Rangers Finally Have Pitching

Yes, it’s true the Texas Rangers finally have pitching. Although I would stop short of calling it great, it is certainly good.

Look at the Rangers have done since the All Star Break in the pitching department. The Rangers lead the American League in ERA. Hard to believe, I know.

The Rangers have had most of their pitching staff either on the disabled list or have some sort of injury preventing a start.

Who do the Rangers call on? It’s the long relievers and the prospects.

Doug Mathis and Dustin Nippert have both been spectacular considering they are not everyday starters.

Nippert put in another great performance last night against the Oakland A’s pitching to the tune of a one hit shutout in five innings of work. He has pitched 19 innings since the break and has an ERA of 0.95.

Mathis has gone nine innings with a nice ERA of 2.89.

Those are numbers unheard of for long relievers and spot starters.

Then there is the Ranger’s youth and prospects.

Scott Feldman is 26 and has once again become of the Rangers most reliable starters. Over the course of the season Feldman has piled up 10 wins and just four losses.

Since the break Feldman has gone 23.1 innings with a 4.24 ERA. That’s not bad from what many would consider a fourth or fifth starter.

After Feldman it gets younger starting with Tommy Hunter.

Tommy Hunter is 23 years old and is now up for a second major league season. Last year, Hunter found it rough, but there was something about the way he pitched that made you think he was going to be successful one day.

Many say Hunter was simply called up to early because the Rangers had too many injuries last season.

Hunter was called up for a second time this season just two weeks before the break. Hunter has been nothing short of spectacular, especially for his age.

His worst start of the year since his second call up was last Saturday. Even then it’s not that bad. He went five innings and gave up four runs.

In his other five starts he went at least six innings while giving up two runs or fewer.

His season numbers are very healthy, starting with his ERA at a low 2.63. Great stuff for a 23 year old, who is essentially in his first major league season.

Next up is Holland at just 22 years old, and boy has he done wonders in his first season. His stat line doesn’t read that well, but keep in mind he’s a rookie at 22! The stat line is no doubt inflated because of his movement in and out of the bullpen.

In his last start, Holland did not receive enough credit. He had a one hitter until the ninth inning, and the only reason he couldn’t finish the game was because of a career high in pitches.

Since the break Holland has a 4.17 ERA in just over 17 innings of work. Not bad for a 22 year old.

The bullpen has been a big surprise this year, helped by the waiver wire. Jason Grilli and Darren O’Day have been great as well. They have pitched even better since the break, hard to believe considering they were already two of the best relievers in baseball this year.

O’Day has a 1.77 ERA in roughly 36 innings of work. Grilli has a 1.53 ERA in roughly 18 innings of work.

Jason Jennings is the inning eater with just over 54 innings pitched. His ERA is a healthy 3.64.

Combine that with the rest of the bullpen, and the Rangers have the ninth best bullpen in baseball.

I don’t mention the rest of the bullpen because everyone knows about C.J. Wilson and Francisco.

After adding all the numbers up, the Rangers have only given up more than four runs on four occasions in 17 games since the break. The Rangers have an impressive 3.32 ERA during that span.

Those kinds of numbers are unheard of Rangers pitching, and it’s only going to get better.