Starting Rotation Is Texas Rangers' Biggest Strength So Far In 2016

The injury bug has bitten the Texas Rangers quite a few times this season, but one part of the team that has been largely immune to that has been the starting rotation. Not only has the Texas rotation managed to stay healthy, but it has also managed to carry the rest of the team throughout such an injury-plagued season that has included the likes Josh Hamilton and Shin-Soo Choo unable to contribute much, if anything, all season. The starting rotation has been the Rangers’ biggest strength in 2016 and is the biggest reason why Texas is in first place in the AL West.

The Texas rotation has the lowest ERA in the American League through the first two months of the season, and to no one’s surprise, Cole Hamels has been the focal point. Hamels isn’t having the best season of his career, but he’s 5-1 and many of his stats are right in line with his career numbers, so he’s very much the ace of the staff.

Of course, the Rangers knew coming into the season that they would be able to count on Hamels, but the two pitchers who have taken the Texas rotation to the next level are Martin Perez and Colby Lewis. Perez is having a career year, as he’s finally solidified a spot in the starting rotation. He’s shown flashes of brilliance in the past, but Perez is now pitching with great consistency. As for Lewis, he’s had an up and down career, but at age 36 he’s been at his best and showed incredible consistency. Lewis has failed to pitch at least six innings in just one of his 10 starts this season, and he’s allowed more than three runs in just one of those outings.

The x-factor for the rest of the season for the Texas rotation is Yu Darvish, who just returned from Tommy John surgery. Darvish was masterful in his first major league start in close to two years, looking very much like the guy the league saw before the surgery. Since acquiring Hamels last summer, the Rangers have envisioned he and Darvish being dual aces at their top of their rotation, and based on Darvish’s first outing, that vision is not far off.

The caveat to Texas’ powerful rotation is that the team’s bullpen is one of the worst in baseball. This could ultimately pose a problem, but at the moment there’s a strong argument to be made that the Rangers have the best rotation in baseball, especially if Darvish continues to pitch the way he did in his return from Tommy John. The Texas rotation has carried the Rangers a long way already this season, and there’s reason to believe it can continue to do so throughout the rest of 2016.