Who will be the closer in the Rangers' rebuilt bullpen?

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Roles have yet to be defined in the Rangers¡¯ rebuilt bullpen, and may not be for awhile. No surprise, given the changes they have made.

But know this: manager Bruce Bochy understands the value that late-inning arms bring to a winning team.

¡°It is a priority for us, I can tell you that,¡± Bochy said.

If the Rangers open the regular season with a mix-and-match approach for high-leverage situations in the latter innings, so be it.

¡°Right now, I¡¯d say we are not going to have a defined closer," Bochy said.

¡°We have some guys that we think we can get the matchups that we want. That¡¯s part of our job. These things, sometimes, they end up working themselves [out] to where you use the guys you want to use.¡±

Several of the Rangers¡¯ options for high-leverage roles faced Arizona in the Rangers¡¯ 6-3 victory over the D-backs on Sunday at Surprise Stadium, as Texas attempts to find the right fit among the new group.

With primary 2024 closer Kirby Yates now with the Dodgers and '23 postseason star Jos¨¦ Leclerc with the Athletics, no pitcher who had a save with the Rangers last season is back in the bullpen. The group that had a 4.41 ERA and converted just 38 of 57 save chances in '24 will be much different in '25.

Offseason additions Chris Martin, Luke Jackson, Jacob Webb, Shawn Armstrong and Joe Barlow are among the right-handers in the relief corps, as is developing Marc Church. Lefties Robert Garcia and Hoby Milner also are viewed as contributors.

Martin, who has 14 career saves in a nine-year career with seven teams, has been mentioned as a top candidate for the closer role. He retired all three batters he faced Sunday in just 15 pitches (9 strikes), getting outs on a sweeper, a four-seam fastball and a splitter.

¡°Whatever Boch needs to help this team win, I¡¯m willing to do,¡± Martin said. ¡°I would love to do it. Right now, just trying to go out and fine-tune and get the body prepared for the full season.¡±

Martin has at least one save in every season since 2018, and he had four in his first stint with the Rangers in 2019. Martin has a career 9.27 K/9 and a 1.17 BB/9, which could prove trustworthy at the end of games.

¡°He¡¯s one of our guys who will be helping use get the last few outs,¡± Bochy said ¡°Strike-thrower. He attacks the hitters well. That¡¯s his strength, with good stuff. He¡¯s had a ton of success in high-leverage situations.¡±

Garcia, who was acquired from Washington in the Nathaniel Lowe trade, has been slowed by an oblique injury but is expected on the mound this week. He averaged 11.31 strikeouts per nine innings as setup man with the Nationals last season.

¡°Big stuff,¡± Bochy said. ¡°He¡¯s going to be in the mix.¡±

Milner has been particularly effective against left-handers in his eight-year career, the last four in Milwaukee. He held lefties to a .155 batting average in 2023, and lefties hold just a .225 career batting average and .280 on-base percentage against him.

Jackson has 19 career saves, the most among any of the candidates, and he struck out two in a scoreless frame Sunday.

Bochy said that Webb, who has allowed two earned runs over three innings this spring, is "trending up right now."

Church, who missed most of the 2024 season with a right shoulder strain, touched 99 mph in his appearance on Feb 27. He is expected to pitch again Monday.

¡°He¡¯s got the stuff to be a high-leverage reliever,¡± Bochy said. ¡°He has the velocity. It¡¯s jumping on you. I see him having that role sometime down the road here. It could be when we break camp. This is how good we think he can be.¡±

Church made 17 appearances with Triple-A Round Rock last season after his injury before tossing a scoreless inning in his one appearance with the Rangers in 2024. He extended his season with seven appearances in the Arizona Fall League, where he had 10 strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings.

He credited a dedicated weight-lifting program to the velocity gain, and said advice from former Major League pitcher Marvin Freeman has been a big plus. Church only began pitching during his senior year of high school and did not pitch in 2019 or 2020, the latter because of COVID-19.

"[Closing] is the ultimate goal," Church said. ¡°But I¡¯m staying where my feet are. I¡¯m still fairly new to pitching, and I¡¯m still learning a lot. I¡¯m just trying to control what I can control. Whatever happens happens. You¡¯ll get there eventually. I just want to be ready and feel like 100 percent myself so I can show the world.¡±