MLB Power Rankings: Which pitching rotation is the best in baseball?
By Phil Akre
25. Texas Rangers
Like the Blue Jays, when you look at the Rangers’ rotation on paper, it sounds like it should be pretty good.
You have Cole Hamels, Doug Fister, Mike Minor and the ageless Bartolo Colon. That’s not counting Matt Moore, either, who recently was reinstated from the disabled list.
If you couldn’t guess, Hamels has been the best of the bunch. His 3.74 ERA is the best among Rangers’ starters. He’s been his reliable self for the season, but he’s almost a sure bet to be in a different uniform after this year’s trade deadline.
Fister, too has been pretty solid in 2018, with a 4.09 ERA. Don’t look too much into his 1-5 record, he’s had eight starts with three earned runs or less.
It’s Colon, however, who has pitched remarkably well this year. Amazingly, the 44-year-old has pitched to a 3.55 ERA this season. Keep doing you, Big Sexy.
Where the rotation falls flat, though, is Minor and Moore.
30-year-old Mike Minor has allowed 4+ earned runs in more than half of his starts this season, while his WHIP sits at 1.325. However, he’s had a knack for going deep into games, as he averages 5.4 innings per start.
Moore, the former Tampa Bay Ray, has trudged through a train wreck of a season. Not much needs to be said of the lefty’s 2018. Here are his numbers.
- -1.0 WAR
- 7.85 ERA
- 2.000 WHIP
- 23 BB’s in 47 innings.
Things won’t be much brighter for Texas, with little pitching coming up from the farm.