Winning the world series takes a lot out of a team. Very few teams even come close to repeating, but very few teams have had as poor of a championship defense as the 2024 Texas Rangers.
The 2024 Texas Rangers, as of September 14, have a record of 71-77. If they stay below .500, they would be the first team since the 2014 Red Sox to finish below .500 in a full season after winning the world series. Although the 2024 Texas Rangers haven’t been a complete disaster like the 2014 Red Sox, there has still been plenty that went wrong with the defending champs.
2024 Texas Rangers offense
Last year, the star of the show was shortstop Corey Seager. Seager did not have a strong first half. In April, he had a .631 OPS. After a strong May he took a step back and had a .709 OPS. Although he has had a strong second half it is coming far too little far too late for the 2023 MVP runner-up.
Although Seager has failed to live up to expectations, the hitting of second baseman Marcus Semien, and Adolis Garcia has been even more shockingly disappointing. Both hitters have seen their offensive stats in every category drop from 2023 to 2024. Although Semien still provides huge value on the defensive end it’s not nearly enough to make up for his drop-off to becoming an average hitter.
Photo via Forbes
2024 Texas Rangers starting pitching
In a way, the 2024 Texas Rangers starting pitching was doomed from the start. Their ace in 2023 was star Jordan Montgomery. who the eventual champions acquired at the trade deadline from the “retooling” Saint Louis Cardinals.
In Montgomery’s 11 starts with Texas he had a 2.79 ERA. and a solid playoff run, particularly in the ALCS, when he amassed a 1.29 ERA in three games. He left the team in the offseason to sign with the D-Backs. Unfortunately for him, the World Series run took a lot out of him as he has a 6.25 ERA with the D-Backs as of September 15.
Although the rotation has gotten some quality starts out of Nathan Eovaldi and Andrew Heaney, the rotation no longer has the dominant arm they had last year in Montgomery. Former Cy Young winner Jacob DeGrom has effectively been out of the picture for both seasons. He made just six starts in 2023 and didn’t make his 2024 season debut until September. If (big if) DeGrom can pitch a full season in 2025 that could give the Rangers a good chance to bounce back from this disappointing 2024.
Photo via Fox 4 News Dallas
2024 Texas Rangers relief pitching
Admittedly, the bullpen wasn’t a strength even during the Rangers world series season. In 2023 they finished with a 4.77 bullpen ERA. They are actually doing a little better this season. As of September 15 the 2024 Texas Rangers have a bullpen ERA of 4.53. Although the improvement was nice it ultimately means very little as both of these numbers are below average.
The main reason their bullpen ERA is better this season is because their two top guys are better. In the offseason they made moves to get Kirby Yates and David Robertson. These two guys have helped shore up the end of games.
However, their depth guys have done worse. Jose Leclerc saw his ERA shoot up from being in the twos in 2023 to the fours in 2024. Brock Burke was a solid arm for them in 2023. However, after 13 outings with an era in the nines he was sent to The Los Angeles Angels.
Last season, The Rangers traded for Aroldis Chapman to fix their bullpen woes. Despite constantly making games entertaining he held a 2.25 ERA in the 2023 postseason. Chapman, now a two time champion, left to pitch for The Pittsburgh Pirates. However, it’s important to note the trade for Chapman included 2024 all star Cole Ragans. The decision to make a big move at the trade deadline comes with a risk of giving up a piece that can help you in the future.
The Rangers would not trade their first World Series ring away for anything. However, The Rangers are now faced with a challenge of having to replace the value of the young Ragans.
As of September 19, they have just a 0.1 percent chance of making the playoffs. It’s clear the 2024 Texas Rangers need to move onto the next year and try and get themselves back into contender status this offseason.
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