The Texas Rangers had a very quiet and almost non-electrifying offseason leaving fans to wonder what the front office was thinking. Players like Josh Hamilton, Mike Napoli, Koji Uehara and Mike Adams left for more money in free agency. The face of the franchise, Michael Young, was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. The Rangers lost Zack Greinke, B.J. Upton, Justin Upton and James Shields. People asked why the price tag was not needed.
Some of the pain is pain.
In the Los Angeles Angels, Josh Hamilton signed and a bloated salary prevented him from making any future moves. The Los Angeles Dodgers did the same, with Zack Greinke (who is now uncertain if he will be ready to start the season). Tampa Bay Rays sent one of the best pitchers to a proven prospect and the Atlanta Braves landed both Vpton brothers. who now play more games in the ballpark “pitchers” where they have problems hitting.
Some of the pain is pain.
So what should I do in Texas? The greatest free agents landed were Joachim Soria, A.J. Pierzynski and Lance Berkman. They also brought in a ton of free agent relief pitchers competing for spots in a depleted bullpen. They did all this without breaking the bank. They did all this without any of their top prospects.
Some of the pain is pain.
Now that springspring training is rolling in some new faces have emerged and captured the hearts of many fans. How many Texas fans knew who Jeff Baker was before the start of the Cactus League story? He’s close to being a bench player, so he can play every position in the field (except shortstop and centerfield), and he has some pop in the bat. Yangervis Solarte is also seen as another bench guy who can play shortstop. This means that the popular Jurickson Profar will start the season in triple A where he can get more at bats, and be there in the team if Elvis Andrus or Ian Kinsler goes down with an injury. It also affects Profar’s service time as Texas would get another year of service if he started the first two months in the minors.
Some of the pain is pain.
Not qualifying as a free agent starter leaves Texas with a rotation that will consist of Yu Darvish, Matt Harrison, Derek Holland, Alexis Ogando and Martin Perez. Perez is currently injured but was a leading candidate to start in the fifth position when he was injured. He is expected to miss the first month of the season, which usually starts at three. Not really an accident. Until then, Texas is looking for players like Derek Lowe, Randy Wells, Robbie Ross and Kyle McClellan as the season determines. In particular, the pitching staff should be fine when factoring in the eventual return of Colby Lewis to the starting rotation and Neftali Feliz and Joakim Soria to the bullpen. And if Texas needs another starter, it still has all of its undrafted prospects.
Some of the pain is pain.
Regardless, what do you think the Rangers have assembled a team that will undoubtedly contend for the American West title once again. I expect Adrian Beltre to be a step ahead of you, and become a team leader with Michael Young gone. AJ Pierznyski will give the team additional fire, as he is about winning at any cost. Lance Berkman will plant some balls in the right field gallery. Leonys Martinus in the middle of the field will shake the fans. Yu Darvish will be chasing the Cy Young. Texas Rangers had not gone anywhere. They just quietly reloaded.
Some of the pain is pain.
Next time I’ll see you in the cheap seats!
James Holland is an avid baseball fan and country Texas Rangers. He is also a senior columnist for shutdowninning.com, runs a blog at clawandantlernation.com and can be found on Twitter @SDIJamesHolland.
Source:
http://texasrangers.com
