The Texas Rangers lost their home opener for a second consecutive season, and both losses were eerily similar in how they played out.
ARLINGTON — A winning road trip to open season created optimism that the 2026 Texas Rangers are going to be different. The brand so far had been good offense, a good vibes and solid starting pitching.
That’s what the sellout crowd at Globe Life Field was hoping to see that Friday in the home opener. What they didn’t want to see is the continued bullpen issues and missed opportunities that plagued the team in 2025.
And it plagued the Rangers right from the home opener. So if the Rangers’ 5-3 loss Friday felt familiar, it was.
Chris Martin allowed a two-run homer in the ninth inning to break a 3-3 tie, and the Rangers’ offense didn’t cash in on an opportunity in the sixth inning that led to their demise against the Reds.
“Obviously, you want to win on the home opener,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “I thought the fight was great in the second inning, two outs, nobody on, fighting back and tying the game, and then tying it again late. We gave it up in the ninth.”
In the 2025 home opener, which doubled as the season opener, Luke Jackson surrendered a three-run homer in the ninth inning that led to a 5-2 Red Sox victory. Nathan Eovaldi pitched well enough in that game for the Rangers to win it, and MacKenzie Gore did that Friday.
Making his first home start with the Rangers, Gore struck out nine and didn’t walk a batter over six innings. He allowed three runs on two homers, but otherwise showed the home crowd that he can be as good as the Rangers expected when they acquired him in a January trade.
Spencer Steer got Gore for a two-run homer in the second, and Elly de la Cruz started the sixth with a liner that just cleared the wall in left field.
“I think you just want two pitches back,” said Gore, who threw 88 pitches. “I think we’re mixing. All the pitches, the shapes are good. The two homers, the execution wasn’t great, but I think it’s gone well so far.”
The Rangers had an immediate counter for the Steer homer, with Danny Jansen collecting a two-out, two-run double in the Rangers’ second. They answered the de la Cruz homer in the seventh as Wyatt Langford followed Brandon Nimmo’s one-out triple with a double.
But they missed out on two chances to bring home Langford an inning after missing on three tries to get Jake Burger home following a leadoff double. Andrew McCutchen and Josh Smith grounded out, and, after Josh Jung walked, Evan Carter struck out on three pitches.
The left-handed hitter was facing Reds lefty reliever Sam Moll in a spot where a pinch-hitter might have been in order. Schumaker, though, said that it was too early to hit for Carter, who has struggled in his career against lefties.
“You have to give him opportunity, because you just don’t know,” Schumaker said. “He’s earned the opportunity. He’s still young, he’s still trying to figure out the league, and we know he can hit. That’s very obvious. What can he do in the middle of the game against lefties is really the question.”
Neither offense did much until the Reds broke through in the ninth against Martin, who was the choice against a string of right-handed hitters. Steer started the inning with a double, and Tyler Stephenson fought back from an 0-2 count to lift an full-count sinker over the wall in right-center.
Martin said afterward that he has struggled with the location of his pitches this season and that his off-speed pitches aren’t dialed in yet. His velocity was up, Schumaker said, and he will continue to get late-inning leverage chances.
Martin has a 13.50 ERA after four outings. That’s a small sample size, for sure, but it feels like more of the same from the Rangers’ late-inning relievers last season.
“Chris gave up a homer,” Schumaker said. “I think it’s uncharacteristic, honestly. I think he’s going to have more good outings than bad outings. I’m confident in that. It’s early in the season. He’s had a couple of innings under his belt. He’s going to be OK.”
So are the Rangers, even though this home-opening loss had a familiar feel to it.
Jeff Wilson, jwilson@alldlls.com
