"We wanted to be able to position those three together," manager Jeff Banister said.
Martin Perez will follow that trio by pitching on Monday against the Angels. All four pitchers will have a maximum of three starts before the start of the postseason.
There is a reason the Rangers want Hamels in front of everybody else -- the No. 1 starter going into a best-of-five Division Series is the one who can start twice.
"I got that one," Banister said.
The Rangers had Derek Holland in the bullpen as a long reliever on Monday or Tuesday.