{"id":139640,"date":"2026-01-14T11:44:40","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T11:44:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=139640"},"modified":"2026-01-14T11:44:40","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T11:44:40","slug":"rangers-bullpen-is-a-complete-disaster-world-series-champs-turned-into-late-inning-choking-machine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=139640","title":{"rendered":"Rangers&#8217; Bullpen Is a Complete Disaster \u2013 World Series Champs Turned Into Late-Inning Choking Machine"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Heavy-Thumbnail_20260113_192804_0000.png?w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Heavy-Thumbnail_20260113_192804_0000.png?w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Heavy-Thumbnail_20260113_192804_0000.png?w=1100&amp;quality=15&amp;strip=all 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Heavy-Thumbnail_20260113_192804_0000.png?w=1350&amp;quality=35&amp;strip=all 1350w\" alt=\"Rangers Still Need Bullpen Help\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Texas Rangers have been transparent about their offseason direction as spring training approaches. After an 81\u201381 finish that left them short of the postseason, Texas is not planning another sweeping offensive reset. President of baseball operations Chris Young has instead emphasized a narrower, more urgent focus: fixing a pitching staff that looked strong in stretches but failed in too many decisive moments.<\/p>\n<p>That focus starts\u2014and arguably ends\u2014with the bullpen. While the Rangers posted solid surface-level numbers in 2025, the underlying results told a harsher story. Texas blew 29 saves and absorbed 30 bullpen losses, a combination that quietly sabotaged what could have been a playoff-caliber season. Sports Illustrated recently zeroed in on that flaw, identifying two arms the Rangers should consider as they attempt to stabilize a group that remains volatile.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Why the Rangers\u2019 Bullpen Remains the Biggest Question Mark<\/h2>\n<p>On paper, the Rangers\u2019 bullpen ERA ranked among the league\u2019s better units last season. In practice, it consistently failed to protect late leads. That disconnect is exactly why Texas entered the winter determined to add pitching rather than chase more bats.<\/p>\n<p>The Rangers have already made modest moves. They signed Alexis D\u00edaz to a one-year deal in hopes of a rebound and re-signed veteran Chris Martin to serve as a stabilizing presence in high-leverage spots. D\u00edaz is the tentative favorite to close games, with Martin sliding into a setup role. But neither move guarantees reliability. D\u00edaz struggled badly in 2025, bouncing between organizations and never regaining his prior form, while Martin profiles more as a dependable bridge than a true stopper.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_fill,w_1200,ar_4:3,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/ImagnImages\/mmsport\/inside_the_rangers\/01k6kqag8j8dr00a73na.jpg\" alt=\"Rangers' Remade Bullpen Excelled Except in One Key Area in 2025 Season\" \/><\/p>\n<p>That leaves Texas exposed if either falters. As ESPN\u2019s midwinter evaluations have suggested, the Rangers\u2019 bullpen still projects as a weakness unless more reinforcements arrive. For a team trying to squeeze maximum value out of a roster built around expensive stars and fragile pitching depth, that risk is difficult to justify.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Sports Illustrated\u2019s Targets Fit Texas\u2019 Pitching-First Approach<\/h2>\n<p>Sports Illustrated highlighted Michael Kopech as a potential bullpen solution, and the fit makes sense. When healthy, Kopech features elite velocity and swing-and-miss ability, traits the Rangers\u2019 bullpen lacks in volume. Injuries, including a torn meniscus, limited him to just 14 appearances last season, but the upside remains undeniable.<\/p>\n<p>For Texas, Kopech represents a calculated gamble rather than a franchise-altering move. He wouldn\u2019t need to be \u201cthe guy.\u201d Instead, he could form a late-inning trio with D\u00edaz and Martin, giving Bruce Bochy multiple matchup options instead of a single, fragile hierarchy. If Kopech clicks, the bullpen suddenly has teeth. If not, the financial risk would likely remain manageable.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/4498f88\/2147483647\/strip\/false\/crop\/3620x2414+0+0\/resize\/1486x991!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F87%2F88%2Fe446cc99b475db0e10fbac65b2c7%2Fe87cdfeb309049d0a6a6710913832006\" alt=\"Bullpen games have provided quite a relief for the Texas Rangers with a  pair of non-starter wins | AP News\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Sports Illustrated also pointed to Zack Littell as a rotation target, reinforcing the broader organizational theme. Texas isn\u2019t shopping for offense. The front office believes a healthy lineup featuring Corey Seager, Wyatt Langford, and Brandon Nimmo can score enough. What it doesn\u2019t trust is the pitching depth\u2014particularly in games that hinge on the final nine outs.<\/p>\n<p>That reality makes bullpen help the most impactful upgrade the Rangers can still make. Last season proved that Texas doesn\u2019t need dominance; it needs dependability. Turning even a fraction of those blown saves into wins could be the difference between watching October baseball and playing in it.<\/p>\n<p>If the Rangers are serious about changing the trajectory of their season, adding another credible late-inning arm isn\u2019t optional\u2014it\u2019s essential.<\/p>\n<p>Alvin Garcia Born in Puerto Rico, Alvin Garcia is a sports writer for Heavy.com who focuses on MLB. His work has appeared on FanSided, LWOS, NewsBreak, Athlon Sports, and Yardbarker, covering mostly MLB. More about Alvin Garcia<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Getty The Texas Rangers have been transparent about their offseason direction as spring training approaches. After an 81\u201381 finish that left them short of the postseason, Texas&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":139658,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-139640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Rangers&#039; Bullpen Is a Complete Disaster \u2013 World Series Champs Turned Into Late-Inning Choking Machine - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=139640\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Rangers&#039; Bullpen Is a Complete Disaster \u2013 World Series Champs Turned Into Late-Inning Choking Machine - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Getty The Texas Rangers have been transparent about their offseason direction as spring training approaches. 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