Texas Rangers: Inside Colby Lewis’ Case for Playoff Rotation
By Brad Faber
Colby Lewis was left out of the Texas Rangers’ rotation last October, but he and his 2.38 career postseason ERA belong there in 2016.
Since returning from a stint in Japan following the 2009 season, Colby Lewis has quietly been a solid contributor for the Texas Rangers. Although Lewis had a combined ERA of 4.90 between 2014-15, he has usually been quite a workhorse when healthy. He has made 32-plus starts and thrown 200 or more innings three different times.
Early on in 2016, it appeared as though Lewis was well on his way toward having one of his finest seasons to date. The right-hander went an impressive 6-1 with a 3.21 ERA over his first 15 starts. He had only a 5.60 K/9 and a 36 percent groundball rate, but was still finding ways to get hitters out.
With Yu Darvish beginning the year on the sidelines, Lewis was a big help to the Rangers early on, giving the club another dependable starter alongside ace and Cy Young candidate Cole Hamels.
On June 25, however, Lewis was placed on the the 60-day DL with a lat strain. The 37-year-old was finally activated this past weekend.
On Sunday, Lewis received the loss against the Los Angeles Angels, but he still had a decent outing. He went 5.1 innings, allowing seven hits and three earned runs. All three runs came on solo home runs.
At 86-59, the Rangers have the best record in the American League and a 9.5-game cushion in the AL West. That said, Rangers’ starters have recently begun to struggle a bit, posting a 6.27 ERA in September. Even Hamels and Darvish have not been immune to it.
While another playoff berth is clearly within sight, it appears that the Rangers’ starting staff could use a bit of a boost. This is where Lewis might just come in handy.
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Obviously, when it comes to the Rangers’ potential playoff rotation, Hamels and Darvish would have to be no-brainers. However, manager Jeff Banister may have a difficult decision or two to make when it comes to filling out the rest of his staff.
Martin Perez has struggled away from home this season, going just 2-8 with a 5.78 ERA, though he did have a solid road start against the Houston Astros on Monday night. A.J. Griffin now has a 4.92 ERA on the year. Derek Holland has been throwing well since returning from the DL, but he still has a 4.74 ERA on the season.
The trio of Perez, Griffin and Holland has combined to make a total of seven postseason starts. Holland has accounted for five of them, the most memorable being his stellar performance against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 4 of the 2011 World Series, but he doesn’t have a great track record of postseason success overall. One of these three pitchers would be a good candidate for a fourth starter, but perhaps not the best to slot behind Hamels and Darvish in the three slot.
When it comes to Lewis, he has been quite effective in his postseason career, going 4-1 with a 2.38 ERA over nine games (eight starts). Interestingly enough, he didn’t crack the Rangers’ postseason rotation last year and pitched out of the bullpen. He should have a strong case to be a starter this year.
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If Lewis can pitch the way he did early on this year, it would hardly be a surprise to see him become the favorite to land the No. 3 spot in Texas’ postseason rotation, as he has as strong of an argument as anyone. With a power-packed lineup and a terrific 1-2 punch already on hand, Lewis’ return might just make the Rangers deep enough to go well into October.