Entering spring training, the Rangers needed everything to go right to have a season in which they contended for the AL West.
Sorry, but we can write off the Rangers before we file our taxes.
Dreams of another division banner in Arlington have already been transformed into another season of desperately waved white towels of surrender.
Before the Rangers’ first winning streak of the season they’ve lost Jurickson Profar, Yu Darvish and now Derek Holland. So, no, things going right is no longer an option. Bless manager Jeff Banister for attempting to stay positive, but the reality is the Rangers must now attempt to compete with their two best pitchers.
“He was one of 25,” Banister said of Holland after Friday’s home opener. “When one guy goes down, you put another one in his place and keep it moving. It is what it is. It's the nature of the game. It happens in baseball.”
But it’s happened to the Rangers all too often.
Last year it was Holland, Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder who suffered injuries as the Rangers lost 67 games and used a MLB-record 64 players. And now this year their Cy Young candidate, starting second baseman and starting pitcher who – once upon a time that feels like a lifetime ago – pitched a shutout in a crucial World Series game.
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Holland, who missed most of last year after a freak injury prompted knee injury, didn’t look right on Friday. His fastball wasn’t fast, topping out in the high 80s. After an inning he was done, on the DL and off the mound for two months.
Unfortunately, by the time he gets back in mid-June the injury-plagued Rangers will be buried. Again.
The Rangers’ new slogan – Never Ever Quit – will be put to an extreme test if these injuries continue to decimate their roster.
A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He currently lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
