Texas Looks To Rebound From 108 Win Disappointment
Mar 27, 2020 1:12:05 GMT -5
Rich - Former GM, BlueJaysGM_Fin, and 5 more like this
Post by Texas Rangers on Mar 27, 2020 1:12:05 GMT -5
Texas Rangers' 2053 regular season was a success, the best in team history. It ended in a blink, a three game sweep, having scored but three total runs on three solo home runs. The dealer of the lopsided defeat, the Chicago White Sox, laid waste to the whole of the American League and captured a second consecutive World Series victory. But the next season comes quickly, with changes inevitable and one singular aim each spring in Arlington: the postseason tournament.
The 2053 team left camp betting that a good lineup and good defense would pick up the slack for a rotation down Ronald Holt to Philadelphia and absent a true frontline starter since Mike Larson's fall down the dugout stairs in spring training 2051. The Rangers ended up carried by one of the American League's best staffs for the entire season, the arms picking up the slack for a middling offense. Lineup anchor Amghar Sumait slumped and Albert Hernandez was league average after years as a heart of the order run producer; only SS Danny Martin and 3B Ken Mason produced notably above expectations. With uncertainty surrounding Sumait's bat and Albert's contract future, the team traded for and committed a large sum to 3B Brady Henderson, long coveted by Texas brass. Other newcomers competing for at-bats include OF Phil Wilson, 1B John Ferguson and 2B Naoki Masanobu. Makalani Korra should earn a starting outfield spot sometime in 2054; he headlines a strong farm system.
The pitching staff is familiar; before Larson was traded in the Henderson deal there was some regression expected. Lefty Raul Canto is excellent when on and was an All-Star in '53, but is still shaky against right handed hitters and susceptible to the home run. Edward Boer is quite unlikely to lead the league in ERA and WHIP again. Newcomer Manuel Nunez is expected to be frugal with home runs and walks. This rotation does not have a star to match Kansas City's best, and left hander German Santos has not proven ready to live up to lofty scouting reports. The bullpen has been stellar for most of the last decade, with David Lyle and Bill Black still holding down the back end.
The American League's best are a stacked bunch. The goal is the same as always: make the playoffs in the best possible position. Texas Rangers hope to be one of the last teams standing in 2054.
PS--- Albert Hernandez did indeed leave, for the Colorado Rockies. There are unconfirmed rumors that Texas' GM cursed a blue streak upon hearing the news, debasing himself with suggestions that the ex-Ranger star's new team would "give Albert gout" and "the hippies in Denver will corrupt my boy" before crying into a pillow embroidered to commemorate Hernandez' 2049 MVP campaign. Again, this is not confirmed and appear to be merely rumor.
The 2053 team left camp betting that a good lineup and good defense would pick up the slack for a rotation down Ronald Holt to Philadelphia and absent a true frontline starter since Mike Larson's fall down the dugout stairs in spring training 2051. The Rangers ended up carried by one of the American League's best staffs for the entire season, the arms picking up the slack for a middling offense. Lineup anchor Amghar Sumait slumped and Albert Hernandez was league average after years as a heart of the order run producer; only SS Danny Martin and 3B Ken Mason produced notably above expectations. With uncertainty surrounding Sumait's bat and Albert's contract future, the team traded for and committed a large sum to 3B Brady Henderson, long coveted by Texas brass. Other newcomers competing for at-bats include OF Phil Wilson, 1B John Ferguson and 2B Naoki Masanobu. Makalani Korra should earn a starting outfield spot sometime in 2054; he headlines a strong farm system.
The pitching staff is familiar; before Larson was traded in the Henderson deal there was some regression expected. Lefty Raul Canto is excellent when on and was an All-Star in '53, but is still shaky against right handed hitters and susceptible to the home run. Edward Boer is quite unlikely to lead the league in ERA and WHIP again. Newcomer Manuel Nunez is expected to be frugal with home runs and walks. This rotation does not have a star to match Kansas City's best, and left hander German Santos has not proven ready to live up to lofty scouting reports. The bullpen has been stellar for most of the last decade, with David Lyle and Bill Black still holding down the back end.
The American League's best are a stacked bunch. The goal is the same as always: make the playoffs in the best possible position. Texas Rangers hope to be one of the last teams standing in 2054.
PS--- Albert Hernandez did indeed leave, for the Colorado Rockies. There are unconfirmed rumors that Texas' GM cursed a blue streak upon hearing the news, debasing himself with suggestions that the ex-Ranger star's new team would "give Albert gout" and "the hippies in Denver will corrupt my boy" before crying into a pillow embroidered to commemorate Hernandez' 2049 MVP campaign. Again, this is not confirmed and appear to be merely rumor.