What to know about the Texas Rangers ahead of World Series against the Diamondbacks

The Arizona Diamondbacks are going to the World Series. What they have accomplished for the past three weeks already feels impossible. After beating the Phillies in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series on Tuesday, they have the opportunity to take this journey one step further, claiming their first title since 2001 and just the second title in the history of Arizona's major men's pro sports.

To get there, they’ll have to overcome a Texas Rangers team that, like the Phillies, won 90 games and is filled with far more star power. The Rangers won the American League pennant in 2010 and 2011 but are one of six teams to never win a World Series.

Here’s what to know about the Rangers:

The Rangers have an explosive offense

Ever since their wild-card round matchup with the Brewers, the Diamondbacks haven’t been able to avoid elite offenses. But against the Dodgers, they were able to flummox Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman. Against the Phillies, they improved against Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, stymying them in Games 6 and 7.

Now, there’s another tall task. The Rangers led the American League with 5.4 runs per game. Their 233 home runs were also tops in the AL. No American League lineup had a higher on-base percentage or slugging percentage.

Every member of their starting lineup had a regular-season OPS over .730. And in Corey Seager, they have a middle-of-the-lineup presence who hit .327 with a 1.013 OPS. Were it not for Shohei Ohtani, Seager would be the likely AL MVP. In the playoffs, he’s been joined by Adolis García, who is hitting .327 with seven homers and 20 RBI.

The Rangers’ rotation is strong

In early June, the Rangers lost Jacob deGrom to Tommy John surgery. The injury was, of course, a massive blow — deGrom was their marquee off-season signing and the best pitcher in baseball when healthy. But they recovered well, managing the seventh-best rotation ERA (3.96) in the sport.

Jordan Montgomery is the headliner. He came over from the Cardinals at the trade deadline and had a 2.79 ERA in 11 starts. Nathan Eovaldi, another off-season addition, had a 3.63 regular-season ERA. Both Montgomery and Eovaldi have had sub-3.00 ERAs in the postseason.

At age 39, Max Scherzer had his worst season in over a decade, although he improved after coming over from the Mets at the trade deadline. He returned from a six-week absence with a teres major strain in the ALCS, but allowed seven runs in 6 2/3 innings over two starts. Still, Scherzer had a 3.77 ERA in the regular season and is capable of returning to that form.

The rotation is rounded out by Dane Dunning. Like Brandon Pfaadt and whomever the Diamondbacks start in Game 4, Dunning is unlikely to go deep into his start but he did have a 3.70 ERA in 172 2/3 innings this year.

Despite Aroldis Chapman, Rangers’ bullpen is exploitable

Whereas the Rangers rank seventh in rotation ERA, their bullpen ERA of 4.77 is 24th. No other playoff team was worse than Miami at 4.37.

The bullpen reared its head in Game 5 of the ALCS, when closer José Leclerc served up a three-run home run to Jose Altuve in the ninth inning to cost Texas the game.

Manager Bruce Bochy has had a set order when his team is ahead late in the playoffs. Leclerc pitches the ninth with Chapman (another mid-season trade addition) in the eighth. Josh Sborz works the seventh.

Leclerc had a 2.68 ERA, Chapman was at 3.09 and Sborz’s was an unsightly 5.50.

How to watch: Diamondbacks vs. Rangers World Series schedule

Run game offers a clash of styles

The Diamondbacks unlocked their run game in the final two games of the NLCS, stealing four bases in each game. Don’t expect that from the Rangers. They only stole four bases in a game twice all season.

On the season, the Rangers had 79 steals, good for 27th. The Diamondbacks ranked second with 166.

The Rangers, though, are strong at holding runners on. Their 91 steals allowed were the fifth least in the league, thanks to catcher Jonah Heim, who rates as one of the best throwing catchers — though still behind Gabriel Moreno, the top catcher at that aspect of the game.

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Like the Diamondbacks, the Rangers started strong and faded

Early in the season, the Rangers were one of the biggest surprises in baseball. On June 6, they were 40-20.

They then went on a 12-19 run through the All-Star break. They steadied the ship after the break but then lost eight in a row at one point in August, blowing their lead atop the AL West. They ultimately fell short of taking the division on a tiebreaker and had to play a wild-card series against the Orioles. Like the Diamondbacks, that hasn’t stopped them.

That’s not the only aspect of their season that mirrors Arizona. As part of their own mid-season collapse, the Diamondbacks lost nine in a row. Prior to this season, only nine teams had ever made the World Series after a losing streak of eight or more. This is the first time two such teams have faced off in the Fall Classic.

The Diamondbacks played the Rangers well this year

An unusual scheduling quirk meant that the Diamondbacks went to Arlington for two games in May and the Rangers went to Phoenix for two games in August.

The series in Texas was a 1-1 split, while the Diamondbacks won both in August as they pulled off their climb back into playoff contention. Across the four games, the Diamondbacks outscored the Rangers, 26-19.

The season series included two notable games. In May, Brandon Pfaadt made his debut, allowing seven runs in 4 2/3 innings before the Diamondbacks stormed back to win late. In August, Bochy controversially walked Ketel Marte with two outs in the bottom of the 11th, putting the winning run on base when his team held a one-run lead. Two batters later, Tommy Pham hit a two-run walk-off double.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What to know about the Texas Rangers before 2023 World Series