When the Rangers decided to use 22-year old righty Neftali Feliz in the bullpen in 2011, it answered a lot of question marks for the Rangers. Feliz won the Rookie of the Year Award in the A.L. last year as he worked in 70 games (0 starts) in which he was 4-3 with 40 saves, a 2.73 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. Feliz has now pitched in 90 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Rangers and he is 5-3 with 42 saves, a 2.42 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP. He has some of the best stuff on the planet and he will dominate once again for the Rangers in 2011.
27-year old righty Alexi Ogando will likely be the Rangers’ top set-up man in 2011 if he’s not needed in the starting rotation. Ogando pitched in 44 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 4-1 with a 1.30 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. He only gave up 31 hits in 41 2/3 innings for the Rangers last year and he also had 39 whiffs, which shows just how nasty he can be. He has a big-time right arm and he could close if something were to happen to Feliz this year.
40-year old lefty Darren Oliver will likely be the top lefty in the pen for the Rangers this year. He pitched in 64 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 1-2 with 1 save, a 2.48 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. Oliver only gave up 53 hits and he only walked 15 batters in 61 2/3 innings for the Rangers last year while whiffing 65 batters. Oliver has now pitched in 256 games (137 starts) in his first 9 years with the Rangers and he is 55-49 with 3 saves, a 5.09 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. He has turned himself into one of the better lefty relievers in the majors which has been kind of surprising as he wasn’t much of a starting pitcher earlier in his career.
28-year old sidearming righty Darren O’Day doesn’t throw very hard but he gets results. O’Day pitched in 72 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 6-2 with a 2.03 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. He has now pitched in 136 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Rangers and he is 8-3 with 2 saves, a 1.99 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP. O’Day has only allowed 79 hits and he has only walked 29 batters in his first 117 2/3 innings as he is very aggressive on the mound while throwing strikes.
41-year old lefty Arthur Rhodes is going to give the Rangers outstanding balance in the pen this year. Rhodes pitched in 69 games (0 starts) for the Reds last year and he was 4-4 with a 2.29 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. He only gave up 38 hits in 55 innings last year as he still appears to have a lot of gas in the tank. Rhodes has now pitched in 849 games (61 starts) in his first 19 years in the majors and he is 84-66 with 32 saves, a 4.06 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP.
27-year old righty Mark Lowe came over from the Mariners last year in the Cliff Lee deal. Lowe pitched in 3 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 0-0 with a 12.00 ERA and a 2.67 WHIP. He pitched in 14 games (0 starts) overall last year with the Mariners & Rangers last year and he was 1-3 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.80 WHIP. Lowe has now pitched in 165 games (0 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 5-15 with 4 saves, a 4.09 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. Lowe should fit right in with the rest of the relievers in the Rangers’ bullpen as he has a big time arm.
24-year old lefty Michael Kirkman is competing for a job in both the starting rotation and bullpen this spring. He comes into this season as the Rangers’ #6 prospect according to Baseball America. Kirkman pitched in 14 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 0-0 with a 1.65 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. He also pitched in 24 games (22 starts) in the minors last year and he was 13-3 with a 3.09 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP.
25-year old righty Pedro Strop has a good arm but he hasn’t pitched too well in the majors so far in his career. Strop pitched in 15 games (0 starts) for the Rangers last year and he was 0-0 with a 10.13 ERA and a 2.63 WHIP. He has now pitched in 22 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Rangers and he is 0-0 with a 9.17 ERA and a 2.15 WHIP.
PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RANGERS BULLPEN IN 2011: A
