Rangers Dethrone Royals in Exhibition Contest

Photo by Tim Heitman/Getty Images

March 24, 2026

Rangers 3, Royals 2

ARLINGTON, Texas (Mar 23) — The Texas Rangers came out on top Monday night, beating the Kansas City Royals, 3–2 in front of a small, but expected crowd of 14,016. Brandon Nimmo was the difference maker in this one with a two-run long ball in the third. With this game in the rearview mirror, the Rangers will now focus their efforts on Opening Day on Thursday, where they will begin a three-game set against the Philadelphia Phillies. Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi will make his third consecutive Opening Day start for the Rangers, while lefty Cristopher Sanchez will get the ball for the Phillies. First pitch is scheduled for 4:15 pm Eastern.

Nimmo Breaks Seal

Things were quiet under the night sky in Arlington for the first two and a half innings. The Rangers took a 2–0 lead in the bottom of the third off right-hander Michael Wacha.

With one out in the frame, Danny Jansen reached on a walk. Up next was Nimmo, who sent one ten rows deep into the stands in right for a two-run blast, his third of the spring.

The Royals cut the lead in half in the top of the seventh. With Robert Garcia on in relief, Salvador Perez led the inning off with a solo shot to center, his third of the spring.

The Rangers added an insurance run in the last of the seventh against reliever Alex Lange. Nimmo started the inning with a sharp single to left. Tyler Wade entered the game as a pinch runner for him.

After Wyatt Langford lined out to left, a wild pitch by Lange advanced Wade to second. He moved to third moments later on a groundout to second by Corey Seager.

On deck was Jake Burger, who plated Wade with a single up the middle.

Royals Claw Back

The Royals answered back in the top of the ninth off reliever Gavin Collyer. Tyler Tolbert led off with a ground-rule double down the right-field line that barely squeaked over the wall. After Josh Rojas and Jac Caglianone both struck out swinging, Brandon Drury scored Tolbert with a single to center.

What Went Right for the Rangers

With Jansen’s walk and Nimmo’s home run, the Rangers were able to find a kink in Wacha’s armor early on. On the defensive side, they were able to keep baserunners to a minimum. This forced the Royals to tip their crowns as they were held scoreless throughout the night. Nimmo also scored the insurance run in the bottom of the seventh.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The blemishes the Rangers gave up were the Perez dinger in the seventh and the RBI single by Drury in the eighth. It had been smooth sailing up until then.

Gore Goes Four

Left-hander MacKenzie Gore made the start for the Rangers on Monday evening. He pitched well, scattering three hits over four innings of scoreless ball and striking out three. He earned the win, bringing his spring record to 2–0 with an ERA of 5.52.

Collyer earned his first save of the spring over two innings. He allowed one run that was earned on two hits while striking out two.

Wa-Wa Wacha

Michael Wacha was saddled with his second loss of the spring, bringing his record to 1–2 with an ERA of 6.89. He gave up two runs, including Nimmo’s homer, on four hits. Wacha also walked three and struck out five.

Schumaker’s Postgame Comments

After new Rangers manager Skip Schumaker quipped about how funny the reporters looked from the elevated press table in the interview room, he gave his thoughts on Gore’s performance. “I thought it was the best that I’ve seen Gore this spring training,” he said. “Since we acquired him, really. He threw a lot of first-pitch strikes and a lot of strikes in general. His secondary pitches were really good as well.”

Baumler’s Good News

One of the feel-good stories out of spring training occurred during Monday’s game. With righty Carter Baumler pitching in the top of the fifth, Schumaker picked an unorthodox time to stage a mound visit — Baumler hadn’t yet faced the minimum three batters. He had instead faced only two batters, both of whom he had swiftly retired — and he admitted he had no idea what Schumaker was about to say to him.

The Rangers traded for Baumler in the offseason after the Pirates picked him in the Rule 5 Draft. That meant the Rangers had to put the 24-year-old on the Opening Day roster — and stow him there for the entire season — to keep him in the organization. Once the decision had been made, Schumaker came up with a creative way to hand out the promotion. The chance came during the visit when Schumaker told him that he had made the team.