Grant Anderson gives the Texas Rangers their missing ingredient

The Texas Rangers have been humming. With a 35-19 record, they lead the AL West and hold the second best record in MLB. It turns out, a roster comprised of star players, savvy veterans, high impact rookies, and an ascending core make for a mighty good baseball team.

It’s almost like spending money on good players positively impacts the win/loss column, huh (said in a sarcastic tone)?

With all the positives from this season, one ingredient was missing. One part of the game threatened to undo all the good work that was being done. The ability to close out games.

The Texas Rangers desperately need Grant Anderson to take on a top role in relief and stabilize their bullpen.

For all the time and attention the Texas Rangers gave the rest of their roster this offseason, they barely even looked in the direction of their bullpen. It’s a move (or lack thereof) that I endorsed in the winter since the starting ranks were so loaded and extra arms were sure to spill over into the bullpen (Yes, I was mostly wrong).

What actually happened is the starting rotation successfully handled business while the bullpen repeatedly wizzed away great opportunities. Roster adjustments to fill in for Jacob deGrom’s injury hiatus only exaggerated those issues.

For all the options the Texas Rangers had for closer in 2023, just about every one was falling flat on his face. Until Grant Anderson showed.

With a delivery that looks like a mix between Carlton’s dance from the Fresh Prince of Belair and an epileptic seizure,  Anderson was a beast in his debut. The 25-year-old entered in the fifth inning, striking out six enroute to another Rangers victory.

Anderson, a 2-inning specialist, isn’t suddenly the answer to the Texas Rangers closer question, but he offers hope. While he could slot into the final spot before all is said and done, at the very least he provides a trickledown effect that should pay dividends throughout the bullpen.

Doubters will point to his microscopic sample size with the Rangers but his numbers are a continuation of what he showed in the lower ranks. Per Evan Grant, Anderson was striking out over 40 percent of the batters he faced in the minors. Tuesday wasn’t an outlier performance.

There’s reason to believe Anderson is the real deal and he may be the stabilizing force the Rangers need in their bullpen.

Texas Rangers: How Adolis Garcia started putting up MVP numbers

This handcuffed Adolis Garcia and gave skeptics, like myself, a reason to believe he would regress in 2023. Instead, Garcia responded...

Only time will tell but Rangers fans have been losing sleep over their bullpen this season so a little good news is welcomed. As many answers that can be found before the trade deadline the better because this is a contending team that can’t let their foot off the gas pedal.