Texas Rangers probables for Mariners series: Bibens-Dirkx Tuesday, Moore Wednesday

Texas Rangers probable pitchers: The Seattle Mariners host a four game series against the Texas Rangers beginning Monday, and per Jared Sandler on Twitter, the Rangers are going to have Austin Bibens-Dirkx start on Tuesday before activating Matt Moore (and presumably sending Bibens-Dirkx down) on Wednesday. Doug Fister will go Monday, with Mike Minor pitching the series finale.

The decision to go with Bibens-Dirkx Tuesday instead of Moore accomplishes a couple of things. First, it slides everyone back one day to give everyone an extra day of rest through Sunday. Secondly, an off day on Monday, June 4, the Rangers could potentially skip Moore’s spot in the rotation, which would normally come up on June 5. The Rangers could have everyone go on normal rest with the off day, and then use Moore — or at least, use someone in what would be Moore’s spot in the rotation — on June 9. Off days on June 11 and June 14 would then allow the Rangers to avoid using anyone other than Fister, Minor, Bartolo Colon and Cole Hamels until June 19, if they wished.

Hopefully, Moore will pitch well on Wednesday, and this will end up being a non-issue. But if the d.l. stint for the sore knee doesn’t end with Moore being effective, Wednesday could, however, be Moore’s last start for the Rangers if we see more of what we’ve seen most of 2018 from him. With this shuffling of the rotation and the upcoming off days, the Rangers could potentially send Moore to the pen, or cut bait with him altogether, and give themselves until June 19 to decide on who they want as a permanent replacement for him in the rotation.