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At long last, the Texas Rangers are World Series champions. The Rangers won the first World Series in franchise history a year ago -- it was their 63rd season, including their 11 years as the Washington Senators -- and they did it the hard way. They clinched a postseason berth in Game 161 and they were the road team against the 99-win Tampa Bay Rays in the Wild Card Series, the 101-win Baltimore Orioles in the ALCS, and the then-defending World Series champion Houston Astros in the ALCS.

"That's a credit to (GM) Chris Young and the ownership, Ray Davis. They were determined to get winning baseball back to the Texas Rangers," manager Bruce Bochy said after the title-clinching Game 5 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. "... And they did everything they said they were going to do. They went out and got started pitching, improved the club. We had young talent coming up. I knew this was a good ballclub. So I am very fortunate, blessed to come into this. It's such a great group of guys. But it starts at the top. Those guys were committed. And, look, we're in a good place now."

Now comes the hard part: doing it again. The Rangers will try to become the first team to win back-to-back World Series titles since the New York Yankees from 1998-2000. The offense that averaged 5.71 runs per game with a .792 OPS last postseason is largely intact, though the starting rotation looks a bit thin, at least to begin the season. Let's preview the 2024 season for the reigning champions.

Win total projection, odds

  • 2023 record: 90-72 (won World Series)
  • 2024 SportsLine win total over/under: 88.5
  • World Series odds (via SportsLine): +1400

Projected lineup

  1. 2B Marcus Semien, RHB
  2. SS Corey Seager, LHB
  3. RF Adolis García, RHB
  4. LF Evan Carter, LHB
  5. 3B Josh Jung, RHB
  6. 1B Nate Lowe, LHB
  7. C Jonah Heim, SHB
  8. DH Ezequiel Duran, RHB
  9. CF Leody Taveras, SHB

That's the full strength lineup and the Rangers are not at full strength at the moment. Seager is recovering from January sports hernia surgery and it's still unclear whether he'll be ready for Opening Day. The same goes for Jung, who injured his calf in spring training. If either misses time, Duran would slide into the infield, and it could clear a path for blocked prospect Justin Foscue to make the roster. As it stands, the DH spot is wide open following Mitch Garver's free agent departure, and it's only a matter of time until top prospect Wyatt Langford fills it. That could happen as soon as Opening Day.

Projected rotation

  1. RHP Nathan Eovaldi
  2. RHP Jon Gray
  3. LHP Andrew Heaney
  4. RHP Dane Dunning
  5. LHP Cody Bradford

I think we've all been waiting for the "Rangers re-sign Jordan Montgomery" news since the end of the World Series, but it still hasn't arrived, and it may not. It seems like Montgomery and Scott Boras are waiting for ownership to relent and raise payroll, which at a projected $243.8 million for competitive balance tax purposes (per FanGraphs) would be a franchise record (it was $242.1 million in 2023). Texas hopes Jacob deGrom (Tommy John surgery), Tyler Mahle (Tommy John surgery), and Max Scherzer (back surgery) will join the club in the second half. Until then, there is opportunity abound for youngsters like Owen White and Cole Winn.

Projected bullpen

The Rangers ranked 24th in bullpen ERA and had more blown saves (33) than saves (30) last regular season, but everything resets in the postseason, and Leclerc and Sborz in particular stepped up big time in October. Robertson and Yates, two grizzled late-inning veterans who've seen it all in this game, were brought in over the winter to provide support. Burke fell out favor at times last year and Latz has thrown only 6 1/3 innings in the big leagues. Texas currently lacks a reliable lefty reliever, something that is rather important when you play in a division that features lefty bats like Yordan Alvarez, J.P. Crawford, and Kyle Tucker. 

Do they have enough pitching to get through the first half?

It could still happen, but the odds Montgomery returns to the Rangers grow a little smaller with each passing day. Or do they? No one really knows, though I'm inclined to say that if a reunion were going to happen, it probably would have happened already. As things stands, Montgomery is not a Ranger, and we will preview the team accordingly.

There's a chance the Rangers will have a fierce 1-2-3 going into the postseason with deGrom and Scherzer joining Eovaldi after they return from their surgeries at midseason. Mahle would then be a candidate for the No. 4 spot along with Gray, Heaney, and Dunning. That is the perfect world scenario, and how often is the world perfect? Never. Just getting there will be a challenge.

Eovaldi has a long injury history himself -- including missing six weeks with a forearm injury in the second half last year -- and Gray had his own forearm trouble late in the season, the timing of which limited him to bullpen duty in the postseason. Heaney is hardly an innings-eater, and while Bradford had some moments last year, he profiles as a swingman type. Instead, he'll be in the rotation to start the season.

Dunning led the team with 172 2/3 innings last season and he'll be counted on to provide length and spare the bullpen every fifth day. Otherwise the Rangers are looking at youngsters like White and Winn as their first layer of depth, with non-roster veterans like Danny Duffy, Adrian Sampson, and José Ureña also candidates to make spot starts. Perhaps big name prospect Jack Leiter could make an appearance too.

The Rangers were ultra-aggressive upgrading their rotation last year. They signed deGrom and Eovaldi in the winter, and when both got hurt during the season, they traded for Montgomery and Scherzer at the deadline. This offseason was a bit more low-key, which is easier to swallow coming off a championship, but the fact is the rotation to start the season is a bit iffy.

The AL West figures to again be very competitive in 2024. The Astros are the Astros, doubt them at your own risk, and the Seattle Mariners should be improved. Mike Trout looms to ruin your night whenever you play the Los Angeles Angels too. The margin of error is small, and Texas will need the rotation to hold up in the first half until the reinforcements arrive in the second half.

How long until Langford arrives?

The Rangers captured the first World Series in franchise history and the winning started in the offseason. Texas moved up from the No. 7 pick to the No. 4 pick in MLB's first ever draft lottery, and with that No. 4 pick they landed Langford, who has been compared to George Springer and could have easily gone No. 1 overall. The Rangers won big on draft lottery day.

Langford, 22, came out of the University of Florida and he slashed .360/.480/.677 with 10 home runs and more walks (36) than strikeouts (34) in 44 games after the draft. He reached Triple-A and there was some talk the Rangers could add him to the World Series roster after García went down with an oblique injury. That did not happen, though it shows how close Langford is to the show.

Our R.J. Anderson ranked Langford the No. 4 prospect in the game before spring training. Here's a snippet his write-up:

CBS Sports ranked Langford as the No. 2 player in the draft class last summer, noting that he would've been a quality No. 1 pick most years ... He has unorthodox swing mechanics -- he barely loads his hands and he steps in the bucket -- yet scouts have felt confident giving him plus offensive projections even before he took a pro at-bat. Langford also possesses sneaky speed, and there was some thought he would be able to begin his big-league career in center. He's unlikely to receive that opportunity with the Rangers, though it's possible he gets the chance to make the team out of camp.

Langford is mashing this spring -- he recently slugged three home runs in two games -- and GM Chris Young has indicated that if the Rangers believe he is ready to help the team, he will be on the Opening Day roster. "(Langford is in) real competition to make the club ... He will tell us when he's ready, and if that's now, it's now," Young told ESPN earlier this spring.

With Garver gone, there is an opening at DH, and you'd needn't try to hard to see how a four-man outfield/DH rotation could work with Carter, García, Langford, and Taveras. Carter arrived last September and was an impact player right away, and through the postseason. Langford should arrive soon, if not on Opening Day, and he's a leading AL Rookie of the Year candidate entering 2024.

What would make for a successful season?

The Rangers will be the latest team to try to win consecutive World Series since the 1998-2000 Yankees. That's the ultimate goal, right? They won their first title, now they'll try to add a second. There's plenty of talent on the roster, there are reinforcements coming at midseason, and they have a Hall of Fame manager and a front office that is not scared of making big moves. That's the goal entering 2024: Win the World Series again.

Texas does not have to win the World Series to have a successful season, however. Fully incorporating Carter and Langford into the lineup, perhaps a young pitcher like White or Winn as well, and getting healthy and encouraging returns from deGrom and Mahle would be major wins in the big picture. Even if they fall short of repeating as World Series champs, the Rangers would feel pretty good about 2025 if those things happen.

Realistically, the Rangers winning the AL West and playing more home postseason games than they did last year would qualify as a success, I think. Texas played six games at home and 11 on the road last postseason, and they won all 11 too. That is a heck of an accomplishment. The Rangers could make their lives a little easier this time around though. Win the division, earn a Wild Card Series bye, and play a bunch of postseason games in front of the home fans. That would be a good outcome in 2024.