1. Neftali Feliz Many people are not fond of the idea that Feliz is being used as the closer. They seem to deem Feliz as a natural starter. I have no problem with that perspective but I doubt Neftali has been ready for the big leagues as a starter. After close examination of his performance as a reliever this year, we can see that the velocity of his fastball wasn't stable. It hit 100mph occassionally but dropped to 93 or 94 at times. Velocity of course shouldn't be the big deal as long as it works, but the reality is Neftali's fastball has not been exactly untouchable, especially when the velocity failed to reach high 90s. Nonetheless, it suffices thus far to serve as a reliable out pitch. However, he has barely shown a decent secondary pitch to back fastball. His control over his breaking balls wasn't good enough to a point he is afraid to use them when there is only a one-run lead. This sounds awefully like a typical closer, rather than someone who has starter stuff. he couldn't control the breaking balls very well, much less command them. As a starter, he will have to use secondary pitches and if he made mistakes with them often, big league hitters will crush him. If Feliz were to be transformed into a starter, he would need some work to improve his breaking balls so as to survive the big leagues as a starter. Unfortunately, Rangers don't have the luxury to send him down at this point. 2. CJ Wilson In contrast to Feliz, CJ has made a fine transition from bullpen to the rotation. The reason why CJ was believed to have what it takes to be a starter was because he showed he had starter stuff while pitching as a reliever. He used to serve as the closer at times, but you rarely see a closer who owns quality sinker, cutter, curveball, and slider at the same time. Now as a starter, CJ has worked on changeup quite a bit. The success of CJ's pitching relies on a good mix of pitches and good command. The problem, though, is that CJ does not really have an out pitch. Nothing in his repertoire is really good enough to suppress the bat in its own right. That's why he is actually better off being a starter rather than a closer. As a starter you have time to establish your pitches one by one and experiment on mix and match. As a closer, you kind of need to overpower or outwit your batter right away, and you usually don't get a second chance to make amends in the following inning. CJ can overpower batters sometimes but he has got some good stuff to mix, too. As long as he maintains good command and stays healthy, he will be a formidable starter. 3. Colby Lewis Many folks were midguided by the stats Colby brought with him from Japan. The truth is Colby Lewis does not have excellent command. This is not to say his command is poor. We all have seen what he can do. Even so, he throws too many pitches out of the strike zone unnecessarily. Like CJ and perhaps most major league pitchers, Colby needs to mix his pitches but he does have a nice curveball looking slider. When this breaking ball manages to be in agreement with the umpire, Colby can sail through innings. Otherwise, he will find himself in trouble. Colby's success hinges on the batter's confusion with timing. In order to achieve that, strikes need to be called. My concern is this trick is a bit simplistic. After a while, big league hitters should be able to pick up the antidote. This follows Colby needs something like changeup to protect his fastball, and good protection calls for strikes. 4. Rich Harden I was never excited about signing Rich Harden. Maybe I simply didn't know him well enough to believe he could be the ace in the rotation. Sadly, Harden has not done anything to prove me wrong. Will he come around? I doubt it. The disappearance of his electric fastball does not bode well. The horrible control issue certainly does not make him look promising, either. Moreover, if Rangers' bullpen explodes before August, Rich Harden is surely to be held accountable. Rumor has it. Harden might be headed to DL, and if he continues to fail his duty as a starter, he will find himself on DL even sooner. 5. Scott Feldman I once thought Feldman is capable of duplicating his numbers from last year. I don't anymore. It's just painful to watch him pitch. His constant struggle on the mount has become irritating. The opponents are batting over 300 against him. That said, compared to Harden, Feldman actually has a better chance to pitch better, should he be able to locate his cutter more precisely. 6. Derek Holland Is Holland pitching better than he did last year? It's too soon to tell. How long can he keep his era under 3? That depends on how many HRs he plans on giving up to right-handed batters. --

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