I do not understand the excitement about the Rangers this season. I understand they had a very good season last year and many hope for them to build upon that, but there are many glaring concerns within their team.
In their projected starting lineup they have players that do not fit any role on a good major league team.
Vladimir Guerrero is not the hitter he used to be. He is still capable of putting up decent numbers, but not enough to be a middle of the order hitter that he used to be. He is a below average outfielder and the Rangers plan on using him as a designated hitter for that reason.
Jarrod Saltalamacchia has not proven to be the star catcher that he was heralded to be in the Braves minor league system. Catchers are not known to be great offensive players and it would be unfair to just Saltalamacchia on offense alone, but his defense has been below average and if he can’t handle it behind the plate, he needs to learn to hit a bit more in order to be a useful major leaguer.
Elvis Andrus came up with fanfare and had a great start to the season, but tailed off a bit in the end. Shortstop is another position which is not known for great offensive production, although lately that has changed, and he hasn’t shown to have a solid role as a hitter. He also needs to improve his fielding a little bit if he wants to be an everyday major leaguer.
Josh Hamilton has been a terrific story and had a breakout 2008 season, but in 2009 he broke down and was often injured. So far it appears he continues to find himself injury prone and he cannot be relied upon to perform to his allstar caliber unless he proves he can stay on the field consistency.
The starting rotation has a few question marks. Last year, the Rangers had Kevin Millwood as their anchor in the rotation, and he’s no longer around. Colby Lewis is back from Japan and has apparently improved as a starting pitcher, but he has yet to prove anything positive in a regular season major league game. Derek Holland has had many bumps and bruises in the major leagues so far and cannot be relied upon to be a solid member of the Rangers starting rotation.
Chris Ray is the only true concern from the bullpen. It is hard to determine how someone will come back from Tommy John surgery. The first year back, Chris Ray was just trying to get himself into physical pitching shape so the second year is truly where he will be as a pitcher. The main concern now is can he have confidence in having full use of his arm? Sometimes the mental hurdle is more difficult than the physical recovery.
With so many questions and uncertainties, how can Texas be ready to take the next step. Though the American League West is very weak this year, the Texas Rangers can’t be expected to be in competition for a playoff spot this season.
