I can’t consider a extra apropos latest instance of a curler coaster throughout baseball’s common season than this yr’s Texas Rangers. Within the month of August, the Rangers had been seen each because the American League’s main contender to make the World Collection and likewise had a big swath of their fan base throw within the towel for a way crap they appeared towards common, at greatest, groups. Texas began sizzling, cooled off, acquired sizzling once more — six gamers made the ultimate All-Star Game roster; and 5 of them began — sucked, turned pink sizzling, grunted by means of a 12-out-of-10 on the mondo-dook-o-meter, and now are one sport away from sweeping the Blue Jays, one in every of its most important opponents for a Wild Card spot, in Canada.
To not point out, after crapping away the three.5-game lead within the AL West the Rangers had over the cheatin’ Astros and a 7.5-game lead over the third-place Mariners that they had a month in the past at the moment, primarily as a consequence of shedding 16 of 20 between Aug. 16 and Sept. 6, they’ve received their final 5, with one other spherical of manageable matchups coming down the pike. Except for tonight’s sport in Toronto, the Rangers have one opponent left on their schedule that’s not hovering round .500 or worse. Texas’ remaining seven video games towards Seattle, together with a 4-game sequence within the Pacific Northwest to finish the season, will seemingly decide each groups’ playoff future, or lack thereof.
The Rangers’ present turnaround was sudden as a result of earlier than they went north of the border, the Blue Jays weren’t slumping, successful eight of their final 10 video games. It was two groups getting into reverse instructions who then employed a double reverse uno card. This all comes whereas Texas’ huge trade-deadline acquisition, Max Scherzer, hasn’t accomplished a rattling factor for the workforce and acquired booed in Queens through the workforce’s latest sequence towards the Mets. Then Scherzer will get damage on Tuesday evening and is probably going accomplished for the yr, as a result of the Rangers can’t have good issues or flaming luggage of poop. How this journey will finish for a resurgent workforce below a first-year supervisor who’s nonetheless one way or the other disappointing will probably be one of the crucial fascinating tales in baseball over the past a number of years.
It could shock nobody if the Rangers made the playoffs. At their greatest, they’re clearly among the best groups in baseball. It could additionally shock nobody if Texas missed the playoffs, as a result of, at its worst, it’s as efficient as washing your fingers with mustard. But it surely’s nonetheless higher than Oakland with these yellow-drenched (Rollie) fingers. It’s anybody’s guess which model of the Rangers will present up on any given evening. Via three video games in Toronto, Texas has outscored the Blue Jays 26-7. Towards Houston earlier this month, the Rangers had been outscored 39-10 in a 3-game sweep. It’s onerous to know the place to gauge expectations for the workforce, as a result of blatant examples of each have been really easy to see and analyze.
I nonetheless have a tough time believing the Rangers received’t be within the playoffs, although they’re a sport again of Houston within the AL West and solely a sport forward of Toronto within the Wild Card standings. There’s simply an excessive amount of high quality in Arlington in comparison with the remainder of the American League to consider in any other case. That’s, when the Rangers are good, they’ve that a lot potential and so they’ve proven they’ll’t be trusted.
