No pitching. No problem.
At least that’s how it was in the past for the Rangers. And how it was supposed to be early on this season.
With Yu Darvish missing a start and rotation stalwarts Derek Holland and Matt Harrison on the disabled list, the offense needs to keep the team afloat. So far, so bad.
The Rangers’ bats were shut down by Red Sox starter John Lackey in a 5-1 loss last night at Fenway, with only five runners reaching second base.
If the offense doesn’t come alive, the Rangers might be buried in April.
Through a week and seven games, the offense has been dismal. The Rangers have scored 26 runs, but 10 of those came in an Opening-Day loss to the Phillies. Since then they’ve mustered only 16 runs in six games, barely 2.5 per game.
To keep from digging an April hole that they have to dig out of all season, the Rangers need to win some games 10-8, 9-6, etc. Can’t expect the likes of Tanner Scheppers and Joe Saunders and Nick Martinez to hold opposing offenses to three runs now can we?
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Prince Fielder has been the biggest culprit so far. Through seven games and 28 at-bats he has more errors (2) than RBI (1). He’s yet to slug his first homer, leaving the Rangers punchless. Texas has a mere two homers. Only the Yankees (1) and Royals (0) have fewer in all of baseball.
We knew the pitching would struggle early. But if the bats don’t wake up soon, the Rangers will struggle all season.
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.
