While there might have been some questions around whether or not the Texas Rangers were serious about contending in the 2026 MLB season, their latest move might put those to rest.

For the moment.

The Rangers went out and made a big trade on Thursday for left-handed starter MacKenzie Gore from the Washington Nationals. Now, the Rangers gave up five prospects in return for Gore, who was part of the Nationals' rotation last season.

Who did Texas give up in the deal? MLB insider Robert Murray of FanSided indicated that the Rangers sent shortstop Gavin Fien, right-handed pitcher Alejandro Rosario, first baseman/outfielder Abimelec Ortiz, infielder Devin Fitz-Gerald, and outfielder Yeremy Cabrera.

That's quite a group of prospects. What makes the Rangers' move by president of baseball operations Chris Young so interesting? Texas decided that it was time to go "all in" for Gore. Rangers manager Skip Schumaker gets another starter to try and figure out where to put in his rotation.

Well, Gore should fit in nicely alongside Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom. Fien was a highly-ranked shortstop prospect, so giving him up is a big deal for the Rangers,

Gore has only pitched for four MLB seasons, starting with the San Diego Padres in 2022 and three seasons with the Nationals. 

But Gore has posted an ERA north of 4.00 in three of his four MLB seasons. Last season for the Nationals, Gore was 5-15. 

Yet, in an interesting piece of analysis on what MLB teams are looking for these days, it involves something along the lines of "what can you do for me in the future?" More and more, ballclubs are not so much interested in a high ERA. That is, if the player in question has a lot of upside to him.

The Rangers obviously feel like Gore has a tremendous upside.

Look at what MLB.com reporter Mike Petriello had to say about players like Gore back in 2021, along with the status of clubs looking beyond a high ERA when analyzing Gore.

 "What’s happening is the same thing that’s been happening for a number of years now … The first aspect is obvious: Teams don’t place value on pitcher win-loss records or, increasingly, even ERA," Petriello wrote.

"Second: They don’t care so much about what you have done for other teams in the past," Petriello continued. "They care about what they think you will do for them in the future, especially if they think they have the coaching, tools or skills to make you a better player."

In reviewing what made Gore such a trade commodity, the MLB.com analysis pointed toward Gore's ability to strikeout hitters with a number of different pitches. "His curveball, slider, changeup and cutter each had a whiff rate above 35.0% in 2025," according to the analysis of Gore.

If Gore can bring that type of pitching focus to the Rangers this season, then consider it a trade well worth making. Time will tell, but this move lets other teams in the American League West Division know that Texas is serious about contending.

That, in itself, is also good news for Rangers fans who want to see a competitive team take the field at Globe Life Field throughout this season.

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