Rangers should follow Marlins starting rotation experiment in 2027

As the 2026 regular season is close to wrapping up, Skip Schumaker has done something with the Texas Rangers pitching staff that we've never seen before. The Rangers may or may not make the playoffs, but it is fair to say they have been playing what amounts to postseason baseball over the last month, jockeying with the Astros and others for a playoff spot.

During that time, Schumaker has used established starters as long relievers, pitching multiple innings from the 6th to closing out games. Guys like Nathan Eovaldi, Trevor Williams, and Jordan Montgomery have relieved starters for most of September. Montgomery collected the first save of his 10-year career as the Rangers salvaged the home finale against the lowly Mets on Thursday.

Skip Schumaker's former team is experimenting with a unique system in Miami, and the Rangers should implement something similar in 2027

There has been a precedent set with Schumaker's former team, the Miami Marlins, of using extra starters as swingmen who can give the pen an extra quality arm or two to shore up a weak spot between starts. Schumaker won Manager of the Year with Miami in 2024 before joining the Rangers in an advisory role.

Marlin's skipper Clayton McCullough has used former Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez as relievers on what would be bullpen throw days. Alcantara just became the first pitcher since saves became a stat in 1969 to pitch 5+ innings as a starter, collect a save, pitch another 5+ innings in a start, and collect a save in four consecutive appearances.

Why can't a starter's high-intensity bullpen day be a one-inning live in-game situation? It's a far more efficient way to use your staff and potentially optimize a pitcher on a hot streak. Of course, we aren't sure what the staff will look like next year, as guys like Cal Quantrill, Montgomery, and Williams will all be free agents after this season, and we know how Ray Davis loves to make Chris Young piece-meal his bullpen each season. So, there will likely be some new faces at Globe Life Field next season.

Nevertheless, we have seen something close to what the Marlins are doing with their starters with Jacob Latz last season and a little bit in 2026 with Quantrill, who transitioned from long relief to the team's most capable second-half starter. It should also be noted that Latz has hit a bit of a wall recently, and Quantrill is out for the season with a left lat injury. Still, they have been the Rangers' most versatile and valuable arms as deGrom and Eovaldi have faded down the stretch.

Seeing how Schumaker has handled aging vets like deGrom and Evo with a tight leash on their pitch counts, it will have to be guys toward the back end of the rotation, like a healthy Jack Leiter or Kumar Rocker, who would be the most likely candidates to take on the hybrid role with the Rangers.

Ideally, it would also be an effective way to get a pitcher coming off a poor start back on the mound to quickly regain his confidence and contribute something positive to the team. It could also mitigate some of the wear and tear a full-time closer endures throughout a 162-game schedule. Latz would definitely have had more left in the tank recently if Schumaker had employed the strategy earlier in the season.

The modern game is changing more rapidly now than ever before. With Schumaker being a young, data-driven manager who has already toyed with traditional roles this season, we are all in favor of tweaking even more if it helps the Rangers get out of this three-year post-World Series purgatory. If used effectively, it could give the club a "hidden" extra arm in the pen most nights. That seems like a prospect that Schumaker would love.

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