A baseball season is a study in ebb and flow. Things go poorly, things go well, you hope to get lucky over a stretch that spells trouble, you hope to keep steady on calm seas. You fight through the ebbs, you sit back and enjoy the flow.
Things have been on the ebb for Texas for most of 2017, at least since the games started counting. Oh but that flow is comin’, you tell your friends.
A four game sweep, where you go walkoff-easy win-walkoff-easy win? That’s flow, as flow as flow gets, really.
That kind of loss just ain’t for us
You can pick your narrative for the weekend, and they’re all super valid:
- Your starters (#4, #2, #6, and #1) combined for 29 innings and four runs allowed.
- Joey Gallo hit three homers and was on-base in each game (failing to land on base via hit in only one game) along with doing some Adrian Beltre-ish things on defense.
- Matt Bush has settled himself in nicely, putting at least a temporary stop to the ninth inning bleeding
- The 2017 version has started showing the #NeverEverQuit of the 2016 version, notching the two aforementioned walkoff wins
It’s like a choose your own adventure, only with good Rangers things!
In Thursday’s game, Andrew Cashner continued showing much of the same as he had in his first appearance, going six shutout innings (allowing seven baserunners, three via hit and four via walk). Unfortunately, his opponent was Danny Duffy who throws with his left hand.
Duffy matched Cashner’s scoreless mark, going into the eighth inning before ceding to Mike Minor. The Rangers matched with scoreless work from Tony Barnette, Alex Claudio, Jeremy Jeffress, you, me, Keone Kela, and Dario Alvarez (the latter two going two innings each) to bring us to the 13th, where we can finally mention the offense.
With one out, Joey Gallo stepped in against lefty Travis Wood and took him to right for a double. Delino DeShields then lined to left; with a plus baserunner like Joey Gallo on (only halfway kidding) that was more than enough to score the game’s first, and last, run.
The downside to the game was a sore and tired bullpen reporting on Friday. Cole Hamels has been taking care of beleaguered bullpens for most of the past decade, though; even if his recent performances have left them a bit ragged.
While this game started off rough (HBP-double to score a run before recording an out, with a two-out walk to boot) he settled after, not allowing another baserunner until the fifth and only two total through the eighth inning, striking out three along the way.
He was buoyed by an offense that gave him six runs; five of which came from homers from Robinson Chirinos and Joey Gallo (two each). Gallo’s were noteworthy; his first came in the second, on a 3-0 pitch. Giving a green player like Gallo a ... well… green light on 3-0 is an aggressive choice, but you can see the strategic value of it down the line; generally your 3-0 pitches are get-me-over down the middle, right where Joey is known to feast.
It also gives the suggestion to pitchers that 3-0 counts are opportunities to challenge a known-swing-and-misser; yes, you’re gambling that your pitch won’t end up 460 feet away, but major leaguers tend to be pretty confident in their abilities. It’s a rare bird that can make 3-0 pitches (which the disciplined Gallo will see) appointment TV, but that’s Joey Gallo for you.
Gallo’s homer went 462 feet, landed in on a popcorn stand, and somehow it’s the post script to his other one. Per ESPN’s Hit Tracker, only two homers have gone farther, and one was hit by Kris Bryant, which I guarantee you bothers fellow Vegas native Joey a little bit.
The Rangers won 6-2 after Jeremy Jeffress allowed minor drama in a one run ninth inning; the larger drama was why it was Jeffress who was called on to pitch in a relatively low leverage situation, his tied-for-second-in-baseball 11th appearance, but that’s still not big enough to go into fully during a time of flow.
On Saturday scheduled starter A.J. Griffin was a late scratch due a disabled list visit for… gout? People still get gout in America in 2017? Anyway, I’m certain that Griffin has actual gout and this isn’t some weird cover story. I-35 Frequent flyer Nick Martinez was called upon to make the emergency start, and gave in a performance that might have given Griffin actual gout: seven innings, one run (earned) on four hits, one walk, and three strikeouts.
Martinez's command was there, his velocity showed up (touching 94), and he looked like a pitcher with a plan, not one just happy to be there. If he can maintain this, well, that’s always the question, but sometimes you just go with the flow.
Unfortunately for Martinez, the vagaries of the win stat are such that his departing with a 1-1 tie precluded him from being rewarded with a W; that goes to Matt Bush for his scoreless top of the ninth. In the bottom frame, our old friend Travis Wood allowed a leadoff single to Rougned Odor.
A ‘stolen base’ that may have been a ‘hit and run’ that Elvis ‘elected to swing and miss on’ put Rougie on second; and, for the second time this weekend, a liner to left drove in the walkoff run for Texas. The final score of 2-1 was set and Texas was in line for a chance to sweep KC.
Given Elvis’ run production, a promotion in the batting order was due, so he hit cleanup on Sunday. Yep, Elvis Andrus, cleanup hitter, that goes on his resume.
Yu Darvish, ace, pitched for Texas, and he was dominant all day, except for a very strange stretch in the third. Seeing the order the second time around, Darvish inexplicably moved inside on Mike Moustakas with a slider (homer) and rookie Jorge Bonifacio with a cutter (homer).
You might remember a slight controversy existing last week regarding Darvish and pitching inside early in games, so again… just a bit weird. Because sandwiched around those homers was a near flawless eight inning game; the Royals would never again send more than three men up to the plate in an inning for the day, and Darvish ended the game with eight K’s set against one walk and five hits - the other three all singles.
Meanwhile, Gallo and Chirinos again did the matching homers thing, and the team ended opposing starter Jason Hammel’s day in the fourth by notching two runs without a hit - a sequence of walk-stolen base-HBP-HPB(originally called a foul, overturned on review)-walk-fielder’s choice, punctuated by a bases-loaded GIDP from Shin-Soo Choo to end the threat.
But the score had turned to 3-2, a lead that Darvish and Matt Bush (save, strikeout in the ninth) would not yield. The final mark was 5-2, and the Rangers are 9-10, one series win away from .500 with one eighth of the season in the books.
Feelin’ Minnesota, except we actually strike people out
Enter the Twins who come to Texas for the second of three Arlington-based Rangers series this week. The Twins are 8-10, twentieth in the league in both batting average and runs scored but with a solid pitching staff that strikes out 17.8% of opposing batters, where the league average is 21.9%. Thad Levine still has some culture to be a-changin’ up north.
In Monday’s opener, Martin Perez will oppose Phil Hughes. Hughes has a 5.60 ERA on the year, striking out 6.6 batters per nine innings while walking only 1.8 and allowing 1.8 home runs. He is the spiritual opposite of Joey Gallo.
On Tuesday, Andrew Cashner will start for Texas against old nemesis Ervin Santana. Santana is the owner of a .64 ERA on the season, but his 4.09 xFIP is screaming for regression. Maybe not screaming, maybe it’s more of an exaggerated but quiet pantomime, but, still.
In Wednesday’s finale, Hector Santiago will start for Minnesota. Santiago is the always popular answer to the trivia question, ‘Hector Santiago is still pitching? In the major leaguesI?’ All jokes aside, he’s been effective on the year, going 2-1 with a 2.19 ERA (4.71 xFIP) over 24.2 innings in four starts.
Like all Minnesota starters, he strikes out about six batters per nine innings pitched. Starting for the Rangers will be Cole Hamels, looking to build on his strong appearances against the Royals.
Hey maybe follow Joe on Twitter @thejoeursery, why don't cha? He likes the Rangers and the Cowboys. Go make a friend.
