Alright I'm back after a very long Hiatus. It's winter and there is NOTHING going on.

1. Who is going to take Hamilton's ridiculous contract that will be way to much and he won't amount to?

2. What will they do with Profar, Kinsler, Andrus.
On that one I say put Profar in the minors, let him develop a little more, and bring him up later in the year. For goodness sake he's 19.

3. Should they take B.J. Upton to replace Hamilton. Ummmm no, not to replace him. Not many are going to come close to a replacement, but it's in my opinion a better option than Martin/Gentry Platoon. Neither are going to produce offensively the way we need them to.
BJ Upton Article


Until there is more news to report.
Becca

13-3 record as of 4/22/2012! We are first in the division by 5.5 games from Oakland. We are first in all of baseball! Way to go Rangers!

Not a lot to say this week besides the Rangers are amazing. Their starting pitching is phenomenal, their bullpen, when needed, is excellent, defense is great. Their bats could pick it up a bit, as we have had most of our games won by just a run or two, and our bats really are better than that. 

The big news of the week is that Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez is retiring tomorrow in a ceremony before the game. He will be pitching the first pitch. He debuted with the Texas Rangers in 1991, and played his last game last year. In almost all of his seasons he hit above a .300 batting average, as was a great catcher. He actually picked off runners stealing 2nd 46.1% of the time!! He will for sure go down in the Rangers Hall of Fame. We will have to see about the baseball HOF. He has been linked to Steroids by Jose Canseco, but never by the Baseball Commissioner's League. For more on Pudge, visit the following link. 

Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez and his career

This week the Rangers played the Mariners at home in which the won went 3-1. This is expected as Seattle isn't so awesome. It just helped make us better in our division. 

Then they went to play the Twins in a ballpark where they have a losing record since the park opened two years ago. I've never liked watching them play in that park, because they never do well. It's a pitchers park, and the Rangers are hitters....were hitters. Now that we can pitch, they swept and went 3-0. 

Then they went to Detroit to play in Comerica and against the Comerica curse. They second game was postponed to rain, and played a double header Saturday. The only game I really questioned was the second game of Verlander (one of the best pitchers in baseball), and Feliz (3rd game ever pitched.) On baseball that games goes to Verlander easy. What is impressive is that while the Rangers did lose, We had two on in the 9th with one out and one run behind. We had a chance to win that game, we just didn't. I've never been so OK with losing. We won in extra innings today to make up for it, making our record 3-1 over the series. 

Next Up: 3 games against the Yankees, a day off, and then 3 games against Tampa Bay all at home. Look for Hamilton and Young to continue to be part of the top 5 hitters in baseball, which the Rangers as a pitching team being number 2 overall. Exciting stuff going into the end of April!!

1st place AL West: 8-2

Sorry there are no pictures or video. No time.


8-2 record as of 4/15/2012! We are first in the division by 2 games and 4.5 up from LA! We are second in all of baseball! Way to go Rangers to start the year off.


DARVISH
Is the first pitcher since 1910 to win his Major League debut despite giving up four runs in the first inning.


Well, we've all seen him now, twice. Sigh. He doesn't look as special as we hoped, but he says he is still adjusting to American baseball. He's gone 5 innings both games and had mediocre stuff. His first inning of MLB baseball features Yu going 42 pitches! That's roughly 4 innings worth of pitching! If you were curious before his start what his pitching looked like, you certainly had a chance to watch it for awhile once he began. He settled in after that, and we actually needed up winning after him giving up five in the first two innings, thanks to some AMAZING defense, especially by Andrus and Kinsler who have made some incredible diving catches. 
He pitched again yesterday, and was better, but his command was still all over the place. He ended up walking 3 in the sixth before Robbie Ross came in to get us out of the inning.


The quote below was said by a scout before his first start.... While I believe it is true, we will have to wait to see if his pitching can develop into the speciality the scouts have seen. 


[It's] easy to see that Darvish is a special pitcher, one capable of missing a lot of major league quality bats right out of the chute. He showed two types of fastballs (four-seamer, two-seamer, two types of curveballs (66 mph and 78-80 mph), a slider, a cutter, a straight-changeup, and a splitter. He showed the ability to miss barrels with all of them, even when his overall command was good but not great. His delivery is very clean and repeatable, so the command is going to be there. The stuff is electric and explosive, and with his preternatural ability to manipulate the baseball, can show multiple varieties of each pitch, changing the speed and shape at will. It’s really an incredible experience to see the ball come out of his hand and move around as it nears the zone. I’ve never seen anything like it. This is going to be fun.


Kinsler
His contract has been extended until 2017. It is a 5 year $75 million deal. It is the highest average paid out for a 2nd baseman. However that is not spread evenly over the 5 years. The Rangers will pay out  Kinsler $13M in '13, $16M in 2014 and 2015, $14M in 2016 and $11M in 2017. Option for 2018 is $10M with a $5M buyout. 
I didn't used to be a huge Kinsler fan, but the last two years have changed my mind. He's especially gotten off to a great start this year, and actually was 7th in the AL MVP voting last year. He is an overlooked player however. 


1. He doesn't have a high batting average. He has a .276 lifetime so the number doesn't stand out as great.


2. Kinsler is a solid five tool player. He is a good overall player. However he isn't fantastic at any one thing that makes him stand out. 


3. He has had injuries throughout his career which as kept his at bats low. 


For me, Kinsler is a rare player that is getting better the older he gets. Let's hope it says that way. I think this was a great deal the Rangers shouldn't regret to help lock in some of the key players they have. Since Hamilton most likely won't be with the team next year, the concern with Kinsler's health, and new prospects coming up, the Rangers have the ability to even move him into left field in the next couple years. 




Robbie Ross
Is amazing! For someone who was supposed to go to AA this year, since he hasn't pitched above high A, he has earned his spot and proven he belongs on the Rangers this year. He's gone into two stressful innings 2 days in a row and gotten us out of both. So excited for him!




Have a great Week 2 baseball world!

We've Only Just Begun

I haven't written in about a month. One because spring training was completely uneventful, and two spring training was uneventful.

Basically two things to look at here. The Kinsler Contract, and the centerfield/left field dilemma.

The Kinsler Contract
It has been said a deal was/is in the works prior to opening day. 6 years/$14 million was offered. Kinsler wants 6 years/$16 million. When you are making that much, how big of a deal is $2 million really?? He says he is willing to consider a deal being made even though the season has started, but I wouldn't expect one unless it happens by this weekend. He does have a $10 million option for next year, so he will be around at least that long, most likely longer. As it's been said before, with all the big names going on to free agency and commanding ridiculous millions, it sets the tone for what players expect these days. Kinsler isn't any different.

Is he worth it? Yes. He is one of the best 2nd baseman today in my opinion, and he has certainly played like it through spring training and the first 3 games of the season. I'm going to go ahead and call another 30/30 season for him.

Hamilton/Gentry Centerfield/Left Field Debacle 
Quite frankly I"m tired of hearing about it, talking about it, reading about it, and writing about it. Really we don't have a good answer and we aren't going to. The final decision after spring training was that Bourbon has no defense anymore AND no bat. They sent him to the minors and he'll be the in the next trade, where I"m sure he'll go on to do wonderful these he just couldn't do here for some other team. Hamilton was chosen as center and Murphy at left. Go Murph, first year not being the fourth outfielder...but is it? Washington has said that he is willing to put Hamilton in center 100 games, but on game one he moves Hamilton into left and put Gentry into Center after Murphy proceeds to show poor defense in the 6th. To me this says that if Washington is willing to move Hamilton so easily to left, than doesn't that say that he truly believes Gentry has the better defense. Yes Hamilton has the bat, but a Hamilton/Gentry combo is much better. When trades are done in July this is the first thing that will be traded for.

Another thought to ponder: With Hamilton probably being gone next year does it make sense to move Kinsler to left to allow Juckerson Profar (who is considered to be the next best shortstop and #2 on our prospect list) to 2nd while Elvis is still here? Profar should be ready for the big leagues by 2013.

Other Notes
-We are off and running. As I write this we are 1-1 with the Angels losing today, and Rangers winning in the 6th!
-I am no longer friends with Joe Nathan as he let a homer go to the one guy in the Chicago line up without a hit for the season during a tied game in the 9th to lose the game. I was there. Nathan is not my friend.
-If you have not seen the marlins outfield fountain/dolphin/flamingo thing (you tube link attached) and have a way to see a Marlins game on TV please do! When a marlin hits a home run this is what it does!

Happy Baseball Week Everyone!

Spring Training Things

A quick note to those who know me: PLEASE DO NOT text me and tell me that baseball is on TV
(I  already know,) and furthermore PLEASE don't tell me the score or what is happening, as it ruins it for me when I do watch the game later. Following are my Spring Training thoughts and observations:


1. Ryan Braun
Was tested positive for performance enhancing drugs (PED's) in October during the playoffs. He tried to overturn the ruling by stating that the person who collected his sample mishandled it. Apparently FedEx was closed on Saturday so the man took it home and put it in a refrigerator sealed, and sent it in the next day. This is something the person does for his job often and it had never been a problem. Apparently this violates MLB's requirements and Braun's ruling was overturned.
My thoughts: It's crap. We have determined that PED's should not be used in baseball. We spent the entire decade of the 90's watching Sosa, Bonds, McGuire, and multiple others break record after record. I wouldn't doubt that PED's were used before the 90's and I"m sure they are used today, but rarely. In any case the question is: Can the guy perform the same numbers and be the same player without the PED as he is with it? For some yes. For some no.
With the huge hype and MLB's strict rules on PED's now is it right that Braun is now being freed of a 50 game suspention because of a legality? We know this sample was positive, and I'm pretty sure nobody else peed in the cup?

2. Oswalt
Roy Oswalt is sitting out Spring Training and perhaps the first part of the season. He stated he wanted to go to either the Cardinals or the Rangers. (Coincidence these are the teams that played in the World Series last year?) Either way the Cardinals offered him $3 million for a year, he turned it down and said he wanted to play for the Rangers.
Here is the dilemma: The Rangers have not been sure whether to sign him or not. The Rangers philosophy has always been to raise our young pitchers, believe in them, and we will see production from them. We have given everything to the young guys that our in our rotation, (Holland, Harrison, Feliz, Ogando) and they deserve the opportunity to show us what they've got this year.
On the other hand, we have no veteran pitchers except for Colby Lewis. There is always the IF factor of whether a young guy ends up not being productive, or if someone gets hurt, wouldn't it be nice to have a proven veteran pitcher? However if they signed Oswalt, it would be Harrison in the bullpen, and doesn't that go against the Rangers philosophy of giving our young pitchers a chance?
Oswalt was then given a $5 million for a year by the Cardinals, and he still said no. Appears he wants to be with the Rangers bad enough he's willing to not play for awhile.

3.Darvish

Here he is throwing a ball. One of hundreds you can find out there.
Well there is a ton of hype on Darvish. Everything out there has a picture of Darvish, even if the article isn't about Darvish. They have pictures of Darvish sitting in the bullpen, they have pictures of Darvish holding a ball. They have pictures of Darvish talking to Washington. They have pictures of Darvish standing on the field. You get the point. Holland, his long throw partner, (yes an entire article about that because it's not important) says to not forget there are 53 other players in camp. Evan Grant says "I've never seen anybody throw the ball like like." Apparently everyone is liking what they see.
The caption on this picture was Feliz throwing from the mound. Notice Darvish center in the background. Really....do we have to point out Darvish every time?

Link to a photo shoot with Darvish posing in a cowboy hat. Really is that important to winning a World Series??

Link to Yu Darvish Pitching to Kinsler

Why do People like Baseball

1. Anticlimax
The article below details the idea of waiting for something big to happen. As this article by  Joe Posnanski from Sports Illustrated explains, Atlanta was a team that was winning the entire season. St. Louis wasn't even in the mix until the last few weeks when all of a sudden they started winning as Atlanta started falling. On the VERY LAST day of the season Atlanta lost when they needed to win and BOOM, Cardinals in the playoffs. A totally exciting ending to what was a predictable ending. Posnanski states,  "I never argue with people who say that baseball is boring, because baseball is boring. And then, suddenly, it isn’t. And that’s what makes it great."


New thought, I don't blame the Rangers for their World Series loss, I now blame Atlanta!!
Baseball Anticlimax-My favorite baseball article I've read


2. Stats
To me this is what makes baseball fun. The tight pants on the men are fun to look at, watching balls hit out of the park and the fireworks after give you a sense of pride in your team, seeing a play made in the last out of the game to win is miraculous at time (unless you are Feliz in Game 6 of the World Series in 2011,) but what would baseball be without Stats? How would we know what good is?  Sure baseball is about putting a team together that hopefully come October can win it all, but in order to keep track on who is best don't we have to pay attention to stats. Doesn't ERA matter because the team with the pitchers that have the lowest ERA?Statistically aren't they going to have a better chance? Same with any stat.  This brings me to point 2.


3. Arguments
If there is something to argue about a baseball fan can do it. Is ______ better than ________. Were the Cardinals really better than the Rangers in 2011 (no, but they got lucky). Does ________ really deserve to be MVP. Oh and the infamous OBP,now that just about won Oakland the AL pennant in 2002,and then it didn't. This list could go on forever, and it does. Why do fans do this? I think Joe Posnanski from Sports Illustrated says it well:


I think that, in many ways, baseball arguments come down to context. I hear all the time about how baseball fans are “stat people” and “anti-stat people,” but I don’t think that dividing line exists. I’ve never met a big baseball fan who didn’t care about baseball stats. Ever. I’m not even sure how you can BE a big baseball fan without caring about stats. If someone asked, “How many hits did Pedroia have today?” what baseball fan would answer, “Oh, I don’t know, I didn’t count those”? 
Baseball Fans Like to Argue


*Note this says FAN not watcher. I have taken many a friend to the ballpark that had no idea what keeping score meant, was more interested in getting a tan, and wanted to know if we could leave in the 8th inning.
No that person doesn't get to go with me anymore. I've also taken a friend that didn't understand why when 
a player hit a ball up in the air, the crowd would say, "Down, down down, down." I had to explain, "We 
don't want the other team to catch the ball." I would NOT call those friends FANS. They DO NOT care 
how many hits Pedroia or any other player got that day, but a FAN, they will know.


I like baseball for all these reasons and more. The other day I turned on a random game from last season with a friend. It was a game against Oakland where we won in the bottom of the 9th. I turned it on and just listened. I'm so content to just relax, sit around, and watch the game. The anticipation of the pitch, and the hope of the ball being put in play makes my heart flutter just for a second. I realized in that moment baseball needs to be back on TV as soon as possible. It's time and Spring Training has begun...

The news this week is that there is none out there. This is the week Spring Training begins. Finally!

Random Spring Training Facts I found this week 

How many boxes of each of these do the Texas Rangers send to Arizona for Spring Training? (Roughly 6 weeks) 

Boxes of Sunflower Seeds: 30 

Tubs of Gum: 60 

 Number of Dozen baseballs: 1,800 (21,600 individual baseballs!)

The only article of interest includes the quote:
 "Perhaps the biggest issue facing the Rangers will be to figure out on which fingers their World Series rings will go."
This taken from ESPN who thinks the Rangers are the best team going into the next five years when you look at the franchise overall. 
Rangers best Franchise over next five years




On a personal note I have now purchased MLB.TV so every spring training game and then every season game after will be available to me at the click of a button. So excited!


Have a fabulous week baseball fans!

Arbitration Deals

The big news this week if there was really much news at all was the three players headed into arbitration hearings. Arbitration is basically a big word for increased salary. The team offers an amount, the players's agent offers another and they come to an agreement. If they can't reach an agreement they actually go to court to settle; something that hasn't happened for the Texas Rangers since 2000.

At the beginning of the week Elvis Andrus, Mike Napoli, and Nelson Cruz were all looking to go to arbitration with the Rangers towards the end of the week, but luckily agreements were made, and everyone is happy.

Andrus signed for 3 years $14.5 million. I think a great deal, being that we continue to have a great glove with a bat that's definitely going more than it did at first. This will keep us from having to negotiate salary again with him until his free agency in 2015. My personal opinion is that at that time it will be a take it or leave it for me. If he continues to play as he does today he'll be able to go anywhere and get a sizable contract. The Rangers sit in a good spot, where we have the best shortstop prospect in Juckerson Profar and he would be in the waiting. We'll see what happens and how all that plays out over the next three years. I'm excited about Profar though!

Nelson Cruz then signed a 2 year $16 million deal. I like Cruz, although I'd like to see a healthy Cruz. They say he has lost a lot of weight over the off season, and is healthier than he has been. He says he's ready to play a full season and doesn't expect to have the leg injury problems he's had over the past couple years. His signing will also take him to free agency in 2014. My quick thoughts on that is that I hope they are able to trade for outfield at the time. Hamilton will be a free agent next year and Cruz the next. Outfield depth in our minor leagues is weak. I read an article noting who the free agents coming up over the next two years and nobody comes close Hamilton, and only a few come close to Cruz.

The last is Mike Napoli's 1 year $9.4 million. I'm curious to see if he has a year like last year. Looks like the projections say he will. I'm skeptical. 

On Hamilton

We acquired Josh Hamilton in 2008 from Cincinnati. He was originally a number 1 over all draft pick in 1999, and became a drug addict after an injury in the minor leagues. We took a chance on him after he became sober, and what a great chance that turned out to be. The Rangers are all about chances right.

He has a great arm playing center field, a great bat, and he plays the game hard. He was even the AL MVP in 2010. He's fun to watch, and the fans love him. However, he's injury prone. In his four years, he's only played enough games to count as a full season once. He's running into walls, sliding into bases, doing whatever to hurt something quite often. Definitely frustrating since he's a big part of our team.

His contract has however run out, and we have been trying to make a long term offer with him before Spring Training starts to avoid him becoming a free agent next year. If he becomes a free agent he would be one of the biggest free agents on the market if not the biggest for 2012. The two have been trying to come to a deal for about a month now, so what's the problem.

There are several things that go into play when thinking about making a deal with Hamilton. First Hamilton has stated that he owes it to the players union to get the money he deserves for his talent. He believes that if he settles for what the Rangers are willing to pay him, then it will give way to giving proven players what they deserve in the game. He is asking for a contract in the range of about 6 years $120 million dollars. I believe....the Rangers are crazy to do that.

First for as good as he is, he has never been injury free for a sustained period of time. Some believe this is due to the addiction problems earlier in his career, and his body is slightly broken down as a result. He also plays the game hard. Exciting to watch, but he not when he gets injured and is out for months at a time. The addiction is a concern as he gets older. He is hitting 31 this year, so he is at his peak or later by now. If you look at the link below it shows his projections over the next couple of years. I think that 2010 (the year he was MVP) was a fluke year, and what he did in 2011, which is still good, is more of the player he is. I also think he will be a player that can contribute to any club for about three years, and after that his numbers will slowly decline. Therefore, in my opinion, the Rangers are crazy to give him 6 years. Is he worth the money...maybe, but definitely not the years.

Why 2012 should be Hamilton's last with the Rangers by Adam Morris

Out last night, Hamilton relapsed on Alcohol at Sherlock's on Monday. This may or may not be a one time incident, but it certainly says a lot about his character, and certainly hurts his chances at the money he thinks he deserves. Can one say, that if he was willing to take a chance and relapse that one night, that at any point in years to come it couldn't happen again, for a longer period, and even affect his playing? He was actually suspended from MLB in 2003 for his addiction problems. The Rangers are dealing with the unknown right now.

What do the Rangers do? Try to get a contract done with an essential part of this team sometime over the next month, or let him go into free agency and see what happens? In my opinion I'd give him a 3 year extension at about 45 million. If he were smart he'd go with a team that believes in him, even if it's for less than what he wants.

Feel free to weigh in.

Popular Question

Copied from T.R. Sullivan's Inbox


How many modern Major League teams made it to the World Series three years in a row? Have any lost in their first two appearances and won it all the third time?
-- Paul J., Garland, Texas


The Yankees, after acquiring Babe Ruth from the Red Sox, first went to the World Series in 1921 and 1922. They lost both times to the New York Giants. They went back in 1923 and beat the Giants for their first World Series title. They have won 26 more since then.

My Precursor

I grew up in the famous baseball city of St. Louis. While my whole family continues to be Cardinal fans (Yes I'm still mad about last last year), I picked up Rangers baseball as a hobby 10 years ago. I slowly learned more and more over the years, and I now rarely miss a game, and read most news articles daily. Therefore with encouragement here I am doing this blog. I figure it's a good way to combine my baseball passion with my English profession, in the hopes that someone might take interest.

I am not a National league fan, and I will admit my knowledge of the National league is lagging. You will see me weigh in on everything American League, including past and present topics, stats, minor league prospects, and current projections for players. I know there are a WIDE array of stats to look at, but I am a fan of WAR (Wins Above Replacement), and rely heavily on it when looking at players. It's not the most valid stat, but it can help project a players' worth when looking at the overall picture. I say this simply because someones opinions can be skewed with this stat, but I always welcome the feedback. The article below is the simplest article I could find to explain it. I can explain it better if you are that interested.
WAR defined

With that said, there are 19 days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training, 30 days until the first spring training game begins, and 63 days until Opening Day. I look forward to Rooting, Cheering, and Singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" everyday until the Rangers receive their 2012 World Series Championship!