Rangers starter Matt Moore walks off the field after another less than stellar start.

At least the Rangers made it interesting.

After spotting Toronto eight runs, Texas chipped away at the lead. They got within three. Even getting a runner on in the ninth to offer a sliver of hope.

But in the end, it’s difficult to undo Matt Moore. In two starts he has shown why he was the worst pitcher in baseball last year. Why Jon Daniels traded for him is a mystery.

In Moore’s first outing, he went four innings and gave up four runs.

Last night, he went 3.1 innings and gave up five runs. And, frankly, it could have been worse. He was bad from the start and never got better. He walked four, and gave up five hits. Blue Jays hitters were fighting one another in the dugout for the chance to take their hacks at him.

It’s not the damage Moore does to the bullpen when he pitches that’s the problem. Starting pitchers go five innings. In reality, he has just been a little bit shy of that in his two starts. So he is not making the bullpen pitch much more than if he was actually good.

What he is doing is burying the Rangers early. And with this offense, it’s hard to overcome.=

It’s hard to say how much more Moore we will see. But the less Moore we see, the better.

*****
TODAY’S GAME:

Marcus Stroman (0-0, 7.20) vs. Mike Minor (0-1, 3,86)
Game time: 7:05

How the Blue Jays hit against Minor.
How the Rangers hit against Stroman.