Wednesday Newsletter time: Rangers will have openings in 2022 rotation. They're nursing Dane Dunning to one of them.
The right-hander was lifted after only 4 2/3 innings Tuesday night as the big picture again comes into view.
Dane Dunning had secured his spot in the Texas Rangers’ 2022 rotation well before he issued three runs Tuesday in 4 2/3 innings innings against the Detroit Tigers.
The rookie right-hander pitched well, though the homer he allowed to start the fifth was a gut punch. The Rangers had just scored their first run since Friday to tie the game, and just like that the Tigers were back in front.
Dunning ended up taking the loss as the Rangers dropped their seventh straight game, 4-1.
The Rangers are trying to limit Dunning’s pitch count the rest of the season, as they have all season, in the first full season of his MLB career and his first full season since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2019.
He also hadn’t pitched since before the All-Star break, and manager Chris Woodward thought he saw some fatigue as Dunning navigated the fifth.
The Rangers, though, do want him healthy for next season and beyond. He and left-hander Kolby Allard are strong candidates for two rotation spots in 2022, and they might be the only candidates at the end of this season.
Righties Mike Foltynewicz and Kohei Arihara are also under contractual control. So is Kyle Gibson, who could/should be traded before the July 30 trade deadline.
It seems safe to assume there will be some rotation spots available come next spring.
Dunning knows how to pitch. He doesn’t have overwhelming velocity, but his sinker, slider and changeup have been enough to help him survive this season.
Maybe his ceiling is only a No. 3 starter. The Rangers will take that.
And they believe nursing him home this season will help him accomplish that.
Improvement? Well, technically.
One run still stinks, but considering where the Rangers had been offensively, well, it’s progress.
The at-bat quality was better, Woodward said. Hitters seemed to have more of plan. Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal and three Tigers relievers were just very good.
It sounds like the Rangers had a pretty interesting pregame hitters meeting. Woodward said he let his feelings be known, in case anyone missed the stories following Monday’s 14-0 loss, and it appears players responded to what they heard.
“We had a pretty good discussion today. We had some more fight, some pretty good at-bats,” Woodward said. “I was pretty upset after yesterday’s game. Today, we just got beat. I thought the preparation was there. I thought the fight was there.”
The Rangers still missed an early opportunity, when Adolis Garcia was caught off first base with two outs in the first and Eli White was thrown out at home trying to score from third.
Joey Gallo popped up with runners at the corners just before the caught stealing.
Andy Ibanez snapped the Rangers’ scoreless streak at 27 innings with an RBI double that scored Nathaniel Lowe and forged a short-lived 1-1 tie. Ibanez and White, who have spent time at Triple A Round Rock this season, have driven in the three Rangers runs in five games on this road trip.
Las Vegas A’s?
Tuesday might mark the day when the Oakland A’s started moving toward joining the Raiders in Las Vegas, even though the Oakland city council approved an amended term sheet for the Howard Terminal ballpark just west of downtown.
The problem is that the A’s are opposed to the amended sheet, saying that a yes vote would in essence be a no vote. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred also wasn’t thrilled with the vote.
The city council put the onus on the A’s future on the A’s. The eight council members green-lighted a new ballpark and development, just more to their terms than the club’s.
A’s ownership has visited Las Vegas multiple times. Oakland’s Triple A team is in nearby Summerlin. Portland could also be a potential landing spot should the A’s decide to pack their bags.
Relocation stinks for a city, and Oakland has seen the Raiders leave for Las Vegas and Golden State bolt for the other side of the Bay Area. An A’s exodus would make Oakland a no-sports town.
Hopefully there is a middle ground and the A’s stay. The important thing to remember is that they won’t be playing in Oakland Coliseum any more. That should be a massive selling point for the team.
The onus is now on the A’s.
Doggy video!
Find what you want and dive in after it. Enjoy. See you Thursday.
Water tag champ!