DALLAS — I don’t know if I mentioned this the last time Adrian Beltre went on the disabled list, but being without their Captain, the 39-year old third baseman, is pretty far down there on the list of problems for the 2018 Rangers.
In truth, with a contingent of fans in the off-season looking for the future Hall of Famer to be traded to a more immediate contender, Beltre having only amassed 102 at-bats this season is a glimpse into a nearing future without the seven-year Ranger.
No, Texas right now is on the verge of becoming unenjoyable, simply by virtue of it being all too predictable on one side of the ball.
May 11-16
- Opponents: @Houston Astros, @Seattle Mariners
- 5-Game Record: 2-3
- Overall Record: 17-27, 10.5 Games Back of Houston
- Injury Report: Elvis Andrus (60, Fractured Elbow), Carlos Tocci (10, hip contusion), Chris Martin (10, Forearm Irritation), Marin Perez (10, right elbow discomfort), Drew Robinson (10, hip soreness), Adrian Beltre (10, re-aggravated hamstring strain)
- Notable Stats: Innings Pitched by Starters During This Stretch (26.1 – about 4.1 innings per start), Alex Claudio’s WHIP (1.83 in nearly 20 innings – almost 2 per inning), Joey Gallo OBP from start of May to now (.305 to .287), Hits Matt Moore has allowed in 9 starts (58), Number of Errors (40 – #1 in MLB), Unearned Runs (24), Number of Strikeouts by Hitters (431 – T-#1 in MLB)
On the Mound
Stop me if you’ve heard this one: Matt Moore was bad. You didn’t have time to stop me, because I can’t expound on that any further. Once again, the beleaguered lefty was the anchor in the Rangers’ rotation this time around – I don’t mean that in the positive way, either.
From one vantage point – three runs, five strikeouts, three walks – maybe Moore’s line doesn’t look that bad. From the other – three innings pitched, 72 pitches – it’s certainly not what Texas was hoping for in the reclamation project. In a public statement on The Fan, perhaps one that should have been made a couple of starts ago, general manager Jon Daniels said that Moore would need “to turn it around or we’re going to have to look at other options.”
Right now, those options are an aged Yovani Gallardo (yikes), a stalled out Yohander Mendez (ehh) or last year's feel good story Austin Bibens-Dirkx. Bibens-Dirkx looks like the most attractive option to be an innings eater type starter with at least something resembling upside in a lost season. Yes, the team would have to clear a 40-man spot, but I’d like to direct you to the previous quote from Jon Daniels.
As for the rest of the arms, Bartolo Colon was once again outstanding. In the Facebook exclusive game on Wednesday against Seattle, the Ageless Wonder went 7 2/3 innings of shutout baseball. The vet pitched to contact, worked around a few weak hits when needed, struck out three, and generally put on a clinic for all pitchers to follow. It’s a good thing, too, because Colon’s previous two starts looked a little thin on Big Sexy Magic.
Mike Minor had a very troubling start, only lasting 3 1/3 innings and giving up six runs, while being unable to put hitters away with two strikes. He was bailed out by the bats, in what ultimately was a bullpen loss. Cole Hamels outdueled Justin Verlander, which is saying something, and Doug Fister met expectations in a loss.
Not to be a broken record, but the bullpen needs some rest, and badly. Two off days in the span of seven days only does you good if you’re working your normal workload. With Moore and Minor barely cracking the three inning mark, the bullpen entered the second of 20 straight games entirely overworked.
Two things are fortunate: Colon’s outing on Wednesday saved a lot of work for the relievers, and Jesse Chavez is still effective as a long-man who eats innings. A couple of weeks ago, I was advocating for Chavez to take Matt Moore’s spot in the rotation, but I’ve definitely changed my tune. Chavez is carrying a starter’s load for the bullpen, and he can do it at a better frequency than a starter could.
The 34-year old isn’t a “Relief Ace” by any stretch, but he certainly is the most valuable bullpen piece on “Ineffective Starter” days. He’s logged the most innings of any reliever, by far, at 24 1/3, racking up 27 strikeouts. Even with a 4.81 ERA – which, for a “mop-up” type of reliever is pretty good – Chavez is bridging the gap from starters that go fewer than five innings to the later innings.
At the Plate
This week, this section is going to be weird. Truthfully, the only game to find any positives in was the series opener in Seattle on Tuesday. It was there that Texas kept fighting back, scoring eight runs before losing in extra innings. It was a full offensive effort, with every starter getting a hit, except for Delino Deshields, who still ended up on base via a walk. There were clutch hits from Robinson Chirinos, Ronald Guzman, Joey Gallo and even Rougned Odor, who tallied his first hit since returning to Major League action.
Besides that, the Texas offense scored one run in each game against Houston. The Astros’ pitching is so good, though, that you almost excuse that kind of performance from this club. But don’t let Wednesday’s five runs to win the game fool you. Before the wild and wacky ninth inning that featured a strikeout-wild-pitch that scored two runs, a bases-loaded walk, and a squibber that beat the shift, the Rangers suffered through seven innings of two-hit ball against freshly recalled Christian Bergman.
No, I wouldn’t look to this five-game stretch as any sort of offensive clinic from Texas (although, how about that baserunning from Isiah Kiner-Falefa in that ninth inning?).
Perhaps a four-game set against the rebuilding Chicago White Sox can reignite the fire in the bats. It will be, after all, just the 14th time this season that the Rangers will face a team with a record below .500 compared to 31 games against teams above .500.
In the Field
Ah yes, here is where we can discuss Adrian Beltre. Beltre, who re-injured his hamstring in the series finale against Houston, is expected to be out for anywhere between two to three weeks. Renato Nunez, who had been DFA’d after last week’s recap, is now a member of the Baltimore Orioles organization.
For the first time this season, I, for one, feel strangely okay about this.
No, you wouldn’t expect Beltre to play every game this year. But between last year and this year, knowing the future Hall of Famer’s contract situation, it almost feels like we’re being weaned off of having Beltre as an omnipresent force.
Let’s be honest, even before he went on the disabled list the first time, Beltre was not the wizard at third we all know he was. When he came back, it was even worse, if that can be imagined. The Captain himself seems to have realized this, acknowledging that shifting to more of a DH-type player would not only extend his career, but make him more productive on a baseball team.
In his place, we have Isiah Kiner-Falefa, the prospect who won the hearts of those who follow the Rangers’ farm system closely for his work ethic, consistent production while learning versatility and general approach to the game. He has won the hearts of the “average” Rangers fan by simply being productive and playing with a level head, prompting some to liken his demeanor to one Michael Young.
Is Kiner-Falefa going to be the Gold Glove wonder kid at third? Likely not, but he’s serviceable, he plays hard, and he’s not Renato Nunez, which probably makes him a strong net positive at the position.
One of the other issues that Jon Daniels and the Rangers will have to tackle eventually is right field. For all the versatility that Texas has been preaching, with players like Kiner-Falefa, Drew Robinson, Ryan Rua, Joey Gallo, Jurickson Profar, etc., they have completely pigeon-holed themselves when it comes to right field.
If you’re going to commit to Adrian Beltre as a DH when he comes back (assuming he’s still with the team – and right now, there’s very little to make one believe he’s tradeable), then where does that fit Shin-Soo Choo? Choo had already resigned himself to accepting more DH days to keep Nomar Mazara in the lineup and on the field.
But Mazara isn’t even close to a decent right fielder. Is there conceivably a three-man DH rotation in the works? That sounds daunting, in and of itself. Factor in that the team doesn’t really have a great option in right field and you have a situation that I’m glad I don’t get paid to figure out.
At some point, you may have to push Joey Gallo back to first base, although Ronald Guzman’s ability to rescue the other three infielders from throwing miscues potentially outweighs his lack of production with a bat. Carlos Tocci is going to come back, and it doesn’t sound like the Rangers are terribly keen on sending the Rule 5 acquisition back to Philadelphia.
An outfield of Drew Robinson/Ryan Rua, Delino Deshields and Nomar Mazara isn’t much better defensively than what you have right now. It’s a conundrum to be sure, but we don’t have to worry about that for at least another week.
The 20-Games-in-20-Days stretch is never something that’s fun for a ballclub. For a team like the 2018 Texas Rangers, it’s definitely going to test the mettle and mental strength of a team that is on pace to lose just under 100 games this year.
Up Next:
- May 17-20: @Chicago White Sox
- May 21-23: New York Yankees
Which Ranger(s) player do you think will represent Texas at the 2018 All-Star Game? Share your pick with Matt on Twitter @FisherWritesMLB.
