Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes isn’t the only one making bold proclamations on the eve of the beginning of the regular season. Rangers outfielder Shin-Soo Choo said of his Rangers team, per a report from Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, “We’re making the postseason. No question.”
Last year, the Rangers missed the postseason, finishing in third place in the AL West with a 78-84 record. They were just two games behind the second-place Angels but 23 games back of the eventual world champion Astros. With the Astros entering 2018 arguably stronger than they did last year, the Rangers may be looking at the Wild Card as their way to get into the postseason.
For what it’s worth, FanGraphs is projecting the Rangers to finish 79-83 while Baseball Prospectus has them at 75-87. The Rangers didn’t make too many additions during the offseason, but were able to add Doug Fister, Matt Moore, and Mike Minor into the starting rotation.
Choo, 35, is entering the fifth year of his seven-year, $130 million contract signed with the Rangers in December 2013. Last season, he hit .261/.357/.423 with 22 home runs, 78 RBI, and 96 runs scored in 636 plate appearances.
