You know whose name I've seen mentioned repeatedly, vis-a-vis the Futures Game?

Taylor Teagarden.  He really seemed to turn some heads.

Keith Law really liked him.  So did Joe Sheehan.  So did Kevin Goldstein. 

Jason Grey really likes Teagarden, saying he's the second-best offensive catching prospect in the minors (behind only Matt Weiters), and somehow I missed this writeup Grey did of Teagarden in late June, which also includes some discussion of Elvis Andrus.

Everyone who watches Teagarden raves about his defensive ability, and he seems like someone who is going to have a major league career so long as he stays healthy.  The question really seems to be, is he going to hit well enough to be a starter, or will he be limited to a backup role?  Grey, for one, loves the bat, and the upside comparison for him offensively is Mickey Tettleton, which, when combined with Teagarden's glove, would probably make him one of the best catchers in the game.  There are the consistent questions about whether he'll make contact enough, though, to keep his average above .220.

And of course, there's the question of whether he'll stay here or ply his trade with another team.  Given the need the BoSox have for a young catcher, and the premium they place on a catcher's defensive ability, I have to wonder if Teagarden might not end up there.

Over at Slate, there is a somewhat meta article about how Derek Jeter's defense has become the defining debate amongst the stathead v. traditionalist crowd.  For Ranger fans, of course, substitute Michael Young for Jeter...

Astros g.m. Ed Wade thinks what the Rangers did last season was dumb:

"Fans have every right when they turn on the TV or come to Minute Maid to expect to see the team win that night," Wade said. "And when they pick up the paper in the morning they have every right to expect to see their team in first place."

Problem is, Wade won't be able to go out before the trade deadline and add two quality starting pitchers and a middle reliever. The Astros don't have the prospects to give.

So, considering that it will take a miraculous run to keep this from being the lost season that it is destined to be, the bigger questions are about the team's future. A standard analysis of the data — last-place team, weak farm system, — could lead one to conclude this team needs to be a seller in the two weeks the Buy/Sell Players Market remains open.

Not this team, however.

Neither a buyer nor a seller be, should be its motto.

The team can't afford many purchases, and even with a 2008 surrender, a fire sale approach makes little sense.

It would be nice to help rebuild a farm system that is in need of hot prospects by moving a few players, but trading a couple of dependable stars (Oswalt, Lance Berkman, Carlos Lee, Miguel Tejada, Jose Valverde) or a probable future star (Hunter Pence) for youngsters who might not come through in a few years is the slow route to decency.

"I don't think fire sales work," Wade said. "I think a lot of that works for cosmetic purposes, but it's sort of a 'panic button' approach that leads you to a course of mediocrity."

"A course of mediocrity," of course, is what the Astros currently appear to be on, and the refusal to bite the bullet, strip down and rebuild is reminiscent of where the Rangers were in the early-aughts, with a bad farm system, an aging, mediocre team, and an owner who felt that rebuilding was a four letter word.

The Prospect Corner looks at Hank the Bank, Chris the Beasticon, and likely A.L. ROY Evan Longoria in weighing what the Rangers should do when Blalock is ready to come off the d.l.  The short answer...not send down Davis...

Did you know that Mark Grudzielanik has 2000 hits?  He's been a regular for a long time, so I guess it shouldn't be that surprising, but still, I'd never have guessed.  He's 23rd among active players in hits, according to B-R, although they include Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Shawn Green, and Mike Piazza as active players, so really, he's in the top 20.

John Barten has the latest THT Awards up, with former Ranger Robinson Tejeda getting a mention because of a weird statistical oddity that showed up in his line last week...

If you missed it, FJM is displeased over Ian Kinsler bunting in extra innings.

And this is unrelated, but I just now, as I was typing this post, got a spam email which comes from this person/name/whatever:  Cash-Transferz id_30 [dirtbag@import123.com].

It offers me the chance to make money with my bank account, and something involving cash transfers.

I was really interested in this, until I saw that the person sending me the email had an email address that started with "dirtbag".  I don't think I can trust someone with that sort of email address.