ARLINGTON, Texas — Perhaps the final pivotal series left on the docket awaited the Texas Rangers in the Pacific Northwest over the weekend as reigning champions had a shot at climbing closer in the division with a series against the Seattle Mariners.
Not too far removed from winning four series in a row, the Rangers hoped to have the favor of momentum on their side in Seattle, but came away close to the death knell of their title defense.
Favor did not look kindly on the champs, who, despite bringing electric arms to face their rivals, couldn’t match that excitement from an offense that has remained out of sorts all season as they dropped three of four in the penultimate road trip of the season.
Game 147: Texas 5, Seattle 4 (W: Festa, 4-1, L: Snider, 3-3, Sv: Yates, 30)
Game 148: Texas 4, Seattle 5 (W: Chargois, 3-1, L: Robertson, 3-4, Sv: Munoz, 21)
Game 149: Texas 4, Seattle 5 (W: Munoz, 3-6, L: Leclerc, 6-5)
Game 150: Texas 0, Seattle 7 (W: Kirby, 12-11, L: Heaney, 5-14)
Hype rewarded
Several players come and make an impact in their debuts and then fizzle out as they go on. Kumar Rocker might even end up being that. But for one night, on an unexpected evening, the Rangers got to see a glimpse into the future of their pitching staff.
Rocker, who had made just 16 appearances in the Minors due to recovery from Tommy John surgery shortly after being drafted, stepped to the hill at T-Mobile Park in front of his parents and a very anxious Rangers community to make his Major League debut after years and years of hype as one of the most heralded arms in the amateur landscape dating back to his tenure with Vanderbilt and up to when Texas made him the No. 3 overall selection in the 2022 MLB Draft.
The debut lasted for just four innings, not even enough to qualify for a winning decision, but with a pitch limit, Rocker made the most of his introductory outing. After a surprising call to the big leagues, the Rangers wanted to see what the 24-year-old could do against big league hitters.
Rocker was welcomed with a first inning jam, but the first MLB player of Indian descent showed his poise and struck out the next two heavy hitters Cal Raleigh and Randy Arozarena, and got Luke Raley to fly out to escape unscathed.
From there, excellence was the name of Rocker’s game as he carved up Seattle’s lineup with a high-90s fastball and a devastating breaking ball before allowing just a solo homer to Justin Turner. Ultimately, Rocker exited the game with 74 pitches under his belt and left a franchise with a history of being unable to develop homegrown pitching salivating at the possibilities for the large right-hander.
Back in the saddle
Rocker’s debut wasn't the only note-worthy pitching appearance in this series. Jacob deGrom, more than 500 days since last throwing a Major League pitch, returned to the hill in the Friday night game.
deGrom made four rehab starts and made lineups look silly in the minors – pitching against a big league team, though, is far different from throwing Cy Young-caliber stuff against under-developed prospects. The veteran didn’t make it look like an issue, however, as he came out firing with the stuff that had made him the premier starting pitcher of the last half decade.
Throwing 61 pitches over 3 ⅔ innings, deGrom’s fastball speed was back to where it was during his prime and he was able to work in his signature slider while keeping the Mariners off the scoreboard.
While Texas would end up squandering a lead in the game, seeing deGrom throw his good stuff on the mound to a degree of success is certainly encouraging for the Rangers. Texas, a team that has unofficially started to pivot its focus to next season, will see deGrom at least two more times the rest of the way, stating that they will accommodate the recent influx of starters throughout the season’s final two weeks.
How long will it last?
The last piece of the new pitching trifecta in Seattle was the return of Max Scherzer. When Scherzer came over at the Trade Deadline last year, he came with the idea that he would pitch, not just a team eyeing the postseason in an eventual-World Series-winning run, but to get the Rangers back there in 2024 as well.
Things did not go according to plan, as Scherzer’s season was delayed with back surgery. After several months rehabbing, the 40-year old made a few appearances before going back on the IL with a nerve issue.
Against the Mariners, Scherzer stated that he felt better than he had all season. That allowed him to go through the Seattle lineup while giving up just two runs in four innings where he featured a mid-90s fastball and a sharp curve.
It was as good an outcome as he or the team could have hoped for, especially as like Rocker and deGrom, he was on a pitch count limit in just his second time on a mound since late July following a rehab start earlier this month.
The Rangers will see Mad Max on the mound another time or two and then free agency awaits this winter. If that’s it for his stint in Texas, at least he leaves wearing a ring.
Bullpen snafus
The problem with having three pitchers make their starts in seasons in which they were recovering from surgeries is that all three were going to be on limited pitch counts. Rocker, deGrom, and Scherzer each couldn’t go past four innings. That would bring the Texas bullpen – ranking with the third most blown saves this season – into the equation with a hefty innings burden.
The Rangers did come back in the late innings and give the ‘pen a win in the opener, but an uncharacteristically poor performance from David Robertson on Friday night, and then utilizing Jack Leiter in an unfamiliar position in relief on Saturday, while Gerson Garabito bookended those efforts with two poor outings, did not put Texas in a great place to find additional wins in an important series.
The bullpen will be highly scrutinized again this offseason; this series, they combined to give up 15 runs, including a walk-off allowed by Jose Leclerc in Sunday’s finale. While Robertson and Kirby Yates have been the best relievers all season long, behind them, the Rangers have had no real consistent reliever depth.
The four-game set in Seattle was as close to a nail in the coffin as you can get on the 2024 season. The Tragic Number for Texas in the West now sits at two. They can be eliminated from the division by Tuesday night.
For now, though, the Rangers return home to face the last-place Toronto Blue Jays, the team just ahead of them in the Wild Card standings, but the wind appears to be out of the sails of the former World Series champions despite the uplifting performances from some new arms in the rotation.
Which start from this series do you think was the most encouraging for the Rangers? Share your thoughts with Matt on Twitter @FisherWritesMLB.
