Thoughts on a 5-0 Rangers loss

M's 5, Rangers 0

• I don't really have anything in the way of firsthand thoughts to say about this game, since I didn't get to watch it, and since everything about it seemed to kind of suck anyway, so there's not much point in rehashing it.
• That said, I do think that its worth noting that the Rangers just finished their longest road trip of the season with a 5-5 record.  Going .500 on the road is nothing to be disappointed about.  The Rangers aren't in as good of shape as they were two days ago, when they had taken the first two games in Seattle, but they are probably in better shape than they were before the road trip started.
• Texas now plays 20 of their final 26 games at home, with the road games being three in Oakland and three in Houston.  Texas is 2.5 games back of Houston, and a game up on Minnesota in the Wild Card.
• I've talked about this before, but I think last season gave me a renewed appreciation of how much I should enjoy rooting for a good time.  2012 and 2013 felt like disappointments, despite the fact that the Rangers had two of their best seasons ever and played more than 162 games.  But 2014...2014 is what disappointment really feels like.
• Texas is in great shape heading down the stretch.  They have a shot of catching Houston.  They have a better shot of being in the Wild Card Game.  The last two games have been frustrating, bad losses where the starting pitching wasn't good and the bats were silent.  But that's something that happens to bad teams and good teams alike...and right now, this is a good team.
• Bottom line, given how this season started, given the expectations, given what's happened, this season feels like a success right now.  And I'm fired up about seeing how it plays out...and hopefully, for more than 162 games this year.