Derek Holland: Texas Rangers' Number one pitcher?
There might be intense debate over who the Number one starter for the Texas Rangers is. Much as the issue draws a mixed response with varying opinions, almost polls apart, the first name that pops up is that of Derek Holland.
This 25-year-old left-handed starter has been a supremely talented and effective player, an unplayable rival for any hitter on the batting plate. Nicknamed ‘Dutch Oven’, Holland almost invariably influences the result of any game with his pitching prowess.
He made his debut as part of the Texas Rangers in 2009. The same year he unleashed his lethal weapon against the Los Angeles Angels in August, disallowing even a single hit to achieve his first ever shut-out game in Major League Baseball.
Although his performance remained up to the mark in the debuting year, he was unable to make it in the 2012 regular season as frequently as he would have liked to. The player was called on when there were injuries.
However, the American League Division Series saw the young and multi-talented player had his magical spell in Game 4, bringing an emphatic victory for the Texas Rangers as the club beat the New York Yankees.
His wonderful performance paved the way for the Texas Rangers to qualify for the World Series final. Much as it was the biggest occasion of his life, whereby he could register the moments of glory for himself and the team, he unfortunately was unable to
achieve that goal.
In the best-of-seven World Series, Holland was unable to do the needed as the team lost the much-awaited Championship 4-1.
Nonetheless, with the commencement of the 2011 regular season, Derek Holland had already become an inseparable part of the team; seemingly a permanent fixture as far as the appearances in the games was concerned.
As he played 32 games in the regular season, Derek Holland maintained an ERA average of 3.95. What distinguished him in the American League was the number of wins that he had. Of the 32 games that he started, he won 16 of them.
Derek Holland only lost five of those games. What was unusually different was the player’s ability to go four complete games; all of which were shut-outs. He had a 1.35 WHIP with 162 strike-outs to his credit, allowing only 201 hits in 198 innings.
When it came to the postseason games, the Texas Rangers’ starter had four game starts in the six that he played, maintaining an ERA of 3.38 he won two of them and lost none.
Holland remained fourth in the American League in wins, which was 16 and fourth in having complete games; establishing the evidence of his superiority in the game. However, unfortunate as it was, the Rangers were unable to win the World Series once again.
"We appreciate what we've done and we're happy and blessed with things that happened, but at the same time, it's a letdown to us. This just ended, we're not going to go too far (ahead) yet. We didn't get what we wanted, just got to use that for next year
again, push ourselves again."
The Number one pitcher will have his pair in the likes of Colby Lewis and Yu Darvish this time round. While they all remain an indispensible part of the Rangers, it is indeed Derek Holland that for now precedes all.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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