The five pitchers who helped lead the Texas Rangers to the 2011 World Series were injured or gone in a flash at a time when the team was on the cusp of multiple championships.
The sting of the 2011 World Series still lingered ahead of the 2012 season, but the Texas Rangers knew they were good. The position player group returned intact, and so did four of the five members of the best starting rotation in club history.
The lone exception was C.J. Wilson, who for two seasons was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year. He exited for the Angels, and the Rangers countered his departure with the headline-grabbing signing of Japanese star Yu Darvish.
Darvish, plus right-hander Colby Lewis left-handers Matt Harrison and Derek Holland, left the Rangers strong in the rotation for 2012 and beyond. Lewis was a veteran, , and Harrison and Holland up-and-coming stars.
Alexi Ogando, who was part of the 2011 rotation, was moved back to the bullpen as the Rangers moved All-Star closer Neftail Feliz into the rotation.
All five starters in 2011 avoided the injured list, which is rarer than a complete game is these days. Harrison missed one start because of a kidney stone, with Dave Bush filling in for him.
With the way the roster was constructed entering 2012, the Rangers were built to reach more World Series than the first two in club history in 2010 and 2011. But the rotation fell apart physical, resulting in one of the biggest “what ifs” in club history.
The 2012 team was charging to a third straight World Series until …
Lewis tore his flexor tendon in his first start after the All-Star break. The Rangers tried a variety of pitchers to fill his void and attempted to upgrade the rotation by trading for right-hander Ryan Dempster with Feliz also hurt and lost for the season to Tommy John surgery.
But the Lewis spot was a black hole the rest of the season. No matter who the Rangers tried, they couldn’t get a win from that spot the rest of the season, one that ended in disappointment with a late-season collapse that cost them a third straight American League West title.
Ogando returned to the rotation in 2013 out of necessity. Lewis missed the season because of the flexor tendon and a balky hip, and Dempster did not return as a free agent. The Rangers tried rookie left-hander Martin Perez and rookie right-handers Nick Tepesch and Justin Grimm. They traded for Matt Garza at the trade deadline.
Ogando made only 18 starts, in and out of the rotation with a variety of injuries. The Rangers managed to piece things together well enough to finish tied for the wild-card spot with Tampa Bay, but lost the tiebreaker in Game 163.
The 2014 season was an injury-laden disaster, and the trouble started in the offseason with Holland. He tore up his knee during the offseason, officially tripping over his dog on his staircase and needing microfracture surgery. He made only five starts in 2014 and only 10 in 2015 following a shoulder injury in the Rangers’ home opener.
Harrison, meanwhile, was sent to the Phillies in 2015 in the Cole Hamels deal, but it was only a procedural move to help offset Hamels’ contract. Harrison’s back started to squaw after his All-Star 2012 campaign, and he was unable to continue his career despite a valiant comeback effort.
The troubles started early in the 2013 season, after he signed a five-year, $55 million extension. He underwent surgery for a herniated disk and then had a spinal fusion in 2014 after another issue with the disk.
Ogando was also gone in 2015, and Lewis and Holland were finished with the Rangers after the 2016 campaign. The Rangers won the West in 2015 and 2016, and both made significant contributions.
But both were on the other side of their best seasons. The Rangers’ playoff appearances in 2012, 2015 and 2016 might have played out differently, and they might have made it into the tournament in 2013, had the 2011 rotation stayed healthy.
Jeff Wilson, jwilson@alldlls.com
