Building the 2026 Rangers roster: Second base.
This almost certainly remains Marcus Semien’s post. But there are longshot scenarios for something different. I’ve cooked up a couple of them.
It’s time to get back in the lab — thinking through the Rangers’ options as they work to reshape a roster that, for a second straight year, fell short of expectations. And this time, it seems clear the front office is not counting as heavily on bouncebacks. This stands to be a busy offseason.
As we did last winter, I plan to dedicate a story to each position on the field, with a picture-in-picture structure to it. Where does Texas go in 2026? Does it line up with the long-term vision for the position? Will the club stand pat for now? Is there a path for a new player to step in internally? Or is an external upgrade more likely — and maybe even as soon as this winter?
We’ll look at the landscape for every position on the field as well as the bench, and then for the rotation and the bullpen. With each entry, we’ll examine three paths the Rangers could go down as they look to construct the roster they’ll take to camp: running it back with the status quo, promoting from within, and adding players through free agency or trades.
When we examined second base a year ago, I spent time in my preface to the analysis talking about Marcus Semien’s disappointing 2024 season at the plate. Back then, before diving into the idea of considering both a move of Semien out of the leadoff spot and working in some days off, I closed out the opening section with this:
Is it a question now, a year later? Probably not.
But it’s no longer unthinkable.