Texas Rangers: Is it Time to Call Up Yohander Mendez?

Rangers fans have been eagerly waiting for left-hander Yohander Mendez to make an impact in Arlington. He’s currently working as a starter, but with the massive bullpen problems, the Rangers could call on him to work in the bullpen.

Everyone can agree it’s time for the Texas Rangers to shake up the bullpen. Currently the Rangers are 8 for 17 in save opportunities this season. Relief pitcher Matt Bush has solved the closer problem for now, but the rest of the bullpen has been hard to trust.

The starting pitching has been fantastic, but the late inning guys continue to let down the Rangers. It’s been a disaster as Sam Dyson is posting a 11.93 ERA with 19 earned runs and has five losses.

Both Jeremy Jeffress 6.75 ERA and Tony Barnette 5.60 ERA have not been much better than Dyson. It’s time for a change in Arlington, but the team might not have to lose players to find a solution.

The easiest answer would be just to trade for some quality arms, but that comes at a hefty price. It would likely cost the Rangers young prospects to acquire veteran arms, and that didn’t work so well with Jeffress last season.

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The better option would be to use the pitchers within the Rangers system. It could be time to call up lefty Yohander Mendez from Double-A, and use him as a late inning weapon. That seems a bit crazy, but could pay off big time.

Currently Mendez is 2-2 with a 3.58 ERA in nine starts with 47 strikeouts in Double-A. He’s allowed just 36 hits in 55.1 innings this season. He could be an interesting option out of the bullpen in Arlington.

Last season Mendez pitched in two games for the Rangers out of the bullpen, but wasn’t given enough opportunities. Similar to Matt Bush, Mendez has swing and miss stuff that could translate to the bullpen.

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At this point, what do the Rangers have to lose? The bullpen continues to lose them games, and possibly switching it up could bring some life to the pen. It’s a risky move, but Mendez could become an elite bullpen arm.