See Depth Chart – Hitters and Fielders for the first part of this article….
The Rangers have had a good pitching staff over the last 3 seasons or so, and it has really showed up. They went to back to back World Series thanks in large part to that pitching staff. Over the last two seasons, the pen has remained constant while the rotation has been fluid, excluding 2010 when all 5 guys stayed healthy for the entirety of the season.
2013 will be different. We lost several of our clutch bull pen guys (Mike Adams and Koji Uehara most notably) and the rotation is again adding in Alexi Ogando, who had a great first half in 2010. Also the rotation is now expected to be anchored by Yu Darvish, a man who now has one year of major league experience to his credit. So will the pitching be better or worse in 2013. Lets look at what the Rangers have there right now.
Starting Rotation:
– Yu Darvish: Yu is not listed as the number one guy on the depth chart right now, but we all 
know that it is his job if he takes it in spring training. Yu had a very good rookie season in the majors, racking up 16 wins, striking out 221 while having an ERA of 3.90. Similar numbers would be great again in 2013. The main thing that Darvish would need to improve on is his walks (89), and especially his walks at critical times in games. He also needs to trust his stuff more. He seemed to lack confidence in many games in 2012 at some point in most of his starts.
I believe that he will improve on the things he needs to improve on and I think he will get the Rangers more wins in 2013 than he did in 2012, I also think he will be an All-Star in 2013. Look for Yu to be the Rangers best starting pitcher in 2013 and lead the team in wins, strikeouts, ERA and WHIP. Confidence Level: 8.5
– Matt Harrison: Matt put together a quiet but good season in 2012. He has been durable, pitching in over 30 games for three straight seasons (2010-2012). His ERA has gone down in each
of the last three seasons (4.71, 3.39, 3.29) and his walks were about the same for 2011 and 2012. I expect Matt to finish with an ERA south of 3.50 again this season.
Things that Matt needs to improve on from the 2012 season are his walks, which have been going up (39, 57, 59) and his home runs (10, 13, 22). Matt is a ground ball pitcher and he did not seem to have his command at times last season.
I expect that Matt will be alright and that he will be able to repeat he success that he had in 2012. If he does that, the top two in the Rangers rotation are going to be looking pretty good in 2013. Confidence Level: 7.5
– Derek Holland: Derek took a big step back in 2012 in my opinion. He was really great down 
the stretch and in the post season in 2011, but injuries and ineffectiveness made him not one of the Rangers top guys last season. Holland is still a young guy, and i think he can get back to form in 2013, but I am not extremely confident that he will. Other than the aforementioned 2011 second half, Derek has been very inconsistent. I worry about him, because I feel he is either going to have a breakout season in 2013, or he is going to turn into another in a long line of underachieving left handed starters that the Rangers have had in the past. Confidence Level: 5.5
– Alexi Ogando: Alexi continues the pattern of reliever to starter to reliever to starter. He had an All-Star first half as a starter in 2011, but he faded down the stretch and the Rangers put him back in the pen for 2012. Now, going forward, he is the fourth starter on the 2013 roster, at the moment. Alexi posted a 3.51 ERA as a starter in 2012, and as a reliever last year he was around three and a quarter. His career ERA in 3 seasons with the Rangers (133 games, 30 starts) is 3.12.
Alexi is getting the whole off-season to prepair for the starting rotation and I think that is going to be helpful going forward for him. I look for Alexi to win 12-15 starts and have the team win a few more in the pen behind him. He has the stuff, now we have to wait and see if he can last a whole season and take his talent to the next level. If he does pitch to his potential, he is going to be the best fourth starter in all of baseball. Confidence Level: 6.5
– Martin Perez: Perez was 1-4 with a 5.45 ERA in 2012 in six starts and six relief appearances. In my opinion, he may not be the fifth starter, and I think the Rangers are hoping to pick up someone else, but as of right now he is slotted to be the 5th starter, at least until Colby Lewis is ready to go. Martin is going to be a good pitcher in my opinion, I just don’t know how reliable he will be in 2013. I guess we will have to wait and see. Confidence Level: 4.5
Overall Confidence Level: 6.5 out of 10
