When the Texas Rangers acquired Chicago Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster at the trade deadline, they didn't think they were getting a Cliff Lee- or Cole Hamels-type pitcher who could carry a club through a postseason, but they did hope they were getting a solid No. 1 or No. 2 starter for a good rotation.
Early in his Rangers tenure, Dempster had two starts in which he gave up eight earned runs and the experiment seemed to be a failure. Since then, he's been pretty darn good.
His last three starts have all been wins (against the Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins and the Baltimore Orioles, who are in first place in the AL East) as he's given up a total of three earned runs in 20 innings of work.
With the Rangers looking to get back on track after another sub par Matt Harrison outing against the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night, they'll be looking to Dempster to let the losing streak stop at one and continue his recent upward tick.
At this point, who's to say the top two pitchers in the Rangers' playoff rotation won't be Yu Darvish and Ryan Dempster? The numbers are certainly pointing that way.
