Wednesday a.m. Rangers things
by Adam J. Morris on Aug 5, 2009 9:41 AM CDT
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PrintJeff Wilson writes that, while Derek Holland and the defense weren't great, it wouldn't have made any difference if they were yesterday, given how the bats performed. Andruw Jones has a telling quote:
"Everything [Gio Gonzalez] threw was a ball," said Jones, who flew out three times against Gonzalez. "We knew it at the beginning. We just couldn’t lay off it. We kept chasing it and kept getting ourselves in a hole."
Nelson Cruz's injury will have him out until at least Friday, and if he isn't ready to go by then, the Rangers will apparently look to call up Brandon Boggs, and either put Cruz on the d.l. (a move they are hoping to avoid) or send down a pitcher.
Gil LeBreton says that Cruz's absence is a big problem for a struggling Ranger offense.
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But none of that poor approach is Rudy's responsibility, right?
He’s still blameless in all this, right?
by Athos on Aug 5, 2009 9:43 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
Not completely blameless
But that quote says alot. The players knew he was throwing balls they just couldn’t lay off.
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.
But I think this is an area where Rudy's approach falls short..
One of the reasons they can’t lay off is possibly the whole swing approach, from the toe tap intiation on. It seems like a lot of the swings start early in order to always drive the ball, which precludes being able to wait on pitch. I just don’t see as many “late adjustments” and defensive swings as I do with some of the better hitting teams.
Please be aware that I don’t know jack-shit about swing mechanics, but I think my post is still correct.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Maybe teams shouldn't carry hitting coaches
And players should privately hire guys if they want.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:02 AM CDT up reply actions
I'm pretty sure the minimum is 400
But if they can’t afford one, then you can give them some pointers.
Easy.
so no one is up until at least Friday?
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
I don't see how they can bring anyone up before then..
Ian is already DL’ed, and Cruz is day-to-day, so the only way to bring up a bat is to send down a bullpen arm. Given the amount of work the pen has gotten lately, that’s problematic.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
true. hare pretty-much ragged out
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
I think Do-Math is going to go down. He did pitch yestereday, so you won't lose
a rested arm. Plus we HAVE to get another bench guy in here. I’m tired or Otis Nixon Sr. holding us hostage and having to play because we don’t have anyone to pinch hit.
whatever happened to
german duran? oh yeah, he was let go
" This is the inning that propels us to the playoffs. Mark it down."
- Rohn Warshington on Jul 27, 2009 9:19 PM EDT
5th inning against the Tigers
We need to cut bait on Blalock, DL or send Hamilton down to the minors, and call up Borbon, Smoak and Davis.
Hamilton and Blalock are absolute black holes right now.
This is sad.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
Hamilton has actually looked a ton better the last two games
and was the only guy who seemingly consistently layed off that fricking curve…
on the other hand, Im ready for a new screen name. Hank needs to just slowly die
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
Yeah, he's like that henchman in Austin Powers
who has his hands up waiting for the steam roller to hit him yelling “noooo” for like 10 minutes.
Agree 100%
Also, with Hamilton, there isnt a young guy to replace him
he has been looking better and i think we have to give him the chance
Me, neither.
But if nothing else it would inject some new blood into the offense, and Borbon would bring some nice speed to the everyday lineup.
I know it’s not totally fair to just single out those two and nuke them when lots of guys have been going bad, but in the words of Nelson Muntz, “I dunno… Gotta nuke something.”
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
Borbon would be a nice addition simply b/c he doesnt strike out
and isnt gonna just frickin pop the ball up… at least with him i have some confidence he’ll do something positive with a dude in scoring position or on 3rd…
Smoak is a close call with me. Cuz if he does what he’s capable of then he could be a really nice plug in simply b/c he could probably manage a .350 + on base right away, but he could also struggle pretty badly and im not sure if having him come up now is a positive thing for him.
Davis is still gonna K a ton and im not sure how much he’s gonna help us and i dont wanna ruin his confidence again
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
You're right it'd be nice to have a guy who doesn't K much in the lineup right now, but I don't really see Borbon as adding much if anything to the lineup.
He’d bring some nice speed on the bases, but he’s not gonna be an OBP machine or anything like that. I’d expect a .325-.330 OBP right now if he was called up and playing everyday, and that might be a tad optomistic.
But he’d be a fresh face with good CF defense and when he did get on base he’d be a threat and a distraction.
If this team wants to stay in the race they need something to light a fire under their collective suck asses.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:27 AM CDT up reply actions
Doing the same stuff hoping for different results isn't going to cut it.
The manager needs to do something to light a fire. I’m not sure what but something, that is why he gets the big bucks.
by diamond_dave on Aug 5, 2009 10:30 AM CDT up reply actions
at this point
having nine batter like Andrus and Borbon would be a huge upgrade just in terms of watchability… I dont know about productivity, but at the very least, if we allow 2 or 3 runs in nine innings id have some confidence we’d consistently score that many runs. As is, we might hit 2 or 3 hrs in a game and win, but in the games we dont, we’re lucky if we score 3 or 4 runs
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
That speed will be helpful
in running back to the bench.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Im starting to agree that he is still injured
Last night in his 1st AB I believe he got a fastball low and away and drove it to the wall in left center. That was a ball that last year he parked 10 rows into the left center field seats.
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.
yea, i know
but the good thing is, i think he’s starting to get his command of the strikezone back and doesnt seem to think he has to just flail at stuff just trying to put it in play. He’s looked alot better with his approach up there, but his swing is just not right
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
What's sad is that there are people who still think this team has a chance at going to the postseason with the current collection of offensive players.
J.P. can take Roy Halladay and shove him up his ass. I’ll take Derek Holland. - AJM
You're right - seasons over
They’ve already been mathmatically eliminated.
Remember Red, hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.
Well
I’m pretty sure he’s right that we won’t make the playoffs, but I agree that his tone is more than a little annoying.
Jon, you don’t have to be a douche to get your point across. Don’t follow my business model.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:32 AM CDT up reply actions
imitation
best form of flattery
defeatist pussy
by sam in so cal on Aug 5, 2009 12:31 PM CDT up reply actions
uh, its doomsdayJon again
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
more like douchedayJon
Go be a fucking Angels fan or something, already.
LOL Sorry the Sooners will score more that 14. - boomer1
by vfn on Aug 5, 2009 10:29 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Some of the mentality we're seeing is because this is
a fan base that’s not all that sophisticated / experienced when it comes to dealing with the rollercoaster ride that a day-to-day pennant race provides.
The rollercoaster ride is why it’s so much fun!!
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
I think he is just frustrated that nothing is being done to change our offensive results
when for once we actually have run prevention on this team.
by diamond_dave on Aug 5, 2009 10:32 AM CDT up reply actions
I'd rather see more of Josey's trolling bullshit
Than Chicken Little’s THE SKY IS FALLING BURN THE STADIUM TO THE GROUND bullshit.
LOL Sorry the Sooners will score more that 14. - boomer1
by vfn on Aug 5, 2009 10:34 AM CDT up reply actions 2 recs
Yeah...
I never said the sky was falling. I just said we’re not gonna make the playoffs with an this offense.
Sorry I can’t be all “rally woo-hoo run prevention will carry us wheeeee!” we we can’t even score runs agains the Oakland A’s.
J.P. can take Roy Halladay and shove him up his ass. I’ll take Derek Holland. - AJM
Yeah, of all the "Destined to get flamed" statements posted on here daily...
I just didn’t see yours as all that bad.. It IS hard to see this offense making the playoffs, and it IS frustrating as hell to see the pitching and defense seemingly going to waste.
I’ve been called a Pollyanna more than once, but I am still hopeful that one huge tear each from Kins and Hamilton will get it done for us. It isn’t at all out of the realm of possibility, but that’s what it is going to take IMO.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Yeah...
The thing is, I don’t know why missing the playoffs would dissapoint folks so much right now. We’ve had an awesome year with a team we where all expecting to hover around .500.
This year has been a major success already, making the playoffs would simply be an extremely nice bonus at this point.
J.P. can take Roy Halladay and shove him up his ass. I’ll take Derek Holland. - AJM
"hopeful"
Not a really good strategy.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Who The F said it was a "strategy"????
The current roster is very likely to be the one we have for the rest of the year. SO, as a fan, my only available choices are to either (a) hope this one starts hitting or (b) wallow in negativity.
I hope by now everyone is clear which choice I’m likely to pick. Aside from the odd gripe that every fan has, I’m generally always hopeful that things go well.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
no i understand where he's coming from
its just fun to poke fun at LSJs mood swinging overreaction hyperbole…
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
What's sad
is that you think being this pessimistic makes any of us impressed when you turn out to be right occassionally
don’t be such a one trick pony
I don't expect to impress anyone here.
I just post my opinions and feelings.
J.P. can take Roy Halladay and shove him up his ass. I’ll take Derek Holland. - AJM
Rangers can no hit curve ball. Straight ball, they hit it very much. Curve ball, bats are inept.
While I do agree that our lineup is complete GARBAGE
and I would never bet on the Rangers making the playoffs…..it seems like the Angels can’t really rely on having 9 guys hit over .300 all year and falling behind by 4 runs every game before storming back.
Blalock looked completely lost last night
Just wildly swinging and pitches down and away while hoping for the best.
Be careful....to a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
He's become a complete pull-everything, mistake hitter.
He’s terrible, but he seems to do just enough with the few mistake pitches he sees to keep the HR’s and slugging perecentage up to the point where he perhaps doesn’t look so awful that you absolutely have to cut him.
I think that’s BS.
He needs to go.
If someone would claim him off waiver that would be like the best thing ever, but that ain’t gonna happen.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:24 AM CDT up reply actions
And replace him with who?
CDavis had a .256 OBP in 277 plate appearances and in 162 games he would have struck out between 250-300 times.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Literally anyone at this point is an upgrade.
Blalock since the break: .192/.192/.288; 14 H, 24 Ks, 73 PAs
That is a rally killer, to say the least.
But guys...
The Hank Blalock war is OVER. OVER. Don’t you understand that? We lost. Blalock deserves a 2 year, 20 million dollar deal, for all he brings to this team. We can put the offense on his back and he will TAKE US TO THE PROMISED LAND.
LOL Sorry the Sooners will score more that 14. - boomer1
Safe to say at this point that
Josey won the battle but lost the war.
If you want some slack, bring your own rope.
by rangerfaninva on Aug 5, 2009 10:52 AM CDT up reply actions
Well, if you brough Davis up it'd be under the pretense that maybe he'd fixed whatever was broken in the first half.
If you don’t believe that, then Justin Smoak.
Anything is better than Hank Blalock.
At the very least if you call CD back up and give him some run you find out something about a kid who may or may not factor into the long term plans here, whereas no one thinks for a second that Hank Blalock is gonna be around beyond this season.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:30 AM CDT up reply actions
One month of beating up on AAA pitchers is not
going to fix Chris Davis no matter how much you like him as a person.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
No, but it might be time soon
for him to test his adjustments against major league pitching. Not that time yet.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
I don't particularly like him as a person.
But yes I think he still has a ton of potential.
He tore up the minors at all levels last year and seemed to hit pretty well in the bigs as well.
I still think there’s Jermaine Dye potential in him.
.280/.330/.550 kind of potential.
The K’s are always going to be there, and there’s never gonna be a ton of walks, but the power’s legit and he’s shown an ability to make solid contact in the past.
I think with some tweaks he can still be a plus player in this league.
May as well find out some more about the kid now, I say.
We sure as shit ain’t gonna learn anything new about Hankles, and it’s not like Kris could be worse than Hankles has been post-break.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:48 AM CDT up reply actions
If Davis came up and was fixed - we might even find our new hitting coach.
Two for the price of one.
by diamond_dave on Aug 5, 2009 10:50 AM CDT up reply actions
What don't you like about him as a person?
Just asking since I don’t really have a sense of CD beyond the stats.
I've heard he doesn't like to sign autographs
but personally that’s all I’ve heard about him.
LOL Sorry the Sooners will score more that 14. - boomer1
He seems pretty frat boy-ish.
Meat head in an “Aw, yah, bro!” kind of way.
Not that he seems like a jerk or a guy who will one day be in front of a parole board saying that “Oh, yes. Believe me, my god, if I could turn back the clock on my mother’s stair-pushing, I would certainly, reconsider it.” or anything like that.
He’s just someone I could never see myself hanging out with for more than 5 minutes without developing the urge to stop being alive.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 11:26 AM CDT up reply actions
Mrs. Doubtfire?
" I have no faith in the GM making a move to help the big club but I’m on board."
Josey Wales on the 2009 Rangers. A team with 18 active players acquired by the current GM.
I guess I can see that.
Though I’d hate to see how far down the confidence well an introspective CD would have fallen.
Well, speaking in general
its hard to give an 18 y/o a fulltime job, takje him away fom home, have him hang out w/o a bunch of other 18 y/o’s only,
And then expect him to be something other than an 18 y/o in a 22 y/o’s body 4 years later.
We have a hard enough time growing up being surrounded by responsibility, imagine that part being taken away…
" I have no faith in the GM making a move to help the big club but I’m on board."
Josey Wales on the 2009 Rangers. A team with 18 active players acquired by the current GM.
I think you just did a great job summarizing the pro ahlete stereotype VERY well..
^5
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I agree with that to a point
I can only imagine how much stupider I would have been with lots of money at that age.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
Howie Kendrick
begs to differ.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
It certainly looked like it worked
for the Angels and Howie Kendrick. He has been on fire since they called him up.
I really think they just need to call him up, and split 1B/DH between Chris, Andruw, and Hank about 4-5 games a week for each, and then adjusting by playing whoever is hot, and sitting whoever is cold. No sense playing streaky players when they are cold.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Assuming his problems had become more mental/confidence that mechanical
Then one month may indeed be enough. It’s not like he had to go down and retool everything.
Toward the end of his ML stint this year, he clearly couldn’t get out of his own way. Now that he’s gone down, regained his confidence, gotten the voices in his head to STFU, and probably made some minor tweaks as well, it is fast approaching time to see if he can carry the success back up here.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I've seen more excitement at a cow fighting tournament than that game
by Telegraph on Aug 5, 2009 9:47 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs
I must rec this for coining a new phrase..
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I am flattered
but cow fighting is an ancient and revered sport, enjoyed by many in Europeland, preferably with a bottle of plonk.
there was a couple of at bats with guys on base in which we struck out twice and between both at ats
there was a total of one single ball thrown in the zone… Hank Blalock was probably the #1 culprit in this
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
Hank chasing all those low and outside pitches, with that bat outstretched
made me puke in my throat.
She say she are the manager.
by rockin_rangers on Aug 5, 2009 9:49 AM CDT up reply actions
..... he's been carrying this thing.
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
sorry
I just find it funny that his avg and obp are the same over the last 18 games-.192
Is that even possible??? 18 games without 1 walk?
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Oh, they've been throwing planty of balls. That isn't the problem.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Plenty, too
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
You CAN
refuse to swing at the ones out of the zone, however.
by AsDevilsRun on Aug 5, 2009 11:24 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
You CAN
but the Rangers can’t.
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
That's the reason I can't totally blame Rudy's approach..
When you can’t tell the difference between a pitch in the zone and one that’s consistently dive outside the zone, they all look like “pitches you can drive”
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I agree
Rudy can help guys with their mechanics and whatnot…but if they’ve been playing baseball for 20+ years and can’t tell the difference between a ball and a strike, that’s on them.
"Does this effectively hide my thunder?"
Agreed, but I think a new voice COULD help them realize that...
Maybe not fix it, but realize it. When I hear interviews like Ian’s a week or so ago, it’s clear they don’t think they need to change anything fundamental.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
as bad as we are
george costanza as hitting coach could help
defeatist pussy lives here
by sam in so cal on Aug 5, 2009 12:53 PM CDT up reply actions
THAT'S IT!!!!
More cotton in the unis!!!!!
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
So the hitting coach should ignore pitch recognition altogether ...
because these guys have been “playing baseball for 20+ years”?
Pitch recognition is part of hitting—a pretty important part. Absolving the HITTING coach of all responsibility for having his players work on pitch recognition when that is an obvious problem is silly. That’s like saying a QB coach shouldn’t put his QB’s through accuracy drills because if they haven’t learned how to throw a ball from point A to point B by now, “that’s on them.”
How do you work on it
Andruw Jones said they all knew they were getting balls but they swung anyways. Its not that they didn’t recognize ball from strike its they couldn’t lay off. How is a hitting coach supposed to fix that. This team doesn’t have alot of very good contact guys so getting deep into counts leads to alot of strikeouts.
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.
A simple approach ...
would be to stick their asses in the batters box and throw pitches at them until they learn to lay off of the ones that go out of the zone. Maybe fine them $100 per pitch swung at outside the strike zone. If a guy is prone to swinging at breaking balls in the dirt, throw him fifty a day in the batting cage and I’ll bet that before too long you see him swing less at that pitch in the games.
The idea that you can do nothing to change poor pitch recognition is beyond ridiculous. What is so magical about pitch recognition that it can’t be fixed while things like swing mechanics can be? That makes zero sense. If life has taught us anything it is that human beings, particularly those that achieve high-levels of athletic prowess, can make adjustments to overcome deficiencies. That’s why we practice.
All thats gonna do
is like I said make them timid and lead to getting down in counts and with our lack of contact abilities create more strikeouts.
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.
Teaching them not to swing at bad pitches ...
will lead to more strikeouts?
That’s like saying drinking more water will only lead to dehydration.
I would love to see some strike-out lookings
It would be very encouraging.
Hank Blalock should be on a take-all-the-way approach until he gets a walk.
Just to further this point
He could strike out 4 straight times on 3 pitches (not swinging) and then take a walk on his 5th at bat and he would be getting on base at higher rate than he has recently
by BuckyB on Aug 5, 2009 11:14 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
From your keyboard to his ears....
That is exactly the kind of example I would hope a hitting coach could impart to him.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I think they recognize it
but when you have already committed early to your swing because you’re wanting to pull everything, it’s too damn late to do anything about it.
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Agreed, and I posted earlier that I think that IS one area where Rudy can be faulted...
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I know he does in his dvd for kids
which is very simplistic, by the way, but when have you seen it in practice on the field?
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
I wasn't clear...
My point was that his “model” swing seems to have guys starting very early, and while that makes for a powerful swing when they seelct the right pitch, it decreases the likelihood they can lay off a pitch.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Why was Rudy's "approach"
so successful last year when we have almost all the same players , save the OBP monster who killed LH pitching?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Asked and answered...
plus career years from Kins and Hamilton helped a wee bit.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Having the obp monster who kills LH pitching in the line-up benefits everybody.
Remember the movie “It’s A Wonderful Life”?
Milton Bradley (Abreu fills this role for LAA) was kind of like our George Bailey and life without him or somebody like him isn’t so wonderful.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Milton Bradley in this years offense putting up last years numbers
Would not fix this offense
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.
We disagree, bigsteve.
One bat can make that big of a difference.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
bigsteve
It’s an extreme case because he was so good but look what Manny did for the Dodgers last year.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Manny brought pop to that lineup also
Bring manny in here in this lineup now and its gonna be an improvement but not completely fix things. Manny is not gonna suddenly make Ian Kinsler better or Josh Hamilton better. Whats ailing those guys will not be fixed by bringing in a guy like Manny. And it damn sure won’t be fixed by bringing in a guy like Nick Johnson who has little league power
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.
yeah but...
Rangers were 60-66 with Bradley in the lineup last year and 19-17 without so there goes that theory.
If you want some slack, bring your own rope.
by rangerfaninva on Aug 5, 2009 10:17 AM CDT up reply actions
We didn't have this pitching, this defense or the other changes
implemented by Nolan last year either.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
what?
How does that make any difference to point I made about last year? The Rangers played better without Bradley in the lineup….it’s not that hard of a concept.
If you want some slack, bring your own rope.
by rangerfaninva on Aug 5, 2009 10:26 AM CDT up reply actions
wow
you slept through science classes in high school?
do you really think that you can look at one variable and attribute all results to that single factor?
defeatist pussy lives here
by sam in so cal on Aug 5, 2009 12:43 PM CDT up reply actions
Just look at the standings
Isn’t that your argument for Blalock
By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
"I am one of the biggest Texas Ranger fans out there but I'm also one of the smartest. Deal with it."
-The Outlaw
possibly because
Hamilton and Bradley were both coming from other organizations
Murphy grew up in the Boston org. where they do things different
Cruz and Davis came up from the minors
Rudy was not here for what, 2 months, after his surgery
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
I found 6 more teams (total goes to 31 since 1959)
that were 3 games or closer at this time of year and still went to the playoffs. A few of these teams won it all.
Philadelpshia ’80 – 6 games back on August 11 (won division and World Series)
LA Dodgers ’65 – 4.5 games back on September 16 (Won NL and World Series)
Montreal ’81 – 4 games back on September 4 (Won 2nd half NL East)
Houston ’81 – 4 games back on August 27 (Won 2nd half NL West)
LA Dodgers ’59 – 3.5 games back on August 12 (Won NL & World Series)
Pittsburgh ’74 – 5.5 games back on August 6 (Won NL East)
Yes, the last two games have been bleak and the plan to fix the offense is “hope” but MLB history teaches us that it is not time to panic.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
and all those are without the benefit of both wild card and division
which we have and we are still only 4 and 1/2 out of the division, doable with ten games left against the angels
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
Yes, 4.5 behind LAA (with 10 games left) and
3 behind Boston (with 3 games left). The beauty of the Wild Card is that there is nobody b/w Texas & Boston although the Rays are getting ready to drop the hammer.
I don’t think people should get caught up in how many games the Rangers are behind and instead concentrate on seeing if the Rangers can win 94 games. Do that and they’ll make it to the post-season.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
No, it really only matters how many games behind they are.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:04 AM CDT up reply actions
How many games will the Rangers be out of playoff
contention if they win 94 games, Deep Dish Gardner?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
I love that your line of attack
Is that I worked at a pizza place when I was 16 years old.
Damn, you got me.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:10 AM CDT up reply actions
And you didn't answer the question.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
WOW
I mean, really. From you, of all people, complaining about other posters not answering your questions.
Remember all those questions of mine you ignored? You know, that habit you have of suddenly ending a conversation when I get involved, only to restart the same conversation on another thread? Yeah, why don’t you go answer all those questions, and then you can start trying to call other people out.
94 games gets into the postseason about 95% of the time
but im gonna be scoreboard watching as i think this team is gonna reach closer to 88 wins
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
If this team somehow made the playoffs
We would be swept in 3 games with our total hits being 4….3 of which were solo homeruns, 1 walk and 35 k’s
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 10:01 AM CDT up reply actions
In a lot of ways I found myself thinking last night....
….watching A&M play football every week starting next month will be less painful than this.
Well, at the very least...
A&M isn’t paying someone $6.5 million to hit .063/.063/.063 for the month. That is a magnificently epic fail.
hank must die
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
Everytime I see Peterson getting burned for a TD I just want to scream.
He makes up for his lack of speed with poor coverage skills.
by diamond_dave on Aug 5, 2009 10:45 AM CDT up reply actions
See
This is where I’d ask “Who cares what you think? No offense, but seriously.”
But I won’t.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:26 AM CDT up reply actions
Don't forget ballsy.
For instance, I wouldn’t have the balls to interrupt Taylor Teagarden’s fun and ruin his night. But you, you were just blessed with a bigger pair, my friend. Use it wisely.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:30 AM CDT up reply actions
Oh don't be such a starfucker.
If you’re at a bar, you can be talked to. It doesn’t matter who you are. If someone is such a huge star that random people talking to them ruins their night, then don’t go out – or at least go to some secluded VIP type section.
There is a Japanese author (can’t remember his name) who said that today’s society is unique, historically, in that in today’s large cities, it is the first time in history that strangers are not a threat. We are hardwired to perceive anyone we don’t recognize as the enemy – from our time living as rival tribes, but that is not the case in cities of today, yet we still feel that way at times.
Anyways, point being: get out there and mingle, Gardner! It may make you less of an asshole to make some friends!
Baseball players are people too.
I think it may be a bit of a stretch to say that Teagarden is having fun. From the reports I hear and from running into him a few times – does he ever smile? I’m guessing no.
I agree they are people
And as a person, I don’t enjoy strangers coming up and bothering me.
Maybe it’s just me.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:45 AM CDT up reply actions
I agree
I would not be the least bit interested in approaching any famous person I saw in a bar, partly because I wouldn’t really get anything out of it other than “gee, guess who I talked to?” and partly out of respect for their privacy.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
And the great part is, you can tell that story even if you didn't go up to em :)
But what was cool, is my friend’s dad coaches a soccer team that played Emmit Smith’s team and she got to talk with him 1 on 1 for like 30 minutes.
THAT would be fun.
So when you are out...
….and any stranger speaks to you, you get annoyed? It honestly ruins your evening? Gardner, you need to lighten the load a little, man! There are some cool people at any bar on any given day. Sometimes it’s hard to get through the fact that you are all at a bar, but there are quality people all over the place.
When I'm at a bar or out in public
I’m with friends and/or family and I’d prefer to be left alone.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
That's understandable
And I’m at bars with friends, too, but making new friends is fun, guys. Talking to new people is fun, too! If someone is having an intense, one on one conversation with someone, sure leave them alone. If someone is sitting with friends, not having any conversation at all, does it really put a thorn in their side to be spoken to by a stranger?
I may be unusual in that
I’m one who when the phone rings, I groan audibly no matter who it is.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
Well
I typically don’t go out alone, so I’m usually at places with my friends or my girlfriend, and yeah, if some goofus came up and tried striking up a conversation with me, it would annoy me.
I fully admit my lack of bohemian-ness, but I don’t think that makes me some kind of anti-social misfit. I just don’t want to be harassed by somebody.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 11:28 AM CDT up reply actions
That's fair.
And maybe Taylor Teagarden feels the same way; I don’t know. It’s more of a function of the circumstance in my mind than anything. If I see Brett Gardner sitting in silence at a bar, closing out his tab, I can’t think that me striking up a conversation would annoy you that much.
It's pretty moot anyway
I don’t go out.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 11:31 AM CDT up reply actions
heh
David Souter
After Fuentes blows a save and an Angels loss to the Indians:
"Angels still in first place" - UCI Halo
"Hey you know who would have gotten those 3 outs in the 9th?
Darren O’Day." - FirebatM3
LOL
Supposedly he's never owned a TV ...
until he received one as a gift and he just uses it as a coffee table. To call Souter eccentric would be an understatement, I think.
At least he could rely on his "empathy for other Luddites" to help him rule...
Seriously, that is the kind of well-rounded mind we want ruling on societal issues???
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I'm kind of hoping
for a first class mind like Sarah Palin.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
That would be astoundingly funny to see..
Surely that’s a sign of the apocalypse isn’t it???
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Reply fail - reply to Cahill
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
i think you used starfucker in exactly the opposite way
"I just want to comment on how it’s become like a common thing in the [MLB] for guys to fall in love with [the Rangers’s] sloppy seconds." (thanks cstorm)
I think I understood his point
That I was being the starfucker by treating Teagarden differently, but obviously the real starfucking would be talking to a guy only because he’s on your favorite team.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 10:48 AM CDT up reply actions
Well to be fair, I talk to a lot of strangers when I'm out.
But it’s true, the only reason I talked to Teagarden is because he plays for the Rangers. Is that any different from talking to a hot girl for the only reason being that she’s hot? Either way, it’s an extremely subjective reason that ends in me talking to a stranger.
I would hope the potential payback of talking to the hot girl..
is better, and markedly different, than talking to the athlete.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
I'm assuming in this case Teagarden would be the "catcher"
by cstorm15 on Aug 5, 2009 12:34 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Teagarden
I’m beginning to believe that he is really a cyborg
He doesn’t smile. He doesn’t acknowledge reporters during interviews
What a juicebox. Lighten up.
by oc on Aug 5, 2009 12:54 PM CDT up reply actions
Well I think the motivations differ...
…but looking at it from the outside, the process is the same, really. Striking up a conversation in public with someone you don’t know. Does it piss off the athlete but sit ok with the HB? Especially someone like Teagarden who I can promise isn’t approached by 100s of weirdos when he’s out. Dude is just not that recognizeable or famous. Hell, I wasn’t even sure it was him first time I saw him.
haha, so true
i hold out hope for a 6-6 season…. maybe we can hire Mike Maddux to coach our defense and use Elvis as our Safety, that should greatly help our run prevention
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
I always hold out hope for an 0-12 season for the Aggies.
But I’m excited about the possibility of another “4-8, Bowl-less, last in the Big 12 South with the all-important loss to Baylor” season. I think the offense might be too good for it, though holy poop does that defense look bad. The way I see it, A&M’s season comes down to Arkansas, Kansas State and Baylor (maybe Tech depending on how Potts plays). Still, the range seems to be 4-8 to 7-4.
I’d say that I’m wishing them luck, but I was taught it’s bad to lie.
by GhettoBear04 on Aug 5, 2009 11:36 AM CDT up reply actions
As a Baylor fan,
I wish we played y’all at the beginning of the year before Potts got too much experience. Either way, the day after Thanksgiving at the new Cowboys Stadium should be a lot of fun. Looking forward to it…
by GhettoBear04 on Aug 5, 2009 11:49 AM CDT up reply actions
The Bears are closer to a Bowl contender than the Aggies are
Be careful....to a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
This may not be popular...
but I’m starting to think that AJM is right about the Rangers playoff chances. It’s not because of how far they’re behind the Halos or BoSox (although that’s not great either). It’s all because of this offense. I’m tired of hearing that they will turn it around. We are well over 100 games now. This offense is what it is. All or nothing, and not very good.
I know many here think that Jones isn’t a big problem. Although he may not be the biggest problem, I still think he’s a problem in this offense. The guy is all or nothing. He swings for the fences everytime. I think Blalock, Byrd, and Jones’ approach at the plate has spread to the rest of the team like the flu has. There is no reason why a guy hitting .230 should be hitting cleanup. I don’t care what his OPS is. He just doesn’t make enough contact. The walks are nice, but not enough imo. He should be a PH on this team right now.
I’m with a few others here. Call up Borbon, CD, and Smoak. They may not do much better, but they certainly can’t do much worse either.
I for one sure as hell won’t miss Blalock, Jones, Byrd and their swing at everything now and bitch about it later mentality. After this year they will be gone and hopefully this offense can take a fucking pitch from time to time.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
by slc ranger on Aug 5, 2009 10:06 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
It has been a nice year but we have just too many holes right now.
Let’s turn it over to the youngsters and hope this disease doesn’t spread.
by diamond_dave on Aug 5, 2009 10:09 AM CDT up reply actions
Jones
Jones is not a problem in this lineup. In fact cleanup is a pretty good spot for him. That spot in the order is supposed to be about power and not necessarily about average. Last year Ryan Howard put up a 251/339/543 line and got 2nd in the MVP voting. This year Jones is rocking a 226/341/533 line. Jones is probably the last thing people need to bitch about here. Actually 2nd to last because Micheal Young is the last thing to bitch about.
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.
yea, i dont think AJ is a problem
he’s not much of a positive to me simply because he’s so frustrating to watch and just falls in line with this offensive approach. If we simply had more OBP guys ahead of AJ, he would be a much more effective and positive player to have, as it is, I do see how he could be veiwed as a detriment as he’s about what Blalock is except he takes some walks.
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
The problem with Jones is the homerun disease that has infected this team......
I would not bitch about Jones nearly as much if we had obp. guys around him, but when you have Jones swinging for the fence, Hank swining for the fence, Kinsler swining for the fence, Davis for most of the year swining for the fence….it kills your offense. You are homerun or bust.
Here is how our typical run producing inning happens:
flyout
solo homerun
strikeout
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 10:18 AM CDT up reply actions
Sadly
Jones has about the third highest OBP on the team.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Strongly disagree...
first off I don’t care about MVP voting.
People saying Blalock needs to be DFA’d, but Jones is fine is funny to me. As Blalock 84 said above, Jones is Blalock with a few more walks (and a few less hits). One can’t be the biggest problem while the other is no problem at all.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
well, i will say those few more walks do help Jones case alot
cuz Blalock and Walk have never met
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
As does the 100 point overall season advantage in OPS.
As do all of Blalock’s horrible K’s and refusal to walk.
Plus it’s just horribly frustrating watching try to pull a fastball on the outer half when he’s right on it and could easily drive the pitch to cetner or left put instead grounds out weakly to 2b cause god hates me and so does Hank.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:42 AM CDT up reply actions
watching hank hit last night was worse than all the insane ways of dying that you come up with put together into
one big pile of poo and thrown into my face
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
I had never disliked Hank, except for his proclivity for injury.
But this helicopter-rotate-on-your-heels-dislocate-both-kneecaps-fall-on-your-ass-swing he has going right now makes me want him to die.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"you gonna lose your horse. seriously." FX2
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
Yah, I don't get the diff between them either!!!!
Hank Blalock post All-Star break: .192/.192/.288/.480
Andruw Jones post All-Star break: .205/.380/.513/.893
Those numbers look about the same.
I agree.
Yay!
Rainbows!
Puppies!
Lollipops!
Overly Trusting Hookers!!!
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:39 AM CDT up reply actions
That's fugly.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"you gonna lose your horse. seriously." FX2
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
What you need to understand is...
…walks just clog the bases. We’re trying to score runs here people! Blalock helps this team by not taking them. Andruw Jones is a namby-pamby and obviously hates his team.
by GhettoBear04 on Aug 5, 2009 11:52 AM CDT up reply actions
When I wake up in the morning
I like to mix milk with turpentine in the blender, then pour the mixture down the drain while humming Jeff Buckley’s version of “Hallelujah”. I do this in hope that my research experiments will run smoothly during the day. It probably doesn’t really help, but it certainly doesn’t make it any worse either.
Any day that starts with Jeff Buckley has a strong chance to go well...
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Jones
He isn’t the problem. His .341 OBP isn’t near the worst on this team, and there’s nothing wrong with his .874 OPS.
He’s been a good, cheap addition.
by Darrell McKown on Aug 5, 2009 10:30 AM CDT up reply actions
Buh, Buh, Buh, his batting average is low!!!
/SLC Ranger.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:43 AM CDT up reply actions
What's up your ass?
I’m not a fan of a guy hitting in the mid .220’s. Especially in the middle of the lineup when it usually takes hits, not walks, to drive in runs.
Lynch me, jerk me off with a spoon, then punch a few babies while you’re at it.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
Blame the guys around him for not getting on base
Like I said hes not that far from Ryan Howards numbers and im sure you wouldn’t be upset if Howard was in this lineup. Our cleanup hitter is putting up fine numbers but because of everyone elses struggles they are magnified and scrutinized a lot more.
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.
I do blame the guys around him...
I just don’t give him a pass.
Like I said, he’s not the bigget problem. I just don’t think he shouldn’t get any of the blame either. MY is really the only guy who is performing well offensively this year. Who the hell would have guessed that? It’s frustrating.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
I take that back...
Elvis is doing better than I thought he would at the plate this year as well.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
Man, you are the new worst.
Andruw Jones has a .377 wOBA, but he sucks, cause of batting average, of course!!!
Oh, and Nelly Cruz sucks too. Don’t know why, though… his BA is almost .270 right now and that’s kind of good, but Oh Wellz, LolzerZ to BellzerZ!
I need to know as much as possible about your daily routine so that I can try to do as many things in my life as completely different as possible.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 11:22 AM CDT up reply actions
Yes I'm the new worst...
not sure how I forgot about Nellie. I’ve been a big supporter of his all year and he’s had a great season.
As far as you being a dick about my opinion on AJ. Congrats.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
When your opinion
is that you think clouds are made out of Cotton Candy, its no wonder you draw flak.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Him putting credence into a player's batting average
is a little different than your analogy, in his defense
When you have a guy with the third highest OBP
on the team, in a team where OBP is desperately lacking, he needs to go more towards the top of the order than the bottom.
The franchise makes way too many outs as it is, and burying AJs bat is just asinine.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
I agree with you and Dirk completely,
I just don’t think saying that you don’t want a .220 hitter in the clean-up spot is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard
It's not the dumbest...
it’s the worst.
I realize BA isn’t the end all be all in analyzing a hitters performance. It’s not one of the first things I look at either. However it does still mean something imo.
I knew my opinion wouldn’t be popular, but all this is pretty funny. If you want to disagree with me that’s fine. Just don’t be a dick about it and talk down to me like I’m some newbie or DMN blogger who doesn’t know what OPS or wOBA is. I’ve never had a problem with Dirk A. Tron. If I’m the new worst to him becuase we disagree on AJ then so be it. Not a big deal.
"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates
Well, to be fair, it was one of the worst opinions I've ever heard voiced on this or any other forum.
So, thanks for the congrats, I suppose.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 11:47 AM CDT up reply actions
A) He's still 'hitting' better than Blalock (since the break)
B) He’s slugging .230 higher than Blalock right now, and don’t you want a slugger at the 4 spot?
by GhettoBear04 on Aug 5, 2009 11:55 AM CDT up reply actions
Well, the Rangers are in the exact same spot today as yesterday
4.5 and 3.
Remember Red, hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.
Not really
They have 2% less time to make up that deficit.
by Darrell McKown on Aug 5, 2009 10:42 AM CDT up reply actions
how
many called strikes were there last night against the Rangers. I’m talking about called strikes where the batter did not swing.
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 10:18 AM CDT reply actions
spent a few minutes there
and couldn’t figure out the answer… oh well
it just seemed like we never took a called strike last night. Surely we did… I just wanted to see how many and if it was drastically lower than a “normal” game.
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 10:37 AM CDT up reply actions
Gameday log shows 24...
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
thnx
damn, thats more than I thought. I wonder if most of those were after the starter was pulled….
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 11:16 AM CDT up reply actions
Yeah, I had to count them twice (pitch by pitch game log)..
It seemed high to me too.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Doc Holland thoughts....
I admittedly missed the game that convinced everyone that Holland was Neo….
but is his “stuff” that electric? His changeup was at around 85mph while most of his fastballs seemed to be at around 91mph. Is that enough variance? His slider seemed “average” at best and was rarely thrown for a strike. He also seems to have little idea about when to throw his different pitches?
Obviously our offense made their pitcher look like a cy young winner, but just casually watching the game left me with the impression that the Oak. pitcher had/has better “stuff” than Holland.
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 10:24 AM CDT reply actions
The answer to your ? is yes.
Usually his fastball is 94-95 and keeps it low.
by diamond_dave on Aug 5, 2009 10:26 AM CDT up reply actions
I like Holland but last night is what you get
with most young pitchers, which really makes me wonder how many of them you can break in at the big league level at the same time.
They really can’t be depended on to be consistent.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
that is true
it wouldnt be as much of a problem if our offense was as good as it was supposed to be
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
his FB is 93-94, well above Avg. His Slider is deadly when he's ahead in the count
but when he falls behind like he consistently did last night, all that goes out the window. Its very, very hard for a young pitcher without al the guile to overcome the leverage a hitter has in those counts.
You are stupid if you dont think Holland is gonna be a good pitcher in this league and way overreact to just half of what is seen. Most of what i’ve seen from him is very positive, and it simply comes down to him consistently locating his FB to get ahead in the count and then devastate them with his breaking pitches
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
I swear to god
I was at a bar last night watching the game and when Suzuki got ahead 2-0 I said to myself “Hes better be looking fastball low and inside” and sure enough he was and got one and hit a home run.
Holland is far too predictable when behind in counts.
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.
well
consistently locating his FB
is easier said than done. There are meny great throwers of the baseball who never figure that out.
I obviously have not a clue what kind of pitcher Holland will become. I’m certainly locked in every time he pitches. I’m just asking questions because more often than not this year he just doesn’t look all that special to my admittedly untrained eye.
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 10:35 AM CDT up reply actions
about 98% of 22 yr old pitcher cannot consistently locate their FB at a ML level
and alot of those guys end up being able to. Im counting on Holland, who does have good control, to figure out how to consistently do this.
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
cool
I feel better now that I know Holland has a 98% chance of gaining some control, unless by control you mean more fastball right down the middle like he currently throws.
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 11:19 AM CDT up reply actions
He had a lousy game...
Last time out, he located MUCH better, and never threw much of anything right down the middle. This time, he looked helpless from the jump.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
You had to wonder how he'd bounce back from a pretty long, intense outing the last time out.
If his last outing wasn’t the most total pitches he’s thrown in a pro game, it was probably pretty close.
I still don’t agree with sending him back out for the 9th, but, oh well.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 11:51 AM CDT up reply actions
FWIW, I calculate the number at 97%, not 98%
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
8.2 Ks per 9 and 3.3 BBs per 9 as a SP for Holland
those are very, very solid numbers. I predict very good things for him as soon as next year when his HR rates go down
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
I hope JD and Nolan are taking notes....the rest of the year should be:
We cannot go into next season with all these freaking free swinging, I’m gonna hit a homerun or strikeout, poor plate disciplined pieces of shit.
Byrd, Hank, and Jones can all go……and rudy can follow them out the door.
Kinsler can change his attitude and quit trying to hit 40 homeruns….or he can be traded as far as I am concerned.
The lineup the rest of the year should be:
1. Borbon CF – He doesn’t walk enough, but at least he puts the ball in play and uses his speed instead of flying out 70% of the time like Kinsler.
2.Young 3B – He does his job the way it should be done.
3. Smoak 1B – Wash wont do it….but this will be his spot for years to come
4.Hamilton LF – Without a bounceback year from him we are probably screwed anyway
5.Kinsler 2B – Now maybe your homeruns will be 3 run bombs instead of solos.
6.Cruz RF- has had a good year….hope for another with some more walks
7.Davis DH – I would like to see us aquire a DH next year that is like Abreu or Bradley…
8.Salty/Tea C – Hopefully one of these guys learns how to hit
9.Andrus SS – he can flip with Borbon depending on the pitcher…andrus would lead off against lefties and bat 9th vs rightys
Of course old school brotha wont do this…..he will roll with his boys Hank, Byrd, and Jones
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 10:36 AM CDT reply actions
that's why he's not the GM
maybe the GM will let those guys walk. ron can’t put them in the lineup if they aren’t here.
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Kinsler batting fifth is something id be fine with
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
Personally
I would put Hamilton at 3, Cruz at 4, Smoak at 5, Kinsler at 6 and Davis at 7.
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
change that..Kins needs to be at 5 in front of the slower guys
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Hamilton's position should be, "DL- 15".
Or if he’s not hurt, then it needs to be DH’ing in the AZRL as he tries to get whatever’s broken fixed.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:45 AM CDT up reply actions
I agree to DL Hamilton
Just like the good old days with Chan Ho Park’s mysterious “injuries” that just basically kept him off the roster and pitching extended “rehab” assignments. At the very worst, Hamilton can spend a couple of weeks in OKC working on why he suddenly became a ruh-tard.
Smoak is not ready for the MLs.
And I am sure Ron won’t bat him 3rd when he is.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
I think the OP was about next season
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Hamilton's plate discipline has been the poorest on the team.
He doesn’t need to even sniff a batting spot in the upper half of the order until he can do better than swinging at 36% of the pitches he sees outside the zone.
i know it is is fun to hate Byrd
but he takes too much around here, he is a solid player, just needs to walk more
and then you leave out Murphy as well who has been more or less awesome since the early struggles
youre taking out 2 borderline 800 OPS guys and then AJ with his solid stuff as well
i think we need changes (namely get the fuck out hank) but i also think that we could go too far while we are still in the middle of a pennant race
Yep
both Byrd and Murphy take a lot of heat, especially when you look at their production this year. There are just players that some folks just want to hate, I guess,
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
anybody else see that catch the little fucker made last night against the Royals?
only that little fucker could do that
and for now on, im just gonna call Ichiro, that little fucker.
Also, Dallas Braden’s tech roots finally caught up to him, he’s got some type of mysterious rash that may keep him out of tonights game
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
oh, i didnt realize they had already announced Reinke as tonights starter
i dont like Braden at all, that guy has done us pretty bad
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
We get fucked up a lot by the little fucker
what does that make us?
A little fucked?
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
by thedirkatron on Aug 5, 2009 10:51 AM CDT up reply actions
i dont know, Japanese prostitutes?
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
Fire
Decent. Part of a series of elemental movies.
by brettgardner on Aug 5, 2009 11:13 AM CDT up reply actions
never thought we'd talk hindi movies
but I always thought Nandita Das looked good for a near 40 year old.
After Fuentes blows a save and an Angels loss to the Indians:
"Angels still in first place" - UCI Halo
"Hey you know who would have gotten those 3 outs in the 9th?
Darren O’Day." - FirebatM3
LOL
Yup
wish she was still an actress instead of focusing on directing now
After Fuentes blows a save and an Angels loss to the Indians:
"Angels still in first place" - UCI Halo
"Hey you know who would have gotten those 3 outs in the 9th?
Darren O’Day." - FirebatM3
LOL
I've been comparing plate discipline stats on Fangraphs ...
between this year and last. It looks like everyone on the team is swinging at more pitches outside the zone by a pretty decent margin. So they are all capable of swinging at fewer bad pitches. That begs the question of why they are doing so much worse at it this year than last? What has changed to make them all regress in their ability to lay off of bad pitches?
Has anyone in the front office, or the manager, or the mechanics-only hitting coach, looked at those numbers? I’m really beginning to wonder.
our players
cant control what the bat gonna do….
Post.Fail.
by red shoe ranger on Aug 5, 2009 11:21 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
"it's..alive!!!"
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
LOL.. I never tire of that drop...
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Try
looking at Josh’s year-to-year stats. He’s gradually getting fewer fastballs, seeing fewer pitches in the zone, swinging at everything more, and making contact less. It’s infuriating.
and he continues to go up hacking at the first pitch
like some idiot thinking he is going to get a batting prectice fastball down the middle
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 11:41 AM CDT up reply actions
I wonder
if the players ever look at stats like that. I know damn well that if I had the physical ability to play at the major league level, I would sure as hell look at my tendencies and see how I could adjust my approach to be more successful. I seem to remember reading something about Brian Bannister doing something like that.
Maybe they only look at the HR column on the stat sheet...
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
What has changed
Milton now plays for the Cubs.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Do you think it is just coincidence
that with Bradley last year they were 2nd in OBP and had the #1 offense after being 11th in OBP in 2007 and now they are back down to 13th this year?
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
I think MB was a tone-setter, but a raking Hamilton also helped a ton...
This roster seems to all gravitate toward the same style, season to season and game to game. With MB working counts and taking walks, the other hitters definitely followed his lead. This year, they have somehow all gravitated back to the “other” same approach.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
That is pretty much it
Milton is definitely a type A personality. I am sure he had no problem “setting the tone”.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Milton
That’s what I said to Rodney the other night- that Bradley must have gone to all the other hitters last year and said, “You better take some pitches, fools!”
Officially gay for Neftali Feliz
I bet he did...
It’s a stolen line, but I bet he was “the straw that stirred the drink” in the room last year.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Hank still hasn't taken a walk since the All-Star Break...
Josey gripes about JD’s plan for fixing This Thing being “hope”, but continues to insist Hank Blalock wouldn’t be the casualty of his own “Fix This Offense” plan of action…
Hmm… Isn’t hope all that’s left with Hank F Blalock turning it around? He’s terrible right now, and there’s nothing that suggests it’ll turn around any time soon.
wow that a lot of money...
for a QB that is as up and down as Eli.
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 12:06 PM CDT up reply actions
How much
was the bonus? Since thats really the only number that matters in the NFL.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Thats true....
I didn’t even look. I forgot that total money is meaningless to the NFL
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 12:08 PM CDT up reply actions
35 million guaranteed
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.
wow, thats
pretty ridiculous.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Only $35M was guaranteed
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Vernon Wells is gonna make that much per season pretty soon.
As a guy who’s obsession with baseball trumps the shit out of his passion for all others sports combined, I’m always amused when someone starts complaining about NFL players getting big contracts.
NFL players are so underpaid comparatively.
But at least they get those long careers and don’t pay any sort of price physically later in life.
The 40 Trumps All!!!
"My fellow Americans. As a young boy, I dreamed of being a baseball, but tonight I say, we must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom!"
Guaranteed Contracts
Especially you consider the fact that football players don’t get guaranteed contracts. I’ve never understood the public outrage at players who hold out for a better contract. They claim they have obligation to fulfill the terms of their current contract. However, nobody makes quite a big deal when teams cut a player before the contract expires.
by Excel Hearts Choi on Aug 5, 2009 1:19 PM CDT up reply actions
I agree about NFL vs. MLB salaries
but I just don’t say only about $35 Million in any league. That’s pretty big for the NFL, and I’m sure you’re not suggesting that an NFL GM should feel sorry for the players and offer big contract bonuses because they’re underpaid compared to another sport. I don’t really follow football anyway, does Bruce Smith still play?
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
..baseball doesn't have a salary cap.. if the owner can afford it giving a bad contract doesn't matter at all.
the preceding post was a great success.
As a Cowboys fan
I look forward to our defense plowing him into the groung 14 times a year for the next 6 years.
but the is better than Romo
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Hank F
has not been good post AS Break. His numbers are down since then but the hits he’s had since then have been big.
The two games v. Boston, the HR v.Detroit last week to get the team off the schneid and it was his lead-off single on Monday that gave us our first run in a game where we scored twice in a game we should have won.
Little Boy Donuts has his issues (he pissed his pants again at the trade deadline – again) but unlike the many casualties in here of The Great Hank Blalock War of June 2009, he realizes what Blalock did from July 1 to the AS Break and does not dismiss.
He also realizes he probably left CDavis in The Show 6 weeks too long and that he should have sent his ass to OKC in mid-May.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Well this should be good for another 30 comments or so
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.
Or one
Judiciously applied ban.
"He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lamp-posts... for support rather than illumination." - Andrew Lang (1844-1912) also -
"Telephone, n. An invention of the devil which abrogates some of the advantages of making a disagreeable person keep his distance."
~Ambrose Bierce
by Ed Coffin on Aug 5, 2009 2:39 PM CDT up reply actions
Fix the offense, FuturePants
Victor Martinez (8 for 17) & NJohnson (4 for 10 with 4 bb’s) have done quite well for the teams they went to at the deadline.
Both players went for very reasonable costs and Martinez is tethered to the Sox thru next year.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Just wondering
After complimenting Blalock, you suggest fixing the offense by acquiring two guys that could play first base/DH?
ugh stop
this point has been argued to the max on previous threads
if you want to see his answers, just click on his name and read his previous posts
I would have kept Hank F at 1B
made NickJ/VMart the DH
&
my OF would have been Hamilton, Cruz, Murphy, Jones.
I would have sold MByrd for much needed sod and balls to be used at TBiA..
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Right.
You’re willing to throw Hamilton in CF everyday and let Jones start regularly in the outfield just so you can keep Blalock at 1b everyday.
Seriously, is Blalock a part owner of the Taco Bell franchise that you work part-time at or something?
Whats even funnier
is that Byrd has actually been a better hitter than Blalock this year.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
AND our only reliable CF...
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
That makes no sense to me
You would get rid of .280/319/468/787 (who plays a premium def. position) and
You would keep 245/283/489/787 (and trade for another 1b)
to improve the offense? Not real sure I see the rationale here.
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
sorry-Hank's ops is 773
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Well, you also get the benefit
of dumping a guy who is considered a leader in the clubhouse to keep the locker rooms quarters champ.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Looking at Fangraphs...
If Martinez and Byrd continue to perform the rest of the way the way they have thusfar, adding Martinez would result in an expected additional 5 runs offensively the rest of the way.
Subtracting Byrd from the outfield would probably cost you a run or two on defense, but whatever…
Even if you assume that it is breakeven, adding 5 runs on offense isn’t worth Hunter, Kiker and Font (the likely cost).
In fact, subtracting Hunter from the rotation could end up costing you more runs than Martinez would save.
by Adam J. Morris on Aug 5, 2009 3:50 PM CDT up reply actions
The only way VMart makes any sense
is if his playing time comes at the expense of Salty and LH ABs for HF Blalock. VMarts only advantage is you can take his ABs directly from non producers.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
People need to stop trying to make Byrd the casualty in any roster move..
He is what he is, but isn’t the problem here.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Yeah,
I’m not sure I understand the Jones and Byrd hate.
Byrd has been a fairly solid contributor to the Rangers in his time here.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
In which case you possibly hinder Saltys development
And so in 18 months when Martinez walks you are left with a 26 year old below average catcher as your starter
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.
Or
you trade Martinez next offseason, or you send Salty down to get ABs, or you can do plenty of things.
However, if you are in a pennant race, and you are playing to win, as I assume would be the plan if they acquired a FA, you need to get rid of your below replacement level hitters like Salty from the batting order. It does you no good to replace your better hitters, like Byrd.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Because I think Josey Donuts is hilarious.
I mean he is so retarded, and so glaringly poorly reasoned that I think it’s fun. Sometimes.
JD's solution (hoping we get better) to the offense
is a better alternative?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
So your solution is to trade for a 1b/dh
.. keep Blalock and get rid of Byrd, whose numbers are better pretty much across the board? Praytell, how exactly does that help the offense?
Which also means that Andruw Jones gets to play a lot more in the field, which I guess helps the defense as well?
I don’t see the logic….
"I’m not in the meetings and not part of the discussions; it’s not my responsibility. . My responsibility is to go out and win tonight. My focus is to win tonight. The club has to look at more than just this year." -Michael Young
Don't sell that 1B/Dh trade short..
After all, Brad Wilk…… er Nick Johnson is a OBP machine with power potential.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
It comes down to making a decision on Byrd & Hamilton (who is the person really killing This Thing).
Against LH’s I’d have Blalock hitting 8th but he’s more effective when playing every day instead of being platooned (see June 2009).
I never said NJohnson had power potential, bking.
What I do know is that the plan (hope) JD used to fix the offense has failed miserably.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
right, and acquiring a high OBP, low SLG guy at 1B/DH does jack for this offense.
Please explain how the plan was to hope… The results of not being able to acquire someone (and having key pieces tank) leaves us having to hope, but find anything that indicates that the plan was to sit back and “hope”.
The plan currently in effect was to build from within, and acquire key pieces if possible. Are you suggesting that plan isn’t working, when you freely admit this thing is exceeding expectations at this point??
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Plan working...hmmmm
Yes, they’ve played well, so well in fact that they’re within 3 games of the Red Sox which is exactly why you need a GM who can properly assess strengths & weaknesses to help you down the stretch.
You know, like Theo Epstein did last week.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
you need a GM who can properly assess strengths & weaknesses to help you down the stretch.
Josey, you are not capable of understanding the strengths and weaknesses of this team. This team is built for 2010, not 2009. JD recognizes that. He’s the one who designed the rebuilding plan. The same plan that’s been in effect long before Nolan Ryan joined the organization.
You want to trade away valuable prospects for short-term, marginal upgrades to the team. That is not part of “the plan,” and it illustrates your inability to “properly assess strengths & weaknesses” of this team.
by cstorm15 on Aug 5, 2009 2:13 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
I've said it before...
This team is like the first JJ playoff Cowboys – competing a year ahead of plan/projections, building a core and a mentality that can last. That year was tons of fun, and this one is as well.
Would I have loved to see us pick up a piece and “go for it”?? Sure, but that’s why I’m not in charge of making and following the plans.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
bking
That’s stupid and you should know that but it will play well in dumbass kneejerk football country.
Baseball seasons are susceptible to any number of vagaries that can happen. I can name 50 teams in the last 30 years who for gawd knows what reason, massivley underachieved despite having great talent or after taking a giant step forward from the throes of mediocrity.
This particular Ranger team, with it’s small market payroll, shaky GM & manager, seems to be very, very vulnerable to a step back for a wide variety of reasons.
In no way have I advocated going all-in this year and trading way the future but you could have fixed this offense without doing that.
Pissing yourself at the trade deadline and hoping the offense got better is not an acceptable answer.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Ok then.
I can name 50 teams in the last 30 years who for gawd knows what reason, massivley underachieved despite having great talent or after taking a giant step forward from the throes of mediocrity.
Go for it.
Gawd I hope not...
We’re still seeing him show off his electirc memory by posting examples of teams that overcame a 4.5 game deficit.
That being said, I’d be more than willing to bet that just as many football teams “massivley (sic) underachieved despite having great talent or after taking a giant step forward from the throes of mediocrity” as baseball teams. Football teams can be MUCH more negatively impacted by the critical injury or sudden falloff.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Done - 53 and there's many more in the last 30 years.
Had a great year and stumbled backwards or were in the middile of great run and somehow tripped or suddenly got old or peaked their heads above .500 after being buried in mediocrity only to return to said mediocrity.
Angels – ’80, ’81, ’87, ’90, ’03
Red Sox – ’87, ’06
Blue Jays – ’86
Orioles – ’84, ’90
Tigers – ’85, ’89
White Sox – ’84, ’91, ’07
Twins – ’05
Indians – ’87, ’06, ’08
Royals – ’81, ’86, ’04
Rangers – ’75, ’87, ’97, ’05
Mariners – ’08, ’05, ’98, ’96, ’94, ’92
Athletics – ’82, ’91, ’07
Dodgers – ’79, ’84, ’86, ’92, ’05
Giants – ’83, ’88, ’94
Rockies – ’08
Diamondbacks – ’04, ’08
Padres – ’85, ’90, ’93, ’97, ’99, ’08
I hope with everything I have that we’re on the front door of a nice run but I’m not taking it for granted like most of LSB seems to be.
There’s a reason This Thing has only kissed 59-44 one other time in their 38 year history.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
What a worthless list
Had a great year and stumbled backwards or were in the middile of great run and somehow tripped or suddenly got old or peaked their heads above .500 after being buried in mediocrity only to return to said mediocrity.
What does that have to do with this team? Are you really comparing this team, which is being built off of the best farm system in baseball, to teams like the 07/08 Padres, the 03/04 Royals, and the 04/05 Rangers? Seriously, you can’t tell the difference between the 04/05 Rangers and this team? Are you that dense? The fact that you think this team is built in the same manner as the 04/05 Rangers makes me question how you can even follow the Rangers for any length of time, given how long your head has been up your ass.
Plus, other than Cleveland, I don’t see any teams on that list that were ranked as having the #1 farm system in baseball in any of the previous five years.
Worthless or not, you asked for it..
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Point being
there needs to be a greater sense of urgency and appreciation of what you have this year because MLB is rife with teams who have all the markings of a winner yet somehow and unexplainably fail.
It should also be noted that there are no other teams in the last 30 years with the same present day template the 2009 Texas Rangers are facing and that’s not what the list was about.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Can we at least realize...
that continuing to post 30 times a day that “we need a greater sense of urgency” is F’ing useless when the trade deadline is in the past? Exactly WHAT should we be more urgently doing at this point? I can hope harder if that helps.
Also, you seem to have this meme going that everyone is taking this season for granted except for you and your sidekick Sancho Panza.
Who exactly is taking this for granted?
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
It should also be noted that there are no other teams in the last 30 years with the same present day template the 2009 Texas Rangers are facing and that’s not what the list was about.
I’m not sure what you mean by facing a present day template, but if you agree that this team is fundamentally different than all of the teams on your list, then again I ask what the point is.
I asked for you to list your 50 teams because I expected it to be somehow relevant to the Texas Rangers, given the subject of this thread and this blog. Clearly, that was not the case.
You are arguing for a “sense of urgency,” but this team was built and is still built for 2010. Thus, there is no sense of urgency in 2009. You haven’t shown why we can’t expect continued improvement in 2010, which is “the plan.”
Instead, you’ve provided a list of teams that followed a good season with a bad season. Unfortunately for you, this list does not support your argument that this 2009 Texas Rangers team should have a sense of urgency. Rather, as you have acknowledged, the list is completely irrelevant to your own point.
All of the teams referenced on the list
were expected to win because that was what their most recent pedigree suggested but for some reason, they suffered massive underachievement and that was the relavancy to the Rangers.
The 2010 team is rife with questions and the only player I see taking a major step forward will be Tiny E. Other than that you have big questions with vets and a few rookies trying to make their way.
This team has to replace several vets next year and while there are some bright spots in OKC, that doesn’t guarantee success in The Show – see Chris Davis.
Our catching is going to be mediocre (good defense/shitty offense).Bullpens are year-to-year props so we really don’t know about that either although we have some nice candidates.
Starting pitching? Who takes VP’s place and can Feldman keep this up? AJM said we should trade him and Cruz the other day. Millwood is okay but not getting better. Then you have a bunch of kids.
JD can say the team was built for 2010 but he’s talking out of his ass because we have too many young players that need to find their way, rookies that have to get their feet and vets that need to get retrenched. These are not the ’92 Braves.
We could be pretty good in 2010 but there is just as good a chance that we could take two steps backwards and my list clearly illustrates the possibility.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
"Then you have a bunch of kids."
That is the plan. That’s how rebuilding works. If you’re not comfortable with rooting for “a bunch of kids,” now’s a good time for you to find a new team to root for. You’re clearly working under this outdated theory that the only way to win is with veterans and leadership and grit.
JD can say the team was built for 2010 but he’s talking out of his ass because we have too many young players that need to find their way, rookies that have to get their feet and vets that need to get retrenched. These are not the ’92 Braves.
This team is much closer to the ’92 Braves than it is to any team on your list. The Braves, like the Rangers, were actually building based on one of the best farm systems in baseball.
Just stick with the plan. It’s what got us here this far. This offseason you wasted hundreds of posts on how JD failed to build a contender for 2007 and 2008. Had JD done anything that you suggested, our team would not be built the way it is in 2009 and for the future. Your “win now” modus operandi would have buried this team.
This Thing is nowhere close to the
1992 Atlanta Braves (let’s finish with a .500 first) and I’m quite sure “The Plan” didn’t mention anything about Nolan Ryan coming in and implementing massive changes all over the place.
The way you win for an extended period of time requires a blend that is a core of young talent with the right trades at the right time along with picking the right free agents.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Incredible.
1992 Atlanta Braves (let’s finish with a .500 first) and I’m quite sure "The Plan" didn’t mention anything about Nolan Ryan coming in and implementing massive changes all over the place.
1. Do you doubt the Rangers will finish with a .500 record? If so, then you’re the type of overreacting fan that you were complaining about this morning.
2. Nolan did not implement “massive changes.” In fact, Nolan has kept the entire management and player development team in tact. Even if Nolan recommended coaches like Moore and Maddux, Nolan is but one member of the management team. He is not the savior of this organization, and has played a very minor role in the 2009 success of the team. He is not responsible for a single player on this roster. This is not debatable. And no, you are not welcome to go off on a tangent here. You will not derail this conversation onto a new topic in order to avoid this one.
3. You still don’t understand the plan or how rebuilding with young talent works. Thus, you cannot authoritatively speak about what the plan is.
The way you win for an extended period of time requires a blend that is a core of young talent with the right trades at the right time along with picking the right free agents.
I agree. That’s exactly how we’ve gotten to this point. You are seeing the “core of young talent” coming up from the minors (Andrus, Holland, Hunter, Feliz, Davis, Smoak, Borbon, the catchers, and others), the right trades (the Teixeira/Gagne/Lofton trades, the Hamilton trade, etc.), and picking the right free agents (for a rebuilding year, the pickups were minimal but smart: Vizquel, Grilli, O’Day, etc.).
Now, if the finances are there, you’d expect to see even more free agent movement this winter. Why? Cause the team is reaching the point where impact FAs could push the team over the top. Signing big-money free agents to long-term contracts in 2007 and 2008 would have been a waste of time because the team was not built to compete in those years. Instead, you saw many one-year contracts designed to help the team in the short-term while restocking the farm system through trades.
But this offseason, if the money is there, it might make sense to make the type of splash in free agency that you’ve been waiting for. We’re getting closer to the point where making moves for short-term benefit will make sense, but the 2009 trade deadline was too soon for the type of bad trades you were proposing.
Although you’re an incredibly impatient person, just know that you have more to look forward to. Like I said, stick with the plan.
REC
That is exactly what is happening here. The only trade that is worth scrapping what JD has done this last year plus would be to get a Roy Halladay. But since JP wanted too much, JD assesed it wasn’t at the right price and continued with the plan that was in place. Great post cstorm
Epstein has the comfort of a huge budget.
The Sox are an older team trying to extend the window, and if he trades tons of prospects or takes on salary, that doesn’t hurt them the same as us.
Also, if you were as adept at “properly assessing the strengths and weaknesses” as you think, you wouldn’t have been targeting Nick Johnson and advocating dropping Marlon Byrd to make room for him.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
And you back JD all the way for his do-nothing don't wreck the future strategy and this team just scored
two runs in 18 innings against a very mediocre Oakland A’s staff.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
There's a big difference between "backing all the way" and accepting the reality...
But we’ve had that discussion a thousand times over the years.
Do a search – I was in agreement with Cahill that the Martinez trade would have been a good move for us once he laid out his case. The price was steep, but he filled a much bigger need than a middling DH/1B guy did.
But I’m not going to manufacture a scenario (like JD being “paralyzed with fear”) to feed my beliefs – he didn’t get a deal done, and the jury is out on whether or not that was the right move.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
What's going to make me laugh my ass off is when we win the WC
and your man-crush Theo is stuck at home in October. I now have a reason to scoff at your posts. I have usually let everyone else tear you down, but that post was horrible. You can do better than that JW.
Josey, you aren't smart enough to understand "the plan"
The plan is a rebuilding plan. This year is a rebuilding year. By not making stupid trades like the ones you’ve suggested, JD and company have stuck to the plan. You just aren’t smart enough to understand the consequences of trading away farm assets for short term rentals that do not substantially improve the franchise.
If you knew anything about how to rebuild a franchise, you’d know that the plan isn’t just “hope.”
32 teams
LA Dodgers ’78 4 games out on August 4 (won the NL West)
The sky is not falling – yet.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
At this point...What does it hurt to bring up Borbon?
and hit him leadoff?
When he was up here last time he had some good at-bats vs the Angels. He missed a bases loaded triple by a foot. He had a clutch RBI single off Weaver.
Maybe he could add a spark to this offense. Could it be any worse with him?
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 12:17 PM CDT reply actions
I can see the defense of that
what pisses me off the most is Andrus not hitting lead off over Arias. And I really hope vizquel plays 2nd tonight
With Andrus' recent comments about "thinking too much" at the plate
I have no problem keeping him in the 9 spot. He is only 20 remember. he will have plenty of time over his career to morph into a top of the order hitter. Plus we are coming up on the dreaded “rookie wall” and I wouldn’t be suprised to see his production offensively tail off some.
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.
Im not advocating Arias leadoff
But I am saying its probably best that Andrus doesn’t
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.
Why?? After the first inning, those two spots (1 and 9) are practically interchangeable.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Because of the mental aspect
Andrus himself just a couple weeks ago when he was in that big slump said that he was overthinking at the plate. I think that putting him at leadoff, even though that only definitively happens once a game, will make him think too much and could backfire on us.
Hopefully Arias doesn’t play anymore and Omar can be the leadoff man and we can all quit bitching about Joaquin Arias and his two games he played this year
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.
I don't think having Andrus
hit leadoff for a couple of games would have effected him at all.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
I don't think it changes the outcome of the game either
So why are we arguing about it
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.
So why are we arguing about it
Because that is what LSB is here for. :)
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
I thought Arias was suppose to provide a spark
Isn’t that why Ron had him leadoff?
I agree om Borbon. Bring him up and send Mathis down. They should also bring up German sunce he is a true utility player unlike Arias.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
In all seriousness. I don't that's the reason.
I seriously believe that the reason is that (a) Ian hits leadoff, and (b) Arias is replacing Kinsler.
I know that sounds stupid as hell, but I think Wash has a major desire to keep everyone “slotted” and thinks this is the easiest way to do so – not letting one lineup change due to injury scrambling everything. We all know strategy isn’t really his forte.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
How much playing time do you think he's going to get?
Wash isn’t benching Byrd or Hamilton, so that leaves the remaining spot in the OF to Borbon or Murphy, and benching Murphy for Borbon at this point would be retarded.
by LiamP on Aug 5, 2009 1:23 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
Then that is the fault of the manager...
he could easily play ahead of Jones or Byrd.
by death of the cool on Aug 5, 2009 2:43 PM CDT up reply actions
This stuff with Hamilton is cutting my heart out...
I don’t know if there’s ever been an athlete I’ve wanted to succeed more than him…he’s come so far, so fast. Don’t want this to suddenly flame out and be over. I didn’t understand why mgmt didn’t work out a contract last winter; now, they look brilliant.
We still don’t know what we have here…the guy most g.m.’s would want to start a team with, or…the biggest tease of all time.
Ephesians 3:20-21...and I can only imagine
my guess is
a guy who still isn’t 100 percent from surgery.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
Yep
Like I said either above or another thread, his first AB yesterday showed me alot. Last year he took that low and away fastball out to left center and last night he got good wood on it but only flew out to the warning track in left center.
It showed me hes having better at bats, taking the balls the other way, etc, but he isn’t 100%
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.
I'm growing afraid of him..
He seems to be a real Type-A personality – self-proclaimed fast healer, etc., and I’m afraid he’s not ever going to slow down and heal properly when things go south.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
What a story if Hamilton flames out
I’ve always wanted the guy to succeed but I always thought people annoited him our savior waaaay too prematurely
by oc on Aug 5, 2009 1:31 PM CDT up reply actions
and any talk of a long term contract
was always foolishness as well. I doubt Hamilton will ever be a very consistent player, and he may never be a totally healthy player.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
People keep talking about that
But his injuries are pretty specific. It’s not like he’s pulling a hammy every other month or something like that. He’s running into walls. He’s not Uncle Milt.
Remember Red, hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.
Maybe he needs to dial it down a smidge and stop running into walls every 90 games or so..
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
But he may be
Rusty Greer or Darin Erstad.
"I saw a soldier try to dig a foxhole with his bare hands. He didn't notice that he'd torn off all his fingernails. I got him out of there quickly; not for his sake, but for ours. Fear is poison in combat...destructive, contagious." - Band of Brothers
That's a possible comparison
But this stuff doesn’t seem to be the residual effect of drug use. Maybe he’s just trying to do too much.
Remember Red, hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.
I'm more concerned
with his age and all out playing style, in addition to the wear and tear already on his body. He’s pretty unique and not the kind of wild card you rush to sing long term, especially when you already control him cheaply.
G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....
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