Fantasy Baseball: 2015 Texas Rangers Fantasy Outlook

Mar 24, 2015; Surprise, AZ, USA; Texas Rangers designated hitter Adrian Beltre against the Los Angeles Angels in a spring training game at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Spring Training is in full swing (pun intended), and the regular season is right around the corner. That means that our fantasy drafts are as well.

2015 Texas Rangers Projected Starting Lineup:

C: Robinson Chirinos (.239, 13HR, 40RBI, 0SB in 93 games)
1B: Prince Fielder (.247, 3HR, 16RBI, 0SB in 42 games)
2B: Rougned Odor (.259, 9HR, 48RBI, 4SB in 114 games)
SS: Elvis Andrus (.263, 2HR, 41RBI, 27SB)
3B: Adrian Beltre (.324, 19HR, 77RBI, 1SB)
LF: Ryan Rua (.295, 2HR, 14RBI, 1SB in 28 games)
CF: Leonys Martin (.274, 7HR, 40RBI, 31SB)
RF: Shin-Soo Choo (.242, 13HR, 40RBI, 3SB)
DH: Mitch Moreland (.246, 2HR, 23RBI, 0SB in 52 games)

Chirinos only hit more than 10 homers in a season twice in 11 minor league seasons, so don’t expect a duplicate of his 2014 season. He is only an option if you are desperate in a 20 team league or a two catcher league.

Fielder missed most of last season, literally, with a pain in the neck. It did require surgery, but His Highness is erasing doubts with a nice spring. He will be 31 in May, so his days of hitting 40 home runs are probably over, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he got close to 30. There are a lot of people that are nervous about him getting back to form. Capitalize on that to grab some second round potential in a sixth round pick.

Odor has been the big winner in Jurickson Profar‘s astounding run of bad luck with injuries. Odor has raked this spring, and is a popular sleeper pick late in drafts. He might hit 20 home runs this year, which would make him a great value where you can take him. Who said there is no depth at second base?

Andrus has stolen at least 20 bases in every full professional season. That kind kind of speed an his run potential at the top of the Texas order make him a popular target in the ninth or tenth round. You know you are going to get a decent average (he is a career .272 hitter) and at least 20 steals. Elvis is a good low-risk option at SS.

Beltre is baseball’s version of Tim Duncan. Despite his age, he still continues to produce. Beltre will be 36 next week, which had led many people to let him slip in drafts. Beltre still hit 19 homers on an injury ravaged team last year. It is not out of line to think that he hits between 22-25 this year and drives in close to 100 runs. He might not hit .324 again, but he should still be very close to .300. He is a solid pick if he falls to you in the third or fourth round.

Rua will get the first crack at the left field job, but Delino DeShields Jr. is lurking in the outfield as well. Rua was very good last September and hit 50 homers over his last two minor league seasons. He could be a sneaky pick for some late power in deep leagues. If DeShields carves out regular playing time, his speed makes him an asset in deep leagues.

Martin has stolen 67 bases over his last two years. That kind of speed with a good average is not easy to come by. He is also a threat to crack double digits in home runs. That kind of speed makes him a solid middle round pick.

Choo had his worst season in the majors last year, and it wasn’t even close. He battled some nagging injuries, but even when he was on the field, he never really looked comfortable in Texas. The Rangers paid a ton of money for him, so they need him to have a good year this year. I think he can if the rest of the lineups stays healthy. Perhaps the most disturbing thing was the fact that he only stole three bases in 123 games last year. If his speed is gone, he won’t hit for enough power to help you out much. You are they relying on his average to be much closer to his career mark of .282 than last year’s .242 debacle. I have my doubts on if you should even take him in standard leagues right now.

Moreland’s power evaporated last year, but he also suffered through an injury riddled season. If he can stay healthy, he could come close to 20 homers again, but he likely won’t hit for a good enough average to warrant playing him in standard leagues.

The burning question is: will Joey Gallo be called up this year? He has awesome power, as he showed last year at the All Star Futures game. If it weren’t for Kris Bryant, he would have led the minors in home runs for two straight years. The Rangers don’t plan on bringing him up, especially with Beltre at third, but if this team finds itself in contention and not getting production form Moreland and/or Choo, you could see Gallo at DH. If he is called up at any point, he becomes a must add in all leagues. His potential is that great.

Next: How Does The Rotation Look?

Mar 22, 2015; Peoria, AZ, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo (49) throws during the second inning against the Texas Rangers at Peoria Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

2015 Texas Rangers Projected Starting Rotation:

Yovani Gallardo (8-11, 3.51 ERA, 148K with Milwaukee)
Derek Holland (2-0, 1.46 ERA, 25K in five starts)
Colby Lewis (10-14, 5.18 ERA, 133K)
Ross Detwiler (2-3, 4.00 ERA, 39K in 47 appearances with Washington)
Nick Martinez (5-12, 4.55 ERA, 77K)
Neftali Feliz (2-1, 1.99 ERA, 21K, 13/14 saves)

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Gallardo was brought in to help out a decimated pitching staff. Yu Darvish will miss the entire season because of Tommy John Surgery. Martin Perez has his TJS last May, and there is no timetable for return.

Gallardo pitched better than his numbers indicated last year. He isn’t going to strike out 200 batters in a season anymore, but he is still capable of posting a decent WHIP and ERA. That makes him a solid mid to late round pick in standard leagues. Don’t overpay for the 200K version of Gallardo. You aren’t going to get it.

Holland was dominant when he was on the mound last year. Unfortunately for the Rangers, that wasn’t very much. Holland has looked solid this spring, and could end up as the ace of the staff. He probably won’t strike out 200 batters, but he could get you an ERA in the low 3’s. That makes him a good mid to late round pick as well.

Lewis and Detwiler are just filling holes until some of the Texas young guns are ready. They are incredibly deep in pitching prospects in the minors. Jake Thompson, Luke Jackson, Anthony Ranaudo, and Lisalverto Bonilla are all close. I would expect at least two of them to be up by the middle of June.

Outside of Holland and Gallardo, anyone else starting a Rangers game is a stream-only option in deep leagues. That includes the four who could come up at some point. Jackson probably is the most polished of them, but I wouldn’t trust him enough to own him.

Feliz looked very comfortable back in the closer role last year. He will always be a little under the first tier of closers because he doesn’t strike out a ton of batters, but he is absolutely nasty. He can be a dominant closer, and is being severely underdrafted in a lot of leagues.

Stay tuned to Fantasy CPR as we head to the AL Central!

Next: Top Ten Fantasy First Basemen

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