Texas Rangers: Answering the 3 biggest questions of the off-season

Is 2023 still a realistic goal for the Texas Rangers to start competing again?

This is perhaps the question that matters the most in the grand scheme of things.

We’re going to find out just how serious the Rangers are about having set 2023 as their goal to return to “contention”.

If things continue along their current trajectory in the farm system, along with Texas following through on their promises to spend money this winter, it’s very possible that 2023 enters the picture as a contention year for the Rangers.

I expect Cole Winn, Josh Jung and Sam Huff to all be big leaguers by next season, with Jung probably winning a job right out of spring training. With those three prospects likely to arrive, and many more on the way behind them, that starts the 2023 clock, in effect.

Now, throw in some names from free agency to the roster mix for 2022 and all of a sudden, this team looks a lot better than they did in 2021. Enough to compete? Don’t hold your breath. But a 10-15 win improvement? Maybe even 20? That could be possible with this team in 2022.

It’s not as if a high threshold has been set for the Rangers to clear, with just 60 wins in 2021. But an off-season of spending and the anticipation of prospect promotions in 2022 should set the stage for a competitive 2023.

If Texas has a good off-season, 75-80 wins might not be out of the question in 2022. And considering how bad 2021 was, that would be a huge improvement and a majorly positive sign going forward.