The Texas Rangers made a 5-for-1 trade with the Washington Nationals for All-Star starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore on Thursday, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Gore, 26, made his first All-Star appearance with the Nationals last season, posting a 4.17 ERA through 159.2 innings pitched while striking out 185 batters. Before Gore’s ERA rose above 4.00 in the second half of the season, he was one of the National League’s best starting pitchers.
Before the All-Star break, the right-hander had a 3.02 ERA through 110.1 innings, and struck out 30.5% of the batters he faced.
Who Did the Rangers Trade for MacKenzie Gore?
The Rangers sent five prospects to the Nationals in exchange for Gore, all of whom ranked in their organization’s Top 30. Headlining the deal is 18-year-old Gavin Fien, the No. 12 overall pick from the 2025 MLB draft and the Rangers’ No. 2 prospect. They also included No. 6 prospect Alejandro Rosario, No. 12 prospect Devin Fitz-Gerald, No. 16 prospect Jeremy Cabrera and No. 18 prospect Abimelec Ortiz.
All five of the prospects are 20 years old or younger except for Ortiz, who is 23.
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Where Does Mackenzie Gore Fit With the Rangers?
The Rangers had one of the best rotations in MLB on paper heading into 2025, and they delivered throughout the season. Texas had the lowest ERA among their starting pitchers among any team in MLB, but they lost some of their pieces after the season.
Tyler Mahle had a 2.18 ERA in 2025 and signed with the Giants in free agency, and Patrick Corbin is still a free agent.
Gore will fill in the final spot of the Rangers’ rotation, joining starters Jacob DeGrom, Jack Leiter, Nathan Eovaldi and either Kumar Rocker or Jacob Latz — who started four games in the final month of the 2025 season and allowed just five runs through 21 innings pitched.
With their All-Star addition, the Rangers will look to find their way back to the postseason for the first time since winning the World Series in 2023 behind one of the best pitching staffs in the sport.
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