Five reasons not to get down about your faltering Rangers

No, it hasn’t been the best two weeks for the Texas Rangers. Sure, that 10-game lead in the American League West has shrunk to 5  1/2. And, yeah, that once vaunted rotation has been decimated with injuries and plagued with enough bad starts recently to turn pitching coaches bald and managers gray.

The rash of bad baseball culminated with a 15-5 loss Sunday to the Minnesota Twins, the worst team (record-wise) in the American League. The All-Star break couldn’t have come at a better time for the Rangers. Manager Jeff Banister compared the four days off to a four-day rainout saving a struggling team and allowing them to regroup. If you had stock in the words refresh and regroup you’d now be rich, as much as they were used in the Rangers’ clubhouse Sunday afternoon.

But get a hold of yourself. Buck up. There is still plenty reason for second-half optimism.

1. Rough stretch is over

Finishing the first half losing nine of 12 games hasn’t punished the Rangers all that much in the standings. The resurgent Astros, who have won 16 of their last 21, still trail the Rangers by 5  1/2 games in the AL West. The Rangers, at 54-35, still have the best record in the AL.

Don’t forget that the Rangers were forced to play 37 game in the past 38 days because of a rainout earlier in the year with the Orioles. On top of that, 20 of the 38 games were on the road. And who knew the Twins were going to turn into the 1927 Yankees against the Rangers? The Rangers won’t be forced into anything close to a similar schedule in the second half.

“Sometimes when you’re not playing so well, you kind of hope for a rainout ... we get a four-day rainout,” Banister said of the All-Star break. “It’s a situation where we’ve got some guys obviously, like everybody else, a little banged up, a little bruised, energy level is not as high, we saw that today.”

2. Reinforcements are coming

Yu Darvish and Keone Kela are coming back soon. Both pitched in rehab appearances Sunday evening for Double A Frisco. Kela has seven strikeouts in four scoreless innings, including consecutive nights in Frisco. He’s expected to join the Rangers in Chicago for the Cubs series that opens the second half. Darvish has made two rehab starts and depending on how his right shoulder feels after a Wednesday bullpen session, he’ll either join the Rangers in Chicago or make another start in the minors. Regardless, he’s expected back soon and it’s not a moment too soon for the Rangers’ wobbly rotation.

3. Ian Desmond

The Rangers center fielder finished the first half with a .322 batting average, .375 on-base percentage and .899 OPS, the best first-half numbers of his career. His improvement from an admitted down season in 2015 is astounding. A year ago for the Nationals, he finished with 136 hits, including 27 doubles. At the break for the Rangers, he has 113 hits with 22 doubles. He had 19 homers and 62 RBI all of last season. At the break this season, he has 15 homers and 55 RBI.

“It’s a long season, there’s no reason to evaluate halfway through,” Desmond said after Sunday’s loss, in which he was 1 for 3 with a double. “We’ve played some good baseball, played some bad baseball, we’ll come ready to go when we get back. I come here ready to work every day. When I’m sitting home in the off-season I’ll evaluate then.”

4. Prince & Mitch ticking up

This may be more prediction than reality. Mitch Moreland was back in the lineup Saturday after being relegated to a bench role with a right sore calf for a week. He and Prince Fielder’s slow first halves could be viewed one of two ways: A) It has been a reason for the team’s at times stagnant offense; or B) Look out when their bats start heating up and the offense is running on all cylinders.

There is a slight tick toward the second notion in recent weeks, although neither has yet to really put together a consistent week of bashing. In his last 30 games, Moreland is hitting .275 with five homers and 13 RBI. In Fielder’s last 30 games, he’s hitting .262 with five homers and 15 RBI.

Do the Rangers need more from their sluggers? Of course. Slowly but surely, the pair have started to resemble the hitters they were for much of 2015.

5. Bullpen rested

Despite a string of bad starting pitching in which the Rangers closed the final eight games with no starter going more than five innings, the bulk of the bullpen was protected.

As much as Sam Dyson, Jake Diekman and Matt Bush were used in the first half, the time down could prove hugely beneficial after the break.

Dyson, who has 18 saves, has pitched just 4  1/3 innings since June 22 after compiling 37  1/3 innings the first three months of the season. For comparison’s sake, he pitched a career-high 75  1/3 innings in 2015.

Same goes for Diekman, who had thrown 31 innings through June 30. He’s only thrown two innings since. Bush, in his first major league season, has thrown 25  1/3 innings since being called up May 13.

Tony Barnette continues to prove a nice off-season acquisition. He is 6-3 with a 2.43 ERA in 40  2/3 innings.

This story was originally published July 10, 2016 at 10:32 PM with the headline "Five reasons not to get down about your faltering Rangers."