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Now or never: Rangers open last-chance series with Angels tonight
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The Rangers watch helplessly while the bullpen blows a 5-run lead. AP/Mike Fuentes
Say what you will…longshot, pipedream, hallucination, lottery ticket.
But give the Rangers this: as the last week of the season begins, they are still alive.
The long awaited four-game series in Anaheim, which appeared as though it would be completely anti-climactic, is now only partially anti-climactic.
At least one game will be meaningful baseball, with the chance for more if the Rangers can keep winning.
The Angels’ “magic number” sits at 2, as does the Red Sox’ number for the wild card. Any combination of Angel wins and Ranger losses, or Boston wins and Ranger losses, and those teams punch their playoff tickets. In other words, both races could end tonight.
Just one week ago, though, it seemed highly unlikely that the Rangers would avoid elimination before getting to Southern California. However, a nice stretch against Oakland and Tampa Bay, mixed with lousy weeks from the Angels and Sox, gives Texas the right to say it hung in there until the final week.
The situation would be even better, if not for Sunday’s complete bullpen meltdown against the Rays, which likely ended any realistic hopes. Obviously, a sweep of this series is required for the Rangers to stay alive. Had they held on yesterday, a sweep this week would have brought them to within one game heading to the final weekend. Instead, even if they do sweep the Angels, the Rangers would still have to sweep the Mariners and have the Angels lose at least two of three in Oakland just to force a tie. Such was the importance of blowing a 5 run lead in the last two innings in the home finale.
Nonetheless, everything about this final month—good, bad or downright painful—will be of benefit to the Rangers in the long run. They gained valuable experience, faced pressure situations, and sent an important message for 2010: they won’t give up, and they won’t go away easily.
No matter how unlikely the chances of a Ranger sweep, you can be certain that the Angels wanted this thing wrapped up long before the Rangers came to town. The pressure—all of it—shifts to Anaheim for this series. If the Rangers manage to win the opener, that pressure grows exponentially; if they manage to win two, it goes through the roof.
From the Texas standpoint, all they can do is live by the old cliché and play ‘em one at a time. The rules don’t let you play ‘em two at a time, anyway. Win or lose, only good things can come from having the opportunity to play elimination games against their chief rivals in late September.
Game 1: Tommy Hunter (9-4, 3.67) at Ervin Santana (7-8, 5.46). Hunter has appeared to run out of gas down the stretch, with a 5.40 ERA in his last 4 starts, including 7 earned runs over 5.2 innings in his last outing. He did hold the Angels to two runs over 5 innings in a start against them on September 18. Santana hasn’t won since August 22nd, but the blame goes to the Halo offense, as Santana has a solid 3.86 ERA during that stretch, and 7 quality starts in 9 appearances. Santana was bombed in his only start against Texas this year, giving up 5 runs in 4 innings back on July 8th.
Game 2: Scott Feldman (17-6, 3.90) at Scott Kazmir (9-9, 5.06). Feldman will be pitching to become the Rangers’ first 18 game winner since Kenny Rogers in 2004, and only the 10th pitcher in Ranger history to win at least that many. To get win number 18, he’ll have to pitch better than he has down the stretch (8.26 ERA in last three starts). Feldman is 3-0 against Anaheim this season. Kazmir has been every bit the ace the Angels hoped he would be when they acquired him from Tampa Bay, posting a 2.01 ERA and 23 Ks over 31 innings since joining the team. He held the Rangers scoreless over 6 innings on September 18, continuing the team’s year long struggles against left handed pitchers.
Game 3: Derek Holland (8-12, 6.14) at Jered Weaver (15-8, 3.64). If the Angels haven’t put the Rangers away by Wednesday, Texas will have to stake it’s life, it’s fortune and it’s sacred honor on Holland, who has a staggering 11.17 ERA over his last 6 starts. Holland has shown tremendous promise for the future, but has been a disaster over the past month. The Rangers can only hope for the Holland who threw a complete game shutout at Anaheim on August 9th. Meanwhile, Weaver is a familiar face, making his 6th start against the Rangers this year. In three starts at the Ballpark, Weaver compiled a 6.05 ERA; in two home starts against Texas, that dropped to 3.07.
Game 4: Kevin Millwood (12-10, 3.75) at John Lackey (11-8, 3.77). After skipping a start (against the Angels) to work out some mechanical issues, Millwood has responded with two of his best games of the year, going 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA over 14 innings. The second of those two starts came after he got paid, quieting any cynics in the crowd. Lackey has been the Angels’ most reliable starter in the second half, going 7-4 with a 2.93 ERA after the break. Both pitchers have struggled in this series, with Millwood carrying a 6.56 ERA against the Angels this season, and Lackey posting a 6.75 mark against Texas.
Game 1 is scheduled to get underway at 9:05 Metroplex time tonight. It could be the last time this season the Rangers play a game that counts, so don’t miss it.
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