The Texas Rangers may not have been able to capture the AL West crown in the regular season, but since the MLB Playoffs rolled around, they've been impossible to stop. You can ask the Baltimore Orioles, their latest victim in the ALDS.
After spanking and sweeping the Rays in the wild card series by a combined score of 11-1 over the two games, the Rangers continued their tour of dominance in the Division Series against the top seed in the American League. They eked out a close one in Game 1 with a 3-2 victory, won a barnburner in Game 2 by a count of 11-8, then dominated a decisive Game 3 in Arlington with a 7-1 blowout to punch their ticket to the ALCS.
Now fans are wondering what's next -- specifically, who will the Rangers play next in the postseason?
Who will the Texas Rangers play in the ALCS?
The Rangers will play either the Houston Astros or the Minnesota Twins next in the ALCS.
The other ALDS series has yet to be decided after three games with the Astros taking a lead in the bout, 2-1, after a blowout victory of their own in Game 2 on Tuesday.
Texas is obviously quite familiar with Houston, the team that bested them for the division crown in the regular season. And unfortunately for the Rangers, the Astros had a strong edge over them in the 2023 regular season, winning the season series 9-4.
Though not in the same division, the Rangers and Twins played seven times in the 2023 season, with Minnesota winning five of those meetings. Thus, Texas had a regular season disadvantage against both possible ALC opponents.
Given how hot Bruce Bochy's team has been since the start of the postseason, though, that's why they say anything can happen in October baseball.
