The surprising success of the Texas Rangers raises an intriguing question: Is their 18-10 start merely good luck or could it really be the start of something big?
There has to be a good answer because what's happening just doesn't seem to make sense.
This is a team coming off four straight last-place finishes that spent the offseason replacing potential Hall of Famers Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro and Juan Gonzalez with self-described "grinders" Brian Jordan, Brad Fullmer and David Dellucci.
Their pitching rotation is headed by a 39-year-old lefty and a right-hander missing a ligament in his throwing arm. They have a reliever who's been out of the majors since 2000.
Yet, so far, it's working. The Rangers went into an off-day on Thursday tied with Anaheim for the best record in major league baseball.
"They've got a nice club," said Tampa Bay manager Lou Piniella, whose team lost two of three to Texas this week. "They play with a lot of energy. It's fun watching them."
Having meaningful games in May sounds silly, but it's progress for a franchise that's been stuck at the bottom of the AL West for good by this point in each of the last four seasons.
As bad as those teams were, all had stretches in which they won at least 18 of 28 games, as this year's club has done. The difference is the timing.
Those clubs did so after they were out of contention, so all their spurts did were avoid 100 losses. By opening this season on a roll, Texas is building confidence and winning back many of the fans alienated by the offseason A-Rod saga.
"We'll see where it takes us," manager Buck Showalter said.
The most encouraging sign is how the Rangers are winning: With quality pitching, sound defense and timely hitting.
They have a 4.08 ERA, second-best in the AL, quite a feat after having a majors-worst 5.67 ERA last season. Only Oakland's vaunted rotation has thrown more innings than Texas' starters, which has made the bullpen more effective. The Rangers are tied for the most saves in the AL and they've lost only one game when leading after the sixth inning.
Texas also has turned the most double plays in the majors and is near the bottom in errors. That's tremendous considering shortstop Michael Young is moving from second base and second baseman Alfonso Soriano has long been considered a defensive liability.
At the plate, the Rangers no longer wait for A-Rod, Juando or Raffy to put a ball into the bleachers. They've returned to NL-style fundamentals like quality at-bats and aggressive baserunning.
The result: A .308 average that's 21 points higher than any other team in the majors with the most hits and total bases. And they're still fifth in homers.
"We knew we had to find a way to score runs better," said Young, who leads the majors in hits (46) and multihit games (17).
If there's a secret to the team's success, it's their chemistry.
Showalter said teams can win without it, but he's never seen a losing team that enjoys being around each other as much as these guys do.
"We've got a good mix of young guys and veterans," Jordan said. "We're just having fun."
The new atmosphere has been noted by everyone from team executives to dugout security guards. Holdover players have told the newcomers they can't believe the change, although they preface public comments with phrases like, "Nothing against the guys we had last year, but ..."
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