O Baseball Jesus, why hast thou forsaken us?
Just since yesterday, we have learned that Jurickson Profar will be out 10-12 weeks, Geovany Soto will be out 10-12 weeks and Yu Darvish, the projected Opening Day starter ... might not be available Opening Day.
What does all this mean? Per Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Jon Daniels himself said "it wouldn't be the end of the world if Darvish gets pushed back."
Well, Mr. Daniels, I'm afraid you're wrong. The world will literally end if Yu Darvish is not pitching for the Rangers on Opening Day. DO YOU WANT THAT BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS, MR. DANIELS? DO YOU?
OK, deep breaths. Sorry about that.
All these injury announcements in such a short time are indeed overwhelming. We've lost our starting catcher and second baseman for at least two and a half months, and our best pitcher may not be available out of the gate.
Combine that with Derek Holland being out for half the season due to apparently tripping over his dog and panic is certainly understandable. No team ever makes it through a season unscathed, but so many injuries to start the season sets a less-than-stellar tone.
On the bright side, the timing of future injuries is not determined by the timing of previous injuries. For all we know, all the guys previously mentioned could be healed up pretty soon and we won't have any more injuries to worry about. That's unlikely, of course. However, this is no time to throw away your season tickets* or declare the Rangers' playoff hopes dead.
The team should still have enough firepower to stay competitive in the AL West, especially with two of Oakland's top starters (Jarrod Parker and AJ Griffin) losing time to their own injuries. Plus, we get to be in the same division as the Astros, and play them 16 times, so we're already looking at a 16-0 record.
This team still has Shin-Soo Choo, Elvis Andrus, Adrian Beltre and Prince Fielder anchoring the top of the lineup, a (hopefully) healthy Matt Harrison in the rotation and solid bullpen even with the "loss" of Tanner Scheppers to a starting role. The Rangers may stumble a bit out of the gate, but there is still enough firepower to hold down the fort until the cavalry gallops back into Globe Life Ballpark. Don't fail us now, Baseball Jesus.
*Should you now wish to throw away those season tickets, I'll gladly take them off your hands in exchange for an autographed Chili's menu.