By Alex Al-Kazzaz
The Texas Rangers stand 8-8 after losing back-to-back series. Losing at home against the Oakland Athletics opened a painful wound, and losing on the road to the Astros intensified the pain. Considering that both the Astros and A's have losing records, that throws salt into the wound.
In their last six games, the Rangers amassed a 2-4 record, including at least three embarrassing losses, two of which were against the A's. Pitcher Cody Bradford is now on the 15-day injured list, and that's a huge loss considering Bradford is 3-0. Bradford isn't the only pitcher on the injured list, as Brock Burke suffered a broken hand on Friday night. The team's injured list has increased since the start of the season. Nathaniel Lowe, Justin Foscue, and Josh Jung have also landed on the injured list in the last few days.
Since the season has just started, it's too early to say if the Rangers are in trouble. However, what was a 6-2 record is now 8-8, and that can't be ignored. With so much going wrong with the club from the results in the past two series, it's clear that the team is not winning. Whether the bats are struggling, the defense, pitching, etc., the team right now cannot win.
The Rangers will continue their road trip with a stop in Detroit for a four-game series against Detroit before heading to Atlanta. If the Rangers are unable to win this series, then the situation will only worsen, and it won't take long until the team falls so deep that they bury themselves early, which will lead to a disastrous title defense. Texas needs to turn it around, and it starts now.
(Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)