ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — With the Texas Rangers back in the postseason for the first time since 2016, the American League West runners-up will have a tall task ahead of them in the Wild Card round as they meet the team with the second-most wins in the AL, the Tampa Bay Rays.
It's the first season for manager Bruce Bochy in the Texas dugout and he brings a roster into this series that has been impacted by injuries, particularly on the pitching side where big names like Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom are not available.
Texas Rangers 26-man roster for Wild Card series against Tampa Bay Rays
The Rangers will employ 13 pitchers and 13 position players on their Wild Card roster. Here is the breakdown.
Pitchers: Grant Anderson, Brock Burke, Matt Bush, Aroldis Chapman, Dane Dunning, Nathan Eovaldi, Andrew Heaney, José Leclerc, Jordan Montgomery, Martín Pérez, Josh Sborz, Will Smith, Chris Stratton
Catchers: Mitch Garver, Austin Hedges, Jonah Heim
Infielders: Josh Jung, Nathaniel Lowe, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Josh H. Smith
Outfielders: Evan Carter, Adolis García, Robbie Grossman, Travis Jankowski, Leody Taveras
Jordan Montgomery, acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals at the MLB trade deadline, will get the ball for the Rangers in Game 1 of the best-of-three series. As a member of the New York Yankees in 2020, Montgomery pitched against Tampa Bay in the ALDS, going 4.0 innings and allowing one run on three hits.
Texas Rangers starting lineup for Wild Card Game 1 against Tampa Bay Rays
Marcus Semien, 2B
Corey Seager, SS
Robbie Grossman, DH
Adolis Garcia, RF
Nathaniel Lowe, 1B
Jonah Heim, C
Leody Taveras, CF
Josh Jung, 3B
Evan Carter, LF
We are live at Tropicana Field and will be providing stories during and after the game throughout the series. Be sure to check out our Rays-Rangers preview here.
