The Texas Rangers didn't take the step forward they were expected to take in the 2022 season, and ended up firing manager Chris Woodward midway through the season. Tony Beasley took charge after Woodward was canned, but it was clear the Rangers wanted to find a new voice to lead their team for the 2023 season. Enter Bruce Bochy, who the Rangers recently hired to be their next manager.

Bochy made a name for himself during his tenure with the San Francisco Giants, which resulted in him winning three World Series titles in a five season span with the Giants. Bochy announced his retirement after the 2019 season with San Fran, but has been lured out of retirement for a chance to turn around the Rangers franchise.

Texas has a lot of talent on their roster, but they didn't appear to be particularly close to putting those pieces together to build a winner this season. The hope is that Bochy, given his experience leading the Giants to championships, can lead a similar turnaround for the Rangers. Let's take a look at three reasons why Bochy's tenure with the Rangers will get off to a hot start and he will lead them to the playoffs in the 2023 season.

3. Bruce Bochy knows how to manage a pitching staff

One of Bochy's best traits as a manager is his ability to manage his pitching staff. He expertly used his strong staffs with San Francisco to guide the team to their most recent championships. If he wants to win with the Rangers, he's going to have to do something similar here.

The problem is that the Rangers pitching staff isn't nearly as good as those Giants teams' were during Bochy's championship runs. Still, there are some strong arms in both the starting rotation (Martin Perez, Jon Gray) and the bullpen (Brock Burke, Matt Moore, Jose LeClerc) that will at least give Bochy some talent to work with.

The Rangers do need a de facto ace, as they can't count on Martin Perez, who had a career ERA of 4.71 prior to this season, to post a 2.89 ERA for a second straight season. There will be options for them to accomplish that, and after addressing their lineup last offseason, the pitching staff should be the focus this time around. If they can add some more talent to their current core, Bruce Bochy should be able to make his magic work.

2. The Rangers lineup is already in very good shape

As previously mentioned, the Rangers made some huge moves to beef up their lineup last offseason. It didn't really mean much, because the pitching staff wasn't good, but that provides Texas and Bochy with a strong base to build around. The lineup doesn't need as much work because they are already in a very good spot.

The Rangers made two of the biggest splashes in the offseason last year when they signed both Corey Seager and Marcus Semien to long-term deals. Seager hit 33 home runs while Semien hit 26, but both guys batted below .250, which will need to change moving forward. Guys like Adolis Garcia and Nathaniel Lowe also posted strong campaigns, and it's clear that there is reason for excitement when it comes to this lineup.

The Rangers could improve the second half of their lineup, as there are some holes that hurt them throughout the season. The outfield aside from Garcia is incomplete, and Texas could use a third baseman after getting virtually no production from the position all season long. But those holes are manageable, and the strong core of the Rangers lineup should be able to help Bochy turn this team around.

1. Bruce Bochy has a strong postseason pedigree

Of course, knowing what it takes to make it to the postseason helps when it comes to turning a team around. The Rangers as currently built don't have a ton of postseason experience, so it's clear what the team is trying to do by bringing Bochy onboard. If you want to build a winner, you need to know what it's like to win.

Not only does Bochy have a lot of success when it comes to making it to the playoffs, but he's also won a trio of World Series titles to go along with it as we all know by now. Bochy played a huge role in those titles for the Giants, and the Rangers are hoping that he can do the same thing with the Rangers.

We've seen veteran manager hires, such as Tony La Russa with the Chicago White Sox, not pan out recently, but that doesn't mean that Bochy will suffer a similar fate. He's been away from the game for a few years, and that should help him remain fresh and motivated throughout the season for Texas. Bruce Bochy has what it takes to lead the Rangers back to the playoffs next season, and it will be interesting to see whether he can pull it off.