The Texas Rangers have been on a hot streak to get themselves back into the playoff picture and the race for the American League West. They have won 12 of their last 16 games with big series wins over the Cleveland Guardians and the Houston Astros.
They have done all of this without second baseman Marcus Semien, and they lost their best player in Corey Seager six games into this stretch. Their best pitcher, Nathan Eovaldi, who was. a top contender for the Cy Young Award, only made one start in that time before being shelved for the rest of the season. The only guy that might be able to make it back this year is Seager, who could be back the last week of the season, although there is no official timeline at this point.
You would think that the Rangers would sink with their leaders going down. However, it has been the opposite as a group of players has stepped up big for them. Ezequiel Duran, Michael Helman, Cody Freeman, Alejandro Osuna, and Dustin Harris are all players who most fans did not give a second thought back in March, but are leading a late-season charge in Arlington.
Texas Rangers’ Hot Streak Fueled by Unsung Heroes
Ezequiel Duran
Duran is the most familiar player of the bunch, and he was expected to just be a bench bat, as he has been most of his career. He just hit .246 with three homers in 2024. He didn’t get off to a great start in 2025, he was hitting .148 before the month of August. Then he turned into a different player. Over the last 30 games, he has a .318 batting average with a .348 on-base percentage and a .400 slugging percentage. He has played great defense at second in place of Semien.
Michael Helman
Helman was a waiver-wire add earlier in the year and spent time between Triple-A Round Rock and the Rangers. He has been with the team since August 23, when Sam Haggerty went on the IL. His stats don’t pop off the page with a .238 batting average, a .289 on-base percentage, and a .524 slugging percentage. He has brought energy to the team by flying around the bases and has launched three home runs.
Cody Freeman
Freeman is a guy who tore up the minor leagues ,forcing the Rangers to call him up. He has brought a lot of energy to the clubhouse, getting hyped up when he or another teammate makes a play. That energy has been infectious, as the Rangers have been showing more emotion lately and seem to be having more fun.
Alejandro Osuna
Osuna is another guy like Freeman who was great in the minor leagues and gave the team no other choice but to call him up. He has had mixed results, but has had his moments where he has come big and delivered, such as his recent two-run single against the Arizona Diamondbacks to give the Rangers a 10-inning win. He hasn’t set the world on fire, but he has helped the team when he can.
Dustin Harris
The Rangers called up Harris on Friday, so he hasn’t been with the team long. He would deliver later that night, as he had a walk-off single to give them the win over the Astros. This is the mentality that the Rangers have had with players being next man up.
Dustin Harris is the 12th inning #walkoff hero for the @Rangers
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— MLB (@MLB) September 6, 2025
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Outlook
The Rangers sit 1 1/2 games back of the Seattle Mariners for the final wild card spot and 4 games back of the Astros for the division lead. They have one more series against the Astros, which will loom large. They are now facing off against the Milwaukee Brewers as they look to continue their good play. Texas opened the series with a 5-0 win Monday night.
Main Photo Credit: Tim Heitman/Getty Images
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