Texas Rangers Built for 60 Game Season

Last Season:

Through 60 games in 2019 The Rangers were 32-28 and averaging 5.6 runs per game. That would have been good enough to put them in the postseason as the last AL Wildcard team. Texas went just 46-56 the rest of the season and finished six games below .500 at 78-84. 

Two major keys will be the depth the Rangers added to their pitching staff, and their ability to always play the AL West competitively.

Starting Rotation:

General Manager Jon Daniels did a nice job adding pieces this past winter to a team that showed flashes already. He was able to bolster the starting rotation by acquiring 2x Cy-Young winner Corey Kluber for close to nothing. Some under the radar signings of veteran arms Kyle Gibson and Jordan Lyles. Those three combine for over 3000 innings pitched at the big league level. Adding some valuable experience to the back end of the rotation. Something that Texas has not had in years. 

Mike Minor and Lance Lynn will both be returning after finishing top 10 in Cy-Young voting last season. If all goes according to plan and injuries are avoided, Kluber, Minor and Lynn would ideally start 36/60 games. Giving the Rangers a real chance in 60% of their games. 

The plan for the condensed season is for Texas to play each AL West foe 10 times. . The remaining 20 games the team will be playing against their National League counterparts, The NL West. With the 20 games against the likes of the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Padres and Giants, there will be no need to worry about adjusting to the NL rules as the MLB has implemented the universal DH. 

40 divisional games in 60 games is nothing new for The Rangers. In 2019 33 of their first 60 contests were against AL West foes. Texas actually came out with a winning record of 17-16. If you stretch it to look at their first 40 AL West games, they were 20-20 before the season started its downward trend. Ultimately finishing 33-43 in division play. 

At the Plate:

We know the Rangers have the offense. They finished 12th in runs scored a season ago and return essentially the same lineup. Combine an offense that averaged five runs a game with an upgraded, experienced pitching staff and see why the Rangers’ playoff odds went from 1.6% to 18.7% according to Fangraphs. Who’s to say Texas can’t come out the gate hot again and put themselves in a position to get to the postseason in this unique time? 

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