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Pitching Profile – Final Edition

Just like we did at the end of May, at the end of June , and at the end of August - Here is the Final edition of our look at the Rangers starting rotation. The point of this exercise is to dig a bit deeper than the basic stats for each starting pitcher to see what they are good at – or what they are not good at.

In the final analysis, 10 pitchers started games for the Rangers this season. Kevin Millwood (31), Scott Feldman (31), Derek Holland (21), Tommy Hunter (19), Vicente Padilla (18), Brandon McCarthy (17), Matt Harrison (11), Dustin Nippert (10), Kris Benson (2), and Doug Mathis (2). This study will focus on the eight pitchers who have made at least 10 starts.

There is plenty of good news to report as they worked a significantly higher amount of innings while doing a great job at dropping the rotation’s ERA.

Both Kevin Millwood and Scott Feldman made over 30 starts with 18 Quality Starts each. That number may not blow your socks off, but those two seasons can rival pretty much any season we have seen around here by a starting pitcher in an awfully long time.

There were other signs of optimism as well, as the first year of the Nolan Ryan/Mike Maddux program seems like a perfect diving board to 2010.

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Sitting Kevin Millwood Down Would Help Rangers Balance Sheet; Might it Help Playoff Chances, too?

It’s no longer just about the money with Kevin Millwood.

Allowing Millwood to make another start would almost certainly insure the financially-strapped Rangers would be on the hook for $12 million for his seemingly declining services  2010. The only way it wouldn’t is if Millwood makes another start like the one he did Saturday. And if he makes another start like Saturday, it just might sabotage any remaining chance the Rangers have of reaching the playoffs.

So, yeah, the money is a big deal, but the bigger issue right now is whether keeping Millwood in the rotation is the best option for the team on the field, not the one in the front office.

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Pitching Plans in Place for Postponement

ARLINGTON – Alliteration is fun. But in this case, it’s also practical.

With the chances of playing tonight at less than 50 percent – that’s just a guess from this end, but the forecast hasn’t gotten any better in the last two hours – Rangers manager Ron Washington unveiled his pitching plans in case tonight’s game is rained out. That would give the Rangers three consecutive days off and change around some pitching plans.

Washington said RHPs Kevin Millwood and Tommy Hunter would start the doubleheader on Sunday. Regardless of what happens Sunday, RHP Scott Feldman will pitch Monday because the Rangers want to keep him pitching on regular rest. On Tuesday, the Rangers would go with LHP Derek Holland and RHP Brandon McCarthy would pitch Wednesday, though those two pitchers could be flip-flopped. If the teams do play tonight, the Rangers would need another starter for Wednesday’s series finale against Oakland. Washington indicated RHP Dustin Nippert could step into that spot.

Also another potential scenario emerges to keep all the games in Arlington if tonight’s game is rained out. It’s possible – though it would require the approval of MLB – that Seattle could be held over a day and the Rangers couyld paly a day-night doubleheader against two different teams. The Rangers could play Seattle in the early afternoon and play their regularly-scheduled game against Oakland at 7:05. There is precedent. Cleveland hosted the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins in such an arrangement in September, 2000.

As We Were Saying (Back in Early June), Texas Rangers’ Brandon McCarthy Looking Good

ARLINGTON - When Brandon McCarthy last took a big-league mound, the Rangers held a 4.5-game lead in the A.L. West. Almost 13 weeks and yet another D.L. stint later, he didn’t appear to miss a beat and helped the Rangers pull within 4.5 games of the Angels (and within 3.5 in the wild-card race).

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Pitching Profile – August Edition

Just like we did at the end of May, and at the end of June (sorry about the end of July) – Here is the latest extensive look at the Rangers starting rotation. The point of this exercise is to dig a bit deeper than the basic stats for each starting pitcher to see what they are good at – or what they are not good at.

In the 129 games that were played before the calendar turned to September, 9 pitchers have started games for the Rangers. Kevin Millwood (26), Scott Feldman (24), Derek Holland (16), Tommy Hunter (12), Matt Harrison (11), Brandon McCarthy (11), Dustin Nippert (7), Kris Benson (2), and Doug Mathis (2). This study will focus on the six pitchers who have made at least 10 starts. The other 3 run into sample size issues that might render verdicts a bit meaningless.

Proceed at your own risk – for stat nerds only:

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Rangers Scott Feldman Throws Rays a Curve … and a Fastball, Slider and Change, as well, in 4-0 win

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – You could have walked around the Rangers clubhouse Sunday and asked a handful of different people why RHP Scott Feldman is suddenly not only a successful pitcher but a strikeout guy, as well, and received a handful of different answers.

And that’s about the best compliment a pitcher can be paid.

Strikeouts on curveballs? Check. Strikeouts on sliders? Check. Fastballs, too? You betcha? And before you even ask, yeah, he got one of his career-high 11 strikeouts on a changeup, too. All in a day’s work of 4-0 win over Tampa Bay that ran his record to 13-4 and moved the Rangers back within a game of the wild card lead. The 11 strikeouts were the most by a Rangers starter in a decade.

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About Last Night: This and That from Texas Rangers 5-4 Loss to Minnesota Twins

The poster boy for the Rangers laissez-faire approach to pitch counts is RHP Kevin Millwood, who is third in the AL in pitches thrown per game. Now the question becomes:  Do the Rangers need to reel him back in a little?

On Wednesday, when the game-time temperature was a steamy 98 degrees, Millwood threw 113 pitches in 5.2 innings, eventually losing a 4-1 lead in the sixth after laboring through a 34-pitch fifth inning. He appeared to be worn down early in the sixth, but it wasn’t until the game was tied that he was pulled.

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Rangers to Release Vicente Padilla

Unable to get another team to pony up for any of RHP Vicente Padilla’s remaining salary, the Rangers placed the pitcher on waivers for the purpose of giving him his unconditional release on Monday. Padilla, who was designated for assignment on August 7, should clear waivers on Tuesday afternoon and then would be eligible to sign with any club. If he does, the Rangers will be responsible for all but about $100,000 of the nearly $2.5 million remaining on his contract. The Rangers are also responsible for a $1.l75 million option in his contract for 2010.

Flying Dutchman: Derek Holland Clips Angels As Rangers Move Into Tie For Wild Card Lead

• Post-Game Show (with new format)

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The live fastball made LHP Derek Holland a great prospect. The secondary stuff is what can make him a great major leauger.

On Sunday, 12 starts into his major league career, Holland demonstrated his understanding of that. He plowed fastballs right by the AL West-leading Los Angeles Angels for as long as they were willing to sit there and watch them. And when they started gearing up to swing early, Holland trusted his slider and changeup to help him take advantage of the Angels’ eagerness.

The result was a masterpiece. On the way to a 7-0 complete game win that moved the Rangers within 3.5 games of the Angels and into a tie for the wild card lead, Holland took a no-hitter to the sixth inning. When Maicer Izturis broke it up with a solid single up the middle, the 22-year-0ld Holland stayed calm and struck out Erick Aybar to end the inning. Holland needed just 96 pitches to become the youngest lefty in Rangers history to throw a shutout. His pitch total was the third-lowest in a shutout by a Rangers pitcher since pitch-count stats were first officially recorded in 1988.

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Rangers Push Kevin Millwood Back Again, Scott Feldman To Start Against Seattle Sunday

Kevin Millwood’s sore gluteus maximus problem has been, well, a real pain in the butt.

It forced him out of last Sunday’s start after just two innings and pushed his next scheduled start to tomorrow. Millwood, however, was still feeling the soreness late in the week and hasn’t thrown a bullpen session. Because of it, he’s being pushed back even further. Millwood is now tentatively scheduled to start Monday in Oakland. RHP Scott Feldman will take his place Sunday, pitching on three days of rest as a starter for the first time in his career.

Dutch Treat: Derek Holland Plans On Long-Term Relationship With Texas Rangers Fans

Derek Holland had reason to stick his chest out after taking a 10-strikeout, one-hit shutout to the ninth Thursday. (Photo: R.P. Washburne)

ARLINGTON - Back on that mid-April Saturday morning when Jon Daniels summoned LHP Derek Holland to the majors via cell call, Holland didn’t pick up because he didn’t recognize the number. Holland left Rangers Ballpark on Thursday night following his signature outing in a 7-1 victory over Seattle not anticipating seeing the GM’s number pop up before Friday afternoon’s non-waiver trading deadline.

“He’s not calling me … unless it’s to tell me good job,” the 22-year-old said. “The way I see it, my home is in Texas.”

Holland made his big-league debut in Toronto a few days after the call-up from Triple-A Oklahoma, not there long enough to do his laundry. (How much have things changed since then? Holland was brought on in the sixth inning back then against the Blue Jays after middle reliever Scott Feldman threw 1.2 innings.)

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Holland Ace Sauce

That’s it, I suppose.

The Rangers never would have traded Derek Holland (and if they had, I would have unleashed a criminal flurry of expletives directed at people I actually like).

The only chance Texas had to land Roy Halladay was to convince the Blue Jays that Neftali Feliz was as good, or better. The Rangers know better, but maybe, just maybe, they could convince J.P. Riccardi and his scouting team that Feliz was the bigger talent with the brighter future as many outside of the organization — including both Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus– believe (but not me).

Now, there’s no way.

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Vicente Padilla Scratched Again

RHP Vicente Padilla is healthy but “still somewhat weak” from battling the flu, according to Rangers PR department. RHP Doug Mathis has been summoned to replace him for tonight’s start.

Derek Holland Back In Rangers Rotation

ARLINGTON – Rangers manager Ron Washington said LHP Derek Holland would rejoin the starting rotation, at least for now.

Holland will start Sunday, the third game after the All-Star break, against heavily left-handed hitting Minnesota. Holland has made seven starts this season for the Rangers, but finished up the first half pitching out of the bullpen. He will replace RHP Dustin Nipper who lasted 3.2 innings in each of his two starts.

The Rangers will open the second half of the season with RHP Vicente Padilla, RHP Scott Feldman and Holland facing Minnesota. RHP Kevin Millwood will open a series against Boston on Monday followed by RHP Tommy Hunter.

Rangers To Give Kevin Millwood Extra Rest Coming Out Of All-Star Break

SEATTLE – Rangers workhorse RHP Kevin Millwood, who begins Sunday tied for the major league lead in innings pitched, will get a longer-than-expected rest coming out of the All-Star break.

Rangers manager Ron Washington set his second half rotation and it has Millwood pitching in the fourth spot behind RHP Vicente Padilla, RHP Scott Feldman and RHP Tommy Hunter. Millwood will pitch a week from Monday against Boston. The fifth starter has not yet been determined.

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