Texas’ starting pitchers led the league with a 3.41 ERA last season, but the club will need to replace a lot of reliable innings in 2026. Patrick Korbin tied deGrom for most starts on the team at age 30. He is now a free agent. Tyler Mahle and acquisition of trade deadlines Merrill Kelly both left of their own free will.
Here’s a look at the remaining mix of options to round out the rotation.
Kumar Rocker
Rocker would be the favorite for the fifth starter job based on pedigree. The 26-year-old was the third overall pick in the 2022 draft. Eric Longenhagen and James Fegan of FanGraphs left Rocker alone Sebastian Walcott among the Rangers prospects midway through last season. That was even after the highly touted righty was destroyed for 18 earned runs in 20 innings to open the year. He ended up on the IL at the end of April with a shoulder problem.
Rocker returned to the major leagues nine times in June and July. He posted an ERA of 4.67, although an xFIP of 4.14 and a SIERA of 4.34 suggest he was slightly better than that mark. Rocker found himself back in Triple-A in August. He has yet to impress for an extended period at the highest level, but will likely get a chance to stay in the rotation this spring.
Jacob Latz
Texas used Latz in a Swiss Army Knife role last year, and he pitched well when called upon. The 29-year-old left-hander made eight starts and 25 relief appearances last season. Latz’s versatile outing included a quality start and a three-inning save in the span of a week. He compiled a 2.84 ERA in 85 2/3 innings. It came with an xERA and a SIERA above 4.00, so expectations should be tempered, but there could be enough here for Latz to be a full-fledged starter.
Latz relied on a three-pitch mix with a fastball, changeup and slider. He also mixed in a curveball to right-handed hitters. Latz used each of his three main pitches more than 20% of the time, so the repertoire is deeper than that of a typical reliever. The fastball was dominant, holding hitters to a .193 batting average while posting a run value of +11. The change took a whiff of over 40%. Latz will play a role on this team one way or another.
Cal Quantrill, Austin Gomber, Nabil Crismatt
The Rangers brought in this group of veterans on minor league deals. They serve as depth pieces if injuries occur. One of them could find his way into the rotation if Rocker flops in the spring and the club prefers Latz out of the bullpen.
Quantrill spent 2025 with the Marlins and Braves, posting an ERA above 6.00 over 26 starts. He finished last season in the Rangers’ minor league system. Gomber was cut by the Rockies in August after a dozen starts. He joined the Cubs on a minor league deal but did not make the major league club. Crismatt actually pitched decently last year, posting a 2.70 ERA in his first six games with the Diamondbacks. He was crushed out of the bullpen in his final appearance of the year, which taints the final line.
Bring Corbin back
The veteran southpaw revived his career in his lone season as a Ranger. After four brutal years to close out his time in Washington, Corbin was one of the biggest surprises in the first half of 2025, posting a sub-4.00 ERA through July, with the underlying numbers to back it up. Corbin’s performance dipped in the final two months of the season, but he still posted a respectable overall performance. Whatever the Rangers did with him seemed to work, and he could probably be brought back for minimal commitment.
Photo courtesy of Steven Bisig, images
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