It’s been a few weeks but I’m back. I wish I could say the same about the Rangers though. The network I write for had some system wide problems that kept me from posting but from keeping tabs on the Rangers, I haven’t missed much as far as writing.
Every year, the Rangers look like they could go either way. The offense is always in place, but the pitching is always a question mark. At the time, I liked the moves the Rangers made but in hind sight, it doesn’t look like it was enough because the Rangers have just one more win then the Royals do. The hitting hasn’t been there (.244 team batting average) nor has the pitching (5.20 ERA, only the Devil Rays are worse). And if the Rangers don’t do something quick, it’s going to be season where the last three months have little meaning to anyone other then who they’re playing.
Of course the big surprises have been Ian Kinsler and Sammy Sosa. Sosa leads the team with 30 RBIs and he’s right behind Kinsler with nine homeruns. He’s also put the Rangers in the spotlight because he now sits just three homeruns short of 600. Not too shabby for a non-roster invitee. Kinsler has the ten homeruns, but he’s done it with a .226 batting averag. While Mark Teixaira has the batting average (.291) but just six homeruns.
And the pitching has been downright bad. Robinson Tejada leads the starters with a 4.87 ERA and Brandon McCarthy leads the team with three wins despite a 6.51 ERA. Looks like all of the talk about him moving to a hitters park and being a fly ball pitchers warranted some consideration. Akinori Otsuka has done a nice job as the closer, he just hasn’t had a lot of chances.
Right now, the Rangers have to win today just to avoid a sweep at the hands of the, gulp, Devil Rays. Then it’s a trip to Houston for the battle of Texas as interleague play fires up. The Rangers need to do it now, or it’s going to be a very long season.