Who is coming up?
by Adam J. Morris on Apr 13, 2008 8:23 PM CDT
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PrintOkay, with Scott Feldman getting optioned tomorrow, the Rangers will be calling up a reliever.
The top options are supposedly Kam Loe, Wes Littleton, and Frankie Francisco.
Loe and Francisco both pitched for Oklahoma tonight (in a game started by Eric Hurley, who now is sporting the ERA of a plane this season). Littleton didn't.
Maybe I'm oversimplifying, but this suggests that Littleton will be in Arlington tomorrow.
And personally, I'd much rather have seen Littleton pitching in the 7th tonight than Franklyn German.
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Littleton for
Feldman is a given. However, this would lead me to believe that The Electrician is actually healthy. See, RonWash was quoted in the FWST that he could pitch today or tomorrow (Monday).
I would have to think he is recovered, or else FX2 would have been held back tonight.
Make sense?
...it's the weekend, so why the hell not?
Despite the early success of FX^2
The Rangers probably want him to get a bit more work in at AAA to ensure he's properly straightened out before calling him back up. That being said, German's soon to be departed if he doesn't improve his control - and given his track record, there's not much reason to believe that he will.
So yeah, Littleton's probably up. Loe's probably last in line right now.
Franklyn German
This is the type of thing that just frustrates me to no end.
The guy has walked about 7 per 9 in his ML career. He walked about 7 per 9 last year in AAA. He walked 5 batters in 8 innings this spring. Yet, he makes the team and (surprise, surprise!) hurts the team by walking too many batters. And he is 28 years old.
Yet we apparently have no use for guys like Armando Galaragga or Robinson Tejeda that have warts of their own - but at least they have displayed some level of competency in the past and are young enough that they might still improve.
Pedro: "I wasn't cockfighting, I just have a wide stance."
robinson tejeda?
does he really belong on the list? he's 26, also has control problems, and was optioned off for dustin nippert (who kind of looks good, has had more success in the past, and is also young). not only that, but nippert/tejeda worked otu such that both are with the organization. tejeda is a reach to make your point
scap load or die
I guess you have forgotten
the 4.28 era that Tejeda posted as a starter in 2006.
What seems a stretch to me is that so many people think it is impossible for him to be a successful ML pitcher, because he has already proved that he can be.
Pedro: "I wasn't cockfighting, I just have a wide stance."
i'm sorry
does tejeda pitch for some other team? the rangers (correctly) made a calculation that netted them a guy who has more upside while holding on to tejeda. and there are plenty of Ranger pitchers who have been good at times and totally awful later. i don't see this as a valid criticism.
scap load or die
+1
I think the Rangers just got infatuated with the radar gun this spring concering German.
Actually, the bullpen's mini-makeover this offseason has turned out to be subtraction by addition - Fukumori just doesn't look like a late-inning releiver (which wouldn't be the first time a Japanese star has flopped in the US) and German's past is riddled with unreliability. This bullpen will be much better with Littleton rather than Fukumori, and if we could swap FX^2 for German sometime soon, we'll be doing good.
Come on now BBJ
Don't you think 2 weeks is a little early to be making assessments about Fukumori?
Rex Hudler is in demand as a motivational speaker.
by Brian Thomas on Apr 14, 2008 8:04 PM CDT up reply actions
Warner Madrigal
Seriously though, I think it will be Littleton and I am fine with that.
If FF can give us another couple of weeks of good pitching to show that he has regained his form I'd be all for bringing him back up and DFAing German.
FF and German
maybe its the bias from them looking similar but there is no need to have both of them around
scap load or die
Miles isn't here so I'll say it for him
Frankie has been a beast.
But really, I'm fine with either one of them right now - it's an improvement any way you slice it.
German and Nippert
Like many of you, I think the Rangers should be rid of German - he can't throw strikes.
Also, unless the Rangers plan on moving him back to a starter, I don't get the point of carrying Nippert on the roster when you have good, young relievers in the minors. What does Nippert project out to be, best case scenario?
by Randy Richardson on Apr 13, 2008 9:24 PM CDT reply actions
Best case
he's dominant. But best case doesn't seem at all likely right now. The guy has no clue where his curveball is going, and he can put maybe one of three FBs where he generally wants.
by Brett Perryman on Apr 13, 2008 9:27 PM CDT up reply actions
A fireballing releiver, with a ceiling somewhere around that of FX^2
Although that's the best case scenario. He's got a ways to go to get there, because of his control but he does have a lot of potential as a high-strikeout mid-late reliever.
Heck, his fastball was running 95-97 MPH today - if that motherBLEEPing umpire had called him that one strike, he would have gotten out of that inning cleanly.
I'm not suggesting
that. But he's not ready for a high leverage situation like he was forced into today because of the bullpen crunch. Since he is out of options, and at the same time an ineffective pitcher, he limits the Rangers bullpen flexibility.
by Randy Richardson on Apr 13, 2008 9:46 PM CDT up reply actions
Well...
He's not that innefective. His 2.2 innings a few nights a go where spectacular, and again, I thought the umpire was really what killed him today. There's other teams that have guys that aren't even as good as him in the bullpen, and are trying to pass guys like Nippert off at 7th inning guys.
I don't really want to box myself in as a Nippert believer at this point, but I can see his potential - and I'm rooting for him to realize it.
I would not use
the word spectacular to describe any of his 2008 performances. The umpire was inconsistent today, but Nippert was all over the place.
by Randy Richardson on Apr 13, 2008 9:54 PM CDT up reply actions
My solution...
Wes and FX2 need to be here and be the 6th/7th inning guys. Wright needs to remain the long man in the pen.
Send down Feldman and German call up those 2 guys and the pen looks good to me again.
Eddie G will be back in a week or so. At that time send down Rupe or DFA Dusty Tits (which ever guy has perfomed the worst).
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
a lot of respect for fx2 and wes
their recent ML performances haven't been that good.
scap load or die
I know they have...
but I'll take my chances with those two in games like today instead of German and Nippert.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
Wes hasn't been bad, though?
He regressed a lot, sure, but he was still slightly above league average. He just needs to get his GB outs because he ain't gonna K very many people. He also had a ridiculously unsustainable BABIP in '06.
"Hmn [sic] ... pehaps [sic] I've said too much..." - LSJesus
by inactive lsb user on Apr 14, 2008 12:51 AM CDT up reply actions
He's a Yankee
That's reason enough to say he's overrated. And reason enough for me not to like him, either.
Because?
Rex Hudler is in demand as a motivational speaker.
by Brian Thomas on Apr 14, 2008 8:08 PM CDT up reply actions
I would guess Littleton
As long as Wright is healthy then there's not really a need right now for Loe.
Rangeressary
"the poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese." - G.K. Chesterton
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