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I know the Rangers have not had a good last week, losing 6 of their last 8 games, but I say this is still no time to panic. The Rangers are still scoring runs (most of the time) and their starting pitching is still good. Argue if you want, I still have confidence in the rotation. The bull pen, however is not okay. The Rangers made some changes during the Angels series, and here are some of them:
1. Mason Tobin went on the 60 day DL with elbow problems. I think this is probably the end of the road for Tobin. He has had Tommy John surgery and two nerves replaced in that elbow, and the fact that after all that it is acting up again is a real bad sign.
2. Michael Kirkman sent down after dismal perfromance this week. Kirkman pitch sub-par (to say the least) against the Angels on Tuesday in that 15-4 loss, but lets face it, it was not all on him. 4 errors and bad pitching from Colby Lewis did not help. But either way, Kirkman need to get it right.
3. Taylor Teagarden is back with the big boys. Teagarden has been up and down the last few years and has been okay (Okay meaning better than Chris Davis) in his major league stints. The Rangers were worried about only carrying two catchers, and they have solved that problem with Teagarden. I think he will only play as much as Davis though.
But back to not panicking. The Rangers scored 12 runs in the 3 games against he Angels, and that is not too bad. Right now, they are just facing off against some really good pitching, but I believe that hitting coach Thad Bosley will get the guys to adjust and get the job done in the near future. And remember, the Rangers had a terrible April last season and went to the World Series, so, lets hold off on the panic for now. If the Rangers get swept by the Royals, then we will talk.
Rangers and Royals preview coming up later.
I would like to see Kinsler moved down in the lineup….
1. Andrus
2. Young
3. Murph
4. Beltre
5. Kinsler
6. Cruz
7. Moreland
8. Napoli/Torreabla
9. Borbon
Hell I wouldn’t mind a lineup that had Borbon at the top just to break up Kinsler and Andrus. Kinsler looks like he would rather install the uppercut in his swing to hit HRs and sac flies!
This lineup should score 3-7 runs every night…no questions asked. They have made the medicore pitchers look like Roy Halladay and the awesome pitchers (minus Weaver) look like scrubs! Consistent offense and figuring out the bullpen mess is huge the next 2-4 weeks.
I say the Rangers win 2 out of 3 against Royals and win 3 out of 4 against Blue Jays. I figured for a 6-4 homestand coming home so I will take it now.
I still think the Rangers can get to 17 wins in the month of April!