The Texas Rangers and the Los Angeles Dodgers put together a series that felt like a preview of the World Series on Sunday.
The Rangers (13-9) and the Dodgers (16-7) each won the final two World Series, with the Dodgers winning two of the three games in the only meeting of the season.
It wasn’t easy for either team. Los Angeles outscores Texas 7-4 in the series, shutting out the Rangers twice. The Rangers still had the winning home stand thanks to the Los Angeles Angels series sweep.
Three takeaways from the series.
Rangers manager Bruce Bocchy resisted questions about whether the series was a “measuring stick” for his team.
But this is a playoff caliber series and it’s about how both teams organize their rotations. Both the Rangers and Dodgers threw in the fray for the ace and the best starter. The starting pitching was excellent for both teams. It was hard to get hits. It wasn’t dramatic. We will witness Adris Garcia on Saturday afternoon.
All three games were sold out. Certainly there were a lot of Dodgers fans. But I’m hoping for that with some sort of Dodgers. Those fans travel a lot.
There was a certain amount of gravity in the series. The final two World Series champions were played against each other over the weekend.
Joc Pederson needed a break. During this weekend’s media scrum, Bochy talked about how he was chatting with Pederson and hoping he would take a break. It ended up working fine.
Josh Smith’s choked thumb settled down, reducing the need for a second infielder. Once Wyatt Langford was activated, the Rangers made Pederson his rest. On Monday off-day, there will be nearly three days off before the track and field series begins.
Bochy preaches patience with Pederson for his track record. He said he saw nothing change to Pederson’s work ethic or personality, which pauses. Bochy has always been a patient manager.
But yes, the .055/.148/.073 slash is not going to cut it. Nor is the second-longest drought in team history a grand 0-38 drought. Rangers hope that the breaks will help.
To be optimistic, there is a Pederson split between April and May last year.
April: .231/.391/.442, 2 home runs, 4 RBIs.
May: .324. /377/.592, five home runs, 15 RBI.
It may start within less than two weeks. Hopefully he will warm up faster.
The Ranger is still fighting in the attack, but Botchie admits. I’ll criticize everything you want, but he has good reason to support his guys, he said on Sunday.
“You have no choice,” he said.
Bochy has not publicly considered any major lineup changes, but one batter with no issues is Josh Smith. He hit three hits on Sunday, taking six games hits and hitting .426 in April.
He feels like a lead hitter on the prototype. He makes good contact, gets on base, has pop and gets scores without the help of anyone else.
Marcus Semien is struggling, but he continues to come into contact with him a lot. However, the veteran is still hitting under .200. With Corey Seager hitting behind him for over .300, the Ranger can’t afford to miss a chance to win a runner on base while the offense is still a hit or miss.
Smith might be good at short-term lead hitters. This allows the semien to move down in order and move the bat in the right direction. When he does, the ranger has some flexibility at the top of the order.
The Rangers will take a break in Sacramento before the athletics begins on Tuesday. It is something to be thoughtful.
