Rangers notes: Martinez named fifth starter for rotation

Right-hander Nick Martinez will be in the Texas Rangers’ rotation to start the season, manager Jeff Banister said Sunday morning, after an impressive spring that has produced a 0.84 ERA through his first 10 2/3 innings.

Martinez beat out fellow righties Nick Tepesch and Lisalverto Bonilla for the final spot in a rotation that includes Opening Day starter Yovani Gallardo and Colby Lewis, also both righties, and left-handers Derek Holland and Ross Detwiler.

Banister said that Holland will start the home opener April 10, assuming he has made up for the time missed earlier this spring with shoulder soreness.

“As we sit today, we decided that Nick will round out the rotation for us,” Banister said. “What we saw in spring training was similar to what everyone saw last year.”

The Rangers like how Martinez has commanded the strike zone with his fastball and secondary pitches. He outperformed Tepesch and Bonilla, who are in the mix to be the long man in the bullpen even though both could end up in Triple A as rotation depth.

“Each one of these guys competed very well this spring,” Banister said.

Edwards makes case

When asked why reliever Jon Edwards was starting Saturday’s game, Banister explained that he wanted to see Edwards pitch with some traffic.

But both Edwards and Banister insisted that wasn’t why Edwards walked the first batter he faced on four pitches.

In fact, the first five pitches he threw were out of the zone, prompting catcher Robinson Chirinos to pay a visit to the mound. It was Edwards’ first start ever. And no matter how much he tried, the Keller High School graduate couldn’t trick his mind into treating it like a trip out of the bullpen.

“I tried real hard to keep my same routine in the bullpen, but in the back of my mind there was a little bit of a conservative mindset,” he said.

Chirinos reminded him to slow down his delivery. It worked.

Edwards retired the next six batters, including four strikeouts and two foul pops, using a combination of sharp sliders and deceptive curveballs.

“After I got a couple swings in that first inning I started getting aggressive again and started attacking the hitters,” he said. “I feel good. I’ve had a lot of opportunities to get on the mound, which is always nice.”

The key ingredient for his success this spring, Edwards said, was getting ahead of hitters with his fastball.

Edwards, who pitched in nine games in August and September last season, only faced one batter (a strikeout) in major league camp a year ago. He’s only allowed two runs on five hits in 10 2/3 innings this spring.

“It’s been good,” he said. “I’ve tried to stay focused on one hitter at a time and staying aggressive. Trusting my stuff.”

Bullpen makeup

Seven other relief pitchers followed Edwards in Saturday’s game.

The Rangers will do it again Monday, with Bonilla starting, followed by Jamey Wright, newly acquired left-hander Sam Freeman, Tanner Scheppers, Anthony Bass, Alex Claudio and Neftali Feliz.

Only closer Feliz and Scheppers know they’re on the roster.

Shawn Tolleson remains a question mark only because of lingering forearm tightness. He was scheduled to pitch in a Triple A game Sunday night, his first action since March 20. Tolleson expects to be ready for the April 6 opener at Oakland.

If Tolleson is healthy, that leaves three spots to fill, assuming Freeman is in the bullpen on Opening Day. Hard-throwing prospect Keone Kela remains high on the list, too.

Right-hander Kyuji Fujikawa, who has a major league contract, also seems to be a lock. So that leaves two holes to fill, including a long reliever. The prime candidates are Tepesch, Wright and Bonilla, Banister said.

But he also asked more questions than answered them, leaving the final makeup of the bullpen still murky.

“We have a chance of being young,” Banister said Sunday morning. “How do you balance youth and stuff with the veteran that has the pitchabilty and moxie? That’s the challenge. Creating options for ourselves and what best fits and how they complement each other.”

This story was originally published March 29, 2015 at 6:50 PM with the headline "Rangers notes: Martinez named fifth starter for rotation."