Don’t fret over Adrian Beltre, but Rangers have other questions

Spring training is history, and only two exhibition games Friday and Saturday against the New York Mets separate the Rangers from their season opener Monday at Oakland.

Ready or not, here comes the regular season.

Just about everyone at the Surprise Recreation Campus said that he was ready for meaningful games. Six weeks in Arizona, including the final week in 90-degree heat, can make anyone ready to head elsewhere.

But the Rangers left with many concerns, no matter how often they said they aren’t worried about their club.

Don’t worry

▪ Adrian Beltre: The Rangers’ best player, one of the best third basemen of all time, batted a robust .154 this spring — six hits in 39 at-bats with one homer and five RBIs. Ordinarily, his struggles would be a huge cause for concern for an offense that has enough questions, but not him and not yet.

Beltre is healthy, and he hasn’t exactly been a spring juggernaut of late (one homer in 2013 and 2014, while batting .265 and .262). Besides, if he’s not worried, no one should be worried.

“I’m exactly where I want to be,” Beltre said. “You see me worried? I’m not worried. It’s spring training.”

▪ Derek Holland: The de facto staff ace was slowed by shoulder soreness to start the spring, a delay that pushed him out of the season opener and into the home opener. The left-hander, though, said that he is all caught up.

He said so Tuesday, after allowing five runs (four earned) against the Chicago Cubs. He acknowledged that his command escaped him at times, but his changeup and curveball looked sharp and his fastball sat comfortably at 93 and 94 mph. And don’t forget the motivation factor after constantly hearing about the infamous trip over his dog.

“We have no shoulder issues,” Holland said. “I’m glad I got everything where I want it. I feel like I’ve got every good confidence in each pitch.”

▪ Rotation: The five in the rotation to start the season — Yovani Gallardo, Colby Lewis, Ross Detwiler, Nick Martinez and Holland — are solid. There’s experience, stuff and motivation throughout.

Even if one of them needs a DL stint, and that’s going to happen, the depth general manager Jon Daniels has assembled, after falling flat there in 2014, will give the Rangers a chance.

Three Triple A starters — Alex Gonzalez, Anthony Ranaudo and Nick Tepesch — can be good, and two have big league time. Gonzalez should be in the rotation this season, and left-handers Martin Perez (Tommy John surgery) and Matt Harrison (back) could be ready by July.

Be worried

▪ Neftali Feliz: The closer was uninspiring during spring training. His numbers (3.52 ERA in 7 2/3 innings, .214 opponents average) weren’t terrible, but the right-hander wasn’t lighting up the radar gun. He finally hit 96 mph on the final pitch of his final outing, and many took note. Here’s why: If Feliz doesn’t have mid- to upper-90s velocity, he’s ordinary.

He said that all through spring he was working on his off-speed pitches and his command. He said that his arm is healthy and that when Monday rolls around, his heater will be where it needs to be. He’s laid-back, which has always raised some red flags.

“My arm is ready,” Feliz said. “I’ll be 100 percent. I’m going to be ready to go.”

▪ Bullpen: Beyond the concerns about Feliz, this group will be banged up and unproven entering the season. Right-handers Tanner Scheppers (right ankle), Kyuji Fujikawa (right groin) and Shawn Tolleson (forearm) could all start the season on the disabled list, with their replacements all slated to be rookies or second-year pitchers.

The Rangers’ bullpen is going to be young. The good news is that Keone Kela, Jon Edwards and Roman Mendez all have power arms, which can be an equalizer when stuck in a rally. Kela was the star of the camp, and he could quickly move into a prime role.

If Fujikawa is out, the Rangers lose their best pitcher against lefty hitters. Left-hander Sam Freeman has better splits against right-handed hitters, and the Rangers saw lefty Alex Claudio look susceptible against lefty-hitters late in camp.

▪ Offense: The Rangers’ lineup leads the league in questions.

Will a healthy and happy Prince Fielder produce anything close to what the mean and hungry Fielder did in Milwaukee? Is Shin-Soo Choo going to rebound from an injury-filled 2014? Can Leonys Martin thrive in the leadoff spot? Will Elvis Andrus be better?

There is also the unknown with Mitch Moreland at designated hitter, Ryan Rua in left field and sophomore second baseman Rougned Odor.

This story was originally published April 2, 2015 at 2:38 PM with the headline "Don’t fret over Adrian Beltre, but Rangers have other questions."