* Projected Record is a formula that takes projected team OPS, starters ERA and relievers ERA into account in order to get a projected runs scored and runs allowed per game. Those figures are then inserted into the Pythagorean record formula.
The Rangers are approaching the 2009 season with a great level of optimism and multiple members of the club are on record saying that they are capable of making a double-digit improvement in the win column.
A half dozen win improvement this season, followed by another in 2010 seems more likely.
Other than letting Milton Bradley walk to the Cubs, the Rangers didn't do much in the offseason other than play a maneuver game with Michael Young, stick their toe in the water on Ben Sheets and sign Omar Vizquel.
Texas knows that they have a special crop of players in their lineup and a few potential aces a season or two away and nothing is going to deviate them from that strategy.
No Dumb Questions
1. Can Josh Hamilton repeat or even improve his 2008 numbers?
2. If they're in contention after the break, will they push Neftali Feliz and/or Derek Holland up to the bigs?
3. Will Jarrod Saltalamacchia finally start hitting like the can't miss prospect he was projected to be when they acquired him in the Mark Teixeira trade?
4. Can the Rangers possibly have a team ERA below 5.00?
5. How well will Elvis Andrus adjust to big league pitching?
Maximizing Potential
The Rangers can throw just about any combination of hitters out there during the middle of the Texas summer and score a lot of runs. But with Chris Davis and Nelson Cruz joining Hamilton, Ian Kinsler, Hank Blalock and Michael Young, opposing pitchers don't have a lot of gimmes in that lineup.
No matter how many runs they do score, they will need substantial improvements from their pitching staff. Back in the Johnny Oates playoff days of the late 90's, they were still near the bottom in ERA, but not on the bottom rung like they were in 2008. Their staff was better in 2007, but that was mainly due to an excellent bullpen that finished fifth in all of baseball in ERA with a mark of 3.71.
The Rangers will need their ragtag group of retreads backing up Frank Francisco to perform in those long, high scoring games.
What Will Likely Happen
The Rangers will have an easier time scoring over 900 runs again than they will giving up fewer than 950.
Hamilton and Kinsler will likely put up numbers that rival anybody in the league and they will wear out opposing pitching staffs, but the teams that play a Rangers' opponent after they're through with them will probably have more success than they do.
Between Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla and Scott Feldman, there is not a whole lot to count on in their rotation. Padilla actually had a nice 2008 with a 14-8 record and 4.74 ERA, so the Rangers would gladly take a repeat performance of those numbers.
What Do They Have In The Pipeline
The Rangers have one of the best farm systems in all of baseball, with good depth and balance at many positions. The system was largely populated with its current quality via shrewd sell offs of Mark Teixeira and Eric Gagne in 2007, with top-five prospects Neftali Feliz and Engel Beltre both arriving in those deals, along with Andrus, David Murphy and Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
Developing pitching has always been a problem for the Rangers, largely because of their ballpark, but they have quite a few arms that may change that trend. Since there are so many cheap hits and homers in Arlington, they need to specifically develop strikeout pitchers instead of relying on pitch to contact arms.
Jon Daniels and Nolan Ryan have done an excellent job in building an excellent foundation from the ground up instead of the splashy Tom Hicks led free agent signings of Alex Rodriguez and Chan Ho Park, which marked the beginning of this decade in Texas.
