Texas rode a road-sweep to knock the losing-streak stigma off a decimated roster, moving four games over .500 and to a sniff of the wild-card. Even without Seager, Semien, and Eovaldi, the offense has carried the heavier load, hitting .402 with runners in scoring position and peppering 20 homers in nine games. The question now: can this keep up as injuries linger and the September grind arrives?

Bochy trimmed swings, emphasizing short at-bats and team at-bats, and the lineup found surprising pop from names not expected to carry it. Jung and García have juiced the lineup, Pederson added power, and Burger could soon return to deepen the mix. The chase for the West and a postseason berth suddenly feels plausible.

Burger could be activated Monday after a left wrist sprain that sidelined him Aug. 18, potentially rejoining Texas for a three-game set with Arizona. He was swinging a hot bat before the injury, slashing .467/.529/.667 across seven games and posting a 1.097 OPS in 21 second-half games. Haggerty remains out with a left ankle inflammation and is likely a week away. Chris Martin was progressing in a rehab stint at Double-A Round Rock and could lift Texas’ bullpen.

Texas pounded out big run totals with a resilient offense, and the club is weighing next steps as they push for a late-season surge. The club also kept tabs on the Diamondbacks series, and the rehab progress of Martin adds a stabilizing factor to a bullpen that has battled coverage gaps.

Nathan Eovaldi’s season may be finished after a rotator cuff strain, a brutal setback for the Rangers’ late playoff push. The 35-year-old ace was comfortably atop Texas’ rotation with a career-best 1.73 ERA, but his MRI prompted a 15-day IL projection and a turnaround in the team’s outlook.

With Eovaldi sidelined, Texas must navigate a sharper innings curve as they chase the AL wild-card. Evan Carter and Marcus Semien also landed on the injured list in the same trip, compounding the challenge. Four to six weeks could determine when Semien returns, while Eovaldi’s MRI will guide the plan to possibly salvage a postseason run. The race remains tight, with the Rangers still in contention but needing a rally from the rotation and bullpen.

Navigating the sprint to the finish line, fantasy players are eyeing three rookie hurlers in spots to steal value. Noah Cameron, Cam Schlittler, and Michael McGreevy headline a price-conscious slate with strong chances to push fantasy points in favorable matchups as playoff chases heat up. Julio Rodríguez resurges in the second half, and Seattle’s potential stack against a beleaguered Sears adds another high-upside angle. Price discipline, platoon edges, and stacked cores anchor the approach for DK lineups.

Key stacks target St. Louis and Milwaukee routes, while bargain bats like Lars Nootbaar emerge as critical pieces for multi-entry builds. The lineup optimizer angle centers on upside at low costs, leveraging rookie ceilings and opponent weaknesses to maximize upside across DFS contests as the season wanes.

Jake Burger's season hit a snag as the Rangers placed him on the injured list with a sprained left wrist, his third IL stint of the year. Despite an August OPS of 1.097, the wrist issue shelves him as Texas faces a pivotal seven-game stretch against AL wild-card rivals, with first-base duties shifting to Rowdy Tellez and Alejandro Osuna recalled from Round Rock to fill the gap. Burger is batting .242 with a .691 OPS on the year and had started 78 of 126 games; the club hopes the swelling settles quickly so he can return by late August. The roster move underscores how tight the playoff race is and how owners should monitor Texas’ lineup shifts.