Always underappreciated, Hamels a big reason for the Rangers' success
All Cole Hamels does is turn in quality seasons
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3 min read
The Rangers entered Tuesday with the most wins in the American League -- always an impressive accomplishment, no matter the context. But the Rangers' standing becomes greater when their misfortunes are considered.
Remember that the Rangers were without Yu Darvish for most of the year; that they had to change closers; and that they've had to weather significant injuries to Prince Fielder, Shin-Soo Choo, and Josh Hamilton -- three players who accounted for nearly a third of their Opening Day payroll. Manager Jeff Banister has (and will continue) to receive credit for Texas' resilience -- in part because that's how these things go, and in part because the Rangers have a majors' best 27-8 record in one-run games -- however, there is someone else who deserves their just due: Cole Hamels.
Hamels has been the sun in an at-times dim Rangers rotation. Darvish, Colby Lewis, Derek Holland, and A.J. Griffin have all missed time, while Martin Perez, Cesar Ramos, Kyle Lohse, Chi Chi Gonzalez, and Lucas Harrell never impressed (though Perez does have a much better ERA than his component measures suggest he should). Hamels doesn't lead the Rangers in starts -- Perez has one more -- but he's thrown the most innings, and has the second-best ERA on the team, behind Darvish, who has less than half as many starts and innings.
This isn't a situation where Hamels' efforts only look good against a drab background, either. He entered Monday with the game's third-lowest second-half ERA, trailing Kyle Hendricks and Jake Odorizzi. On the season, he's recorded a quality start in nearly three-fourths of his tries, and has a would-be career-best ERA+. He's on pace to notch his seventh 200-plus inning effort in a row, and will earn Cy Young consideration for the fifth time -- perhaps finishing higher than his previous best, of fifth, depending on how voters answer the questions about Zach Britton and Aaron Sanchez's candidacies. The advanced metrics all squeal with glee at Hamels, too:
| Metric | Hamels' rank |
| Baseball-Reference WAR | 1 |
| Baseball Prospectus WARP | 9 |
| FanGraphs WAR | 37 |
So why does is nobody is talking about Hamels? Ostensibly because he presides in a weird room within the baseball mansion.
Though Hamels has been around for a decade, and has pitched well all the while, his efforts have always felt underappreciated. Blame it on sharing the Phillies rotation with more famous names; on toiling away the last few seasons on rudderless teams; on how folks spent way too much energy prior to last deadline's trade trying to prove he wasn't as good as advertised (whoops); or on some silly reasoning we aren't even aware -- maybe his jawline and hairline are too perfect ... or maybe his knees look like babyheads? But whatever reasoning you ascribe to the snubbing, Hamels deserves better -- and has for a while.
Consider this: entering Monday, Hamels had the fifth-best ERA+ among left-handed starters since the last round of expansion. The pitchers ahead of him? Clayton Kershaw, Randy Johnson, Chris Sale, and Johan Santana. No, ERA+ isn't the end-all be-all, but did you think Hamels was that high? Did you think he was closer to the likes of Kershaw and Johnson -- if only by the width of a lemur's tail -- than Madison Bumgarner and David Price? Probably not.
Hamels has been one of the best, most reliable left-handed starters for a decade. By some metrics, his 2016 is likely to go down as the best season in his career. Yet we either haven't noticed or cared. Make sure you amend that in the coming weeks, preferably sometime before the Rangers clinch the West as their own -- because without Hamels, that outcome wouldn't be possible.
