Opposite dugout: Struggling Rangers send Darvish to hill in series vs. O's

Manager: Ron Washington, eighth year
Record: 37-44
Last 10 games: 2-8
Who to watch: 3B Adrian Beltre (.332/.376/.508, 18 doubles, 9 HR, 42 RBIs); RF Alex Rios (.304/.336/.438, 27 XBH, 34 RBIs, 13 SB); RHP Yu Darvish (8-4, 2.42 ERA, 1.18 WHIP); RHP Nick Tepesch (3-3, 3.65 ERA)
Season series vs. O's: 1-2, 16 runs scored, 20 runs allowed

Pitching probables
June 30: Joe Saunders vs. Ubaldo Jimenez, 7 p.m., MASN HD
July 1: Nick Martinez vs. TBD, 7 p.m., MASN HD
July 2: Nick Tepesch vs. Chris Tillman, 7 p.m., MASN2 HD
July 3: Yu Darvish vs. Wei-Yin Chen, 7 p.m., MASN HD

Series breakdown
Despite all the injuries and misfortune, the Rangers somehow found a way to hang around .500 until the last month.

Having nine players on the 60-day disabled list and five more on the 15-day DL was sure to take its toll at some point, especially when that list includes three members of the rotation, star first baseman Prince Fielder and up-and-coming second baseman Jurickson Profar.

Since they were 28-26 on May 29, the Rangers have gone 9-18. Since last at .500 with a 35-35 mark on June 16, Texas has lost nine of 11, a spiral that began with an eight-game skid before the team won the first two games of last weekend's Twins series.

Pitching has been the greatest concern, which isn't much of a surprise considering the rotation is without left-handers Matt Harrison, Derek Holland and Martin Perez.

The Rangers showed signs of progress against Minnesota, allowing seven total runs in taking two of three games. But before that series, they allowed at least five runs 16 times in 24 games (124 total during that stretch or 6.1 runs allowed per game).

The eight-game losing streak was especially woeful, as Texas was outscored 51-23 from June 17-26.

Now you know how the Rangers arrived in Baltimore at 37-44 with their fewest wins at the midpoint since 2007, and fighting to stay out of last place in the American League West - just two games ahead of the Astros and 14 out of first.

Because of the injury-plagued tumble, what could have been an epic three-team division race between the A's, Angels and Rangers is currently just a two-team battle.

As a result of those struggles, the Rangers' 4.53 team ERA is the worst in the AL and second-worst in all of baseball. Their 4.57 starters' ERA is 13th in the AL and their 4.49 bullpen ERA is 12th.

That being said, Texas sends out its two best healthy starters in the series - right-handers Yu Darvish and Nick Tepesch.

The Orioles will get to see Darvish for the first time during the regular season, having only faced him in the 2012 AL wild card game. Darvish isn't just the Rangers ace, but is one of the best in the AL, ranking third with a 2.42 ERA and fourth with 128 strikeouts.

He'll pitch against Wei-Yin Chen on Thursday in the finale of the four-game series.

Tepesch, 25, will go against Chris Tillman on Wednesday, having allowed four runs in 18 2/3 innings for a 1.93 ERA over his last three starts. He's 3-3 with a 3.65 ERA in eight starts overall.

Former Orioles left-hander Joe Saunders, who pitched against Darvish in the 2012 wild card game, will start the series opener seeking his first win of the season after an 0-4 start.

Although powerless, the Rangers offense has been solid even without Fielder and Profar. Texas is tied for third in the AL with a .262 average and ranks eighth with 338 runs, but is 14th with 57 homers.

Third baseman Adrian Beltre is having another strong year, leading the Rangers with a .332 average, an .884 OPS, nine homers and 42 RBIs. He's tied for the team lead with 18 doubles.

Right fielder Alex Rios is also having a fine season, batting .304 with a .774 OPS and 34 RBIs. He has had difficulty of late, however, batting .164 over his last 15 games.

Left fielder Shin-Soo Choo hasn't lived up to expectations in the first year of his megadeal with Texas. A career .288 hitter with a lifetime .854 OPS entering the season, he's batting .255 with a .760 OPS so far in 2014.

While the Rangers have fallen off over the last month, their series win over the Twins showed some promise. Add in the fact that Darvish is on the mound during the series, and the Orioles won't be able to look past the shorthanded squad from the Lone Star State.