Should Harrison's struggles continue to the point where Wash can no longer stand it, will Robbie Ross get the first crack at that spot?

Stats to consider -

Ross has:
the highest GO/FO rate of any pitcher on staff at 2.08
the fourth lowest P/IP at 14.5
the third lowest OBP at .264
induced the most double plays with 6

Of course there's no guarantee any of the stats will carry over. However, these stats are a product of Ross locating his pitches extremely well. The most impressive part about Ross is his ability to enter high-pressure, high-risk situations and throw the right pitch and the right time. The 6 double plays in 20 innings is remarkable, and a telling sign that he can get the job done.

So what do you say? Give your best argument for or against Ross getting Harrison's job should the time come?

I think Feldman would get the opportunity to start before Ross if there is a change. It'll be interesting to see if his stats hold up once he's seen teams a second and third around. If they do hold up it may be pretty hard to not give him a shot at the rotation next year. He also may be the perfect candidate for long relief-spot starter next year.

that's a interesting point I love what Ross has done this year but I think Harrison will get it togather but if not maybe Jd could work some magic and package Harrison murphy borbon Neil ram and say leury Garcia for morneau and matt capps

Lewis will be gone and you'll have Darvish, Holland, Feliz, Harrison, Ogando, Feldman, Ross and whatever ML players develop this year competing for five spots next year.

That's more or less why Lewis won't be resigned unless he really comes at a discount. Too much inexpensive replacement talent.

It's nice to have options. Yes, Ross will compete for a spot next spring, but the competition will be tough. I wouldn't put it as "first crack", just "a crack at it".

I agree with Roy that Feldman probably is next in line if Harrison doesn't make improvements over the next few weeks. Switching between Harrison and Feldman creates the least amount of disruption to the bullpen and as such makes the most sense as far as inseason adjustments go.

I also tend to think that Ogando is ahead of Ross for a starting position as well and will get the first chance to fill Colby's spot next season. Ross would probably be the prime candidate to fill Feldman's long relief/spot start role next year with Perez possibly getting a shot at Ogando's current role.

[If 3 or 4 of our starters continue to suck], the way Ross is pitching, and the fact that he is, err, a starting pitcher and all, the answer is yes--without a doubt. Most logical move would be to send the lefty Harrison to the pen and Ross to the rotation, even if another starter like Colby or Feliz is struggling. Barring injury, Feldman and Ogando both stay where they are now--they've been close to perfect in their roles so far.

Ogando's versatility creates interesting options. Since Nathan is signed for another year he could move to set-up man if we don't re-sign Adams. If we do re-sign Adams it keeps our 7,8,9 combo in order for another year. Then there is the option of Ogando moving back to the rotation. Great options to have.

Why are we booting guys out of the rotation after over a year of solid pitching for a guy that has been great in less than 2 months of work out of the bullpen? Harrison settled down last game and got through 5 without giving up another run. He will be fine. He goes through his bad games just like ever other non-ace starter in the MLB. Ross will get a shot at a spot in the rotation next year, but if we see Ross in the rotation this year, it will be due to injury.

1. Because Ross is not a relief pitcher and eventually will be in the rotation anyway.
2. Along with Ogando and Darvish, he's one of the three most effective pitchers on the staff.
3. Beyond Darvish, the rotation has fallen off a cliff against some inferior competition. I say if our 2-5 continue to struggle or be mediocre through June, a move has to be made.

Colby Lewis or Feliz are the 2 guys I wouldn't expect to be in the playoff rotation. Harrison has been decent (3.92 xFIP, 4.14 SIERA). He's struggled over the last 30 days, but his xFIP over that period is still 4.12, which is only slightly below league average.

Harrison's bad ERA is misleading: (1) Current ERA isn't as good a predictor of future ERA as xFIP and SIERA. (2) Harrison has had bad luck on balls in play. His .321 BABIP is 21 points over his career BABIP, despite the fact that he isn't giving up many more line drives than usual. (3) His LOB % is below his career average. (4) His underlying #s are still decent. His K/BB rate is the best of his career. And there aren't any major problems with his swinging strike %, first strike %, contact rate, etc.

I just hope he doesn't let the bad luck affect his confidence. He's been a decent pitcher. What disappoints me is that I had hoped he could progress from a decent pitcher to a good one, and that hasn't happened yet.

I agree with Meat. You don't drop a guy who's been fairly good for a fairly long time to be replaced by a guy with 27 major league innings.

I hate seeing Harrison, Holland, Feliz and Colby make each start a mystery in what to expect....but all have more proven track records than Ross. Let's give them a few more opportunities before we start scrambling things up. A month ago every post on this board was about how the Ranger's had the best starting pitching in the league. Things can - and will - change.

looking forward to next year. the rangers will never waste ross's talents in a long relief spot start role. the rangers will become a better team once ogando, and or ross enter the rotation. first year or not ross has proven to be a more consistent strike thrower than harrison or holland ever have (especially at this stage of the respective careers).

Feldman and Ogando would start ahead of anyone else. With the shortage of effective LH RPs in the TEX system ... Ross is going to remain in his role for the season without much doubt.

papoose 13

Actually at this stage of their careers both Harrison (55.1%) and Holland (57.6%) had higher first strike % (F-Strike) than Ross (50.7) currently has. Additionally, Holland had a better overall strike rate at (63.3%) than Ross's (62.7%) while Harrison is pretty close at (60.9%). Not to mention that Harrison and Holland are both currently throwing strikes more consistently than Ross has this year.

There's nothing wrong with having faith in Robbie's ability, and I share your enthusiasm, but it's a bit disengenous to claim that Harrison and Holland have never proven to be as consist throwing strikes as Ross when statistics actually prove otherwise. And while I believe Ross will eventually find his way into the rotation I think it will be closer to 2014 than 2012. And really that's a good thing because it means this team has enough depth at SP that it doesn't need to waste resources on anything other than the Hamels and Kershaws of the baseball world.

good points arp! my point was not to discount the ability of both holland nor harrison. i see both as mainstays in the rotation. i just think that over the long haul ross will encumber less wild swings in command than either of the aforementioned. while i'm a firm believer of strike one. i am less concerned with strike percentages than working effectively. a good example of that would be comparisons of darvish vs lewis. while i am not privy to their numbers the naked eye suggest that colby has a higher strike percentage than that of darvish... and, we all know where colby's stuff tends to end up when he finds too much of said strike zone.