Fansided

Texas has the bats but do they have the arms to compete?

By Sean Sears

ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 26: Cole Hamels #35 of the Texas Rangers delivers a pitch in the first inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros at Globe Life Park in Arlington on September 26, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 26: Cole Hamels #35 of the Texas Rangers delivers a pitch in the first inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros at Globe Life Park in Arlington on September 26, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) /
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The Texas Rangers went from an up-and-coming team with a young core, to a team full of disappointing prospects and aging veterans struggling to stay above .500.

The Rangers have one of the most washed-up rotations in baseball featuring a Cole Hamels who has never quite looked like the guy he was with the Phillies. They also are seriously going to roll out a rotation that includes Doug Fister and Matt Moore as their second and third starters, while they wait for Martin Perez to return from his DL stint. Mike Minor, who should promise after excelling as a reliever with the Royals last season, is now going back to the minors where he has a career 4.10 ERA. And the rotation is rounded out by Bartolo Colon, who has been nothing more than a hilarious internet sensation and was terrible last season at 44 years old. And of course, Tim Lincecum will attempt to revive his career in Texas this season.

Their bullpen is solid, featuring four arms that can close out games, Matt Bush, Alex Claudio, Jake Diekman, and Keone Kela. They also added Jesse Chavez and Kevin Jepsen for depth, which gives the Rangers some help shortening games, but not enough for this weak rotation.

Offensively, their best player may be 38-year-old Adrian Beltre who is an excellent player, but just seasons ago 2B Rougned Odor was thought to be one of the elite hitters at his position. Instead, Odor has struggled to put the ball in the play, with a strikeout rate that has increased every season since 2015 – he struck out in almost 30% of his at-bats last season. Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara should combine for 60+ home runs, but both strikeout in bunches as well. Top prospect OF Willie Calhoun should be arriving in the big league sometime this season, however, I don’t see him having much success in this lineup as currently constructed, a lot of questions all over the place for the Rangers.

Best Case Scenario

The Rangers have to show they have some type of starting pitching this season. If Hamels can be close to the guy he was in Philly and Martin Perez builds off an encouraging 2017, as well as a guy like Colon or Lincecum find themselves again, they have a chance. But that’s like three “what if’s” in just their rotation alone.

They need their young core to become the players they were expected to be and for guys like Odor and Jurickson Profar, this may just be what the Rangers can expect from them. However, if Mazara and Gallo can smash a ton of home runs, and Beltre can continue to be an ageless wonder at 38-years-old there are worse teams in the American League.

Their bullpen should be a strength and something this club can lean on, but they need their core to live up to their potential and their starters to prove they can what they used to be, and I personally just don’t see anything more than a Wild Card berth at best.

Worst Case Scenario

Adrian Beltre finally starting to show signs of decline would be the worst thing to happen to the Rangers, and potentially baseball in general. Without the presence of Beltre in this lineup, it instantly becomes below average, filled with high-strikeout, low on-base guys it won’t produce runs.

However, it won’t matter if the Rangers can find another arm behind Hamels. Adding Minor as a starter, along with redemption-types like Colon and Lincecum, screams of desperation. And while the risk is low on guys like Lincecum, so is the potential return. The Rangers do not have enough to keep up with the teams in their division, and will likely get beat up playing as many games against teams with higher ceilings and more proven players.

Team MVP

Adrian Beltre – 3B 

Beltre is a future Hall of Famer who doesn’t get as much credit as he deserves. He struggled to stay healthy for the full season, however, Beltre still managed to hit 17 home runs and still lead the team in OBP with just under 400 plate appearances. He should put together a stronger season, but without someone else stepping up it’s going to be tough for Beltre to carry this team on his own. But he’s going to try anyway.

Prediction

The Rangers look like the worst team in the AL West, and at best, look like they could finish at .500 or just slightly above. Their pitching is full of holes and their offense doesn’t have much more than power, this team doesn’t have much firepower to get past the elite teams in the American League.