The Texas Rangers were founded in 1961 as the Washington Senators and played their first 11 seasons in the nations capital with just one winning season before moving to down to Texas and becoming the Rangers. It wasn't exactly a quick fix for the franchise, which tallied 100-losses in their first two seasons in Texas, but soon things began to turnaround. By the late 70's the team were winning 83+ games, and while another down period would come it was never so bad as things started.
In 1996 the Rangers claimed their first division title, their first of three in four seasons, but they never got beyond the LDS. After that 95-win season in 1999 they wouldn't get back to the playoffs until 2010, when a team led by Josh Hamilton, Vladimir Guerrero, and Nelson Cruz took the team to their first AL Pennant but they fell in the World Series. The next season they again crushed the American League and went to the World Series, only lose a 3-2 series lead and fall in game 7.
The Rangers claimed the AL West division again in 2015 & 2016 but lost in the LDS, and in 2018 they hit the bottom of the division. Can you bring them back to prominence and finally claim the franchises first World Series title?
*All stats correct at time of writing
Team Rating
MLB The Show 19 doesn't provide a single team OVR like other sports games. Instead each team gets a ranking within the league from 1st to 30th, and sub-rankings for individual aspects of the roster. This is useful as it shows you exactly where a team sits within the league and clearly shows its strengths and weaknesses, but it does mean you can't clearly see the gulf in class between the 3rd ranked side and the 13th.
The Texas Rangers come into The Show 19 ranked 23rd in the Majors, which is not great. Their strength comes with the glove and their 10th ranked defense as well as their 12th ranked speed. The weakness of the roster is the 26th ranked pitching, along with their 21st ranked contact, while their power comes in at a solid 16th.
Financially the Rangers do not have the muscle to compete with the American League monsters in the east. Their team budget of $140 million is solid enough to build a good roster, but it will need to revolve around cheap young players. Any signings made will need to be carefully considered. Who are the players on the current roster that you can build around?
Jose Leclerc, Closing Pitcher (87 OVR)
Age: 25
Throws/Bats: R/R
Contract: 4 years/$14.6 million
Pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Changeup, 2-Seam Fastball
Best Stats: Break (99), K/9 (99), H/9 (99), Velocity (88), HR/9 (86), Clutch (76), Arm Strength (68)
Jose Leclerc signed with the Texas Rangers as an international free agent in November 2010. He got his MLB debut with them in 2016, pitching 15 innings with a 1.80 ERA and 15 strikeouts. In 2017 he made 47 appearances for the Rangers, pitching 45.2 innings with 60 strikeouts and a 3.94 ERA. In 2018 he got a chance to close some games and secured 12 saves with a 1.56 ERA, pitching 57.2 innings with 85 strikeouts.
In The Show 19 Leclerc has elite break (99) and quality velocity (88). He can avoid hits brilliantly (99) and is a strikeout machine (99). He's good in the clutch (76) too but his control is poor (35). Leclerc is still young and that can improve, but with his elite stats you can work around that.
Joey Gallo, Left Field (84 OVR)
Age: 25
Throws/Bats: R/L
Contract: 1 year/$575,000 + 3 years arbitration
Secondary Position: 1B, 3B, CF
Hitter Tendency: Extreme Pull
Best Stats: Power vs R (99), Power vs L (99), Discipline (98), Durability (90), Arm Strength (85), Arm Accuracy (74)
Joey Gallo was a first-round pick for the Rangers in 2012 and got his MLB debut in 2015, playing 36 games and hitting 6 homers with a .204 average. In 2017 he was an everyday player and immediately mashed, hammering 41 homers and 18 doubles, but with a poor average of .209. In 2018 he mirrored that season, hitting 40 homers, 24 doubles, and a .206 average.
In The Show 19 Gallo is the most powerful hitter around (99/99). That comes with elite discipline at the plate (98) to draw walks but little else. His contact skills are poor (34/40) and his vision (18) is awful. Gallo does have good durability (90) and arm strength (85) though.
Rougned Odor, Second Base (83 OVR)
Age: 25
Throws/Bats: R/L
Contract: 5 years/$55 million
Secondary Position: None
Hitter Tendency: Extreme Pull
Best Stats: Durability (79), Power vs R (73), Fielding (71), Bunt (68), Drag Bunt (68), Reaction (67), Speed (65), Contact vs R (64)
Rougned Odor signed with the Rangers as an international free agent in 2011. He got his MLB debut in 2014, playing 114 games with a .259 average, 9 homers, and 4 steals. By 2016 Odor was an everyday player and had found his power stroke. He hit 33 homers, 33 doubles, with a .271 average and swiped 14 bases. The average has fluctuated recently, but the power is still there.
In The Show 19 Odor has nice talent at the plate, especially against righties (contact 64, power 73). He is good in the field (71) and has nice speed too (65). He can lay down a bunt (68) and has ok durability too (79). His vision (57) and discipline (58) aren't great, and he is poor in the clutch (43).
Texas Rangers MLB Roster
There can be small differences in player OVR in The Show 19 from save to save, but the underlying stats are always the same. We'll start our look at the Rangers MLB roster with the position players and then move onto the pitchers.
Player | OVR | Age | Position | Bat Hand | Best Contact | Best Power | Fielding | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Joey Gallo | 84 | 25 | LF | L | 40 (L) | 99 (R/L) | 72 | 59 |
Rougned Odor | 83 | 25 | 2B | L | 64 (R) | 72 (R) | 71 | 65 |
Elvis Andrus | 82 | 30 | SS | R | 78 (L) | 53 (L) | 68 | 48 |
Shin-Soo Choo | 79 | 36 | LF | L | 72 (L) | 72 (R) | 50 | 32 |
Asdrubal Cabrera | 79 | 33 | 3B | S | 92 (L) | 64 (R) | 52 | 25 |
Delino DeShields Jr | 78 | 26 | CF | R | 54 (L) | 41 (L) | 76 | 95 |
Nomar Mazara | 74 | 23 | RF | L | 68 (R) | 65 (R) | 60 | 45 |
Hunter Pence | 74 | 35 | RF | R | 70 (L) | 55 (L) | 55 | 67 |
Jett Bandy | 71 | 29 | C | R | 46 (L) | 60 (L) | 59 | 2 |
Ronald Guzman | 71 | 24 | 1B | L | 54 (R) | 62 (R) | 73 | 36 |
Player | OVR | Age | Position | Throw Hand | Stamina | Control | Velocity | Break |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jose Leclerc | 87 | 25 | CP | R | 25 | 35 | 88 | 99 |
Mike Minor | 82 | 31 | SP | L | 76 | 69 | 67 | 94 |
Chris Martin | 78 | 32 | RP | R | 24 | 71 | 89 | 55 |
Drew Smyly | 77 | 29 | SP | L | 81 | 62 | 56 | 74 |
Shelby Miller | 76 | 28 | SP | R | 84 | 66 | 79 | 86 |
Lance Lynn | 76 | 31 | SP | R | 79 | 36 | 74 | 87 |
Shawn Kelley | 74 | 34 | RP | R | 23 | 73 | 66 | 94 |
Matt Bush | 72 | 33 | RP | R | 30 | 76 | 92 | 68 |
Zach McAllister | 70 | 31 | RP | R | 26 | 65 | 88 | 68 |
Jason Hammel | 69 | 36 | SP | R | 70 | 67 | 70 | 66 |
The Rangers MLB roster is made up of 13 position players and 12 pitchers. That gives you your 9-man starting lineup and a 4-man bench and a 5-man starting rotation with a 7-man bullpen, including your closer.
The offense for Texas will come primarily from Joey Gallo (power R 99, power L 99), Elvis Andrus (contact L 78, contact R 77), and Asdrubal Cabrera (contact L 92, Power R 64). They will be supported by the likes of Rougned Odor (power R 73, contact R 64), Shin-Soo Choo (power R 72, contact L 72), and Nomar Mazara (contact R 68, power R 65).
Defensively Jeff Mathis is a star behind the plate (fielding 95, blocking 85) and Delino DeShields Jr is a solid center fielder (fielding 76). Joey Gallo can play his position well (fielding 72) and has the arm strength (85) to throw out runners.
The Rangers starting rotation is not a strong one. It is anchored by Mike Minor (break 94, stamina 76) with Drew Smyly (stamina 81, break 74) in the #2 spot. Neither are particularly well-suited to leading a rotation, with Minor more at home in the #3 slot than leading the line. Shelby Miller (break 86, stamina 84) and Lance Lynn (break 87, stamina 79) take the #3 and #4 spots in the rotation, and Jason Hammel (velocity 70, stamina 70) is #5. The first place to look for improvement should be here.
The bullpen has a legitimate future star in Jose Leclerc (break 99, velocity 88). To get to him you'll need to use the likes of Chris Martin (velocity 89, control 71) and Shawn Kelley (break 94, clutch 81). Behind those three you can use Matt Bush (velocity 92, control 76) to get out of a tight spot and Zach McAllister (velocity 88, break 68) is solid too. Jeffrey Springs (velocity 61, break 58) and Jesse Chavez (break 86, velocity 77) are your innings-eaters should a starter blow up.
Lineups
The Show 19 has 4 lineups that you'll need to use. These are against right-handed starters with or without the DH, and against left-handed starters with and without the DH. As the Rangers are in the American League most of their games will be played with the DH. They game will preset lineups for you, let's take a look at what they are before we try to improve on them.
Against righties with the DH The Show 19 puts CF Delino DeShields Jr at the top of the order, with DH Shin-Soo Choo and SS Elvis Andrus getting first inning at-bats. LF Joey Gallo hits #4 and 2B Rougned Odor is #5 followed by RF Nomar Mazara, 3B Asdrubal Cabrera, and 1B Ronald Guzman as C Jett Bandy rounds out the order. Without the DH DeShields drops to the bench, with Gallo playing CF and Choo coming into LF while Cabrera moves to the lead-off spot.
Against lefties DeShields still leads off, with Hunter Pence playing RF and hitting #2. Andrus & Gallo are #3 & #4 with Cabrera hitting #5 ahead of Choo, Odor, Guzman, and Bandy. Without the DH DeShields again heads to the bench and Cabrera leads off.
These lineups are pretty solid, but we can improve on them to generate a bit more offense.
Now we have Elvis Andrus leading off against righties, with Choo second and Gallo promoted to #3 to get his booming bat more chances to blast homers. Mazara will hit #4 followed by Odor, Cabrera, DeShields, Guzman, and Bandy. Without the DH DeShields still drops, with Choo playing LF and Gallo at CF.
Against lefties we have permanently moved Cabrera to #1, followed by Andrus and Gallo playing 1B. Hunter Pence steps up at #4, with Choo next and then DeShields, Odor, Mazara, and Jeff Mathis behind the plate. Without the DH DeShields is again benched along with Mazara as Gallo moves to CF and Ronald Guzman plays 1B and hits #7.
Farm System
The farm system in MLB The Show 19 can be frustrating. The fluctuations in player OVR can also influence potential, which can change how a prospect develops. There is also a lack of some real life prospects which means you can't just pull up a list from your favorite scout and work off that. There are still some quality prospects floating around the Minors, these are the ones that could break into the Texas Rangers roster and improve them.
Brett Castro, Closing Pitcher (68 OVR)
Age: 21
Potential: A
Throws/Bats: R/S
Pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Sinker, Slider
Best Stats: Velocity (79), HR/9 (63), K/9 (63), Clutch (60), Break (55)
The Rangers have a quality closer, but bullpens can be fickle and it is always wise to have another option. Brett Castro is already solid in the clutch (60) and has nice enough velocity (79) for such a young player. His break (55) could be better and his control (46) needs improvement but that will come with time.
Domingo Francisco, Starting Pitcher (64 OVR)
Age: 19
Potential: C
Throws/Bats: L/S
Pitches: Running Fastball, Slider, Changeup, Curveball
Best Stats: Arm Strength (81), Stamina (75), Velocity (73), BB/9 (68), Clutch (67), Break (62)
The Rangers starting rotation needs help, and the cheapest way to find that help is from your farm system. Domingo Francisco has the stamina (75) to take the ball regularly and go deep in games, and his combination of velocity (73) and break (62) is solid enough to get outs. He is good in the clutch (67) and has nice control (53) for a teenager. Improvements will come with time and eventually he can be a serious option for the Rangers and maybe be their next ace.
Woody McClelland, Right Field (59 OVR)
Age: 21
Potential: D
Throws/Bats: R/R
Secondary Position: LF, CF
Hitter Tendency: Whole Field
Best Stats: Baserunning Aggressiveness (89), Speed (87), Durability (82), Stealing (66), Fielding (65), Power vs L (64)
The Rangers outfield is solid, but with both Shin-Soo Choo and Hunter Pence approaching the end of their career having another option is a wise idea. Woody McClelland bring speed (87) to any lineup and already has nice durability (82). He has solid power (54/64) though his contact skill needs work (33/36). His vision (29) and discipline (31) needs a lot of work but they will improve with experience, and his fielding (65) is good enough to come up should injuries strike.