But if we could afford to have kept ARod and kept Tex, this team would be a whole lot better.  I love the deal, but Tex wasn't going to re-sign with the Rangers and I think they got a great return for him.

There are so few things that you can complain about when you talk about Tex as a player, and I'm sure that in the last few hours we've heard just about every possible complaint with most being completely unjustified.  I'm glad the Rangers got what they did, but there are so few things that can actually be said about his performance that are negative.

The thing my brother and i were discussing today regarding tex was very similar to the original diary.  It was that Scott Boras, as good a job as he does at making his clients money, the "Boras-ballers" all tow a union employee, company line, stepford wives quality boras client quality. and in the end, i think it cost them a lot of dollars in the endorsement areas long term.  no one wants a marionette that has personality that is always controlled based on the the final numbers.  the average fan wants to root for someone they can relate with and i think we all see through the polished act.  i mean, as polished as a star like david beckham is, nobody gives him crap for not being his own man. you can be a well polished marketing machine not be a tool of the boras.  That detachment from fans has left a lot of dollars on the table that boras i guess makes up for them in salary, but whose gonna rant for Tex to get into the HOF if he's borderline?  Think any fans gonna go berserk if Arod wasnt first ballot?  Nobody, because the fans see what guys like Arod and Tex show, they may be great players, but fans wont go to war for a player that they are detached from. Boras is the reason for that.  Im just hoping Danks doesnt fall into the same missteps Arod and Tex ran into.  If he's mediocre he wont have to worry about it, but it wouldnt surprise me at all if the rangers saw how boras worked and formed Tex long-term over his career.  They thought very highly of Danks but given a comparable asset,the ranger cut there losses early.

BGL, u make it sound like Tex had ATL on his mind for months maybe even years, when he said all the stuff about Baltimore and Winning and Small Market did he already know he was gone?  I mean its one thing for the fans to all say, he hates it here and he's gonna leave in FA first chance he gets.  Its another to hear it straight from the guys mouth.  I guess this isnt even in reference to tex really but have u ever heard a guy talking about how he cant wait to leave, or he wants to compete for a pennant and move, and just hear the guy not stop?  And likewise i guess have every one of your teammates know that "so and so" is gone in a week or even tomarrow?  thats just something i cant empathize with.  its wild to think about as part of business. i guess you may have to keep shut about such things. hey i thought i'd ask.

about him buying too much into the "Scott Boras thing."  Well, I wouldn't say I disagree, but I don't really think its a bad thing.  If a player wants to do whats best for his career then more power to him.  If that upsets his current team, then they have the right to do whatever they want about it.  They have the right to try and throw as much money at that player as they possibly can.  If that isn't enough for the player, then you can't blame him for not taking it.  If the team can't go higher, you can't blame them for that either.  It just wouldn't have been meant to happen.  If a team gives too much money to a player and you don't like it,  you have the right not to root for that team anymore.  Everyone involved in the process has the freedom to act however they want.

My biggest concern is that Teixeira will be backed into some sort of corner, and he will end up saying some nasty things about the Rangers.  It has happened in the past... GMJ and Danks.  I know a lot of you would disagree, but I think Teixeira would be classier than that.

Your candor is always appreciated.

And thank you for hushing Sharky. You clearly love freedom.

Thank you BGL!  I actually Tex a lot but my only criticism was that if Ortiz can drop a bunt to beat the shift, why not Tex?

Interesting that this idea made it's way to the clubhouse.  It's not novel but was wondering how many people were thinking it/wanting him to do it

I just read the rest of your stuff about GMJ.  We all heard the press conference and we reacted in kind but that other stuff is downright obnoxious.  Nice to see him putting up stellar numbers with the Angels.

I hope your candor here doesn't cause you any problems, we certainly appreciate it.

I imagine it must be extremely difficult to deal with tons of money and lots of fans if you grew up with not much cash or attention (and who grows up with 50,000 people screaming at or for them?).  I'd like to think I wouldn't turn into a jerk if I knew I was going to suddenly get millions of dollars, but I won't pretend I would automatically handle it better than someone else.

That's part of the reason guys like you and Greer are fan favorites.  You become successful, knowing that lots of money is on the way, and lots of people want a piece of you, yet you're still pretty normal.

Tex did all of us a favor.  It is a lot easier to see him go when we all know he wanted to go.

It puts MY's comments into a different light.  I could be wrong, but he may have been complaining more about Tex and his desire to leave and less about the front office sending away his buddy.  I don't doubt their friendship, friends can disappoint you.

As for Boras, I don't like the guy.  He is slimy, but it is not his job to protect the game of baseball.  He works for the player.  His job is to get his players the most money that he can within the parameters the player gives him.  He can tell all his players that they should not sign extensions and they should always test free agency and try to get to the large market teams.  The player has the choice to listen or not.  I think when a player hires Boras, we should know what the player is after.  That being said, Boras can only get the contracts the owners are willing to offer.

that is unbelievable how GMJ was behaving before he left.  There was really nothing to tell that until he made those comments about the Rangers (which is why I mentioned him and hope that Tex does not go the way of GMJ and Danks).

There is a difference between just turning some money down because it is not enough for you, and acting like a jackass about it.
But again, like I said before... people have the right to behave however they want, they can deal with the ramifications of being known as classless ball player.