Surprise Five: Austin on minds of many in Rangers camp
If there has been a Cactus League game for the Texas Rangers that said "let's go home" more than the one they played Tuesday, I must have missed it.
The Chicago White Sox scored five runs in the first, one in the second and three in the third on 15 hits. They had 20 hits overall, and the Rangers' water-downed travel lineup countered with three hits en route to a 10-0 loss.
The Rangers have five games remaining in Arizona and two at Globe Life Park before opening the 2018 season March 29.
Not that anyone is counting.
Here's the Surprise Five from Tuesday.
1. Of the nine starters in the batting lineup against the White Sox, the 10 pitchers who traveled to Camelback Ranch and the 12 extra players, 15 of them have played at Triple A Round Rock.
It's conceivable that 12 of those could be there at some point this season, and many could be there next month to open the season.
That was a little more of daunting proposition considering what had been happening in Austin before the bombing suspect blew himself up overnight while police were pursuing him near Round Rock.
Manager Jeff Banister and general manager Jon Daniels were aware of the bombings that terrorized the state capital. Players who have been a members of the Express were also aware of the situation.
"It's scary for the people of Austin and that community," said catcher Brett Nicholas, who has played 409 games for the Express. "Austin is full of amazing people. If it can happen there, it can happen anywhere."
The Express' policy on accepting packages was strict before the bombing, and the club was proactive with mail delivery companies and with local authorities, said Jill Cacic, the Express' vice president of public relations and communications.
"Safety is our number one concern for anyone entering Dell Diamond," she said. "Even before the recent events in Austin, our normal protocol when it comes to accepting packages is to only accept packages from a uniformed delivery personnel with the proper labeling.
"If a staff member, player or coach is no longer with the Express, we refuse the package and will continue to do so. All staff are asked to inform our office manager about any packages they are expecting. We will also be asking players and coaches to inform our clubhouse manager of any packages they are expecting."
The Rangers had also taken steps to make sure their players in Round Rock would be safe.
"We’ve been in touch with federal and local authorities, MLB Security and Round Rock.," Daniels said. "We’ll cooperate with and support them as asked. It’s something we’re monitoring closely, and we want to be able to answer our staff and players' questions and address their concerns as best we can."
The good news is that the suspected bomber is dead. But the havoc he caused resonated in Arizona.
"That's the type of fear that these terrorists are putting in people's minds, to be scared to do the everyday things you wouldn't think twice about," Nicholas said.
2. Doug Fister was on the hook for the first seven runs the White Sox scored, all in a mere 2 1/3 innings. He allowed 10 hits, nine of them singles, so balls weren't exactly being scorched off the right-hander.
But the fact that they were hits told Fister that he needs to be better. Believe it or not after that one, he believes that he's not all that far away.
"It's right there," he said. "It's just fine-tuning a bit."
Fister acknowledges that he gets in trouble when his mechanics are off and his sinker is flat. Poor mechanics contribute to poor command, and flat sinkers result in hard contact.
All those bloopers and grounders that found a hole came on pitches that he said were on the black edge of the plate instead of in a better location. He said that he threw more pitches in the bullpen afterward and thinks he found a fix.
The outing was the worst by a Rangers starter this spring, and that's not insignificant. It's not unusual to see multiple starters need a springtime mulligan, but this spring has been the exception.
It's a confident group, from Cole Hamels to Mike Minor, the presumed No. 5 starter, and it's a group the Rangers believe will beat the external expectations.
Yes, even in light of Fister's stinker.
"It's was definitely a rough one," he said.
3. It was rough, but at least the outfielders got in all their cardio for the day. Of note was that Ryan Rua was the right fielder and Destin Hood was in left.
Rua is expected to be part of a platoon with Drew Robinson in left field, but the Rangers might need him in right field at some point. If Hood is going to make the team, he must be a capable option in left.
He has shown well with the bat, and he has impressed with his athletic ability. His personality has left its mark as well.
Granted, the Rangers didn't have their full complement of outfielders. Nomar Mazara was the designated hitter, Robinson played third base, and Delino DeShields and Shin-Soo Choo were enjoying an afternoon off. Carlos Tocci was in center.
But they still got what they wanted out of the alignment. And the outfielders were able to get in their cardio.
4. It is the end of camp, in case you haven't heard, and the time has arrived for position players to begin playing a full nine innings and for relievers to begin pitching on back-to-back days.
Let's go home, indeed.
These are necessary steps, though, in the evaluation process.
A number of regulars played nine Monday night and had the day off Tuesday. Kevin Jepsen became the first reliever to pitch on back-to-back days when he tossed a scoreless inning against the White Sox.
It's yet another thing that Jepsen has accomplished this spring, and something he needed to be able to accomplish if he wants to make the team.
Keone Kela is scheduled to do it Wednesday. If he does, and recovers well the next day, it will be a big boost toward assuring the Rangers that he can be relied upon to carry a normal reliever's workload.
They haven't been sure about that in some time.
5. And that would be a good thing for the Rangers, who won't have Tim Lincecum on Opening Day. He and pitching coach Doug Brocail said that it is unlikely.
It wasn't because of how Lincecum did during live batting practice earlier in the day. By almost all accounts, it was pretty good.
Almost, though, is the key. Lincecum wasn't too thrilled.
He was glad to get in the work and learn what he needs to work on before entering a game situation. He wants to throw a third live BP on Friday to see what adjustments he made.
Tommy Joseph, though, said that Lincecum's stuff Tuesday is good enough to get retired major-league hitters. This comes after Joseph, making his camp debut after being claimed off waivers Monday from Philadelphia, connected for a homer off Lincecum.
"It found my barrel," Joseph said, very sheepishly.
He was a minor-league catcher in the San Francisco Giants organization when Lincecum was one of the best pitchers on the planet. Joseph caught Lincecum in bullpen sessions and faced him in live BPs and minor-league games when he was at his zenith.
He wasn't there Tuesday and might never be, but Joseph knows that Lincecum isn't about to settle with what he unleashed.
"He did a really good job of creating a tough pattern for hitters," Joseph said. "He had a lot of different things that he was working on. He knows what he wants to do to be ready and be effective. There were some pitches today that were pretty nasty. He threw some pitches that were tough for hitters to make contact with, let alone keep fair.
"He's going to want something different. He's going to want greatness, but what I saw today could play in the major leagues."
This story was originally published March 20, 2018 at 7:46 PM with the headline "Surprise Five: Austin on minds of many in Rangers camp."