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Welcome to the second edition of The Ranger Report Power Rankings! All statistics and rankings are based upon games played from April 17th to April 29th. Previous ranking for each player is represented in between the parentheses.
1. – (1) Josh Hamilton (10 R/5 HR/19 RBI/2 SB/.400 BA/1.215 OPS) – Hambone prolonged his ridiculous hot streak all while facing some of the stiffest competition in the American League. All Rangers fans are collectively holding their breath that the back (not hand, as stated ad nauseam by the ESPN) injury he sustained Sunday night against the Rays doesn’t fester and knock him off of his record-setting pace.
2.
(3) Colby Lewis (2-0/2 QS/14 K/3 BB/2.25 ERA/1.05 WHIP) – Truly one of the most underrated starting pitchers in the majors, Colby is towing the line as the Rangers staff ace. By continuing to pound the strike zone and not give away free passes to first he has placed himself atop all AL starting pitchers with a dazzling 7.25 strikeout to walk ratio. If he can maintain the consistency he has shown early this season, do not be surprised if he emerges as a dark-horse Cy Young Award candidate.
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(2) Ian Kinsler (12 R/1 HR/5 RBI/1 SB/.320 BA/.924 OPS) – The trademark of a great lineup is a great lead-off man. The Rangers bats have seen Kinsler get on base at a tremendous clip, awarding these efforts by helping him score in every game he has managed to collect a hit. To continue the team’s winning ways, Ian will need to sustain his current production.
4. (7) Adrian Beltre (6 R/3 HR/7 RBI/.316 BA/.929 OPS) – Despite being
hindered by a mild hamstring strain, Beltre showed improvement in the power department to go along with the best third base glove in all of baseball. Do not be surprised if the training staff is overly cautious with Beltre in the coming weeks in order to avoid a lingering injury.
5. (19) Mike Napoli (8 R/6 HR/11 RBI/.357 BA/1.223 OPS) – Absolutely, positively locked-in, Mike Napoli has erased the slow start to his season and has returned to the Na-po-li we all know and love. Ahead of the Rangers series in Boston he was hitting a measly .125 and had only put one ball into the seats but soon he discovered his power stroke. In the next four games he slugged FIVE home-runs and boosted himself back to majestic proportions. In order to remain in the upper echelon of this list he will need to cut back on his strikeouts as pitchers adjust to avoid giving up the long ball.
6. (8) Alexi Ogando (4.1 IP/2 HLD/4 K/0 BB/0.00 ERA/0.00 WHIP) – Ron Washington’s pitching version of a Swiss-Army knife had a tremendous run over the past four series collecting two key holds and did not allow a single base runner in his 5 appearances. Despite being named an All-Star as a starter in 2011, we could get the chance to see him in the mid-summer classic this year in a relief role if he continues his current pace.
7. (20) Yu Darvish (2-0/2 QS/15 K/7 BB/0.61 ERA/1.09 WHIP) – Darvish had a rough start to his major league career and had fans and possibly even the Rangers front office beginning to temper expectations. In the past two starts however he has show exactly why he is worth lofty expectations. Holding the Tigers to one run on two hits and five walks was quite an accomplishment for the 25 year-old rookie but his performance against the Bronx Bombers vaulted him up our rankings. Tossing eight and one thirds innings in the first shutout by a Ranger against the Yankees since August of 2000 must have impressed even the most pessimistic skeptics. As his command increases, look for continued success for Darvish in the coming weeks.
8. (6) Mike Adams (3.0 IP/0 HLD/3 K/0 BB/3.00 ERA/0.67 WHIP) – Building upon the foundation he made for himself, Mike had a much lighter load coming into this week’s rankings. He allowed only one inconsequential run in the lone win of the Tampa Bay series and was only lowered in our rankings due to fellow teammates raising their level of play.
9. (15) Elvis Andrus (8 R/0 HR/6 RBI/5 SB/.304 BA/.759 OPS) – Another guy who got off to a somewhat sluggish start has reclaimed his offensive prowess along with his consistent defensive play. His streak of 53 games in a row without committing an error at shortstop is a refreshing sign after leading the American League at his position with 25 errors in 2011.
10. (4) Michael Young (5 R/1 HR/4 RBI/2 SB/.273 BA/.697 OPS) – Getting off to a hot start on the team’s first road trip, Michael came back down to earth once he returned to the friendly confines in Arlington. The Rangers need his bat to provide production in order to continue the winning ways many have conceded as a foregone conclusion.
11. – (11) Robbie Ross (5.2 IP/2 W/4 K/1 BB/3.18 ERA/0.71 WHIP) – The young lefty saw plenty of work in impressive outings in Detroit and at home against the Yankees and Rays. He collected his third and fourth major league wins becoming the first ever player in MLB history to collect a win in four of his first six games pitched. As he grows, the club will likely continue deploy him quite often as he is the lone left handed option in Andy Hawkins’ bullpen.
12. (13) Koji Uehara (5.1 IP/0 HLD/7 K/0 BB/3.38 ERA/0.56 WHIP) – The leash for Koji is seemingly getting a little bit longer every time he gets the ball. Despite giving up two home runs, the Japanese native struck out seven of the 19 batters he faced in over the past five and a thirds innings.
13. (9) Neftali Feliz (0-1/1 QS/7 K/4 BB/4.00 ERA/0.89 WHIP) – The best learning experiences usually are conceived after some form of failure. Last year we saw Alexi Ogando stretch out into a starter but because of the larger work load the rotation demands, he was shut down and became an intricate part of the American League Champions bullpen. This year, Wash may be trying to avoid a similar predicament with Neftali by providing him rest throughout the season so do not be surprised if this happens again.
14. (10) David Murphy (5 R/1 HR/3 RBI/.286 BA/.737 OPS) – The Bashing Baptist had a very ordinary week producing solid numbers but it wasn’t enough to hang on to a top-10 position. If the back injury for Josh Hamilton transforms into a bigger issue you could see Murphy playing his regular position along with assuming some of the load in centerfield.
15. (14) Nelson Cruz (8 R/1 HR/6 RBI/1 SB/.277 BA/.763 OPS) – Even though the plate discipline for Nellie has improved from horrendous to just bad, he drops one spot in this week’s rankings. This middling offensive spell shouldn’t last too much longer and his defensive prowess helps soften his struggles in the batter’s box.
16. (5) Matt Harrison (1-1/1 QS/9 K/1 BB/6.39 ERA/1.66 WHIP) – Enjoying victories in his initial three starts, Matt Harrison experienced his first, and hopefully last, nightmare start of this season on Friday. The Rays put four runs on the board in the first inning that was highlighted by Evan Longoria’s 3-run homer after Ian Kinsler committed an error on a routine ground ball that was likely to be turned into a double play. His night ended after throwing 100 pitches in five innings of work and having six of the eight total Tampa runs counted against him. If he can get back on track with command over his sinker, he should rebound for a solid season.
17. (18) Scott Feldman (5.2 IP/4 K/1 BB/3.18 ERA/1.24 WHIP) – Called upon by his skipper for a spot start against the Yankees, Scooter labored through the outing but managed to limit as the damage to lead the Rangers into the win column. He book ended his start against New York with two perfect relief appearances that salvaged his ERA to a 2.70 going into the Toronto series.
18. (12) Derek Holland (1-2/1 QS/16 K/9 BB/6.30 ERA/1.55 WHIP) – The mustache and mullet sporting lefty takes a bit of a tumble after a rough stretch on the bump. Although his strikeout numbers are impressive, he is giving up a lot of hard hit balls that are sailing far past the infield and are costing him. As referenced in the previous edition of these rankings, he must trust his pitches and avoid the big innings.
19. (21) Craig Gentry (3 R/0 HR/4 RBI/2 SB/.381 BA/.838 OPS) – Craig was afforded opportunities in half of the team’s last twelve games and didn’t waste any time in making in his case to break into a more regular role. Josh Hamilton’s injury is yet another chance for him to display his talents in the field and on the base paths to make his case.
20. (24) Joe Nathan (3.2 IP/2 SV/0 BS/2 K/1 BB/0.00 ERA/1.09 WHIP) – First impressions are hard to come by, Joe Nathan did himself no favors in the opening weeks of the season to win over the hearts and minds of the Texas faithful. Converting two more save chances were not nearly as important as avoiding the mistakes that resulted in Nathan and the Rangers acquiring two losses. Manager Ron Washington has worked Joe into some lower stress situations to, presumably, build his confidence in order to handle pressure-packed save situations.
21. (16) Yorvit Torrealba (7 GP/4 R/0 HR/2 RBI/.222 BA/.550 OPS) – An average two week stretch for Yorvit but could continue to see an inclining workload behind the plate as the season wears on to give Mike Napoli some rest.
22. (17) Mitch Moreland (4 R/1 HR/3 RBI/.241 BA/.726 OPS) – Returning to the diamond from an abscess tooth injury that sidelined Mitch for three games he struggled a bit but capped off the week with a four game hit streak.
23. (25) Mark Lowe (5.0 IP/0 HLD/6 K/1 BB/1.80 ERA/1.20 WHIP) – Still
trailing the other members of the pen, Mark Lowe helped himself out with an impressive two inning outing facing the minimum six hitters. Albeit the stellar outing came when the team was staring down a five run deficit that was eventually trimmed to three but ultimately resulted in a loss.
24. (23) Alberto Gonzalez (4 GP/4-10/1 R/2 RBI) – Gonzalez got a little more playing time on the road serving as the club’s utility infielder and making the most of his chances in the field and at the plate.
25. (22) Brandon Snyder (5 GP/1-8) – Limited playing time causes Brandon to slip to the bottom of the list but he must stay ready in the event that the small injuries become more lingering problems.
