Texas Rangers: Contenders or Pretenders?

Hamilton is having an MVP year

Manager Ron Washington and his Texas Rangers are currently 25-16 and are in first place in the AL West. This should be no surprise because the team was in the World Series last season and the season before that. Most people expected them to battle with the Angels for the division and the Angels have been struggling. The Rangers offense, as usual, is dominating. Josh Hamilton is having a monster year, and everyone else in the lineup is doing their job. The Rangers pitching has always been a weak spot, and after their ace C.J. Wilson left via free agency, many people thought the Angels would run away with the division and capitalize on the Rangers' pitching problems. Texas signed Japanese sensation Yu Darvish to a massive contract hoping that he would help the Rangers fans forget about C.J. Wilson's departure. Many questioned Darvish's ability to play in the MLB, considering the Japanese League, for the most part, is less competitive. Darvish has silenced his critics, getting off to a 6-1 start with a 2.60 ERA. The rest of the rotation has been good as well. Converted starter Neftali Feliz is pitching very well and late-bloomer Colby Lewis is having a nice season so far. Closer Joe Nathan looked like a questionable signing in the off-season because of his injury issues, but he is enjoying a nice bounce back season so far. The bullpen for the Rangers have been unbelievably dominant. Converted reliever Alexi Ogando has been pitching to an incredible 1.13 ERA. Left hander Robbie Ross is 5-0 with a 2.25 ERA. Koji Uehara, who was close to being traded to the Blue Jays in the off-season, is pitching excellent. Also, Mike Adams has been playing well, posting a 2.51 ERA in 17 games. If the Rangers bullpen continues to pitch like its been pitching, the Rangers will the obvious team that wins the AL West and it should be by a landslide. The division is very weak at the moment and the Angels are the only team who are capable of competing with the Rangers. So Contenders or Pretenders? -  They're obviously contenders.