For a team that pulled off a win earlier this week against the Sox’s and is trying to sneak into the playoffs, the Rangers have a serious bullpen issue.
The Rangers are trailing the Houston Astros by just one game in the American League West and are 1.5 games out of the last Wild Card spot. The math is simple: they need a win, but until recenlty they had no one to start on the mound.
The rotation has collapsed under the weight of injuries and workload limits. Jacob deGrom started the series opener on Tuesday but only lasted five innings while throwing 92 pitches, Yahoo Sports reported. He labored through the game. Nick Sogard hit a two-run home run off him. All four runs the Rangers scored in that game happened during a brief window when the broadcast feed went dark.
The rotation looked better on paper but still shaky which is great news for the Red Sox’s. MacKenzie Gore is scheduled to face left-hander Jake Bennett, Yahoo Sports Canada noted. But the real story is what happened on Saturday. Kumar Rocker worked four innings in a 6-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Rockers’ major league season saw him pitch 111 innings by mid-August, the most he has ever thrown.
Chris Young, the Rangers president of baseball operations, previously stated the organization could monitor Rocker’s workload. That warning is now a reality. The team cannot risk blowing out his arm when they are fighting for their lives.
Nathan Eovaldi tried to help out after Rocker on Saturday. He entered the game, pitched 2.2 innings, allowed a run on four hits, recorded two strikeouts, and issued no walks. That day, the Rangers activated Eovaldi from the Injured List and moved him to the bullpen. He had not appeared on the roster since August 7 because of right posterior elbow inflammation.
As of September 15, two American League teams have clinched, and unfortunately, it’s the Rays and the Yankees.
As long as the Sox’s keep the status quo they should be able to hold onto the second Wild Card spot which will lead to another classic showdown in the Bronx.
The Red Sox do have a slight uphill battle; they need to deal with the Rangers, the Rays, the Guardians, and finally the Cubs.
