The Rangers head into the World Series with an offense that is clicking on all cylinders, a two-man bullpen, and a deep rotation that is rested and ready to go.
Texas has possibly the best rotation it’s ever had. The rotation is so deep, in fact, that the Rangers starter with the lowest ERA among pitcher with enough innings to qualify, had the twelfth-best ERA in the American League. The Rangers rotation is so deep that the Rangers have played twelve post-season games in 2023, pitched 108 innings, and that starter with the twelfth best ERA, has pitched 4.2 of those innings.
For some reason, all the talking heads and talking voice on TV and radio are talking about how the Ranger have two reliable starters in Eovaldi and Montgomery, and one that is iffy in Scherzer. Which leads to one question. What happened to Dane Dunning, the Rangers starter with the twelfth-lowest ERA in the American League? Has his face been put on milk cartons? Do we have Dane Dunning alerts on our phones? Is he in the Witness Protection Program?
They guy who pitched the most innings for the Rangers this season, and tied with Nathan Eovaldi for most wins, at twelve, has pulled the best Houdini act ever. He disappeared. In the postseason, Dunning is the Rangers Claude Raines. The Invisible Man.
It seems petty, for sure, to bring up something like that when the Rangers have made the World Series for the first time in twelve years. But it is curious.
Maybe when you have a team that’s this good, finding threads to pull are harder. You just feel bad for a guy who is one of the main reasons the Rangers made it this far, but who has been overlooked.
Baseball can be a cruel business at times.
*****
Game 1: Friday, October 27, at Texas, 7:03 p.m.
Game 2: Saturday, October 28, at Texas, 7:03 p.m.
Game 3: Monday, October 30, at Arizona Shed, 7:03 p.m.
Game 4: Tuesday, October 31, at Arizona, 7:03 p.m.
Game 5*: Wednesday, November 1, at Arizona, 7:03 p.m.
Game 6*: Friday, November 2, at Texas, 7:03 p.m.
Game 7*:Saturday, November 3, at Texas, 7:03 p.m.