Rangers: Matt Bush removed as closer, going with committee

The Rangers aren’t competing for much and had a blowup in the bullpen. Matt Bush is out, but the bullpen has a bit of turmoil among the staff.

The Texas Rangers, along with a bunch of teams, have dealt with their fair share of injuries to both sides of the ball. With a beat up rotation and lineup, the Rangers have fallen to fourth in the American League West.

The most recent news is that closer Matt Bush hasn’t been himself and was removed from the closer role on Saturday. Manager Jeff Banister said they will be going with a closer by committee, but that could be difficult for the next couple of weeks.

The Rangers placed reliever Keone Kela on the 10-day DL with right shoulder soreness. This comes at a bad time because Kela was pitching well recently. Over his last 10.2 innings, he posted a 1.69 ERA with six hits, three walks and 16 strikeouts.

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Bush, on the other hand, was on the decline. After posting a 1.37 ERA and 0.966 WHIP in the first two months, he has a 7.94 ERA, 2.38 WHIP and four saves in seven attempts in 11.1 innings. The catalyst for his removal was his appearance against the Chicago White Sox.

Bush pitched in just 0.1 innings while giving up three runs on four hits. Since then, though, he has two shutout innings with a walk and two strikeouts. So, the upside, for a 31-year-old pitcher at least, is still there.

If you own Bush, I would definitely still keep him rostered. The Kela injury helps Bush’s value and chances to get back in the ninth inning. Looking at the rest of the Rangers bullpen, there doesn’t seem to be anyone else prime to take over that job.

Alex Claudio has good numbers but he is the only lefty in the bullpen. Jose Leclerc is another name to look at. He has a 14.0 K/9 and a 5.4 BB/9 so there is some concern with his pitch control.

Kela is scheduled to return on July 14 against the Kansas City Royals. He may be the closer from that point going forward but we need to see his usage first.

Next: Nick Castellanos heating up in July

Both Bush and Kela are widely available in ESPN league, 27.2 and 11.7 percent respectively. The closer chart is constantly changing this season and either man could close for the Rangers the rest of the season. Bush has promise, but Kela has been more consistent. It’s a situation to watch going forward.