and target bullpen guys: Mayhay (if healthy), Juan Cruz and, Heath Bell. The Rangers could use another lefty and an 8th inning guy — more reliable than C.J.

i have ZERO interest in liriano. ive followed him pretty close and he simply hasnt been the same since his arm injury and everyone/everything ive read say that hes not going to ever be the same unless something major changes

beyond that, the twins have no reason to trade him, unless they get blown away

the same situation with volstad/josh johnson, hes cheap for a few more years, therefore i dont see them trading him away just yet. now dan uggla, yes i think they move him soon (money issue + they have coghlin who can replace him). im glad they are guys that JN would target, i just dont see volstad/johnson getting moved this year…

now as for guys like heath bell (i think he gets moved almost for sure), cruz (doubt he gets traded at his current $$ cost to the royals) and cain (no interest after looking deeper into stats this year) the situations are somewhat different. i like bell a lot, and dont know what it would cost to get him but i would def be in on them moving him. my feelings about cruz have been spelled out before, ad i would like to see him here one way or another…). cain im not such a big fan of (flyball + other stats + probable cost = smoak or a package like that)

i would love to see the rangers krod feliz at the end of the year – i really think that one way or another the guy needs to get some experience at the ML level this year…and i think putting him in teh bullpen is probably a better step than putting him in the rotation – and it could kill two birds with one stone if they are unable to get an impact arm of any kind via trade)

i like what they are doing with holland, giving him a few innings here and there, but not a TON and not having him throw in low pressure situations

still, all that said i would have not a huge problem if the rangers traded a smoak-based package for halliday (it would have to be something like smoak, catcher—teagarden?, beltre?, main or beavan + latin arm- think like melo?)

would you do smoak, teagarden, beltre, main/bevan, moscoso/diamond + lower level arm for halliday? who says no?

Make it happen, JD.

He’s the only starter who makes sense.

I don’t like the idea of shelling out for a relief arm when we have Neffy Perez down there in AAA just waiting to unleash his special brand of carnage on fools as he breaks in this year out of the ’pen.

to make a huge trade this year. I want to see how this team sustains this success later into the season. I hate to be the guy who poo-poos our awesome win streak, but I really don’t know how good the teams we have been playing really are. I want to see our starters keep up these numbers well into June before I really buy in to making a run this year.

But the big thing to me is the fact that Ben Sheets is practically a Ranger already. He was already sold on us over the winter and now we are actually a winning team. A rotation of Sheets, Millwood, Padilla, Harrison and Feldman can make a serious run, and a bullpen that adds a better lefty (is Hinckley the guy? We shall see.) and Neftali to a surprisingly decent collection of pieces can be an asset.

In sum, Sheets is the addition I really want and expect to have. We should only add another piece if the deal is too good to pass up, and when trying to acquire pitching, that’s rarely the case.

He and CJ would be BFFs

Responding to the posts above about Cliff Lee and Adam Miller:

No way do I touch Miller. When you read articles in spring training about “his career could be over,” that’s a player I have absolutely zero interest in.

As for Lee, I’m interested, but Smoak’s not the player to deal. Pretty much every good hitting prospect Cleveland has right now is a 1B/DH type- they’re as deep at that position as the Rangers are at catcher.

to place this in the post game thread, so I’ll put it here.

Play the Angels off, keyboard cat.

We aren’t a team with a boatload of potential free agents. Our starting IF is all locked up through 2012. 60% of our OFs are under control for at least 3 more years after this one plus 3 guys in AAA already on the 40. 3/5 of our starting rotation are under team control for at least another 3 years. And I only see 2 or 3 relievers who won’t be back next year.

Couple all that with the farm system we have and we don’t have t make any serious moves. Its a luxury we have but in no way do we have to make a bunch of changes.

that Sheets and Holland are just as likely to make an impact as most of the (realistic) players I have seen listed around here. Holland may have left a bad taste in our mouths, but I think his stuff is ML legit. I hate to sound too idealistic, but I think Holland and Feliz can have an impact similar to Lackey and KRod for the Angels in ’03.

If the CHW continue to impload, what would it take to get Buherle?

Would starting a package around Borbon, Teagarden, Harrison, Arias and Boscan be enough to get the conversation started or are we looking at having to headline with Holland or Feliz?

the guy I am interested in talking about is Vinny Padilla. If we can unload him for something marginal to a team like the Mets, it would sure help us with flexability down the road. I have seen a lot of posts on here acting like we have money to spend. THIS TEAM COULD NOT AFFORD JUAN CRUZ LAST OFFSEASON. Where do you think we will find the money to take on anyone worth taking on? If JD is going to upgrade this team externally in any meaningful way, we will have to be buyers AND sellers.

wondering if we can offer the Giants a deal for Sanchez similar to what the Mets offered for Oliver Perez a few years back?