Kumar

Rocker

Just when it seemed like Rocker had found some consistency, he could manage only six outs against Detroit’s lineup. His ERA jumped from 3.38 to 4.71. Rangers relievers went on to throw six scoreless innings the rest of the way, but it didn’t count for much in a 5-1 loss. Rocker should stay in the rotation and face the Cubs next week. If he’s ineffective again then, perhaps the Rangers could consider a switch to Cal Quantrill.

Rocker gave up a two-run triple to Carlos Cortes in the first inning, but he didn’t allow another run for the rest of the contest. The 26-year-old only struck out three while generating an uninspiring eight swings-and-misses over 84 pitches. Still, it’s another outing where he gives up no more than two runs, and that makes three straight. He’ll get the Tigers next weekend, and he’ll take a solid 3.38 ERA into that start.

The Pirates scratched across a run after an Oneil Cruz single, stolen base, and run-scoring single from Ryan O’Hearn. After that, Rocker retired 13 consecutive hitters and cruised to both a quality start and win. As he’s done all season so far, it was a heavy dose of sinkers and sliders all night. Those two pitches accounted for 77 of the 88 he threw in total. He now has a 3.46 ERA and 20:8 strikeout to walk ratio over 20 2/3 innings so far this season. His next start is scheduled to come against the Athletics at home this Sunday.

Rocker struck out six, but he also walked four and his velocity was down across the board. None of it bodes well, and though his next scheduled start at home against the Pirates is very tempting, he seems like weak play at the moment,

Rocker, who gave up two homers to Max Muncy, induced just eight misses on 41 swings and had a 19-percent CSW tonight. He seems like a weak play next week against the A’s in Sacramento.

In spite of the lengthy layoff, Rocker was pretty sharp tonight in striking out three and walking one. The 26-year-old started ramping up his slider usage this spring and kept at it tonight, throwing the pitch one-third of the time. Interestingly, itaveraged 85.8 mph, up from 84.5 mph this spring and 84.2 mph last year. Rocker wasn’t enough of a strikeout pitcher to succeed last year, when he finished with a 5.74 ERA in 14 starts, but a harder slider could help there. Now isn’t the time to go picking him up, though, as he’s due to face the Dodgers next weekend.

Rocker had his first start pushed back earlier this week after a minor neck issue with ace Jacob deGrom forced Texas the reshuffle their rotation. The 26-year-old former first-rounder won the final spot in the club’s season-opening rotation out of spring training and will get the ball opposite Reds pitching prospect Rhett Lowder on Saturday afternoon at Globe Life Field. He’s been extremely unpredictable from a results standpoint, so a wait-and-see approach is advisable for fantasy managers in shallow formats.

Rocker gets the nod to open the season in Texas’ rotation with Jacob Latz heading to the bullpen. It qualifies as a bit of a surprise considering how inconsistent the former top prospect was in his opportunities with the Rangers last year. The 26-year-old has turned in an impressive spring with a 4.26 ERA and 14/3 K/BB ratio across 12 2/3 innings of work. He’s talented enough to make a fantasy impact, especially in deeper mixed leagues, but there’s enough evidence to suggest a wait-and-see approach in shallower formats.

We were rather hoping Rocker might emerge as the Rangers’ closer at some point, but he’s making a strong case for a rotation spot right now. He topped out at 98.5 mph tonight, and his average fastball was up a bit more than one mph from last year. His slider generated nine whiffs on 12 swings, and both times it was put into play, it resulted in soft contact. He still doesn’t project as a mixed-league option at this point, but his stock is climbing.

Rocker is one of the more challenging pitchers to evaluate for fantasy purposes since he seems likely to open the year back at Triple-A Round Rock and has been all over the place from a performance standpoint in the big leagues over the past two years. The 26-year-old former top prospect looked outstanding in this relief outing, piling up 11 swinging strikes and averaging 96.4 mph on his sinker. It’s possible he’ll break camp in the big leagues as a swingman capable of gobbling up multiple innings but that would certainly limit his fantasy appeal.