In the most recent edition of Rangers Reacts, we asked how you thought the Texas Rangers’ 2026 regular season would end — winning the division, missing the playoffs, or one of the Wild Card berths.
The voting was close for the top spot…
…but there were slightly more folks who think the Rangers will win the division than think the Rangers will miss out on the playoffs altogether. When including those who think the Rangers will claim one of the Wild Card spots, 59% of respondents think the Rangers will make
the playoffs, which is pretty close to the Rangers’ actual playoff odds right now (57.4% before Monday’s game, per Fangraphs).
On the national voting, 85% of fans think Justin Verlander is a first ballot Hall of Famer, and I would like to think the other 15% mis-read the question or are trolling. Verlander is about as clear a first ballot Hall of Famer as you’re going to see for a starting pitcher in the 21st century.
Despite Verlander’s longevity and his playing primarily for very good teams in his career, he currently has “just” 266 career wins. The last pitcher notch his 300th win was Randy Johnson, who won his 303rd career game in 2009, his final season in the majors.
The only other active pitcher, besides Verlander, with at least 200 wins is Max Scherzer, with 222. And while Scherzer hasn’t announced he is retiring at season’s end, like Verlander has, getting another 78 wins seems pretty much out of reach for him.
The only other pitchers with at least 150 wins are Gerrit Cole and Chris Sale. They each have 156 career victories, and just getting to 200 will probably be difficult for either of them. Then there’s 36 year old Sonny Gray, at 137 wins, 36 year old Zach Wheeler, at 123 wins, and Kevin Gausman (35) and Michael Wacha (34), who are tied at 116 wins.
The highest win total for a pitcher who is under the age of 30 is 75, for the 29 year old Logan Webb. Tarik Skubal, born two days after Webb, is next, at 61. Logan Gilbert (who turned 29 in April) notched his 55th career win yesterday against the Rangers, tying him with Brady Singer, who turns 30 next week.
As the greatest musician to ever walk this earth, Prince Rogers Nelson, once said, “forever…that’s a mighty long time,” and so I hesitate to ever say never. That said, with the way the game is currently played, I don’t see there being a 300 game winner again unless the rules (either on-field or scoring) change significantly.
