In case you missed the news a couple days ago, former long-time Washington Nationals lefty Patrick Corbin officially landed his next opportunity, after earning a 1-year contract with the Texas Rangers. Hopefully for Rangers fans, Corbin is ready to turn over a new leaf, or else they are about to learn what the experience of having him in their rotation is truly all about, and why Nationals fans everywhere were so ready to say goodbye.
Before Rangers fans get their hopes up, Patrick Corbin is not the same guy he was back in 2019. Back then he was the third head of a true 3-headed monster behind Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg, and it looked like the Nationals had gotten some pretty great value for the lefty. Unfortunately, the remainder of his tenure would be absolutely brutal, with him posting a negative WAR value in 3 of his final 5 seasons in DC, leading the majors in losses, hits allowed, and earned runs 3 times as well.
Of course, the Nationals still got their World Series victory with Corbin making a crucial relief appearance in Game 7, so I will not criticize him for that. For that ring, you give him that contract 10 times out of 10, as banners fly forever. However, it simply can't be denied how brutal the 5 years were of watching Corbin go out and pitch every 5th day after that initial stellar 2019 season.
The one thing that he can do with the best of them is eat innings. Minus the covid-shortened 2020 season, he never pitched below 152.2 innings in his tenure with the Nationals, and occasionally he would go on stretches that made him seem like he was finally figuring things out. Unfortunately for Corbin, those stretches of solid play were too few and far-between to be memorable, but you can probably count on him for a quality start once a month. The most memorable part of the experience is when he's put together a solid string of starts over a 2 or 3-week period, and then has a a blow-up outing that balloons his ERA and puts the Nationals into a hole early for the game.
What I am most curious about with Corbin signing to the Rangers is how long they plan to keep him. He was chosen to be their stopgap option over a guy like Kyle Gibson, who, like Corbin, is not an inspiring signing by any means, but I would feel MUCH more confident about giving the ball to Gibson every 5th day than Corbin. You have to wonder if Corbin will even be ready to begin the season, as he has not really had any sort of spring training to prepare. Gibson likely would have needed some time to tune-up as well, but what did they see in Corbin over the last 5 seasons that would lead them to believe he is a better option than Gibson? Who knows.
Personally, I was shocked to find that the Corbin deal was actually a big league contract, as I assumed that a team like the White Sox would pick him up as a veteran guy who could eat innings, but on a minor league deal. Credit to Corbin's agent for landing him another big league chance, especially with a perceived contender like the Rangers. As I wrote the other day, the Rangers have been devastated by early pitching injuries, as Cody Bradford and Jon Gray will begin the season on the injured list. Additionally, Jacob deGrom is likely going to be on a sort of innings limit, as the Rangers are hoping to have him available later in the season and for the playoffs as well.
Without being an expert on the Rangers, I would assume that they plan to utilize him as a swing-man out of the bullpen whenever deGrom needs a start skipped or if younger arms like Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker fail to prove their readiness. Overall, I hope that Rangers fans are prepared for the Patrick Corbin experience, and that quality starts are likely going to be scarce. Luckily for them, they have a much more explosive lineup than the Nationals have had over the last few years, so perhaps they can live with him forcing his way through 5 or 6 innings while giving up 6 earned runs if they are able to score 7.
Do you think Patrick Corbin will succeed with the Rangers? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.