A brutal injury bug saw a proud Texas Rangers organization lose 95 games in 2014, good enough to finish 31 games out of first place. Before the season started, we at Off The Bench picked them to win 94 games. We weren’t even that high on Shin-Soo Choo or Prince Fielder, but we still thought this club had the talent to take the AL West. I bring that up not to have our readers question our expertise, but to remind everyone just how highly the club was regarded at this time last year. And the Rangers have effectively brought back the same squad, ready to compete in 2014.
Why the lineup will be better
Prince Fielder and Jurickson Profar are back. Fielder was recently big news in Texas following a conversation with a reporter in which he talked of a 2015 bounce-back season. He may or may not have guaranteed 40 homers and 125 RBIs. If he’s back healthy and providing a middle of the order compliment to Adrian Beltre, then the Rangers are already poised for quite the improvement over last season.
Meanwhile, Jurickson Profar was the number 1 prospect in all of baseball before 2013 and has since struggled through two injury-filled years. He’s been worth -0.1 WAR over the last two years, but he’s started his throwing program and the initial reports are good. Mitch Moreland is back and apparently ready to improve on his .297 OBP from 2014 after playing just 52 games.
But the lineup will be better for more reasons than just guys getting back from injuries. Rougned Odor was the Rangers primary second baseman last year and the 20 year old showed promise, but wasn’t ready. This 2015 should be better for the talented Venezuelan. You should also expect a better year from Shin-Soo Choo, who isn’t as good as he was in 2013 and isn’t as bad as he was in 2014. Plus, they won’t be giving JP Arencebia 220 at-bats and that’s the old addition by subtraction.
Why the rotation will be better
Currently, the official Rangers depth chart is a mess. It lists 8 guys who have a shot at making the rotation, led by Nick Martinez. Don’t feel bad if you’re unfamiliar with Nick, he was just an afterthought last year; a sidenote in the grand scheme of baseball. He made 25 starts with a 4.55 ERA, but he’s just 24, and posted good minor league numbers. Whoever is putting together the Rangers’ official depth chart seems to like him.
Behind Nick Martinez, is Yu Darvish. Darvish was on his way to another top-10 finish in the CY Young voting before the Rangers shut him down for rest and relaxation. Ace in waiting (for 3 years now) Derek Holland is finally ready for a healthy season. Holland has pitched well when he’s pitched–and 2015 seems like as good of a time as any for him to stay on the field. The Rangers also recently acquired Yovani Gallardo. Gallardo is miscast as an Ace nowadays (I wrote extensively about what he really is here) but he’ll help. Behind those three is more depth: Ross Detwiler (who could be really good when starting full time), Nick Tepesch (ditto), Martin Perez (still just 23), Matt Harrison (former All-Star, still 29), and Chi-Chi Gonzalez (Chi Chi!!!!). Perez and Harrison are expected back sometime after May, right when reinforcements are welcome in today’s game.
It’s a deep rotation with legitimate talent, and having so many individuals with serious potential to break out and become stars compete for the 4 and 5 spots is an enviable position. Rangers beat writer Evan Grant used the phrase “championship-caliber” to describe the rotation. That’s a bit of an oversell, but he’s on track in that they’re going to be good.
So, what are realistic expectations for a club that won just 67 games a year ago? Would 10 more wins be a success? Likely 20 more are needed to get them in the playoff picture. Prince being healthy and Derek Holland’s final push into stardom will make a big difference, but 20 more wins? I’m not sure it’s there.
The 2014 Rangers were the surprise team in the MLB for all the wrong reasons. I’m thinking that the 2015 Rangers will be the surprise team for all the good reasons, and not just because head athletic trainer Kevin Harmon will be able to enjoy his summer.
-Sean Morash
Stat of the Day: Gary Pettis is the Astros third base coach.
