2009 Season: We talked about Kevin Millwood next week as the club's No. 1 starter because that's where he was slotted and that's what he is being paid to do.
But the reality is the Scott Feldman, officially the No. 2 starter for purposes of this discussion, was the club's top pitcher in 2009. Who saw that coming? Feldman didn't even start the season in the rotation, pitching out of the bullpen for much of April. His first few outings in relief weren't particularly impressive -- he allowed nine runs on 11 hits in 6 2/3 innings.
However, as soon as Feldman stepped into the rotation, he pitched so well there was no way to remove him. He gave up one run in five innings in a win against Baltimore on April 25 and was off to his best career year, ending any questions about whether he was better suited to be a starter or a reliever. Feldman switched arm angles to three-quarters (from closer to sidearm) in 2008, hoping to make his sinker more effective. That worked in spurts, but it took time to get used to it. He then added a cutter, something he wanted in his arsenal for lefties.
The pitch made Feldman very difficult to hit in 2009. He gained confidence with it and was throwing his full complement of pitches. One thing Feldman said really helped him this season was understanding sequence of pitches better. Pitching coach Mike Maddux helped with that.
Fans got to see a more confident pitcher every time on the mound. He went deep into games and left most of the time with his team either in the lead or in a position to win. Feldman had 18 quality starts in 2009. He had 113 strikeouts and 65 walks and a ridiculous 12-4 road record. Feldman, who had 17 wins in 2009, also had a 3.56 ERA away from Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
2010 Outlook: Feldman will turn 27 just before spring training and was one of the biggest bargains in the majors at $434,680 last year. He will get a raise and a permanent spot in the rotation. Manager Ron Washington said only two spots were definite in 2010: Millwood and Feldman.
The goal for Feldman has to be to keep refining his pitches and to prove that 2009 wasn't just one special year. I think it's probably a lot to ask for Feldman to win 17 games consistently. Few pitchers do that. But I do think it's fair to expect 15 wins. He has a delivery that fools hitters and pitches that he commands well. He seems to get better with each start. He may have run out of gas a little late in the season, but he was healthy and handled the workload just fine.
Where should Feldman fit in the rotation? I think he's a good, solid No. 2-type, and I don't see him as a true No. 1. But Feldman pitched like this team's No. 1 in 2009.
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Richard Durrett
Richard Durrett joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. He writes about colleges, the Dallas Stars and the Texas Rangers. Richard spent nine years at The Dallas Morning News covering the Rangers, Stars, colleges, motorsports and high schools.
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Ben Rogers joined ESPNDallas.com in November 2009. He is one half of the "GameNight with Ben & Skin" show, heard weekdays from 6p-9p on 103.3 FM ESPN.
