Hey Look! The Rangers Can Pitch!

I was wrong. Dead wrong, actually. Thirty seven games into the season, the Texas Rangers pitching staff has been, dare I say it, quite good. The pitching staff has a collective 4.54 ERA, which is good enough for sixth in the American League and a vast improvement from 2008, when the pitching staff finished with a 5.38 ERA.So what changed from 2008 to 2009?For starters, the quick answer is Mike Maddux. For years Maddux has been one of the top pitching coaches in baseball, routinely resurrecting the careers of struggling pitchers in the Brewers organization. But few, including myself, actually thought that Maddux could work his magic with the Rangers pitchers, who have been notoriously bad over the years. But so far, the results have been very good for Maddux.Just take a look at some of Maddux's success so far:-Kevin Millwood is actually pitching like a top of the rotation stud that the Rangers paid him to be instead of an overpaid and underachieving scrub.-Former chair thrower Fr...