Series Thread: Rangers Travel to Minnesota for 4 Games August 24-27

[WilltheThrill]

As wildly as this team has swung to such opposite sides on the pendulum, it is perfectly natural for different people to view the team completely different. Some can see a team good enough to win the division. Some can see a team that has no chance at the postseason. Others see various spots in between.

Every opinion can be justified by the person holding that opinion. As a group, we need to realize that. There are so many pieces of information to look at, some of which seems to disprove the other.

In this situation, others are going to strongly disagree and think they have a valid reason.

My opinion is that this team is toast. Others with very strong reasons are going to disagree. That is fine with me. I understand why they feel that way. I just feel as strongly as they do, but with the opposite opinion.

All I know, is that this is one of the strangest Rangers seasons that I have ever followed, and I have followed them all.

It might be better to attempt to be civil while we disagree. I understand how difficult that can be though.

There’s a major difference between saying you think they’re toast and others saying they’re the worst team in baseball with no chance at all.

Furthermore, it amuses me greatly that some people who claim to be Rangers fans can have such a problem with someone else who says that baseball is weird (true), we’re still in first place (true), there are still over 30 games remaining (true), and it remains to be seen one way or another how it will all shake out.

 

[Nightcrawler]

I just don’t get how we can get totally lit up and dominated by mediocre at best lineups from the Brewers and Twinkies. The Twinkies are averaging 9.5 runs a game against us while Milwaukee averaged nearly 8 runs a game against us.

unbelievably terrible

 

[Nightcrawler]

Feels like this team will never win again.

I know we did just get thru a string of really unfortunate pitching matchups / fluke performances

detmers pitched a near no hitter for a dead in the water angels team

brewers pitching staff averaged seemingly 12ks per game against our lineup. Totally shut us down.

we somehow drew Zac Gallen twice over 2 game series with the diamondbacks spread over months apart. What’s the chances of that happening?

we drew Pablo lopez and grey. Lopez we actually did hit well, but Heaney wasted it by throwing batting practice. Grey did shut us down.

we shouldn’t see either Lopez or grey in Arlington tho, but the pitching matchups have been brutal for us lately.

 

[WilltheThrill]

Feels like this team will never win again.

I know we did just get thru a string of really unfortunate pitching matchups / fluke performances

detmers pitched a near no hitter for a dead in the water angels team

brewers pitching staff averaged seemingly 12ks per game against our lineup. Totally shut us down.

we somehow drew Zac Gallen twice over 2 game series with the diamondbacks spread over months apart. What’s the chances of that happening?

we drew Pablo lopez and grey. Lopez we actually did hit well, but Heaney wasted it by throwing batting practice. Grey did shut us down.

we shouldn’t see either Lopez or grey in Arlington tho, but the pitching matchups have been brutal for us lately.

It does feel that way. If we’re feeling it as fans, you can bet the players feel that way as well. They probably expect to lose in the back of their minds as well. Nothing is going right. And that’s a hard thing to break free from, for sure. No losing streak lasts forever, though. They will win one some day in the near future, and we can only hope it’s not too late and it shakes them out of this awful funk. Tonight’s game was pitiful.

 

[saddles]

 

[saddles]

 

[saddles]

 

[age8311]

Yes we have been really bad. It will turn around. We are the best team in the west. We needed this. We have been sailing all year, bullpen has been exposed, bats gone cold. I'm thinking tomorrow the bats will come alive. We are still in 1st, we are slumping at the right time. Get it going into post season!

 

[True Rangers Fan]

Mariners just made up the largest deficit in less than 10 games in over 20 years. Now tied for first with them.

 

[scotsman1948]

First off, not everyone does understand that. It’s right there in black and white. Scotsman is arguing we actually are the worst team in baseball. We’re not.

Furthermore, a team’s ACTUAL talent is more predictive of future play and results than poor play during a 2-week slump. You are writing off the team’s chances based on their CURRENT play. You somehow think this play will continue indefinitely, we will be in 3rd place, and we don’t stand any chance in the playoffs because we aren’t playing well right now.

You ask “what is the point of saying we’re better than this”? The point is that there are still 34 games left in the season, and 4 months’ worth of success suggests we will right the ship at some point in that time before the playoffs start.

Let me ask you a return question- what is the point of saying we wouldn’t stand a chance in the playoffs if they started today? They don’t. Talk about a worthless talking point.

I’m saying ringette not right at this moment we are playing like we’re the worst team around. Anyone who has watched the play recently has seen the worst in offense, defense and pitching it is time to rattle the cage.

I bring up Huff, Harris & Ornelas I send down 3 to make room. I put Martinez, Jankowski & Grossman in the outfield. I I put Ornelas, Seager, Semien& Harris in the infield. I put Huff behind the plate and Garver at DH. I bench Duran, Garcia, Lowe & Lowe for the rest of the road trip

 

[Kelleyman]

So like our chances with our pitching matchups the next 2 games Get a couple wins and have our momentum shift. See what we have with Eovaldi and make a few pen changes.
Let it play out with first a meaningful series with the Astros and if we turn the tide with the Mariners

Yeah it is always nice to be civil and better yet friendly. Word though can be inflammatory
Appreciate the banter

 

[scotsman1948]

So like our chances with our pitching matchups the next 2 games Get a couple wins and have our momentum shift. See what we have with Eovaldi and make a few pen changes.
Let it play out with first a meaningful series with the Astros and if we turn the tide with the Mariners

Yeah it is always nice to be civil and better yet friendly. Word though can be inflammatory
Appreciate the banter

I would bring up Speas & JHern

 

[Kelleyman]

I’m saying ringette not right at this moment we are playing like we’re the worst team around. Anyone who has watched the play recently has seen the worst in offense, defense and pitching it is time to rattle the cage

Have to say there is a bit of luck involved in baseball. We had 2 long flies that easily could be HRs. We had Dunning uncharacteristically not be able to find the strike zone. The ground balls find the holes or don’t. Swings at ball 4s.

Now El Bombi current penchant for strikeouts is a symptom of a team playing poorly.

But there is a certain amount of bad luck not winning any of the last 7 games.

 

[Kelleyman]

Also the hot or lucky team may win in the playoffs. Let’s just get in first and not be worried about being perfect. (Of course we want to improve and play better). But this is no time to give up on the Rangers and at worst utilize this as a learning experience

As said baseball is weird Anything can happen

 

[Kelleyman]

I would bring up Speas & JHern

At least one but we will have to lose someone other than Grant which is obvious
Going to be. Some hard to be decisions made

 

[scotsman1948]

Have to say there is a bit of luck involved in baseball. We had 2 long flies that easily could be HRs. We had Dunning uncharacteristically not be able to find the strike zone. The ground balls find the holes or don’t. Swings at ball 4s.

Now El Bombi current penchant for strikeouts is a symptom of a team playing poorly.

But there is a certain amount of bad luck not winning any of the last 7 games.

When Dunning left the game hee had thrown only 2 more strikes than balls. He was trending back toward his first inning stats when he was removed. We were fortunate that we weren’t down by 7 or 8 runs by then.
Whatever is effecting the whole team not just a few players and I don’t think it’s Bochy or Maddux. But with every game it gets worse

 

[scotsman1948]

At least one but we will have to lose someone other than Grant which is obvious
Going to be. Some hard to be decisions made

It’s not easy to say this but Dunning seems to have lost faith in all his pitches and he has options so I might consider sending him down to AA for the rest of the road trip to work on the mental part of his game

 

[True Rangers Fan]

It’s not easy to say this but Dunning seems to have lost faith in all his pitches and he has options so I might consider sending him down to AA for the rest of the road trip to work on the mental part of his game

Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but are you saying demote Dunning to AA to toughen up mentally?

 

[DT LUNA]

Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but are you saying demote Dunning to AA to toughen up mentally?

Hard to believe isn't it?

 

[WilltheThrill]

So like our chances with our pitching matchups the next 2 games Get a couple wins and have our momentum shift. See what we have with Eovaldi and make a few pen changes.
Let it play out with first a meaningful series with the Astros and if we turn the tide with the Mariners

Yeah it is always nice to be civil and better yet friendly. Word though can be inflammatory
Appreciate the banter

Great post. Agree with everything you said here. Things look very bad now, but there’s still a lot of baseball left to see if we can right the ship. We have shown we are capable. The 2 series with Houston and Seattle could decide things.