Rangers’ biggest flop to begin 2026 MLB season

The Texas Rangers had very high hopes going into 2026. After missing the playoffs two years in a row after winning the World Series in 2023, the front office changed the roster, hired a new manager in Skip Schumaker, and added MacKenzie Gore to an already strong rotation. The offense was supposed to turn around on its own, and for a short time during Cactus League play, it looked like it would. Josh Smith was amazing in spring training. Wyatt Langford had an OPS of 1.468. People at Globe Life Field were cautiously hopeful.

Two weeks into the regular season, that optimism has curdled. And while Texas has managed to hover near the .500 mark, one player has been the unambiguous drag on the offense, Josh Smith, who is batting a staggering .174/.255/.174 through 14 games with zero home runs and just two RBI. In a lineup that was already being counted on to take a leap forward, Smith’s disappearing act at the plate has been the Rangers’ single most significant individual flop to begin 2026.

Josh Smith’s At-Bats Have Been Historically Bad

The numbers are not only bad, they are also historically bad. Smith has only gotten 8 hits in 46 at-bats this season, with a slash line of .174/.255/.174. He hasn’t gotten any extra-base hits, and his slugging percentage is the same as his batting average, which means that all of his hits have been singles. His April splits have been even worse: he has a .115 batting average in 26 at-bats, with only one walk and no extra-base hits.

FanGraphs thought Smith would hit.248 this season, which is a fair guess based on his career average.234 average and the Silver Slugger he won during the Rangers’ 2023 title run. It is shocking how far off that prediction is from what actually happened. His exit velocity is down, he’s not working counts the way manager Skip Schumaker has told his team to, and he’s not doing the one thing he’s always been able to do: hit the ball hard. Smith has now had terrible first halves in two straight seasons, which makes people wonder if the second-half slumps that hurt his 2024 and 2025 seasons have somehow turned into a full-season problem.

What makes this particularly painful for Rangers fans is the ghost of Marcus Semien. Texas shipped Semien to the Mets this winter in a swap for Brandon Nimmo, and while Semien was coming off an underwhelming year, he at minimum gave the Rangers a reliable, grinding presence in the middle of the order. Smith was supposed to fill that void seamlessly. So far, he has filled it with an empty batting line.

Wyatt Langford’s Slow Start Adds to the Offensive Anxiety

Smith’s problems are the main story, but he hasn’t been alone in his pain. Wyatt Langford, the Rangers’ star outfielder, was named the team’s MVP in 2025. He started 2026 by going 2-for-19 (.105) but has shown some signs of life in the last few series. Langford had a bWAR of 5.6 in 2025, with 22 home runs and 22 stolen bases. Now, he is at .170 with a .230 wOBA, which Statcast thinks will be a little better at .268, suggests that his underlying contact quality, while not great, is being punished more than it should be.

Langford’s problems go beyond just a bad run of luck. In 2025, his strikeout rate went up by almost six percentage points. He is currently listed as day-to-day with a quad injury, which is just one more injury that the Rangers can’t afford. When Langford is on, Texas has a real middle-of-the-order force that can change a game. When he’s hurt and cold, the lineup doesn’t have much room for error.

A Familiar Problem With an Unfamiliar Urgency

The Rangers’ rotation, led by deGrom, Eovaldi, and the newly acquired MacKenzie Gore, has given Texas every chance to win ballgames. Gore in particular has been sharp in his new home, validating the cost of the trade that sent five prospects to Washington. The bullpen, meanwhile, has already shown the same maddening tendencies that cost Texas wins throughout 2025, Chris Martin surrendering a walk-off homer in the home opener against Cincinnati is a reminder that the back of the pen remains a fragile operation.

But the most correctable problem, and the one that stings most going into a season where the Rangers can ill afford another .500 disappointment, is the offense. Texas ranked 26th in the majors in wRC+ in 2025. The plan this year was for Smith, Langford, Nimmo, and a healthier supporting cast to drag that number up meaningfully. Instead, two of those three key bats are sputtering, and the Rangers are once again stuck asking whether their pitching staff can carry a lineup that refuses to hold up its end of the bargain. For Josh Smith specifically, the clock is ticking. This team cannot wait until June for its shortstop to wake up.

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