Rangers Should Get More Credit For Stunning Revival Of Struggling Veteran

The Texas Rangers have been having a confusing season at 23-21 as they look climb themselves back into their 2023 World Series-winning shape.

Offense has been hard to come by, which has not usually been the case for this group. Corey Seager has spent time on the IL, and Marcus Semien is having his worst season as a Ranger. According to FanGraphs, the Rangers rank 24th in average, 27th in OBP, and 24th in OPS. Despite the injuries, it's hard to comprehend how a group that deep could struggle that hard to produce runs.

But the starting rotation has been a glimmer of hope for Bruce Bochy after having a complete shift from mediocre to one of the most dominant forces in the MLB. They're third in ERA, first in WHIP, and second in walks per nine innings.

But one member of the rotation has come as a particularly pleasant surprise for Texas.

A couple of years ago, Patrick Corbin was viewed as completely washed on the Washington Nationals. The now 35-year-old, very literally, had some of the worst pitching metrics in all of baseball. In 2022, according to Baseball Savant, Corbin's total Pitching Run Value was in the first percentile, the worst possible grade in the model. His Breaking Value was also in the first percentile, with his fastball in the second percentile. He had an xERA of 6.41 and an xBA of .304.

In 2023, things technically got better, but not noticably. All four of his pitches were several miles an hour slower than the league average of left handed pitchers. He looked completely broken.

In 2024, a slight tick in strikeout rate on his breaking pitches was visible, but nothing else.

Cut to 2025 - a completely reborn Corbin has arrived in GlodeLife Field.