Rangers vs Angels Pre-Game Notes: Is There a Change on the Horizon with Rougned Odor?
ARLINGTON, Texas — With their ace on the mound, the Texas Rangers head into Sunday afternoon seeking a sweep of their AL West rival Los Angeles Angels.
Los Angeles Angels (5-10) @ Texas Rangers (5-8)
Sunday, August 9, 2020
1:35 p.m. CT
Globe Life Field | Arlington, TX
Roof Closed
Probables
LAA: LHP Andrew Heaney (1-0, 2.35 ERA)
vs
TEX: RHP Lance Lynn (1-0, 0.49 ERA)
Broadcast
Los Angeles Angels
TV: FOX Sports West
Radio: KLAA
Texas Rangers
TV: FOX Sports Southwest
Radio: 105.3 The Fan, KFLC
Los Angeles Angels Starting Lineup
- SS David Fletcher
- 1B Tommy La Stella
- CF Mike Trout
- DH Shohei Ohtani
- 3B Anthony Rendon
- LF Brian Goodwin
- RF Jo Adell
- C Jason Castro
- 2B Luis Rengifo
Texas Rangers Starting Lineup
- LF Shin-Soo Choo
- 3B Isiah Kiner-Falefa
- 1B Todd Frazier
- RF Joey Gallo
- CF Nick Solak
- 2B Rougned Odor
- SS Elvis Andrus
- DH Rob Refsnyder
- C Jeff Mathis
Injury Report
Joey Gallo (sore left wrist)
Rangers manager Chris Woodward didn't make it sound like Gallo's sore wrist was a big deal. He's back in the lineup on Saturday night, so all looks good on that front.
Joe Palumbo (10-day IL: ulcerative colitis flare up)
Chris Woodward provided this update on Joe Palumbo on Saturday afternoon:
"He has some stomach issues I believe (ulcerative colitis), so it is a pretty major flareup going on right now. He is not in a good spot. He does not feel great. We are trying to figure out what it is, something he is eating. He’s just not in a good place. He doesn’t feel great. We are just trying to get it regulated and calmed down so we he comes off the IL, he’ll be ready to pitch for us. Because right now it would be really tough to go out there."
Greg Bird (10-day IL: right calf strain)
Woodward on Saturday:
“Birdie seems like he’s in a good spot. I saw him running around yesterday. I’m not sure if he feels anything. He said he felt pretty good. Like he would almost be able to play. That’s encouraging."
Danny Santana (10-day IL: forearm tightness)
Santana was placed on the 10-day IL retroactive to July 30, which means he could be activated on Sunday. However, the Rangers don't appear to be making that move for now. They are still not comfortable with him throwing in the field, not even at first base.
Corey Kluber (45-day IL: shoulder tear)
He is shut down for four weeks and went back to his home in Boston during this time.
José Leclerc (45-day IL: shoulder tear)
Leclerc has the same prognosis as Kluber. He is shut down for four weeks before any throwing.
Is a Change on the Horizon with Rougned Odor?
While the Rangers' offense tries to will itself to life, there are a few Rangers who are succeeding. Joey Gallo played savior on Saturday night, providing the only offense for either side. Todd Frazier is mashing the ball with a .311/.380/.556 slash line and an OPS+ of 164. Isiah Kiner-Falefa is also slashing very well with a clip of .342/.390/.447 coupled with some impressive defense at the hot corner.
Kiner-Falefa was arguably the Rangers' best hitter in Summer Camp. The man making a push for that same title was the perplexing Rougned Odor, who spent the offseason making some changes to his stance and swing. It resulted in a strong Spring Training and Summer Camp.
However, it has not translated to the regular season. We've seen this before. We've seen Odor have a strong spring and then fall flat at the outset of the season. It has many fans resorting to the "same old Rougie" narrative—and that's not unjustified. Believe it or not, the Rangers don't pretend to be tone deaf to Odor's struggles.
“I know the results aren’t there. There’s a few things, just looking at numbers, that are a little troubling," Rangers manager Chris Woodward said before Saturday's win over the Angels. "I want him to succeed. We need him to succeed. He’s in a good place.
"I don’t want to break his spirit, but at the same time, he needs to control the strike zone. There’s some things he needs to do better. ...I don’t want to lose his aggressiveness because he feels like he’s in a good spot. But we obviously need to see more. And he knows that. I think he understands. He puts a lot of pressure on himself. But right now, we need Rougie to hopefully take that next step and start having some really positive results for us. We need it as a team.”
If that sounds like an out to you, Woodward doubled down on needing production from Odor.
“If he really continues to struggle and doesn’t hit balls hard, I will have to make a change at some point,” Woodward followed.
Saturday's win did not produce any positive results. Odor went 0-for-3 with a strikeout, where that pressure he puts on himself came to a head with a toss of the bat and slamming his helmet to the ground in frustration. Odor followed his outburst with a walk over to his manager in the dugout, where Woodward offered some encouraging words.
"I said maybe it’s just gonna take one time where you put a ball forward hard and you feel like, ‘That’s gonna take a little load off’," Woodward said. "Maybe it’s a homer, maybe it’s a hit, maybe it’s an out, I don’t know.”
Woodward moved Odor down in the lineup in Saturday's game and did it again going into Sunday afternoon's finale at Globe Life Field. If things don't improve, we could see further relegation for Odor.
Woodward has preached "process over results" from the beginning of his tenure. The fact that Woodward has acknowledged issues with the process is troublesome for Odor. Woodward praises Odor's work ethic. But if it continues to fail in the process and results department, it could mean a change isn't too far away.
“He’s trying so hard," Woodward said. "He’s putting in the work. People don’t understand what he’s doing inside. But he still needs to be more productive."
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