Let’s take a look at five MLB teams on the rise and one that seems to be slipping.
Hot: Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers are scoring runs at a blistering pace while riding some hot pitching to a three-game lead in the AL West. They are 7-3 in their last 10 games, and have survived Jacob deGrom’s inflamed elbow with the help of a couple of nice starts from Dane Dunning. Dunning tossed 5.0 innings of two-hit ball on May 8 versus the Angels in a game that the bullpen ultimately lost, and then came out and struck out five Mariners in a 4-3 win five days later. Nate Eovaldi has 25 strikeouts in his last three starts and has not allowed a run since April 24.
Over the past 15 days, the batting order has produced 135 hits, the most in the league. Their .285 team batting average is good for fourth over the same time span. Seventy-one runs, and 13 stolen bases puts them fourth in those categories as well. The Rangers are just cruising right now. Marcus Semien has been out of his mind, batting .359 while reaching base at least once in all 13 May games, Nathaniel Lowe had a nice little 13-game hitting streak of his own and, while Adolis Garcia might have cooled off a little bit, he still leads the majors with 42 RBI.