2012 Texas Rangers Predictions
Written by Steve Janus - Google +
The Texas Rangers owned the AL West for a second straight season with a 96-66 record. The Rangers returned to the World Series after losing to the Giants in five games in 2010, and it looked like they were going to capitalize this time around. However, they were unable to put away the Cardinals when given the opportunity and left empty handed once again. The Rangers are more than capable of getting back to the World Series for a third straight season, but they figure to get a push inside the division from the Angels, who signed away the Rangers ace C.J. Wilson and added in first baseman Albert Pujols. Let’s take a look at their projected starting lineup, starting rotation, and closer situation for 2012.
Projected Lineup
Mike Napoli (Catcher) -Napoli put it all together in 2011 on both sides of the ball. His defense improved immensely and he put up a career-year at the plate. Napoli finished up hitting .320 with 30 home runs 75 RBI in just 113 games. It will be hard for him to match those numbers in 2012, but he still figures to be one of the best all-around catchers in baseball.
Mitch Moreland (First Base) -Moreland looked like he was on his way to a breakout season after hitting .300 with seven home runs in his first 160 at-bats, but he really struggled down the stretch. He finished up the year with a .259 average to go along with 16 home runs and 51 RBI. He turns just 27 in September, which has some thinking he will make his impact felt in 2012.
Ian Kinsler (Second Base) – Kinsler rebounded from a sub-par showing in 2010 with a similar campaign to his breakout season in 2009. The 29-year-old hit just .255 but made up for it with 32 home runs, 77 RBI, and 30 stolen bases. He is right in the middle of his prime and most think he will put up similar, if not better, numbers in 2012.
Elvis Andrus (Shortstop) – Andrus put together a career-year in his third season in the big leagues. He set career-highs in average (.279), runs (96), RBI (60), and steals (37). The Rangers are hoping this is just the beginning of a great career for the 23-year-old.
Adrian Beltre (Third Base) – Beltre played in just 124 games in his first season with the Rangers, but he was really good when he was one the field. Not only was he a huge upgrade defensively, but he hit .296 with 32 home runs and 105 RBI. He is starting to get up their in age (32), but still figures to have 2-3 solid years left in the tank.
Josh Hamilton (Left Field) – Injuries kept Hamilton from matching his MVP season of 2010, but he was still a force offensively when he was able to play. He hit .298 with 25 home runs and 94 RBI in just 121 games. The Rangers plan on moving him to left field to try and keep him healthy. If it works, he figures to be right back in the AL MVP race in 2012
Craig Gentry (Center Field) -Gentry looks to have the edge in the battle for the center field job this spring. He doesn’t figure to give the Rangers a whole lot offensively, he hit just .271 with one home run and 13 RBI in 133 at-bats last year, but he plays outstanding defense. With all the offense the Rangers have, Gentry’s poor offense will go unnoticed if he continues to make plays in the field.
Nelson Cruz (Right Field) – Cruz is an absolute beast at the plate, but his inability to stay healthy continues to haunt him. He was limited to just 124 games in 2011 thanks to two trips to the DL, but still managed to hit 29 homers with 87 RBI. The Rangers continue to wonder what kind of numbers he could put up in a full season.
Michael Young (Designated Hitter) -Young wasn’t all that happy about getting moved to DH, but it didn’t seem to have an effect on his performance. Young finished with a career-best .338 average with 11 home runs and 106 RBI. He likely won’t return to a 20+ home run hitter (hit 21 in 2010), but he is still one of the best pure-hitters in the game.
Projected Rotation
Colby Lewis (RHP) -Â With Wilson now a member of the Angels, Lewis is expected to be the Rangers opening day starter this season. Lewis won a career-high 14 games in 2011, but his ERA jumped from 3.72 in 2010 to 4.40. His peripherals indicate that we should see his ERA fall back under 4.00 this season and he could set another career-high in wins with the offense he has backing him in Texas.
Derek Holland (LHP) – Holland really impressed in his first full season as a starter. The 26-year-old went 16-5 with a 3.95 ERA and 1.35 WHIP. His strong finish to the regular season, which carried over into the playoffs, has a lot of people thinking he could become the ace of the rotation as soon as this year.
Yu Darvish (RHP) – The loss of Wilson was eased by the Rangers addition of Darvish, who has been a sensation in Japan over the last five seasons. While it normally takes Japanese players a while to adjust to the big leagues, Darvish appears ready to shine in his first season.
Matt Harrison (LHP) -Harrison is another Ranger who really emerged as a reliable starter in 2011. The 26-year-old went 14-9 with a 3.39 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in 30 starts. Pretty impressive for a guy who had just 32 starts in his previous three seasons in the big leagues.
Neftali Feliz (RHP) -Feliz has spent the last two seasons as the Rangers closer, and he was pretty darn good at his job. He saved 72 games with just nine blown saves, while posting an ERA right around 2.70. He will make the difficult transition from reliever to starter, but he was brought to Texas with the intentions of making him a starter.
Projected Closer
Joe Nathan (RHP) – The Rangers went out and added Nathan to take over the closer role, which is a big reason why Feliz is being moved to the rotation. Nathan is one the elite closers in the game when healthy, but injuries plagued his 2011 season. He finished with just 14 saves, which was a far cry from his 41 save average he compiled over his previous six seasons.
| 2012 Texas Rangers Odds | |
| World Series | +1000 |
| AL Pennant | +550 |
| AL West |
+100 |
| Total Regular Season Wins | O91.5 (-130) |
| U91.5(+100) |
Over/Under Total Home Runs in the 2012 Regular Season
Nelson Cruz – 30.5
Josh Hamilton – 28.5
Adrian Beltre – 26.5
Ian Kinsler – 27.5
Mike Napoli – 27.5
Over/Under BA in the 2012 Regular Season
Ian Kinsler – .270
Mike Napoli – .275
Josh Hamilton – .299
Adrian Beltre – .295
Over/Under Total Stolen Bases in the 2012 Regular Season
Ian Kinsler – 27.5
Elvis Andrus – 33.5
Over/Under Total Wins in the 2012 Regular Season
Derrek Holland – 12.5
Colby Lewis – 12.5
Yu Darvish – 12.5
Over/Under Total Saves in the 2012 Regular Season
Joe Nathan – 33.5
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I like chicago white sox to win there division, I think it will be a dog fight between thee rangers and angles in that division, don’t bet on it that thee new york yankees will go back to thee world series. Thank You Jack Jones .
U have the rays,bosox then the yankees in 3rd.place with d #2 seed wildcard. R u kidding why r u ppl.predicting Tampa bay to clinch first place just cause of what they did last year. The angels or texas r going to b one of d w.c. Seed then there will one w.c. left either yanks or maybe bosox Tampa at 3rd place yanks will clinch div. The case senario will for yanks is what i wrote above!