Texas Rangers’ alternate players are staying ready. Could any of them provide a lift?
In fairness to the Texas Rangers’ offense, visiting teams at Oakland Coliseum frequently fail to score a ton of runs.
The hitters fared meekly Tuesday night against the Oakland A’s in a 5-1 loss, a misleading final score in a game ended on Steven Piscotty walk-off grand slam.
In the Rangers’ case, though, their run total wasn’t terribly misleading.
They scored two or fewer runs for the sixth time in nine games this season. It was their fourth game with five or fewer hits, and they have failed to register a 10-hit game.
The Rangers are batting .192 this season, which is 29th out of the 30 MLB teams, and their .624 OPS is 27th. The only four teams that have fewer runs than the Rangers’ 26 have had at least two games postponed because of COVID-19.
Manager Chris Woodward has gone to such lengths to find offense as starting right-handed hitters Adolis Garcia, an MLB rookie, and Rob Refsnyder, a career part-timer, against left-handers.
Nothing, though, seems to be working other than when Joey Gallo is at-bat. Eight players with at least 16 at-bats this season are batting under .200.
Adding to the dysfunction is that the Rangers don’t have many alternatives.
Lefty hitters Shin-Soo Choo and Willie Calhoun could start facing lefty pitchers, though the results might not be any better. Choo was in there Wednesday against A’s lefty Sean Manaea.
Rougned Odor (oblique) and Danny Santana (forearm) could provide a boost when healthy, but they are a combined 4 for 41 this season.
That leaves the alternate camp, the group of players acting as the minor leagues in a season without minor leagues.
They are small in numbers, and they are in the reserve pool for a reason. But if things continue to spiral for the offense (and the bullpen), the Rangers might have to consider giving someone a chance.
These players might be under consideration:
Rafael Montero
He is a reliever, not a hitter, and technically he is on the injured list and not part of the alternate camp but rehabbing there. But the reason Tuesday’s outcome is so misleading is because of what the Rangers’ bullpen did in the ninth inning without Jose Leclerc (shoulder).
Edinson Volquez threw 20 pitches, 11 of them balls, and recorded only one out before leaving with the bases loaded. Fellow right-hander Jesse Chavez entered, and his first offering was launched by Piscotty.
Jonathan Hernandez tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings after taking over for Lance Lynn, so he wasn’t available to work the ninth. Woodward is trying to avoid making Hernandez the closer because of his inexperience.
Enter Montero, who worked the eighth inning late last season ahead of Leclerc and could become the de facto closer once ready.
And the word is Montero is ready after a scoreless inning Tuesday in which his velocity and stuff was seen as MLB-ready.
“He looked really sharp,” minor-league pitching coordinator Jono Armold said. “He’s good to go.”
Leody Taveras
He didn’t make the Opening Day roster just because he is fast and a great defensive player. The prospect also hit his way onto the team, albeit for only the opening weekend.
Taveras was sent to the alternate site in exchange for Garcia as the Rangers looked for more thump. The Rangers just need offense, and the Rangers might reach a point where they need to see if Taveras can provide it.
Scott Heineman is providing solid defense in center field with Santana out, and has hit in the minor leagues. But he was one of the eight at .200 or worse entering Tuesday.
What’s the harm in seeing if Taveras, a switch hitter, can do that?
Ronald Guzman
The big first baseman lost his spot on the roster to Greg Bird, who didn’t play a lick before going on the injured list with a strained right calf. Neither of them wowed during summer camp, and Guzman went to the alternate site for a mental reset and swing work.
Can all of that be accomplished in the short term? It seems unlikely, though Guzman has been piling up extra at-bats in intrasquad games while being assured that it’s OK to make swing changes.
He connected for a long home run Tuesday.
Guzman also looks to be blocked by the corner-infield combination of Todd Frazier and Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
“He’s coming in with an open mind,” minor-league field coordinator Matt Hagen said. “It’s hard for players to, No. 1, realize they have some work to do and, then, hear some different voices.
“The message to him as been, ‘Don’t be afraid to try an adjustment.’ Sometimes that’s a hard thing for players to do because they’ve had some success to some point doing what they’ve done before. We’ll see how the new stuff takes and how long it takes, but to his credit he’s been trying to do everything that’s been asked of him.”
Eli White
Injured early in summer camp, White is close to playing in games at the alternate site.
He was one of the Rangers’ biggest surprises in the Arizona portion of spring training and looked to be in the same form both at the plate, where he has developed more pop, and on defense, where he has transitioned into a center fielder.
He and Taveras are neck and neck for the title of Fastest Ranger, and White is considered the next-best defensive center fielder behind Taveras.
“Eli is really close to being full-go,” Hagen said. “We have to hold him back, he’s champing at the bit so much. He looks good.”
This story was originally published August 5, 2020 at 5:58 PM.
