Texas Rangers: This is the perfect starting rotation for 2021

Texas Rangers’ 2021 third starter: LHP Joe Palumbo

It hasn’t been the smoothest of sailing for this Texas Rangers’ top prospect since making his MLB debut in 2019.

Ranked as the team’s 10th-best prospect according to MLB Pipeline, lefty Joe Palumbo has yet to put everything together at the highest level, posting a 9.18 ERA in 2019 and an 11.57 ERA in 2020.

Of course, Rangers fans should take those stats with a grain of salt, as those were across miniscule sample sizes (just 19 combined innings pitched for Palumbo between 2019 and 2020).

If there’s one aspect of Palumbo’s game that should have the team excited, though, it’s the young southpaw’s devastating curveball.

The inflated pitching numbers from the last two years won’t tell you that Palumbo’s hook has tremendous movement and can become a highly effective weapon if developed properly.

If you don’t believe me, believe the MLB scouts who graded his curveball a 60 on the 20-80 scouting scale, indicating an above average pitch.

With a weapon like that at Palumbo’s disposal, it’s evident that he has the tools requisite to become a solid middle of the rotation starter for the Texas Rangers.

It’s hopefully just a matter of time before the lanky lefty becomes a fixture for manager Chris Woodward.