Embarrassing.


Rangers starter Mike Foltynewicz walks off the field having given up ten runs in an efficient 42 pitches.

There’s a new F-word. It’s as distasteful and vulgar as the other F-word. And it pitches for the Texas Rangers.

When Mike Foltynewicz pitches, four-letter words follow. Many of them. Because home runs follow, too. Many of them.

After gifting the Blue Jays with four home runs yesterday, Foltynewicz has now given up 28 home runs. Most of anyone in baseball. Maybe Joey Gallo should have had Foltynewicz pitch to him at the Home Run Derby. 

After giving up ten earned runs yesterday in the second game of a lost double header against Toronto in Buffalo, Foltynewicz saw his ERA go from 5.11 to 5.91. 

For a team that cannot score runs on the road, giving up ten runs in fewer than two innings is insurmountable.

So, the Rangers come off the All-Star break and were promptly swept in embarrassing fashion by Toronto, scoring just two runs in three games, giving up a whopping 25. 

That’s five losses in a row. Four series they’ve lost in a row. And it drops their July record to 4-9. 

Usually, in a lost season, you’d like to see a team find measures of improvement. The Rangers are getting worse as the season progresses, every month they have a worse winning percentage than the month before.

The trade deadline is just twelve days away. If Kyle Gibson is dealt, it’s going to be really bleak the rest of the way with a rotation of Lyles, Dunning, Allard, probably Taylor Hearn, and the F-Word.

The problem is, as bad as Foltynewicz is, the Rangers don’t have anyone ready to come up and take his place.

So, as the dog days of summer continue, home runs and swear words will be flying.

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