Predicting the 2022 Texas Rangers Opening Day Lineup

Bench depth and versatility:

With the lineup looking have a fantastic mix of lefties and righties, it will be very difficult to take advantage of this team. Especially with the position flexibility of Miller and the guys on the bench, the Texas Rangers should have many options to take the advantage no matter the handedness of the pitcher they face. Although, you’d much rather have Miller in the lineup facing righties, as he slashed .244/.354/.488 against righties, compared to only a .166/.200/.338 versus lefties. So, a platoon situation looks likely there, and perhaps we can see him split some time with Ibanez at 3B, as Ibanez annihilates lefties, but doesn’t fare as well versus righties.

Potential breakouts:

Other points of emphasis are on Adolis Garcia, Lowe, and Willie Calhoun. Can these guys take the next step? If they can this lineup has potential to be lethal.

For Adolis, after the nosedive he took in the second half, he looks to bounce back in a lineup that offers him substantial protection. Maybe the protection is all that the power hitting all 2021 all-star needs to stop chasing unnecessary pitches and trying to do too much.

As for Lowe, he is of the the utmost focus of manager Chris Woodward, and is a 2022 breakout candidate. Woodward has been on record touting his confidence and high expectations in the 26 year old. Lowe gets on base quite well, but he doesn’t hit for a ton of power, and he lacks a quality glove, two things you need out of a quality first baseman. As Lowe struggled with high velocity pitches and hit far too many balls on the ground. As he went through an offseason improving on these issues, he looks to become an impact on this team.

What about Willie? The forgotten piece that with a breakout season could be the potential glue that truly brings this lineup together. If we see a fully healthy season of Calhoun then great things could be in store, as he looks to have a big 2022.

Regardless of how this season turns out record wise, this will be one of the most exciting teams to watch in baseball, especially if it all comes together.

So sit back and enjoy Rangers fans, because baseball is soon to be back in Texas, and this lineup looks ready to hit.