters in the lineup that are more versatile. The relievers line up with the profile that helped Texas put together one of the best bullpens in baseball in 2025.
While the Rangers have failed to make the playoffs each of the last two seasons since the 2023 World Series victory, many pieces from that team are still around, starting with the MVP of that World Series, Corey Seager. Other holdovers include infielders Josh Smith, Josh Jung and Ezequiel Duran; outfielder Evan Carter; and pitchers Nathan Eovaldi, Jacob deGrom (who missed the series due to injury) and Cody Bradford.
Player development has positioned Jack Leiter as the No. 3 starter, Kumar Rocker to take another shot at the rotation in 2026 and players like Alejandro Osuna, Jose Corniell and Marc Church to take on bigger roles. There’s also 2023 first-round pick Wyatt Langford, who is on the cusp of being an All-Star.
Young saw last year’s team as underachieving. But he didn’t see it, or the future, as untalented. There’s a difference.
“I want to make it very clear, from my perspective, I’m highly competitive, and I’m in this to win,” Young said. “We feel like, as an organization, we expect to win, and we feel like we’ve got the team to do that.”
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