Griffin makes case to stay in Texas’ rotation

ARLINGTON — Fifth starter A.J. Griffin doesn’t look like a guy who is simply holding down a spot in the rotation until Yu Darvish gets off the disabled list.

Instead, his April statistics after a 10-1 victory over the Yankees on Tuesday look eerily similar to those of the guy at the head of the rotation.

Griffin has now made four starts, pitched 25 innings and is 3-0 with a 2.52 ERA. Those are the same numbers that Cole Hamels has after his first four starts. There are a few differences, though, such as the fact that Griffin has allowed three fewer hits and two fewer walks.

Griffin on Tuesday also turned in the longest start by a Rangers pitcher this season, going eight innings, and he allowed one run on four hits and a walk while striking out five.

In doing so, he helped the Rangers snap a four-game losing streak.

“That’s pretty weird,” Griffin said of the similarities with Hamels. “Like I said, my expectations are high. If you ask anything less, it opens the door for less favorable things to happen, so I go out there and try to get every guy out.”

High expectations are admirable, and Griffin was a 14-game winner for the Athletics in 2013, but this is a pitcher who missed the last two seasons …

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