If the Texas Rangers can’t ‘play better,’ there could be big changes to the roster
If each loss this 60-game season is like 2.7 losses in a 162-game season, the Texas Rangers have lost 16 in a row.
They were 10-9 last Saturday and feeling pretty good about things. They are now 10-15 and headed nowhere fast.
When they hit, they don’t pitch. When they pitch, they don’t hit. Oh, and that defense still isn’t cutting it.
Here’s some Rangers Reaction from a sixth straight loss, 7-4 to the Seattle Mariners.
“Play better”
Asked what the Rangers can do better to shake out of their massive funk, manager Chris Woodward had a quick answer.
“Play better,” he said.
No kidding. And in the first couple innings would be nice.
“We’ve got to get off to better starts,” Woodward said. “I know our guys are preparing. I trust their preparation. But the start of the game is important.”
The Rangers were down 6-0 in the fourth inning for the second time during their losing streak. They have also trailed in the fourth by scores of 7-0 and 8-3. The starting pitching has a great deal to do with that, but the Rangers’ defense hasn’t helped and the offense has been slow to start.
The Rangers have scored 28 runs during the losing streak, which is good at 5.6 runs per game, but only four times in the first three innings.
“We’ve got to try to do some damage, have some better at-bats early in the game,” Woodward said.
He also said something else fairly noteworthy. Woodward isn’t going to be afraid to dip into the alternate camp site for players, especially if they are going to help the Rangers now and in the future.
The trade deadline is Aug. 31. The Rangers are nearing the halfway point of their season. They are clinging to postseason contention.
Changes could be coming.
“Not just for trying to win games and trying to stay relevant, but for our future as well,” Woodward said. “Some of these guys, we want to see. They can help us win games.”
One change is afoot
The Rangers chose to pinch hit Jose Trevino in a tight spot Tuesday for fellow catcher Jeff Mathis, which should have been a hint for a decision that was revealed Wednesday and has continued through Friday.
Woodward said that he wants to see Trevino catch more, and to that end he started three straight games. It’s not just the offensive upgrade over Mathis that is dictating things.
Mathis won’t be with the Rangers next season after his two-year contract expires. Robinson Chirinos might not be back in 2021, though the Rangers hold a club option for him.
At minimum Trevino will be the primary backup next season. He and Sam Huff could be sharing duties in 2022. Trevino needs to continue stockpiling info on how Rangers pitchers like to work and how opposing pitchers try to attack him.
Trevino is making a case that he should be on the active roster the rest of the season.
“I have an idea of what Mathis can do, and I think it’s unfair to put Mathis in there too many times. Just because he’s not really built up,” Woodward said. “I want to see what the kid can do, man.”
Trevino has made strides offensively, and he collected hits in his first two at-bats Wednesday. He homered and drove in three runs Thursday. He doubled in his second at-bat Friday and added a single later on.
As much emphasis as the Rangers put on their catchers simply managing the pitching staff, they have seen the negative effect on the offense caused by catchers who can’t hit. This offense isn’t good enough to have any more deficiencies.
Trevino, though, is always going to be a defense-first catcher. He won two Gold Gloves in the minor leagues, but his biggest challenge has been building relationships with pitchers and earning their trust.
Last September, left-hander Mike Minor couldn’t get on the same page with Trevino at Yankee Stadium, but still managed 7 1/3 scoreless innings. It wasn’t easy.
Now, though, Minor likes throwing to Trevino. So does right-hander Lance Lynn.
“He works his butt off, and that’s all I ask for,” Lynn said.
Allard struggles
Kolby Allard didn’t make it out of the first inning and somehow was lucky to allow only four runs. The good news: He didn’t allow a grand slam.
He lasted only three innings Sunday at Colorado while allowing six runs, though Woodward said that none of them would have scored had Rougned Odor completed a double play.
But that outing was the first of three subpar starts by the rotation and now five in six games, with Lynn’s Wednesday outing the exception. Minor and right-hander Jordan Lyles are going to stay in the rotation, Woodward said.
Allard, though, now has some competition for his spot after fellow lefty Wes Benjamin allowed two runs in 4 1/3 innings of relief in his second career appearance. He, too, didn’t allow a grand slam, striking out J.P. Crawford with the bases loaded to end the first.
“We were in a bind right there getting into the bullpen in the first inning,” Woodward said. “Wes Benjamin did a great job for us.”
Benjamin, for those who don’t know, has been a starter throughout his climb through the minors. He posted an unattractive 5.52 ERA last season at Triple A Nashville, but he had a sub-4.00 ERA in the second half of the season.
The Rangers have been impressed with his makeup. His repertoire now includes a cutter, which has helped him develop along with understanding how to cope with the ups and downs of baseball.
Woodward said that Benjamin is an option based on how he pitched Friday.
Another pitcher who impressed was Kyle Cody, who struck out the side in the eighth inning in his MLB debut. He missed last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery.
This story was originally published August 21, 2020 at 11:58 PM.
