2 Rangers players who deserve more playing time, 2 who deserve less

After 27 games the Texas Rangers are currently mixing up the lineup a bit trying to spice up the offensive production and attempt to ride away with the divisional lead early into the season.

Starting Tuesday to kick off the Rangers series against the Athletics in Sacramento, they moved Marcus Semien out of the leadoff spot and moved Josh Smith and Wyatt Langford to the 1-2 spot. They mixed up the lineup again, minus Corey Seager, with Kevin Pillar leading off the game against the lefty JP sears.

It seems Texas is starting to see what is working and what isn't and are trying to get ahead of a potential dive in the standings. And that means switching the lineup up, sitting some regulars and showcasing different lineup constructions to see what works.

2 Rangers players that deserve more playing time in 2025

Dustin Harris

When Harris got called up during the Rangers series against the Cubs earlier in April, he provided a much needed spark to the lineup. He started his 2025 season by reaching base safely in four of his first eight games.

The 25-year-old is slashing .250/.280/.458 with a home run, an RBI, two doubles, four runs and an .738 OPS in 24 at-bats.

Harris also has the ability to play all three outfield positions, which was beneficial when Wyatt Langford went on the IL where he's played left field six times and even made a start in centerfield. Any bit of youth into the lineup that is putting up disciplined, productive at-bats, he should without a doubt stay in the lineup.

Kevin Pillar

I understand Pillar is more of a left-handed pitcher specialist, as his righty/lefty splits are signficantly different throughout his career, but his above-average defense to me is justification to get him extra playing time.

Known for his glove, Pillar, is hitting .300 in 30 at-bats this year. It may not stand out as much given the small sample size but he has absolutely crushed righties and with the revamped offense he's batted leadoff a handful of times and gives Wyatt Langford ample RBI opportunities with his speed.

There's no reason Pillar shouldn't get opportunities to spark some offense and quite frankly keep Taveras out of the outfield.

2 Rangers players that deserve less playing time in 2025

Joc Pederson

Pederson finally snapped out of his 0-for-41 stretch on Wednesday against the A's and came through with his first RBI of the season on Friday in San Francisco but he's still only hitting .077 on the year.

It especially hurts when Pederson doesn't serve a purpose beyond serving as the team's designated hitter against righties. If he was able to play defense and show his value on the other side of the diamond then it would sting less but that's just not the case.

Texas has several players on the roster or in their farm system that can step up and fill the role of DH instead of Pederson. It can't hurt to try since it's nearly impossible to get worse than a hitter who only has five hits on the season.

Leody Taveras

After another game-changing misplay in centerfield this week agains the Athletics, it should be a pretty clear indicator that Taveras should not be seeing regular playing time.

Taveras, 26, is the organization's longest tenured player but this season he's only hitting .200 with a homer, six RBIs and a .504 OPS. In addition, his defense has taken a dramatic step backwards and it's been hurting the team in critical moments in the first full month of the season.

At this point, Harris can take over the reigns of the everyday centerfielder or Evan Carter, who is hitting .310 in Triple-A Round Rock since April 10, can finally get the call back up to the majors and act as a spark.