Is Nathan Eovaldi the Rangers' early spring favorite to get the ball on Opening Day?

Two full days remain until the Texas Rangers take the field for the first time this spring and movement is beginning to shape the strucutre of the roster for the regular season.

Set to make his spring debut, right-hander Nathan Eovaldi will start the Rangers' first spring game on Friday against complex-mates Kansas City Royals.

Eovaldi was the first of the Rangers' rotation arms to get a start last spring and later earned the opportunity to start Opening Day last season. Will that trend stay true this season?

Is Eovaldi favorite to start Opening Day for Rangers?

The 35-year-old has made two straight Opening Day starts for Texas over the past two seasons, becoming the first pitcher to start back-to-back Opening Days for the club since Kevin Millwood started four straight from 2006-09.

In 2024 he did so because the year's previous Opening Day starter, Jacob deGrom was still recovering from Tommy John Surgery and last season, Texas made a late spring decision to not start deGrom until the fourth game of the year.

It's still way too early in the season but it is worth noting that Eovaldi's spring debut last season came in the clubs first Cactus League game and later translated into the Opening Day bid.

If Eovaldi ended up with the start to open the season, it will be his third straight Opening Day bid with the Rangers and the sixth of his 15 year career.

Texas has a deep starting rotation heading into the 2026 season with Eovaldi, deGrom, Jack Leiter, MacKenzie Gore and an option of Jacob Latz or Kumar Rocker. The Rangers will also start the year on the road with a six-game set against Philadelphia and Baltimore before their first home series against the Reds in the first weekend of April.