Fans Pick Nolan Ryan as Rangers' Dream Return

A Casino.ca survey of 4,000 MLB fans found Texas supporters most want Nolan Ryan back at his peak.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Baseball

Fans Pick Nolan Ryan as Rangers' Dream Return

Live Poll

Would a returning legend make you more likely to attend Rangers games?

In a Casino.ca survey of 4,000 Major League Baseball fans across all 30 teams, Texas Rangers fans most often chose Nolan Ryan as the franchise legend they would bring back at his peak. Ryan received 58.8% of Rangers fan votes, well ahead of Adrián Beltré and Iván Rodríguez, who each received 20.6%.

Why it matters

The results point to starting pitching as the most commonly cited weakness of the current Texas roster among Rangers fans. Only 8.8% of surveyed Rangers fans expect the team to win the World Series with the current roster.

The Casino.ca survey sampled 4,000 MLB fans across all 30 teams, with 58.8% of Rangers fans choosing Nolan Ryan versus 20.6% each for Adrián Beltré and Iván Rodríguez. Whether any of these retired stars would be available or healthy is not addressed by the survey.

The players

Nolan Ryan

Hall of Fame pitcher whose career with the Texas Rangers made him the franchise's most celebrated figure, and the top choice of Rangers fans in the survey.

Casino.ca

Online gambling and casino website that commissioned the fan survey of 4,000 MLB supporters across all 30 teams.

The details

Survey respondents were asked to name a franchise legend they would bring back at his peak, and Rangers fans overwhelmingly chose Ryan. Among those who chose him, addressing starting pitching was the most popular reason, and fans predict a returning legend would add five to nine regular-season wins.

Fans' expectations center on the Rangers' next season, with fan predictions about the roster's ceiling looking ahead to that campaign.

Season Trajectory

Starting pitching has been the recurring concern in the survey's Rangers responses, and fan predictions of an early postseason exit reflect that weakness. The survey frames a returning legend as a way to add five to nine wins in the regular season.

Rangers fans evaluating the roster should note that starting pitching is the position most often flagged as a weakness. Fantasy managers tracking Texas pitchers may find the survey's view of rotation needs useful when weighing next season's options.

The takeaway

Fan sentiment, as captured by the survey, suggests Rangers supporters see pitching depth as the key gap between the current roster and a deeper postseason run. The results offer a snapshot of expectations rather than a forecast of results.