To say that these are strange times would be an understatement, especially if you’re a professional athlete. In a season when the Texas Rangers were supposed to christen their brand new ballpark Globe Life Field in front of thousands, they were forced to do it in front of a crowd of thousands of cardboard cutouts. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, baseball has endured. It has a different look to it, but it has endured. The opening weeks have had plenty of storylines, especially surrounding the Texas Rangers. Let’s take a quick look at the Texas Rangers 2020 early-season struggles.
Questions Aplenty
The Texas Rangers have seen their fair share of struggles in the early weeks of the 2020 season! In almost any year that isn’t labeled “2020”, you could immediately shrug off any baseball team’s record when they haven’t even completed the first two weeks of the regular Major League Baseball season. However, if you’re Jon Daniels, President of Baseball Operations and General Manager of the Texas Rangers, you cannot help but look at the standings and have the urge to hold a couple of meetings with your staff. Right now, the Rangers are 13 games into their season. They sit five games back in the American League West division. Once again, 13 games in, five games back, nothing to worry about, right?
Pitching Concerns
In this case, maybe worry isn’t the right word to use, yet. In these strange times with the shortened Major League Baseball season due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is at least time for the Rangers to ask some questions. The main question being, what do they need? Their pitching has given up too many runs for comfort in such a short time. As a pitching staff, the Texas Rangers hold a 4.25 ERA in 112 and one-third innings pitched. They say you can never have enough pitching, so maybe that is what the Rangers need to go after, but where?
Scoring Difficulties
Pitching isn’t their only area of concern though. They have also had trouble scoring runs on top of everything else. They have been getting men on base, but they have had trouble bringing them around to score. As a team, the Rangers are hitting .202, and have grounded into eight double plays. They have also had a little trouble putting the bat on the ball. Their collective efforts have resulted in 106 strikeouts. Again, these numbers would not generally make people panic after a team’s first 10 games. From the fans’ perspective, it comes off a little differently.
Difference of Opinion
Baseball fans, and sports fans in general, have different opinions of this season. There are some that love the fact that baseball is back, and there are other fans that are somewhat indifferent to this new 60-game reality. Due to the pandemic, it is a miracle that we have come this far. From the arduous negotiations to the numerous positive tests among players, coaches, and various stadium and front office personnel, many are shocked that we are even seeing baseball being played at all. Some are enjoying the rollercoaster, and a lot of people aren’t. That is why a lot of Texas Rangers fans feel a little uneasy about the team numbers in their first handful of games. Games matter more now. Time is very short, and circumstances are foreign and completely out of everyone’s control. Every win and every loss has a magnifying glass hovering over it.
Strange Times
Think about it. Any team that wins 40 or more games is most likely going to the playoffs, and it is the Rangers hope that they are one of those teams. In any other year, barring a strike or pandemic, you would never see a team going to the playoffs with 40 wins. That is just one of many examples of what could and will happen this year! It is very unique, but everyone understandably longs for ‘precedented times’.
Only time will tell what happens!
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