The Texas Rangers offense has underwhelmed to begin the season. Unfortunately, a list of lineup flaws may prevent a much-needed turnaround.
Little has gone right for the Texas Rangers to begin their 60-game season, as portrayed by their 4-8 record. Rotten luck has them playing without prized starting pitcher Corey Kluber and talented closer Jose Leclerc. There’s no excuse, however, for their severely inferior offense to this point.
The only significant injury among position players is a sore right forearm that has outfielder Danny Santana on the IL. Besides that, Rougned Odor missed the Oakland series with an oblique issue, and Joey Gallo missed last night’s game with a sore left wrist. The word is he could be available for action as early as tonight.
The Rangers offense ranks 27th in batting average (.206), 25th in OPS (.647), 22nd in home runs (11), and 27th in runs per game (3.33).
Surely some of the struggle is a result of “slow starts,” but a plethora of vulnerabilities within their lineups is unconvincing of an eventual turnaround.
Let’s pinpoint the vulnerabilities.
Guessing game at the top of the order
Managers prefer a stable, unwavering 1-4 of the batting order that they can rely on for peak run production. Texas Rangers manager Chris Woodward has not yet found that for his offense.
Shin-Soo Choo has been a staple in the leadoff spot, but the Rangers have used four second-place hitters and four third-place hitters.
The third place, in particular, has been an enigma. Collectively, Rangers’ number three hitters have a batting average of .063, which is 55 points fewer than the team with the 29th lowest batting average from its number three hitters. Also, Rangers’ number three hitters have a .146 slugging percentage, which is 109 points fewer than the 29th-ranked team in that category.
That’s not exactly the production a team desires from arguably the most crucial spot in its lineup.
The going will only get tougher for Texas if it can’t find steady bats to hit second and third. Ideally, one of Elvis Andrus or Nick Solak will take command as the number two hitter, and Danny Santana will take off as the number three hitter once he returns.
Little help from the long ball
The Texas Rangers are not a power-hitting ball club. Sure, they have Joey Gallo, who is unquestionably a top slugger in baseball, but their muscle is spare beyond him.
Despite its grand appearance, the more spacious and jet stream-less Globe Life Field isn’t doing their offense any favors, either.
Texas’ 11 home runs rank 22nd in MLB, though they’re ahead of three teams that have played considerably fewer games due to COVID-19-related postponements. Gallo and Choo lead the team with three homers, and Todd Frazier is by himself with two.
The offense will have to work extra hard to score if it can’t benefit from quick-hitter home runs. Not to mention, opposing pitchers will feel looser on the mound if not fearing a sudden strike of power.
Woodward is doing what he can to combat his club’s lack of pop. He’s led an aggressive base-running campaign, and tweaked the batting order on a nearly nightly basis. Though, those strategies require considerably more execution and patience than the “let’s crush as many home runs as possible” strategy – ahem, Yankees and Twins.
Texas Rangers
Over-reliance on inexperience
The Texas Rangers are leaning on several unproven major leaguers to greatly contribute to their offense. Willie Calhoun has played in nine of the team’s first 12 games, Nick Solak in 11 of them, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa in 10.
Kiner-Falefa has impressed at the plate and in the field, Solak has had his moments, and Calhoun has looked overmatched.
Of those three players, only Kiner-Falefa has accumulated a full season’s worth of action in his career. Calhoun has 137 MLB games under his belt, and Solak has only 47.
Furthermore, rookie outfielders Scott Heineman and Adolis Garcia have gotten starts. Heineman is hitting .158, and Garcia is 0-for-6 with four strikeouts.
There is not much rhyme or rhythm to a 60-game sprint. As such, a few inexperienced players are taking on more than they can maybe handle. Unfortunately, the Rangers don’t have a trustworthy workaround in case they scuffle.
No breakout performers as of yet
None of the Texas Rangers’ bats are off to a hot start. Credit Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s .353 batting average, though he was up and down until going 8-for-14 over his last four games.
Joey Gallo is reaching base and driving runners in, but he’s not tearing the cover off the ball. Todd Frazier his hammering left-handed pitchers but not right-handed pitchers. Elvis Andrus is making contact, but not great contact. Shin-Soo Choo is hitting for power, but not average.
Usually, at least one player comes out swinging a mighty bat to begin the year, but that hasn’t been the case for the Texas Rangers this season.
Hitting in the clutch has eluded the Rangers offense as well. Gallo’s game-winning home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks stands out; however, not another moment has come close to equalling the timing or convenience of that one.
An average of 3.33 runs per game certainly doesn’t speak to hot or clutch hitting. The good news is the Rangers offense can only improve from here. At least, we hope. Sadly, the vulnerabilities mentioned above are likely to prevent the offense from improving as much as is necessary to jolt them to the postseason.