Beginning of A Dynasty

Now that the Texas Rangers are officially in their second straight World Series, it becomes time to ask ourselves if this team is on its way to dynasty status. The Rangers have the farm system, the front office, the stars, and the money to continue to be a powerhouse in the American League. Step aside AL East, because you guys don’t have the all-around strength of the Rangers.

There is no doubt in my mind that the Rangers are perennial AL West champions, because the Angels are the only legitimate competition to them, and they have several holes on offense. That being said, the Rangers are team built for the playoffs with the deepest offense in baseball, a solid pitching staff, and an extremely deep bullpen.

Offensively, Texas has nine guys who are consistent threats, and not many teams can claim the depth and star power that the stacked Texas lineup possesses.  Josh Hamilton is one of the best hitters in baseball (duh), Adrian Beltre‘s production at third base is unreal, Ian Kinsler is extremely underrated and might be better than Robinson Cano, Mike Napoli is a crazy good power-hitting catcher, Nelson Cruz just needs health, and everybody loves Michael Young. And oh yeah, that Elvis Andrus guy isn’t a bad table-setter either. The Rangers not only have depth, but they have several star players who make this team an extremely difficult matchup for any pitching staff.

Marc Hulet ranks the Rangers’ minor league system as the seventh best in the MLB, and it’s easy to agree with this when looking at some of their players- Jurickson Profar, Martin Perez, Tanner Scheppers.  Their new TV contract gives them a nice payroll to work with, and it is realistic to think that they can add a high-line starter sometime soon. Heck, they might even nab C.C. Sabathia– although I highly doubt that ever happens.

Money actually doesn’t mean that much if you have a moronic front office, and it is in fact bad to have a high payroll if your GM has no idea what he is doing. Just look at the Mets, bad contracts set you back about three or four years. With the Rangers, however, you don’t have to worry about that at all. Nolan Ryan and Jon Daniels have things under control in Arlington, and Daniels is one of the best five General Managers in baseball. Yeah, he’s right up there with Brian Cashman and Dave Dombrowski.

Pitching wise, C.J. Wilson has turned himself from star reliever into a starting pitcher who is almost ace-quality. Derek Holland and Alexi Ogando are young guys who will only improve from here on out, and Colby Lewis is a durable starter who epitomizes the word “solid”.

I do want to talk a little bit about Matt Harrison (4.2 WAR in 2011), because he is a guy with terrific stuff who needs to start going after hitters. Against the Rays, he decided to go right after hitters and was gassing out guys like Evan Longoria and B.J. Upton. Harrison basically has a split personality as a pitcher, and I really want him to show his nasty side like he did against the Rays.

Jon Daniels did a terrific job during the season by acquiring relievers Mike Adams and Koji Uehara for basically nothing, and those two are lights-out relievers who are capable of striking out batters in bunches.  Although there are concerns with Neftali Feliz, the guy has great stuff and has shown this in the playoffs this year. He’s definitely a good closer who can overwhelm hitters with a fiery fastball and nasty slider. Darren Oliver is yet another great option for Ron Washington, and opposing teams are basically shut down even after the starters are out. The Rangers are able to get favorable matchups, and the bullpen has been a huge reason why the Rangers are in the World Series right now. The other reason is the offense and the fact that they are so much better than everybody else right now.

The Texas Rangers have all the makings of a dynasty, and I see them taking down the Cards in six games (my prediction before the playoffs even started). With a couple of other World Series titles, this Rangers team could be this era’s powerhouse.