Friday a.m. stuff

by Adam J. Morris on Aug 22, 2008 9:35 AM CDT

Mike Heika has a story on Brandon McCarthy trying to get his groove back, and how Nolan Ryan is trying to get him back to using his legs, rather than being a (in McCarthy's words) "tall and fall" pitcher. McCarthy also didn't mince words, as far as how he viewed his contributions this season:

"I know at the beginning of the year they counted on me, and up to this point it's been a massive fail," he said.

I know the LSB GDTers would have preferred "epic fail" to "massive fail," but still...

Jeff Wilson says that some Rangers -- including Marlon Byrd -- think this is a playoff caliber team, but that it has been de-railed by a couple of bad streaks.

Wilson also has a piece up on the Rangers rookies trying to play hard and strong the rest of the way.

C.J. Wilson says he wants to be the Ranger closer in 2009. Other than Frankie Francisco, there aren't a lot of other viable in-house options for the job, so he may very well be the closer again next year.

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C.J.

should get the closer job next year if there’s not a sure candidate.
The guy had 24 saves. I know how hard it was for about 18 of those but he still shows promise and he was pitching with the elbow thing the whole year.

by meatbonelefty on Aug 22, 2008 9:44 AM CDT 0 recs

Let him battle it out with FX2.

Aikman and Bradshaw?

Please. They are in the same league as Trent Dilfer and Jim McMahon as QBs who were taken to the SB by great Defenses and great Running Games.
-DJCahill

by SarasotaRanger on Aug 22, 2008 9:46 AM CDT up 0 recs

Should be decided

by a Guitar Hero contest.

Time you enjoy wasting was not wasted.

by t ball on Aug 22, 2008 10:35 AM CDT up 0 recs

then CJ would be the closer...

Feliz and Hurley. The 1-2 punch of the future

by Steal Home on Aug 22, 2008 12:28 PM CDT up 0 recs

Probably so

Aikman and Bradshaw?

Please. They are in the same league as Trent Dilfer and Jim McMahon as QBs who were taken to the SB by great Defenses and great Running Games.
-DJCahill

by SarasotaRanger on Aug 22, 2008 12:35 PM CDT up 0 recs

Steal Home and Saratosa Ranger agree on something

It must be the end of the world :)

"Well, the Dallas Mavericks got beat by the New Orleans Hornets last night ending their season. Word is that someone on the team is dating Jessica Simpson." - Jay Leno

LSB facebook group ---->>> http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=33345329288

by hinduplaya on Aug 22, 2008 2:01 PM CDT up 0 recs

Or cliff diving/rock climbing

Aikman and Bradshaw?

Please. They are in the same league as Trent Dilfer and Jim McMahon as QBs who were taken to the SB by great Defenses and great Running Games.
-DJCahill

by SarasotaRanger on Aug 22, 2008 12:35 PM CDT up 0 recs

I noticed the massive fail thing too

made think maybe he still trolls around here some….

I'm undefeated in fights. Have I been in any? No. Thats because people know my f'ing status. Don't mess with the elite. - Miles

by Dirk Diggler on Aug 22, 2008 9:47 AM CDT 0 recs

What's a

GDTer? Game day threader?

It was nice to see Ryan give a nod to Hawkins and Colborn in that article, though I have to think the respect McCarthy has for Ryan may have played a large part in him taking the advice to heart.

Time you enjoy wasting was not wasted.

by t ball on Aug 22, 2008 9:47 AM CDT 0 recs

I caught the nod as well.

Good show on Nolan’s part, IMHO.

Godwin's Law Version 2.0 (Rangers Edition)
"As a Ranger discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Danks, Volquez, or Young approaches one."

by LBBRangerFan on Aug 22, 2008 10:09 AM CDT up 0 recs

He totally blew it.

If he had said that he has been an “epic fail”, he would have instantly become one of my favorite players.

"One man, five scoops." -- shroomer

by ghtd36 on Aug 22, 2008 10:01 AM CDT 0 recs

Maybe

Massive Fail = Epic Fail in Britain? Maybe he was pandering to the British Ranger blog? :)

What's the rumpus?

by Hypo-Luxa on Aug 22, 2008 11:02 AM CDT up 0 recs

+1

baseBALLIN!

by kevzta on Aug 22, 2008 12:10 PM CDT up 0 recs

OT: Dirk Hayhurst

The author of Baseball America’s “Non-Prospect Diary” is making his MLB debut at age 27 for the Padres. Good for him.

There seems to me no question that the Batman film "The Dark Knight"... is at some level a paean of praise to the fortitude and moral courage that has been shown by George W. Bush in this time of terror and war. -- Andrew Klavan

by Lucas on Aug 22, 2008 10:09 AM CDT 0 recs

He also has ...

… an excellent blog on his hometown paper’s Web site, CantonRep.com. I post in the comments frequently, especially since the last entry was about how he peed next to Emmitt Smith during a layover in DFW. Quite a funny read.

On the blog, he revealed that he has a literary agent trying to get a book published, he is getting married in the fall and now his first-ever callup. What a year! I am very excited, I live in San Antonio and he was a Mission last season. THat was a helluva team last season, I swear half that team is up with the Pads right now, but he was the one I was rooting for the most.

GO DIRK!

by Melmart1 on Aug 22, 2008 11:49 AM CDT up 0 recs

the idea of the missions being anything but a dodger affiliate makes me wanna cry.

thats how ill always remember them.

"I’m sure you’ve seen Kiker before but I’ll just reiterate that the kid is mean on the mound. He is only 5’10’’ but he is an intimidator. He looks like he hates hitters. He has the juice for pressure situations."
-Jason Parks on Jul 22, 2008 10:08 PM

by Jayslick on Aug 22, 2008 11:56 AM CDT up 0 recs

You're telling me!

They were even the San Antonio Dodgers for awhile. Man, some great legends have passed through this city. WHen I was a little girl I wanted a Pedro Martinez jersey, because Martinez is my last name, too. I was so crestfallen when I found out that they don’t put the name of players on the back of minor league jerseys, haha.

But, the Pads are still better than the last six year before them, when the Mariners were in town. Talk about a conflict of interest for me … a Rangers fan, rooting for players who would eventually come up and be on a divisional rival’s team. I do miss the Dodgers, though :(

by Melmart1 on Aug 22, 2008 12:14 PM CDT up 0 recs

ROFL

I know the LSB GDTers would have preferred “epic fail” to “massive fail,” but still…

that was my exact same thought when i read his quote, and then you spit it out immediately. good stuff AJM. it made me laugh.

PS: USA v. Argentina is on channel 5 at the moment. worth checking out.

by Jayslick on Aug 22, 2008 10:22 AM CDT 0 recs

USA

up 18 after the first quarter.

"So you think the Celtics will beat Detroit? Hell will freeze over before that happens, mark my words." miles 5/20/08

by badradiorules on Aug 22, 2008 10:44 AM CDT up 0 recs

Using the term massive fail =

EPIC FAIL.

by SaltyGoesYard on Aug 22, 2008 10:27 AM CDT 0 recs

GDTers?

to me, abortion is not a religious issue, it's a common sense one...

by Longhorn on Aug 22, 2008 10:32 AM CDT 0 recs

game day thread

Feliz and Hurley. The 1-2 punch of the future

by Steal Home on Aug 22, 2008 10:48 AM CDT up 0 recs

G*d Damn Texans

Great Dane Trainers
Gifted Dairy Tanks
Geophysical Diffraction Tomography
Green Dancing Tree

I could go on all day…

Grieve: The Yanks have struggled so far. - Lewin: Yeah, cry me a bag of money.
ElectricOkra.com

by WhipSmart on Aug 22, 2008 11:10 AM CDT up 0 recs

Marlon Byrd

I admit that i was pretty anxious to see if we could extract anything of use from the Cubs this past spring, but I am glad we held on to him and hope he sticks around. Not only do his stats seem to warrent it, but I really think he is a solid leader in the club house.

by clark on Aug 22, 2008 11:17 AM CDT 0 recs

God I hope Nolan

blows this pitch count crap right out of the water.

by SteveP on Aug 22, 2008 11:37 AM CDT 0 recs

Joe Weiland

The fourth rounder from Reno is putting up really nice numbers in Arizona overall. He’s been great in his last five outings:

17.2 IP 13H 1ER 3BB 21K

Good to see from a guy that you don’t hear much about. Also, there aren’t many big time hitting prospects on the short season teams, but there are a lot of guys putting up really nice numbers. Hopefully there are some sleepers mixed in there. There are going to be some really tough decisions to be made when assigning the Clinton roster next spring.

"So you think the Celtics will beat Detroit? Hell will freeze over before that happens, mark my words." miles 5/20/08

by badradiorules on Aug 22, 2008 12:16 PM CDT 0 recs

yeah

i really like that guy. he seems to have good command and according to this he was throwin 96mph

Feliz and Hurley. The 1-2 punch of the future

by Steal Home on Aug 22, 2008 12:35 PM CDT up 0 recs

That seems high

Wieland’s heater is supposedly back in the low 90s range but I haven’t seen any verified reports of him throwing as high as 96.

Neil Ramirez Interview

by jparks77 on Aug 22, 2008 12:45 PM CDT up 0 recs

Yea

in that video, he also mixes in a 108 mph pitch, so I’m not sure that the gun was reliable.

"So you think the Celtics will beat Detroit? Hell will freeze over before that happens, mark my words." miles 5/20/08

by badradiorules on Aug 22, 2008 12:54 PM CDT up 0 recs

yeah i saw that so its probably not right

but look at this guy Tim Murphy. am overrating how deceptive it is, its looks like that could really fool hitters.

here

Feliz and Hurley. The 1-2 punch of the future

by Steal Home on Aug 22, 2008 1:18 PM CDT up 0 recs

am i overrating*

Feliz and Hurley. The 1-2 punch of the future

by Steal Home on Aug 22, 2008 1:18 PM CDT up 0 recs

I saw

88-89

Offense doesn't doubt me, but my first and primemost thing is defense and punt return and kickoff return

by zywica on Aug 22, 2008 2:56 PM CDT up 0 recs

Micheal Bianucci

The kid out of Auburn is a pretty mice hitting prospect. Along with Paisano there are a couple kids to keep an eye on offensively

Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.

by bigsteve on Aug 22, 2008 1:09 PM CDT up 0 recs

Bianucci

Yea, he’s been a nice suprise since signing. I know there were some doubts as to whether his swing was too long to hit in pro ball. He’s answered that nicely thus far.

I’m not a Paisano believer. I know he is still pretty young, but I don’t see him hitting in the upper levels. It is good to see what Fry, Bianucci, Bolden, Butler, Clark Murphy, De los Santos and a few others are doing down there.

"So you think the Celtics will beat Detroit? Hell will freeze over before that happens, mark my words." miles 5/20/08

by badradiorules on Aug 22, 2008 2:08 PM CDT up 0 recs

Butler Interview

http://mvn.com/mlb-rangers/2008/08/23/prospect-interview-series-joey-butler/

Joey Butler Interview

by jparks77 on Aug 23, 2008 10:27 AM CDT up 0 recs

yeah but you have to wonder

if he can remain in the OF. Have you seen him move out there? Possibly a future 1B…

by Goyogringo on Aug 22, 2008 2:41 PM CDT up 0 recs

Wieland's very, very intriguing

I really see him moving faster than the average HS pitcher.

Baseball Time in Arlington

by jamcadbury on Aug 22, 2008 5:52 PM CDT up 0 recs

Saying you think this team...

is a playoff team is just flat out ignoring the pitching.

No team is a playoff team with the worst pitching in the league.

"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates

by slc ranger on Aug 22, 2008 3:27 PM CDT 0 recs

I can't take a guy like Byrd seriously

when he says that.

Offense doesn't doubt me, but my first and primemost thing is defense and punt return and kickoff return

by zywica on Aug 22, 2008 4:46 PM CDT up 0 recs

I think he means the lineup when he says it's a playoff "team"

I just can’t believe anyone seriously looks at the pitching staff and believes they’re a playoff team.

I'm undefeated in fights. Have I been in any? No. Thats because people know my f'ing status. Don't mess with the elite. - Miles

by Dirk Diggler on Aug 22, 2008 5:07 PM CDT up 0 recs

I think he means that too

which is part of the reason I can’t take him seriously.

Offense doesn't doubt me, but my first and primemost thing is defense and punt return and kickoff return

by zywica on Aug 22, 2008 5:33 PM CDT up 0 recs

Heh

fair enough. But, they are leading the world in runs. He might not be that far off by suggesting the lineup is good enough to be a playoff lineup.

I'm undefeated in fights. Have I been in any? No. Thats because people know my f'ing status. Don't mess with the elite. - Miles

by Dirk Diggler on Aug 22, 2008 5:39 PM CDT up 0 recs

Today's tools

they did A-ball today. Rangers:

BEST POWER Ian Gac Clinton
BEST FASTBALL Neftali Feliz Clinton
BEST DEFENSIVE SECOND BASEMAN Jose Vallejo Bakersfield
BEST MANAGER PROSPECT Mike Micucci Clinton

Pretty thin.

Offense doesn't doubt me, but my first and primemost thing is defense and punt return and kickoff return

by zywica on Aug 23, 2008 12:06 AM CDT 0 recs