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The Texas Rangers are getting massive contributions from their pitching staff, and they have been much needed. The Rangers currently sit at 9-7, and they previously held a record of 9-4 before getting swept at the hands of the Seattle Mariners . That's despite a floundering offense that has been brought down by several concurrent slumps from key hitters; Texas ranks 24th in MLB in team OPS.
The pitching has been able to compensate for those deficiencies, as the staff boasts an ERA of 3.85. The bullpen was a point of emphasis for general manager Chris Young and the rest of the front office over the off-season, as every current member of the group was acquired this winter with the exception of Marc Church.
Some acquisitions have worked out better than others, but none have proven quite as successful as left-hander Hoby Milner. Milner, who struggled to the tune of a 4.73 ERA with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2024, was an under-the-radar pickup signed to a one-year, $2.
5 million contract . All he's done so far is take the ball six times and hold the opposition scoreless on each of those occasions. He's striking out more than a batter per inning for the first time since 2021, a season in which he surrendered a 5.
40 ERA. The six-foot-three native of Dallas is putting together his best campaign so far in his first season with his hometown team, and in hindsight, these results could have been foreseen. According to Baseball Savant data , Milner was wildly unlucky in 2024.
His ERA was quite high, but he was in the 99th percentile of suppressing barreled balls, and his xERA of 3.24 placed him in the 82nd percentile among all MLB pitchers. Milner has always excelled at limiting hard contact, but the results haven't always followed.
This year, he's performed even better in these key metrics, and he's reaping the benefits. He's currently in the 96th percentile in xERA, meaning that his dominance so far is no mirage. He induces ground balls far better than most (98th percentile), and in addition to his usual excellence in limiting hard contact, he's strikeout rate has skyrocketed (85th percentile).
Texas was in desperate need of a bullpen reboot after a 2024 season in which they placed 26th in reliever ERA. Milner's success, combined with that of Robert Garcia (2.45 ERA) and Chris Martin (2.
25 ERA) have Young's overhaul of the group looking like a rousing success, and it's allowed the team to survive a brutal offensive start. Recommended Articles.
