It appears as if someone in Arlington may have decided to heed that wise young man's advice. While some of the Rangers' offseaons moves in preparation for 2010 have bolstered their offense, the organization continues to make great strides in developing a pitching staff that will ensure them of staying competitive for years to come. The first evidence of this exceedingly important development? The Rangers staff finished 4th in the AL last season in run's allowed per game, surrendering just 4.6 per contest.
The pieces are in place for the Rangers to do their characteristic damage to other team's pitching staffs. Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, and Ian Kinsler anchor a potent lineup; and the addition of Vlad Guerrero as the team's DH provides another potentially powerful bat their offense. At least, thats how it looks on paper.
With the Angels noticeably weaker than in previous years, the A's still light on talent, and uncertainties in Seattle, the Rangers may find themselves in season-long contention to a division title.
Pitching
Lets talk about this pitching staff that is the cause for so much optimism. The Rangers did some light offseason wheeling and dealing near the top of their rotation, bringing in Rich Harden on a one-year contract and then shipping veteran Kevin Millwood to Baltimore for Chris Ray. More on Ray to come. Harden has All-Star stuff, for his career he strikes out more than a hitter an inning. The problem with the right-hander is that his arm has shown signs of being made of crate-paper. He made 18 starts last year, making for his healthiest year since 2006. If healthy, he'll help solidify the top of the Rangers' rotation. IF he's healthy.
Righty Scott Feldman emerged last season as the team's unexpected ace. He posted 17 wins, kept his ERA a hair above 4.00 and limited baserunners to the tune of a 1.28 WHIP. His stellar season caught many by surprise, his ability to repeat last year's success is critical to the Rangers fulfilling raised expectations this season. After Feldman and Harden, the only other guaranteed spot in the rotation belongs to Colby Lewis, who signed in the off-season after two eye-catching years pitching in Japan. Lewis has yet to prove that he can consistently get major league hitters out (his career ERA in the bigs is almost 7.00 owing to several unmemorable stints as a reliever prior to his Japanese tour) but the Rangers front office believes he can replicate some of his recent foreign success back in the good ole US of A. The final two rotation slots will be subject to a 4-way spring competition between Brandon McCarthy (7-4 and 4.62 ERA with the Rangers last year), Derek Holland (8-13 with a 6.12 in the bigs last year), Tommy Hunter (9-6 4.10 ERa last year), and Matt Harrison (4-5 with a 6.11). Of those 4, McCarthy is the oldest: He will be 26 on Opening Day. There is still ample time for each of the four to realize their "up-sides."
Closer Frank Francisco pitched an injury-interrupted season last year at the back of the Rangers' bullpen. He probably wishes he'd called it a season in early July. Francisco was lights out for his first two dozen appearances in 2009 but struggled through the season's second half. He returns in 2010 needing to prove that he can indeed get hitters out in tough situations for an entire season. To get the ball to Francisco, the Rangers will rely on CJ Wilson, a lefty who filled in admirably for Francisco at times in 2009, causing many to forget his putrid attempts at closing games in previous years. Offseason addition Chris Ray has not been the same pitcher since major arm surgery ended his 2007 campaign early. He struggled mightily in limited action in Baltimore last year, but, he still has a live arm, which is always enough for a second chance. Lefty Darren Olver returns to the place where his career started and will provide functional long relief. Side-arming Darren O'Day (when was the last time a big league bullpen could boast having TWO guys named Darren?) posted eye-popping numbers in 2009 and will be a key pirece of the Rangers' relief corps.
The Arlington Wrecking Crew
If only all of those longballs that Josh Hamilton hit in the 2008 Homerun Derby actually counted for the team's regular season run total. If only Hamilton had managed to hit as many homeruns in all of 2009 as he did on that amazing night in July 2008 in Yankee Stadium. Hamilton's 2009 was a huge let down (10 homers and 54 RBIs in an injury-abbreviated campaign) and he will likely start 2010 as the Rangers leftfielder, allowing highly-touted youngster Julio Borbon to take over in centerfield. Borbon hit a cumulative .310 in a meteoric rise through the minor leagues, stealing bases and adding occasional pop along the way. Rightfielder Nelson Cruz, last season's unexpected team power source clubbed 33 homeruns in 2009 while driving in a paltry 76 runs (that means over the course of the year, he only drove in 43 guys not names Nelson Cruz. Thats not many). A full season from Hamilton and improvements at the top of the Ranger order should help Cruz improve his run production. Vlad Guerrero's legs have decayed to the point that he won't see much outfield time in 2010. But, there is no denying that the Rangers new acquisition can still hit. He'll see plenty of time as the primary DH.
Catcher for the Rangers has been a revolving door of highly-anticipated prospects who have underwhelmed just about everyone watching with their performances. Jared Saltalamacchia and Taylor Teagarden have the inside track on innings behind the plate in 2010. If either demonstrates a sustained ability to produce in the batters' box, the catching job is theirs.
Looking around the Texas infield should cause most Ranger fans to smile this season. Stat-head types are quick to point out that shortstop Elvis Andrus and 2nd-baseman Ian Kinsler save alot of runs with their plus defense in addition to their stellar offensive production. 3rd baseman Michael Young made no such positive contribution with his glove last year, but, a perennial all-star, he hit for power and average (22 homers, .322 average) in 2009. Chris Davis strikes out alot (150 last season in 419 plate appearances-- you do the math!) but he also hits for power. The number crunchers at Baseball Prospectus seem to think that Davis is headed for a breakout 2010: forecasting 33 homers and 97 RBIs.
Wrapping Up
Last week, Nolan Ryan, now the team's President, told reporters that he believes the Rangers can win 92 games and take the NL West crown. He's not crazy. Such an outcome is certainly within the realm of possibility but, the Rangers offense must stay healthy, and the pitching staff must continue its growth AND stay healthy for 92 wins to be realistic. So, if anyone in Arlington really is taking advice from this blog as I earlier posited: Try to keep Rich Harden's arm attached to his body and make sure the promising young arms get handled properly so they can last an entire season. The all-around talent is there for this team to win alot of games.
1 comment:
I remember thinking last year that someone in Texas should take the advice offered here. If Nolan Ryan is right about 92 wins, does that make his rookie baseball card any more valuable?
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