Rangers' usually solid starting pitching falters in the midst of WC battle

CHICAGO -- This was a winnable series for the Rangers. They had Jacob deGrom and MacKenzie Gore lined up to start the final two games against the White Sox after winning the first of the three-game set Monday night.

Typically, you feel good about winning at least one of those two contests.

Instead, both deGrom and Gore failed to complete four innings in their starts. While deGrom allowed a career-high-tying eight runs on Tuesday, Chicago hitters hammered Gore to the tune of four runs on eight hits and four walks on Wednesday.

The Rangers ultimately fell, 10-4, to the White Sox on Wednesday night at Rate Field and have now lost six straight road series. As the fireworks blasted following the final out on the South Side, it was the lack of quality starting pitching -- which was supposed to be a strength of this club -- that loomed larger than the offense for once.

“Again, it starts with starting pitching,” said manager Skip Schumaker. “I've said since day one that the health and production of our starting pitching was going to carry us. We acquired Gore and we knew we had deGrom and [Nathan Eovaldi]. We felt pretty good about it. These last two starts were not what they wanted; not what we were thinking was going to happen after winning the first game here. That's not what we thought we're going to get. I don't think they would tell you [they expected] that either.”

Prior to Wednesday, Gore was coming off a stretch in which he was 2-1 with a 3.32 ERA in his last eight games dating back to July 12. His velocity was down a tick across all his pitches and his stuff wasn’t as sharp as he would’ve liked in his first career start against the White Sox.

But he wasn’t looking for excuses.

“Obviously I did not pitch well today,” Gore said. “It just kind of seemed like we all just didn't play well. Not a good time for it. We just didn't play well as a group. I didn't pitch well at all. The good thing is it was only a day, but I'm tired of saying it. I'm sure y'all are tired of hearing it, and we just have to be better.”

The offense, while not solely at fault, was far from perfect on Wednesday night. The Rangers collected eight walks in the first four innings against White Sox starter Sean Burke. In that time, they mustered just two runs -- both coming on a Joc Pederson home run.

By the end of the night, the Rangers had gone 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position, stranding 12 on base. Comparatively, the White Sox went 7-for-11 with runners in scoring position, stranding just seven.

That, in and of itself, explains the 2026 Texas Rangers. The hitting and pitching rarely line up in a single game.

But despite what it may feel like, the Rangers actually aren’t terrible with runners in scoring position. Entering Wednesday, they were tied for the 10th-best average (.259) and tied for 13th in OPS (.751). Not exactly setting the world on fire, but also not as bad as it probably feels to the people watching at home.

“As far as the offense, I mean, we had 10 walks tonight and eight hits,” Schumaker said. “There were a lot of guys on base -- a lot of guys on base last night, a lot of guys on base the night before. So I feel pretty good about where the offense is going and starting to click. I know that there were runners [left] in scoring position, but again, we had 18 guys on base. That's going to translate generally. I'm not frustrated with the offense at all. It was just tough to put up zeros after we scored.”

There are 28 games left in the 2026 season.

The Rangers currently sit a half game back of the Astros in the American League West and two back of the Guardians for the final AL Wild Card spot. They'll need to look like a different team than the one that played on Tuesday and Wednesday night if they want to extend their season into October.

“There's leadership in that room,” Schumaker said. “There's a lot of season left. We’ve put ourselves in a little bit of a hole to start this road trip, but the division is where it's at right now. We still have a chance. A lot of guys are fighting and frustrated. You can feel it and you can sense it, and I get it. I totally understand it. We have an off-day to regroup, and try to win the first game in Milwaukee.”