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Texas Rangers: Lucky or Good

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The Texas Rangers won their 30th 1-run game on Tuesday night with a walk-off 2-run home run by Roughned Odor. That is the most in modern MLB history. Their record in the one-run games is 30-8 and if they maintain that winning percentage of .789 it would top what the Orioles did in 2012 when they went 29-9. It is remarkable what this team has done. The Rangers have 39 come from behind victories, 6 walk off wins, and the 30 wins in one-run games. They have a minuscule run differential of +22 which normally means that a team has a winning record, but not the best record in the league. The Rangers are 25 games over .500 for the best record in the American League. This is incredible when looking at the stats. The Blue Jays and Indians are in a virtual tie behind the Rangers, yet they have a run differential of +106 for the Blue Jays, and +94 for the Indians. This team has had to survive poor bullpen work early in the season, pitching injuries in the middle of the season, and at times a slumping lineup in August. Here we are though getting ready to head into September and the Rangers are 8.5 games up on the Astros, and 11.5 games up on the Mariners. They are in line with a strong September to also capture home-field advantage through the entire playoffs. The question that keeps going through my mind though is how good really is this team? Is this a team that should be expected to not only make the playoffs, but make it to the World Series? The main question is this a good team or is this a lucky team? I heard this topic debated on the Dallas Morning News Ballzy Podcast with Evan Grant, Kevin Sherington, and Barry Horn and they were discussing this with MLB.com writer Richard Justice. I thought I would give my thoughts about it.

The Rangers are maybe a little bit lucky in that in some situations they have been able to benefit from mistakes other teams have made. I think back to Opening Day when they were facing Felix Hernandez and he was able to hold them to 1 hit, but they scored 3 runs due to a 3 walks, 2 errors, and a hit by Prince Fielder that ended up being the difference in a 3-2 win. They have had numerous games like that. They had a games in May that they won 13-11 with a 7-run 8th inning. They won a game in June against the Astros 6-5 where Carlos Correa couldn’t turn what would have been an inning ending double play. Instead it allowed Roughned Odor to hit and he came up with the game-winning double off the wall. It just has been a magical season. This team as manager Jeff Bannister likes to say has a lot of heart and never ever quits on a game. That characteristic of a team should never be dismissed as a belief that they can succeed in any situation will help them when things get tight in the postseason.

The next question is can they translate this success in one-run games and come-from-behind victories into a postseason run. The team the Rangers will be compared to is the 2012 Baltimore Orioles. That Orioles team went 29-9 in one-run games and was 93-69 overall as they tied the Rangers for the wild card and then ended up winning the wild card game. They went on to a series against the Yankees and took that Yankees team to 5 games and lost the series. The Rangers will be between 30-40 wins in one-run games. Can they go farther than that Orioles and all the way to the World Series. There are a couple of things I worry about with this team. One is the rotation beyond Darvish and Hamels. Those two I do not worry about, but the next two I do have some uncertainties about. First, who are the next two going to be. The Rangers have 4 pitchers to choose from: Colby Lewis, Derek Holland, Martin Perez, and A.J. Griffin. They each have their strengths and weaknesses. The problem is that they do not have a for sure next two pitchers to put in the rotation. It may depend on who they match up with to determine who starts game 3 and 4. The other thing I worry about is the bullpen. They have good to great pitchers down there, but they are inconsistent. Sam Dyson was strong on Monday, but walked the bases loaded on Sunday. Matt Bush normally is solid but he struggled with his control last night. They just do not have the lockdown bullpen like you have seen from teams like the Kansas City Royals or San Francisco Giants. It is a worry heading into October and it something that can sprout up and cost the Rangers a critical game and turn around an entire series.

So is this team lucky or good? In my opinion they are a little bit of both. Other teams do make mistakes, but it is up to the Rangers to capitalize on the mistake and make the most of the opportunity. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t. That is the main reason why they struggled in July and much of August is because the breaks stopped going their way. It does help though that this team is full of scrappers who will keep grinding till the 27th out is recorded. They follow the lead of Adrian Beltre. He is a leader who sets the tone in the clubhouse and on the field. He does not allow for players to not hustle and to not give it their all. This attitude and level of play is what has given the team chances in games that looked like they were lost. They also have the never ever quit attitude that manager Jeff Bannister has installed on this team and talked about since the day he was hired. Is it luck? Yes it is. Is it belief? Yes. Finally, is it skill? Absolutely it is. A team with players such as Carlos Beltran, Jonathan Lucroy, Beltre, Roughned Odor, and Elvis Andrus definitely has skill and veteran knowledge. That should not be dismissed or taken lightly.

The final story and tagline for this team has not been written yet though. The question will be definitively answered in October. If this team finishes with the best record in the AL and goes out in the first round then they were no doubt more lucky than good. If this team makes it to the ALCS or advances to the World Series then they were as good as we have thought they were. All of this to say that this is one of the many storylines surrounding this team and will continue to be as the calendar will move from September to October. In a time when our attention shifts to football the Rangers play over in Arlington and demand your attention as well. They have a team that plays hard, competes in every game, and insists that fan don’t leave until the game is officially over. As we start September the debate over whether this team is lucky or good will rage, but the team will just continue to go out and win baseball games and hopefully win it all in October.

 

The Mystery of Martin Perez

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Martin Perez has been in his career the most revered prospect by Texas Rangers fans and the most reviled pitchers in the starting rotation. He is very polarizing as when he is good the fans love him and when he is not so good the fans hate him. There is no in-between and no margin of error given to him. He has so much skill, but oftentimes gets lost mentally. He will lose focus due to an unexpected walk he gives up or an error that happens behind him. He gives up big innings at times when he seems to be pitching well.  He just is not as good as the fans expect and as good as his skill level says he should be. Perez is a mystery start-to-start of what you are going to get, and the question has to be raised come the playoffs can he counted on to pitch in a hostile road environment in a pivotal game 3 or 4?

How did we get to this point from Perez being a top prospect with potential to become the next Johan Santana to a guy that now can’t miss bats consistently, struggles with control at times, and loses focuses often? In my opinion it comes down to trust in his stuff. He had one of the best changeups in all of minor league baseball from the time he signed in 2007 to when he made his debut in 2012. He used that changeup often in 2012 and 2013 and was able to get out of jams and get key strikeouts. It was his go-to out pitch. It was so good that hitters knew it was coming and still struggled to hit it. He continued to refine his arsenal and came in 2014 looking like the second best pitcher on the staff. He threw back-to-back complete game shutouts in April and look primed to have a break out season. Then he blew his arm out and had to have Tommy John surgery. That put a halt on his career for the rest of 2014 and the first half of 2015. His was one of many injuries in what became a lost season not just for him, but for the organization as a whole. It was disappointing for him and for the fans as it would halt his development into the next staff ace that the team needed.

The question became from May 2014 to July 2015 what would Perez look like when he came back from the Tommy John surgery. He didn’t have overpowering stuff to begin with and he relied on pinpoint location of his fastball and changeup to keep hitters off-balance. It is said that location is the last thing to return to pitchers who have had Tommy John surgery. The ability to consistently locate pitches doesn’t really return until about two years after the surgery. Perez would have to find a way around that and his inconsistent results in the second half of 2015 looked about what would be expected from a pitcher returning from Tommy John surgery. He looked pretty terrible in his first few starts. It bottomed out with a start in late July when he was give a 5-0 lead against the New York Yankees at home and came back in the second and gave up 11 runs before recording a single out. He rebounded from that start though and came back and nearly threw a complete game shutout against the San Francisco Giants at home in his next start. He threw 8.1 innings of shutout baseball on just 80 pitches. He was removed in the 9th to save his arm manager Jeff Bannister said after that game. That was a definite turning point as he went on to have a good August. He went 2-1, and pitched at least 6 innings in 4 of his 5 starts and did not give up more than 3 earned runs in any of his 5 starts that month. It showed he was improving. His strikeout total was still relatively low as he was mainly pitching to contact and becoming more of a groundball pitcher. September and October were inconsistent as he was really good in 3 starts and so-so to bad in the rest of his starts. The season ended with the loss to the Blue Jays in an epic game 5, but Perez in his start in game 4 pitched okay. He pitched in and out of trouble through 5 innings and only gave up 2 runs. Then in the 6th he gave up a 3-run home run that pretty much ended the game. There is an argument to be made that Bannister should have removed him after 5 innings, but he did not and Tulowitzki hit the home run. Perez though pitched well considering he was still coming back from Tommy John.

The questions seemingly had been removed from Martin Perez as the Rangers headed in 2016. Perez would be two years removed from Tommy John, he would have a full offseason to recover, a full offseason to prepare, and a full offseason to build up arm strength heading into the 2016 campaign. The Rangers were hoping that he would grab a hold of that number 2 role on the staff until Yu Darvish came back from his own Tommy John surgery. It was thought after an inconsistent 2015 that he would be ready to reclaim the mantle as future ace of the staff. That has not been what has happened. He has been really jekyl and hyde as he has been great at home and terrible on the road. He has a 7-1 record and a 2.36 ERA at home with 46 strikeouts to 28 walks. He has been the complete opposite on the road. He is 1-8 with a 6.23 ERA on the road with 35 strikeouts to 36 walks. That includes this past Sunday against Tampa where he went 6 innings, giving up 6 runs, and striking out 5 and walking 3. He was burned by one big inning. He gave up 5 runs in the 4th and that was pretty much it as the Rangers lost 6-4. That continued a trend where Perez continues to get burned by big innings. Against Houston earlier this month he lost when he gave up a 4-run 3rd and the team lost 5-0, against the Angels on July 20th he lost a game where he gave up 4 runs in the 1st and the team lost 7-4, against the Cubs in Chicago he pitched very well, but then gave up a 5-run 6th in a game the Rangers lost 6-0, and in Boston he gave up 7 runs and 5 of those runs in the second inning in a game the Rangers lost 11-6. It is a disturbing trend. He only has 3 quality starts on the road this entire season. It is obviously a focus issue from what I have seen. At home he is able to battle through errors, walks, or bloop hits, but on the road he tends to let one mistake blossom into a hit or walk, and then a home run. Take yesterday for example against the Rays. Delino Deshields hits a 2-run home run to give the Rangers a 2-0 lead in the 3rd inning. Perez then comes out and needs a shutdown inning to give the team some momentum. He gets the first hitter to fly out, but then walks former Ranger Bobby Wilson and walks Matt Duffy and instead of facing Evan Longoria to start the inning he faces him in a crucial run scoring situation with two outs and gives up a long run scoring double to make it 2-1. He gets out of that inning, but then proceeds to come back in the 4th with a 2-1 lead and gives up 5 runs on 3 hits to start the inning, a sac bunt by Bobby Wilson, and a 3-run home run by Logan Forsythe to make it 6-2. After that though he pitched well and shut down the Rays in the 5th and the 6th. He just cannot stay away from the big innings on the road. Martin Perez has not been able to step forward and reclaim that mantle like the team was expecting from him this season. He has been better since Jonathan Lucroy arrived, but still struggles on the road. It has raised the question of whether or not he can be counted on to start game 3 or 4 on the road in a crucial ALDS,ALCS, or World Series game?

Manager Jeff Bannister will be faced with the question of how does he utilize his rotation in a playoff series to maximum effectiveness. Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels are his two best pitchers, but is it smart to start them together? Looking at the home/road splits for Perez should they make sure to start him at home as much as they can this postseason. My guess at the rotation if everybody is healthy is that it will be Yu Darvish, Cole Hamels, Martin Perez, and either Colby Lewis or Derek Holland. It is not going to be easy for Bannister to decide which order to put them in. If Jeff Bannister were to ask me and I don’t think he will, but I would go with Darvish game 1, Perez game 2, Cole Hamels game 3, and Colby Lewis game 4. I would have Derek Holland coming out of the bullpen as the long man. I just don’t know if I trust Perez to start a crucial game 3. Starting Perez game 2 gets him a start at home, and then sets Hamels up to be that guy to pitch a swing game 3 and a potential game 7. We have seen before with the Rangers and other playoff participants that one inning can be the difference between winning and losing a series. The Rangers just cannot take that chance with Perez. It may look to everyone that separating Darvish and Hamels would not appear to be smart, but it may give the team their best shot at advancing. I hope that Perez improves on the road these last two months, but at this point I don’t know if he will.

Prince’s Reign Has Come to an End

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Prince Fielder career to end with announcement expected Wednesday.

Prince Fielder career to end with announcement expected Wednesday.

 

It was reported by Ken Rosenthal first and then team sources following that Prince Fielder will announce the end of his 12 year career Thursday afternoon. He was acquired back in November of 2013 in a trade for Ian Kinsler. It was a trade that was seemingly one that fit needs for both teams. The Rangers needed a power hitting first baseman to add to their lineup after losing Mike Napoli and the Tigers needed to add speed and defense to their lineup. Dave Dombrowski and Jon Daniels were able to work out a straight 1-for-1 trade. This trade freed up some of the Tigers payroll and gave them enough money to extend Miguel Cabrera for what looks like the rest of his career and try to fortify their bullpen. The trade for the Rangers opened up second base for Jurickson Profar to become the starting second baseman in 2014. The Rangers had too many middle infielders, the Tigers wanted Cabrera to play 1st and so it was thought to be a trade that would work out for both teams.

Trades that always look good on paper don’t always stand up to what can happen in real life. On paper it looked like Prince Fielder would come here and use that short porch in right field and reestablish his career as a 30-35 home run or more guy. He would add power to the lineup and protection for Adrian Beltre. It would give some thump to a lineup that in 2013 had really been missing power. In 2013 the Rangers as a team hit 176 home runs. Mitch Moreland at first base hit 23, but only hit for a .232 batting average. The Rangers needed more from first base and they needed someone at DH as well. Jon Daniels looked at his roster and knew he was likely losing Nelson Cruz in free agency and that would be about 30 less home runs. Instead of chasing someone in free agency he traded for Prince Fielder who had a track record of hitting for power and average. It was a controversial move as Ian Kinsler was very well liked in the clubhouse and among the fans. If he had stayed he might have gone down as one of the best 2nd baseman in Texas Rangers history. Jon Daniels as always is willing to take chances. The team had also loved what they saw from Profar in 2013 and were ready to hand him the 2nd base job. Things don’t always play out how you picture them though.

In Spring Training of 2014 everything looked ready to proceed according to the plan that is until Profar’s shoulder came up lame early on in camp. They had him rest and just hit, but it was not getting any better. They eventually had to DL him and he ended up having to sit out the entire 2014 season. His was one of many injuries for that 2014 team. Prince on the other hand came to camp and was just hitting weak singles all through Spring Training. It was thought that he was just trying to peak at the beginning of the season. The weak singles continued on into the season as he was hitting for little to no power in April. The team kept chugging along though and somehow was in first place as April went along.Then in May the bottom dropped out. Martin Perez had to have Tommy John surgery and the injuries just kept piling up. It became too much for this team when after May 16th it was announced that Prince would have season-ending surgery to repair a herniated disc in his neck. No one could have predicted that this would happen that both Prince Fielder and Jurickson Profar would miss the entire season. In Profar’s case he would miss both 2014 and 2015. He rested his shoulder the entire offseason before 2015 thinking that would help him be ready for Spring Training and the shoulder would heal. Unfortunately that is not what happened. He would require shoulder surgery and would be out all of 2015. If that had been the end of the story then this trade would be marked as an abject failure and would be looked at as one of Jon Daniel’s worst moves during his tenure.

2015 was a new season for Prince. He came in with a renewed attitude and sense of purpose. He admitted that Mitch Moreland was better than him at 1st and should be starting over him at the position. He said he would be okay with being the DH. He embraced the fact that his power had decreased due to neck surgery and so worked to be able to hit the ball the opposite way. It led to teams not being able to use the shift against him. He was also able to carry the offense the first two months as he was playing at an MVP type level through May. In May alone he hit .377, with 9 home runs, and 28 RBI’s. It was an astounding month that saw the Rangers get back into the division race after being in last place through April. Prince was the sole reason that was happening. He was amazing. He cooled down after that though and played close to career norms the rest of the season. He still only hit for 23 home runs which continued a trend of his power declining. That was to be expected though as he was coming back from neck surgery. It was thought after an offseason of rest he will come back in 2016 and continue to be the player the Rangers thought they were getting.

That is not what happened. Prince came back and has been one of the worst players in MLB. He didn’t have the same bat speed, he could not get around on good fastballs, he was back to hitting weak singles like he was in 2014, and just was not able to contribute to this team in the fashion that they needed him to. Banister continued to write his name in the lineup and gave him days to rest to help him get through the season and maybe rejuvenate his season. Nothing worked though. Finally on July 20th the team placed Prince Fielder on the DL. On July 25th it was revealed he would need neck surgery again to repair a different herniated disc. Now here we are and it is announced that he will be ending his career.

It really is sad anytime a long-time player has to end his career. It is even sadder when his career is taken away from him due to his body breaking down on him. I was never a Prince Fielder fan, but it did seem like the team loved playing with him. He was a good clubhouse guy that just loved playing the game. I loved seeing him with his kids around him as it showed that he is a caring father. I am going to miss seeing that big smile on his face and that majestic swing of his. He had such a powerful that if he ever got into one it was gone. Ranger fans have gone through this before as fan-favorite Rusty Greer saw his career end suddenly when his body couldn’t recover from injury. Greer stayed on the roster in order to collect the rest of his contract. Fielder will do the same thing as he will not officially retire until after 2020. That is when his current contract is due to end.I wish him well on his recovery and hope that he decides to stay around baseball. If the Rangers are going to have to pay him through 2020 they might as well employ him in some fashion. I would not be surprised to see him in Spring Training as an advisor of some sort or a coach. I could see him working for Jon Daniels in some fashion. I just hope they keep him in the organization in some aspect. Prince is still young and bright. This may be the end of his playing career, but his life in baseball is far from over.

Rangers Completely Dominate Mariners

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I have been trying to think about what to focus on for today’s recap of last night’s 8-0 win against the Mariners that completed the first series win and a winning road trip for the Rangers. Do I focus on Holland’s first real good start since last August? How about Beltre’s 5 RBI night and 3-run home run that puts him 4th among primary 3rd basemen all-time? I could also focus on Andrus continuing his hot start to the season with 3 hits last night and his 5th RBI of the season. Mazara also had another hit, but made two unbelievable plays in the outfield. Ryan Rua had another couple of hits from the bottom of the order. Roughned Odor made plays on the basepaths and had another RBI hit. Prince Fielder recorded his 10th RBI of the season, just 9 games into the season. Ian Desmond made a couple of amazing plays in left field as well. It was just a complete team effort. They followed up last nights 14 hit performance with 12 hits last night. Their pitching recorded their first shutout of the season. The defense was still stellar even though they did have an error. When they play like this there is not many teams in all of baseball that can beat them. Last night the Mariners could not even stay close as the Rangers improved to 5-4 and jumped into first place of the AL West.

There was so much to like about last night’s game, but to me the most important development was Derek Holland’s performance. Holland is the X-factor in this rotation. If he can stay healthy and pitch like he did last night this rotation goes from good to possibly great. Holland last night showed improved control from his first outing as he only walked one guy. He also showed that even though his velocity may be down from what it was 3-4 years ago that when the moment calls for it he can still get it up to 95-96 mph. That moment last night was an at-bat against Robinson Cano. Cano had worked him over in the first inning on his way to a 10 pitch lineout. He was fouling everything off and then finally lined out to Delino Deshields in center. Then in the 5th he came back with two runners on and down 5-0, but one swing away from making it 5-3. Holland really attacked him and went after him with 94-95 mph sinkers. He ended up striking him out on 6 pitches and got out of the 5th with no runs allowed. It was an encouraging outing and one that he can learn from and continue to improve upon as we go throughout this 2016 season. Just think about this possible rotation come the end of May if everyone stays healthy: Hamels, Darvish, Perez, Lewis, and Holland. If Holland can continue to pitch well that will be one of the best rotations in all of baseball. I really hope that he can stay healthy. Holland throughout his Rangers career has been one of my favorite and my most frustrating pitchers to watch. I think back to Game 4 of the 2011 World Series. The Rangers had just went down 2-1 after Albert Pujols hit 3 home runs in Game 3 and Holland was facing a must win for the Rangers. He went out and pitched the game of his life that gets forgotten because of what happened in games 6 and 7 of that series. He pitched 8 2/3 innings of shutout baseball. It seemed like after that he was ready to take that next step to being one of the best lefthanders in all of baseball. Instead he has suffered from inconsistency in 2012-2013 and injuries in 2014-2015. He now is at a crossroads in his career as he faces a team option at the end of this season. The question of whether the Rangers will pick that option up depends a lot on how he does this season. The team has not had any extension talks with Holland and is in a wait-and-see mode with the pitcher. I hope that he can continue these performances.

The game also showed that Nomar Mazara can not only hit, but he can play some outfield. He made a remarkable play diving after a ball down the left-field line and then made a play running into the wall to catch a ball. Defense was thought to be a question mark with Mazara as some scouts have said that he is a little slow of foot. He showed tons of range though last night as he made those two plays. He also recorded a single in his first at-bat to make that 6 hits in his first 3 games. He just has been a phenom in these first 3 games. He has shown an advanced understanding of the strike zone and great bat control as well. It is not going to stay like this, but he has shown that whenever he is here to stay that he will be ready for each and every challenge thrown his way.

Preview of Today’s Game

2:40 p.m. Texas Rangers vs Seattle Mariners, A.J Griffin(1-0, 4.50 ERA) vs Taijuan Walker (0-0, 3.00 ERA), Fox Sports Southwest

A.J. Griffin makes his second start of the season. He went 6 innings and allowed 3 runs and was able to get the win against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim last Friday night. It was his first win since September 12, 2013. It was an encouraging start that saw Griffin get better the deeper into the game he got. The Rangers have secured the series win and a winning record for the road trip, so they need to be careful not to have a let down in today’s game. The key for Griffin today will be location. The Mariners have not hit well in this series, but if Griffin gives them free passes they will be ready and waiting to break through and get Griffin out of this game early. He must control his curveball and make it enticing enough to swing at. He must have confidence in his fastball and locate it on the corners and be sure not to miss over the plate. The game today is at 2:40 so the air will not likely be as thick making hitting the ball out of the ball park a lot easier than it is during night games.

Taijuan Walker will be going for the Mariners. He is coming off a dominating 7 inning,2 run performance against the A’s. Walker presents some of the same challenges Iwakuma presents. He is a tall, lanky righty that is coming downhill right at the hitter. His fastball can really eat up right handed batters as he is coming straight downhill at them. Walker can struggle with walks though. He averages about 2.0 walks per 9 innings. The Rangers must be patient, take advantage when he does leave one over the plate, and run up his pitch count early. If Walker gets into a groove early it could make for a long day for the offense.

Player to Watch

Yesterday I chose Derek Holland and was right. I said he would pitch into the 7th inning only giving 1-2 runs and would pick up his first win and quality start of the season. He went 6.2 innings, 0 runs allowed, and did win. That was my first right pick of the season.

Today I am going with Roughned Odor. I think Walker will pitch very well against the righties in the lineup, but I think Odor with his bat speed will be able to turn around a Walker fastball. I could definitely see 1-2 hits today and I think he will make a play on the basepaths that will make a difference in today’s game.

The Rangers try to end this road trip on top before coming home to start a 4-game series against the potentially still undefeated Baltimore Orioles on Thursday night. Hopefully they will not be looking ahead to that and Cole Hamels starting on Thursday. Go Rangers!!!!

Rookies help Rangers defeat the Mariners

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This gallery contains 1 photo.

    The Rangers got back to .500 last night behind contributions from the two most inexperienced players on the roster, Nomar Mazara and Brett Nicholas. Nicholas was making his MLB debut last night and went 2-4 with a single … Continue reading →

Rangers Lose Early Lead and Lose the Game Late

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The Rangers fell to 1-3 last night after a 4-3 loss in the opener of a 4-game series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. It was a close game, but much like the other two losses walks by Derek … Continue reading →

Rangers Will Not Be 162-0 in 2016

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The Texas Rangers lost their first game of the 2016 season in spectacular fashion last night losing 10-2 to the Seattle Mariners. It was a mixture of missed opportunities early and the new pieces of the bullpen not being able to keep it close late. This was different from Opening Day in that the team did hit, not well, but they did get hits and provided themselves with numerous opportunities throughout the game to give themselves a lead going into the 7th-9th innings. In the 4th inning Elvis Andrus and Robinson Chirinos provided run scoring singles, but outside of those hits, the Rangers could not get the big base hit when they had runners on base. Jared Sandler, who does the radio pre and post game shows for the Rangers, had this interesting tweet about the game last night.

That just is not acceptable. To me the one that stands out the most is the 7th inning. The Mariners had just went ahead 4-2 in the top of the inning, but the heart of the Rangers order was coming up in the bottom of the inning. Shin Soo Choo starts off with a 10 pitch walk. Prince Fielder then steps up and instead of continuing to make him work and trying to find his pitch, he swings at the first pitch and pops it straight up. Adrian Beltre then proceeds to do the same thing. Mitch Moreland works the count, but still ends up striking out on the 8th pitch. Fielder and Beltre have to be better there. It feels like they both went up with the approach of just swinging to just hit the game-tying home run. It did not work and in the end it did not matter. I still like what the team is doing. The approach at the plate for the most part has still been really good, the results and runs just have not been there yet. If they continue with this the runs will come, its just Hernandez and Iwakuma can be very difficult to face.

The concerning part of the game to me though is that Tony Barnette and Tom Wilhelmsen were just awful today. Barnette was making his MLB debut after spending the past 7 years in Japan. He started out well enough by getting the 2 of the first 3 hitters out, but then he left one up and over the plate to Leonys Martin who drove it in the left field corner to score Seth Smith. Then he allowed another single to Nori Aoki to make the score 4-2. At that point Bannister removed him in favor of Jake Diekman. He was able to get out of the inning with one pitch on a groundout against Ketel Marte. That was minor compared to the disaster Tom Wilhelmsen was. Wilhelmsen came in and took their chances of winning and flushed them down the toilet. He gave up a home run to Robinson Cano to lead of the inning, a double to Nelson Cruz, an RBI-double to Kyle Seager, a home run to Seth Smith, and then after a coaching visit he plunked Chris Ianneta and then proceeded to yell back-and-forth with the Mariners catcher. That got him ejected. So overall not the best night at the office and actually it might have one of the worst appearances of his career as his line ended up 0.0 innings pitched, 5 runs, 4 hits, 2 home runs given up. He was a disaster last night. The plunking of Ianneta led to both managers coming out onto the field and getting into it from their side of the diamond. It was ridiculous and completely unnecessary. I hope Wilhelmsen did not hit him on purpose, but the timing of it made it look like it was as it came right after the Seth Smith home run. Andrew Faulkner then ended up coming in and giving up another home run to Luis Sardinas to make it 10-2 and that would be game,set,match to the Mariners. It was a loss and it sucks, but it was one the Rangers deserved to lose. They did not come through with enough timely hits and the bullpen did not pitch well enough to give them an opportunity late. The loss drops the Rangers record to 1-1 and the Mariners improve to 1-1.

Other Game Notes

  • I got through all of that intro without even mentioning the starting pitchers. Iwakuma was not his usual dominant self against the Rangers, but he made the pitches when he needed to and was able to labor through 5 innings, giving up 6 hits, 2 runs, and 3 walks. Iwakuma was able to get out of jams in the 1st, 3rd, and 5th innings. The only time the Rangers got to him for runs was the 4th with the RBI singles by Elvis Andrus and Robinson Chirinos. So while he was not great he was good enough. The same can also be said for Martin Perez. He pitched 6 innings giving up 2 runs as well. He gave a run on a single to Chris Ianneta in the 2nd and then a solo home run to Nelson Cruz in the 4th inning. He was able to make big pitches though to get out of innings. In the second he got a ground ball double play off the bat of Dae-Ho Lee and then got another inning ending double play in the 6th off the bat of Kyle Seager. He left with the score tied 2-2. Iwakuma and Perez both did their jobs in giving their teams an opportunity to win. The bullpen for the Mariners pitched better than the bullpen for the Rangers. The Rangers still have not won a game that Iwakuma started for the Mariners since 2013.
  • Ian Desmond has had quite the introduction to the American League. Yesterday it was King Felix and today it was Hisashi Iwakuma. Two very difficult pitchers to face because of what all they bring to the table. Hernandez is about the variety of pitches and his ability to locate all of those pitches. Yesterday it was Iwakuma moving all of his pitches in and around the strike zone and from different arm angles. It made Desmond look helpless up there, especially in the 5th when he struck out on a pitch way up and out of the strike zone. Iwakuma is a master of putting the ball on different planes throughout an at-bat. He can run it high, have it dip into the dirt, or cut it to hit the corners of the plate. He leaves very few pitches in the middle of the strike zone. Everything is on the corners. It makes it hard for an umpire to call and even harder for the batter to hit. He did get his first hit though in the 9th when he beat out a groundball to Kyle Seager. It did have to be reviewed, but the review showed that he was safe. So he is no longer 0-for. Today should be easier Miley is not as dominant as these last two guys are.

Preview of Today’s Game

1:05 p.m., Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports SW, Wade Miley vs Colby Lewis

This afternoon is the rubber game of the series as both try to end the first series of the season with a home win. It would be a huge statement for either team to claim this first divisional series of the season. Wade Miley will be making his first appearance in a game for the Mariners after being acquired in the offseason from the Boston Red Sox. The left-hander will be looking to improve upon his 1-2 record and his 3.86 ERA in his career against the Rangers. Look for the Rangers to try to take advantage of his lack of control in the Rangers ballpark. In two starts there he has 1.286 WHIP(Walks at Hits/Innings Pitched). The Rangers hitters just need to be as patient at the plate as they have been in the first two games and then drive the ball when they have an opportunity to score runs. Keep an eye on the right-handed hitters today. I would not be surprised at all to see Ryan Rua get his first start of the season against the left-hander. Miley lost most lefties does not fare as well against righties as he does against lefties. I would expect Moreland to get the day off and for Rua to play first.

As for the Rangers Colby Lewis makes his first start of the season. Lewis resigned with the team in the offseason and had an up-and-down spring. Arizona is normally not good for a guy with his stuff though. He is a flyball pitcher and in Arizona fly balls turn into home runs very easily. The most important thing though is he got his innings in, he is ready, and he is healthy. The most important thing for him today is location. Can he spot his fastball on the corners of the plate? He needs to have his slider working and be enticing enough to swing at. When he is good that slider dips at the last moment down and away from the righties and down and in to lefties. When he is not good the slider looks flat and hangs up and over the plate. It needs to have that sharp brake to it. He also needs to his changeup working for his fastball to look better as well. At this point in his career he does not have what would be classified as great stuff, he has what would be considered good control and veteran poise out on the mound. That is what has made him successful throughout his career and what led him to a career high 17 wins last season. The key batters for him will be Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, and Kyle Seager. If he can silence their bats and keep them in ballpark he will be doing a good job.

Player to Watch

Review from Yesterday: I chose Roughned Odor yesterday and he went 0-3 with a walk and a run scored. He did score the tying run and for the second straight day he made a spectacular play in the field. I wouldn’t say it was a total loss. He did have an impact on the game early with his play in the field and in the one time he did get on base he scored. He did not have as big of a day though as Chirinos and Andrus had.

Today’s Player: LF Ian Desmond. I am going with this just off of feel and no stats to back me up. Desmond hit very well this spring, but has started with facing two pitchers he is not very familiar with and that has led to just one hit in the first two games. Today I believe will be different. It is a lefty on the mound and one that may leave one up and over the plate for Desmond to hit. I would not be surprised to see Desmond come through with a 2-5 type day. I believe he will make some sort of play in the field as Lewis is more of a flyball pitcher. So there will be more plays for Desmond and everyone in the outfield today. Ian Desmond is my player to watch for today.

Should be a good game with more runs scored by both sides. Hopefully the Rangers can win before they depart on a 7-game road trip to Anaheim this weekend then Seattle to start next week.

Go Rangers!!!!!!!

1-Hit Wonder

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Fireworks explode over the stadium at the end of the national anthem as the Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners line up before their game on opening day on Monday, April 4, 2016, at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas. (Smiley N. Pool/Dallas Morning News/TNS) 1182888

Fireworks explode over the stadium at the end of the national anthem as the Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners line up before their game on opening day on Monday, April 4, 2016, at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas. (Smiley N. Pool/Dallas Morning News/TNS) 1182888

 

The Rangers somehow won their opening day game 3-2 against the Mariners yesterday with only one hit. It was enough though as the Rangers took advantage of some shoddy Mariners defense, walks by Felix Hernandez, and aggressive base running by Roughned Odor all in the 5th inning. Cole Hamels and the bullpen made sure that the 1-run lead would be enough and it was as Shawn Tolleson closed the door in the 9th inning. It was a great win, because the Seattle Mariners had won 8 straight Opening Day games behind the pitching of Felix Hernandez, but the Rangers were able to steal this one away and end that long winning streak. I am still scratching at my head at how it happened, but it did and the Rangers move forward to game 2 as the only AL West team to have won yesterday. The Angels lost 9-0 to the Cubs, the A’s lost to the White Sox 4-3, and the Astros were postponed by inclement weather in New York. Lets dive deeper into the game though because only 5 runs were scored, but a lot of notable things happened in the game.

The game started with the introductions, the flyover, and Bobby Jones and Tom Grieve threw out the first pitch as they are celebrating their 50th year in baseball in 2016. Cole Hamels was very sharp for most of the day, but he missed over the plate twice in the first two innings and that led to solo home runs by Robinson Cano and Ranger-killer Kyle Seager. For the longest time that looked like it would be enough. Felix was not as sharp as normal, but the Rangers were not hitting him at all the first four innings. He walked one batter in each of the first two innings, but settled down after that to get the Rangers in order in the 3rd and 4th innings. One thing the Rangers did do through these first 4 innings was make Hernandez work.

That takes us the 5th inning the score was 2-0 and the Rangers still had not gotten a hit. Odor showed patience at the plate and worked a 5-pitch walk to start the inning. That is one thing I noticed throughout the game is a better approach at the plate by the hitters against Felix Hernandez. It was noticeably different than what we saw last season when the Rangers faced Hernandez or any tough pitcher really. Odor then made things happen by stealing 2nd and making sure his hand did not come off the base during the tag. Tom Grieve and Steve Busby even made note of that during the broadcast that runners will have to be more careful with their slides this season and makings sure they never lose contact with the base.  So Odor is on second and then continues to be aggressive by running to 3rd on a ground ball to Kyle Seager. Seager I think was caught off guard by Odor and took his eye off the ball in trying to make a quick tag and did not catch the bouncing ball. Odor was on 3rd and Elvis Andrus was on 1st. Robinson Chirinos then sacrifice bunted Andrus over to 2nd. Delino Deshields then took the Rangers 2nd walk of the inning and it was followed by another walk by Shin Soo Choo which scored a run to make it 2-1. That brought up Prince Fielder with the bases loaded. He proceeds to drop a fly ball right in front of left-fielder Nori Aoki for the only hit of the day by the Rangers. That tied the game. There was still only one out when Adrian Beltre came to the plate and he hit a smash ground ball to shortstop Ketel Marte and he botched it and it gave the Rangers their 3rd run of the inning, the lead, and eventually the win. 3 walks, 2 errors, and 1 hit led to 3 runs for the Rangers. It goes to show that sometimes its not who hits the ball the most or hardest, but it is the team who takes advantage of the opportunities they were given. The Mariners hit two long home runs, but could not do anything other than that, the Rangers had one hit, but made the most of the opportunities the Mariners gave them in the 5th inning.

Neither team really threatened after that. The Mariners had a base-runner in the 6th after an Elvis Andrus throwing error, and the runner advanced on a wild pitch by Cole Hamels, but did not advance further after Hamels finished off the inning with a strikeout of nemesis Kyle Seager. The Mariners then got two more runners on in the 7th, but Hamels once again came through with a strikeout and a groundout to end the threat. That was it as Diekman and Tolleson came in to finish off the game. Cole Hamels ended up going 7 innings, with 2 runs allowed, 4 hits, 8 k’s, and 3 BB’s and getting the win. Felix Hernandez took his first Opening Day loss of his career in going 6 innings, 3 runs, 1 earned run, 1 hit, 6 k’s, and 5 BB’s. It was also Felix Hernandez’s first loss against the Rangers since a 1-0 loss back on June 13, 2014. He won all 5 starts made against the Rangers last season. The approach was a lot better today. I remember that the games he pitched against them last season the players were defeated before they even stepped into the batters box. Today they looked confident and appeared as if they had a better plan of attack against him. That helped lead to the victory and a 1-0 start to the 2016 season.

Notes from the Game

  • There was a weird play in the 1st inning. Shin Soo Choo had stolen 2nd base and the catcher was talking to the umpire and then the umpires conferred and they ruled that Prince Fielder had interfered with the catcher in falling over the plate. Rule 6.06(c) states that if the batter is ruled to have interfered with the catcher then the batter will be called out and the runner will return to their previous base. Fielder fell across home plate in order to get away from the pitch, but in doing so he came across the area that Chris Ianneta was throwing into and the umpire ruled that he had interfered. Jeff Bannister said when asked about that call, “That’s the first time in my career I’ve seen a hitter have to move to avoid getting hit by a baseball, fall across the plate and get called for obstruction or interference. But it’s the rule.” That short circuited what could have been a run-scoring inning by the Rangers.
  • The defense was outstanding for the most part today. Elvis did have the throwing error in the 6th inning, but other than that everything else was clean. He and Roughned Odor made the two plays of the game. Elvis made a play in the 3rd inning going to his right, he got the bouncing ground ball did a 360 degree spin and then threw the ball on the run accurately to first base to get the speedy Ketel Marte.  It was a great play that was one of the top plays of the day on SportsCenter last night. Roughned Odor also had a great play ranging very far to his right almost the right field line where he snagged a ground ball and threw to Shawn Tolleson who was sprinting to first base to get Kyle Seager. Ian Desmond also looked comfortable in left field. He only had a ground ball hit to him as there was only one fly out the entire game by the Mariners.
  • Speaking of no fly outs, Cole Hamels was outstanding today. He was making his 3rd Opening Day start of his career and even though he gave up 2 early home runs to Cano and Seager, he was still able to buckle down after that and pitch an outstanding game. He kept everything low in the zone and forced the Mariners into 8 strikeouts and 10 ground ball outs. That is how you have to pitch in Arlington throughout the season. Hamels also pitched well in the couple of times that he got into trouble. He showed his veteran poise out there in being able to get out of trouble each time the Mariners looked like they might tie the game. If his performance down the stretch and in the postseason last year did not convince people, hopefully this performance will show that he is the ace of this staff, even when Yu Darvish comes back. I also thought him and Robinson Chirinos worked very well together. It was well known last season that he preferred to work with Chris Gimenez, but he is out with an ankle infection right now. Chirinos did spend the offseason working to develop a better relationship with Hamels in order to be ready for the upcoming season and put himself in a position to be able to be his catcher. I would say it worked out yesterday as they seemed to be on the same page the whole game. This will be something to follow as we go throughout the season though and see if they can maintain that chemistry.
  • On the other side Mike Montgomery was outstanding late in the game for the Mariners. He came in relief for Hernandez in the 7th and was able to mow through the heart of the Rangers order in the 7th and the 8th. He struck out 4 of the 7 hitters he faced and only allowed one base-runner, a walk to Mitch Moreland. He had his curveball and slider working very well. He also showed very good life with his fastball. I did not expect that.
  • Overall both starters were very good, kept the hitters off-balance all game, the Mariners made a few mistakes in one inning and the Rangers capitalized to the tune of 3 runs. That allowed them to win the game on the back of a strong start by Cole Hamels and shutdown relief by Jake Diekman and Shawn Tolleson. Sometimes that is all it takes.

Preview of Tonight’s Game

Game Time 7:05 p.m., Fox Sports Oklahoma and Fox Sports SW, Hisashi Iwakuma vs Martin Perez. 

Tonight is game two of the series and the Mariners will send recently resigned pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma to go against Martin Perez. Iwakuma pitched very well in his two starts against the Rangers last season. The 34 year old right-hander went 7 innings in each of his two starts and gave up 3 runs in one start and 2 runs in the second start and picked up the win in each start. The Rangers have actually not won a game started by Iwakuma since August 24, 2013 and he has not taken a loss against the Rangers since July 4th, 2013. He has been outstanding against this team whether it be in Seattle or Texas. That will be something to keep an eye on tonight to see if the Rangers can break through against Iwakuma and be able to pick up a win. Martin Perez will also be making his first start of the season. He has had a good Spring Training and Bannister decided to reward him with the number 2 spot. Perez is coming into a big year. He is now two years removed from Tommy John surgery and so a lot more will be expected out of him. He has the stuff and makeup to be an outstanding pitcher in this league. It is more mental with him. Can he keep himself from losing his focus during a game and stay mentally engaged through the 6 or 7 innings that he pitches. That is something he struggled with last year was if someone made a mistake behind him or if he walked a batter he would let it snowball in a hurry instead of being able to shut it off. The biggest example of this was the beatdown by the Yankees last season. He had a great first inning, the Rangers came and scored 5 runs in support of him, but then he allowed a leadoff double to Chris Young and before you know it the Yankees had tied the game at 5 and he was out of there. He pitched much better after that game, but the mental lapses still were a problem. He is going to have to be much better with that this season and I expect he will be. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News has said he expects Martin Perez to have a breakout season in 2016. He has everything he needs to be great. He pitches with good velocity, he is able to spot his fastball and changeup on either corner of the plate, and he keeps the ball low. The bullpen is fresh though and so don’t be surprised if Bannister decides to go to them early if need be. No need to force Perez into a high pitch count situation if it is not necessary.

Player to Watch tonight

Roughned Odor. This could be another low scoring game in which his ability to make plays could be crucial. I expect him to go 1-3, but get on-base twice and watch out if he gets on-base because he is going to make things happen once on-base. That is where he is the most dangerous. If the Rangers win I expect Odor will have a large hand in it on both the offensive side and with his glove as well.

Should be a great game tonight. Hopefully the Rangers win this game and the series. Go Rangers!!!!!

Opening Day is Here at Last

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  We are finally to Opening Day 2016 for the Texas Rangers. It has been a very long winter since the Jose Bautista bat flip heard around the world. A winter of discontent among the players and fans. Winter is … Continue reading →

Spring Training Week 1 Recap

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Welcome to the 2016 Season. It has been a while since I have wrote about the Rangers. That is what having a full-time job and a pregnant wife will do to you is give you less time to write and think about baseball. Here we are though and we are now 1 month away from Opening Day 2016. Hopes are high for the defending AL West Champion Texas Rangers. They return the core of a team that shocked everyone last season and rallied from last place in May to first place in October. The 2015 season was quite the ride and now as we head into the 2016 season the Rangers attempt to build on that success. It will not be easy though as the Houston Astros seem primed to take that next step in their rebuilding process and win the division. The Seattle Mariners, who were the one team in the division that the Rangers struggled against, will look to rebound from a very disappointing 2015 campaign. Just like any other baseball season it promises to be a season of highs and lows and as a fan I can’t wait to see where it takes us.

We are now one week into the full squad workouts and two games into the exhibition season and things are looking good. They signed former Washington Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond to fill their hole in left field. He is a right-handed bat that has power and could go a long way toward helping the lineup not be so left-handed heavy as it was last season. He also is someone the team can rely on to be in the lineup day-in and day-out. He signed for 1 year/8 million and so he will play this season and then the team will be ready to hand left field over to one of the Nomar Mazara/Lewis Brinson/Joey Gallo trio. I expect one or all of them to be on the major league roster next season in a full-time capacity. He will see his first game action today as the Rangers face the LA Dodgers in game 3 of the Cactus League season.

In other news Yu Darvish continues to progress in his journey back from Tommy John surgery. He has advanced from throwing on flat ground to throwing off a half mound, and on Monday he threw off a full mound with no pain. He has not experienced any side-effects in the days since. He still continues to be on track to make his debut in mid-May to early-June. The plan is to continue to bring him along slowly so that the innings count is not an issue come September and hopefully October. That will be a big addition to the team and will help strengthen their rotation.

Finally, in actual game action the Rangers won their first two Cactus League games. They beat the defending champions Kansas City Royals in both games. They won the first game 6-2 and then beat the Royals again yesterday 10-0. The star of both of games has been outfield uber prospect Nomar Mazara. He has a hit in 8 of his first 9 plate appearances combined between the two games against the Royals and the Rangers intersquad scrimmage earlier this week. He likely will not be making the team out of Spring Training as the Rangers want him to continue to develop in AAA Round Rock, but if he continues to hit a good clip he will make it very hard for the Rangers to send him down. It still is very early though as pitchers are nowhere near ready to start the season. It is to be expected that hitters would have the upper hand at this point. Manager Jeff Banister was asked about Mazara’s chances at making the team after the first game and all he had to say was that Mazara had a good day. Baseball is not about having good days. Baseball is about stringing together several good days and being able to learn from the bad days. It is a marathon and not a sprint and while the organization may not have many competitions going on this spring, a lot could happen between now and Opening Day.

The competitions that I will be keeping my eye on this Spring is who will be the number 5 starter, who will be the utility infielder, who will be extra outfielder that the Rangers will carry, and who will the backup catcher be. The Opening Day rotation will look like this in no particular order: Cole Hamels, Colby Lewis, Derek Holland, and Martin Perez. The 5th starter competition consists of Chi Chi Gonzalez, Nick Martinez, Cesar Ramos, Jeremy Guthrie,  and Nick Tepesch. A lot of viable candidates in there. I am sure the team would love to see Chi Chi really claim that spot, but they will not give it to him if he doesn’t earn it though. As far as the utility infield spot it is Hanser Albertos to lose. He has the most experience but other guys like Doug Bernier, Drew Robinson, and even Jurickson Profar will all be trying to take that spot. Profar who hasn’t played in a MLB game since 2013 is finally healthy and able to throw. The plan is to work him slowly along and have him start the season in AAA Round Rock and then maybe bring him up later in the season. He could speed those plans along though if he plays well here in Arizona. The extra outfielder will be a competition between Jason Jones,