Josh Jung is surging toward an All-Star nod, but there are questions about his long-term stability at the hot corner for the Texas Rangers.
Josh Jung has emerged as one of the most encouraging developments of the Texas Rangers’ 2026 season.
After a difficult 2025 campaign that included a demotion to Triple-A Round Rock and reduced opportunities because of offensive struggles, Jung has responded with a dramatic turnaround. He has positioned himself as Texas’ strongest All-Star candidate and has entered the conversation for American League Comeback Player of the Year.
What makes the season more surprising is where concerns have appeared.
For most of Jung’s career, defense has been one of the most dependable parts of his game.
Whether producing offensively or not, he established himself as a reliable presence at third base and consistently provided stability at one of the game’s most demanding positions.
This season, however, while his offensive production has surged, his defensive performance has shown unexpected regression.
Anyone who has followed the Rangers closely has likely noticed that Jung has not looked as sharp defensively as in previous years.
Plays that once appeared routine have become less automatic, and overall consistency with the glove has not matched the standard he previously established.
Through 64 games, Jung has committed four errors.
At first glance, that number may not appear significant. But compared with his rookie season in 2023, the contrast becomes more noticeable. That year, Jung committed only four errors across 121 games and led Major League Baseball with a .988 Fielding Percentage (FPCT).
By comparison, his defensive play in 2026 has not reached the same level.
That does not diminish the impact he has created offensively.
His performance at the plate has more than compensated for the defensive decline and remains one of the main reasons the Rangers have received meaningful production from the position.
Still, the defensive side deserves attention moving forward.
If the issue is tied to concentration, adjustments can still happen quickly.
The concern for Texas is whether defensive inconsistency becomes more costly later in the season as games carry greater significance and margins become smaller.
Jung’s offensive output has prevented those issues from becoming a larger storyline.
At the same time, sustaining value over the long term requires balance.
If his offensive production eventually cools while the defensive issues remain, the overall impact becomes more complicated to evaluate.
The Rangers believed Jung could develop into a complete player after he finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting during his debut season.
His current season has strengthened that belief in many ways.
The next step may simply involve bringing his defensive consistency back to the level that once made him one of the more dependable third basemen in baseball.
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