Astros’ payroll situation is unfortunate, but AL West rival has it much, much worse

The Houston Astros are in a tough position. The team has several important needs and not much room in the budget to fill them all, at least not satisfactorily. Dana Brown will have to work some magic.

Houston needs a true No. 2 starter. That in and of itself is an expensive proposition given how pricey the markets for pitching have been in recent years. They also need help at second base, and possibly the outfield. The never-ending search for a left-handed bat not named Yordan Alvarez who can produce is on the agenda as well. There are also extensions for key players like Jeremy Peña that need to be considered.

But things could always be worse, and the situation the Astros' division rival, the Rangers, find themselves in shows exactly how bad it can be.

The Astros should be grateful that they are not in dire straits like the Rangers

It's been an incredible fall from grace for the Rangers. The 2023 World Series champs seemed to be an up-and-coming squad, but their 2024 follow-up saw them finish 10.5 games back of the Astros, finishing with a 78-84 record.

In 2025, Texas hung around long enough to be pesky, but were never a true threat to take the division crown, finishing the year at exactly .500.

Players like Adolis Garcia, who crushed 39 dingers in 2023, have steadily regressed, managing just 19 homers and a .665 OPS in 2025. Corey Seager has been great when healthy, but the healthy part has been the issue. Meanwhile, veterans like Marcus Semien have fallen off a cliff as they age.

Texas enters the offseason with many needs. They need a big bat (or two) to anchor their lineup, which finished one spot behind the Astros in runs scored, coming in 22nd with 684. They're going to need to add to their starting rotation, which could see four players: Merrill Kelly, Tyler Mahle, Jon Gray, and Patrick Corbin, all depart in free agency. Their bullpen, too, will need a revamp.

Fixing that number of issues is expensive, but the Rangers are reportedly looking to reduce payroll after back-to-back disappointing seasons.

Like Houston, Texas, was right up against the luxury tax in 2025, but the latest mandate won't allow them to find any sort of improvements, while also making it hard to simply maintain the course and backfill their departures.

The Rangers are locked into several long-term contracts, such as the deals for Seager ($32.5 million AAV through 2031), Semien ($25 million AAV through 2028), and Jacob DeGrom ($37 million AAV through 2027), among others, most of which are borderline untradeable. That means only lesser options will be coming back, and without the blessings of health and bounce-backs from several key players, their status as a threat in the division will be neutralized.

That development, combined with the Los Angeles Angels' general Angels-ness (for lack of a better word) and the Athletics' stingy ownership, will make 2026 a two-horse race between the Astros and the Seattle Mariners.

That's both good and bad. Dana Brown will have slightly less pressure to pull a rabbit out of his hat with Texas taking a step back, but Seattle is putting the pedal to the medal with the offseason's first real strike, re-signing Josh Naylor. But looking at their in-state rivals, it's easy to see that things could always be worse.