Oswalt Pitches into the Seventh in Rangers Debut

Veteran Roy Oswalt was effective in his Rangers' debut. (Rick Yeatts)

Roy Oswalt was one of this past offseason's most intriguing free agents. His injury history and inconsistency scared away some teams. But there were still plenty teams looking for a potential Oswalt rental for the latter part of this season. Due to injuries, the Texas Rangers had an opening in their rotation. They expressed their interest to Oswalt and his agent. The interest turned out to be mutual as Oswalt signed a deal to join the Rangers on May 29.

Following four rehab starts, Oswalt made his Rangers debut last night against the Colorado Rockies. The start was his first major league start in more than eight months. The Rangers offense helped support him from the onset. A home run by Adrian Beltre, a double by Nelson Cruz, and a homer by Mike Napoli, helped build a 4-0 lead. Oswalt did the rest from there. He pitched effectively into the seventh. While Oswalt did allow nine hits, he limited the damage well enough with just one walk and six strikeouts. Oswalt did run into some trouble in the seventh inning. He served up a double to Marco Scutaro, which drove home Dexter Fowler. That was the end of Oswalt's debut as a Ranger.

The Rangers did go on to win the game 4-1. Despite the long stretch of time off, Oswalt pitched quite well. Granted, the start was against the Rockies. A Rockies team that has lost thirteen of their last fifteen games. Additionally, the Rockies offensive struggles away from Coors Field have been well documented. Still, the start had to be encouraging for Oswalt and the Rangers. It will be interesting to see whether or not he will be able to regain his top form and stay healthy throughout the remainder of this season.