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Season record: 57-54
Week 19 record: 4-1
Series record: 15-11, 10 splits
It’s amazing what the flip of a calendar and playing the worst team in the league can do. The Texas Rangers left a terrible July behind and are now, so far in August, undefeated. After having not won a series in all of July, their last series win being a sweep in Detroit at the end of June, the Rangers redeemed themselves with a sweep of the Tigers at home over the weekend to extend their winning streak to four games.
The Rangers didn’t do anything significant at the trade deadline, only trading Chris Martin, but they haven’t lost a game since.
And while they made no trades, the team did get younger.
On Friday, they DFA’d Asdrubal Cabrera and Tim Federowicz and optioned Kyle Bird and Phillips Valdez to AAA Nashville. In response they brought up Scott Heineman and Jose Trevino from Nashville and Isiah Kiner-Falefa from Frisco. They also purchased the contract of right handed reliever Emmanuel Clase, who had split time this year between Down East and Frisco.
Kiner-Falefa will get most of his time at third base, Trevino will be catching, and it sounds like Heineman will get a good number of CF starts. Willie Calhoun has also been told he will be an everyday starter. The Rangers have decided to use the next two months playing the young guys, seeing what potential they have for the team next year and how they all play together. That means Shin-Soo Choo and Hunter Pence will get less play time.
Heineman made his Major League debut on Friday and got two hits. Clase made his Major league debut on Sunday and pitched 1.2 innings ans gave up just one walk and struck out one. He hit 101 mph, as well — he’s the first Ranger pitcher to hit at least 100 mph since Matt Bush in 2017.
It should also be mentioned, Rougned Odor now has seven homeruns in 15 games, Choo got on base in Sunday’s game five times (three hits, two walks), and Calhoun got his first career triple on Sunday as well, clearing the bases.
Just based on these last four games, especially the last three, there is hopefully a lot to look forward to not only this next week but the last two months of the season. It could be really fun watching the young talent the Rangers have the rest of the way.