At least Dave Cameron makes that argument.
↵↵↵At +43.2 WAR, the Twins grade out as the top team to date using measures that don’t take contextual performance into account. As you probably know, WAR is mostly built on the foundation of wOBA, UZR, and FIP as the three main variables, representing offense, defense, and pitching, respectively. The Twins grade out well in each area.
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I’m not entirely sure I agree with him. One reason is we don’t yet have a strong concept of how Target Field affects offense, so if it’s close, I’m going to side with the teams that were expected to be better (Tampa and New York). There’s also the schedule, which Cameron briefly mentions, but I would believe it makes a difference. To be fair, though, Baseball Prospectus thinks all three teams have actually gained wins thanks to their schedule.
↵But whether or not I agree isn’t the point, the point is there’s a strong argument the Rangers have now guaranteed a split at worst against the best team in baseball at a point when many wanted to panic while two of the best players are on the DL. At the very least, it should make you feel even better about how this series has started.