Tommy Hunter with a left oblique strain
by Adam J. Morris on Mar 19, 2010 11:34 AM CDT
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PrintPer Anthony Andro, Tommy Hunter has a left oblique strain, which means he's doubtful to be ready to be in the Ranger rotation by Opening Day.
Presumably, he'd be good to go by the middle of April, but with a bunch of viable rotation candidates and few slots, I susepct the Rangers will have Hunter start the season on the d.l. and do a rehab assignment in AAA.
The question then becomes...who takes his place? I'm guessing that C.J. Wilson, Matt Harrison, and Brandon McCarthy are now vying for two spots, not just one, come Opening Day. I'm not sure how this impacts Wilson -- if the team thinks Hunter will be back quickly, and wouldn't otherwise have Wilson in the rotation, I can't imagine they'd want to have him start the season in the rotation only to put him back in the pen after 2 starts.
At this point, I'd bet on the season starting with Wilson in the bullpen and Harrison and McCarthy in the rotation, although I wouldn't bet a lot on it.
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Might CJ's roster spot depend
upon how Feliz does over the next week or so? How comfortable would we be without CJ and Neftali in the bullpen?
Vladimir Guererro - 2010 AL MVP
It's not a bad point
who is the 8th inning guy now? Even if you say DoD, there has to be someone else there that you trust. Can it really be Ray?
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
I think Ray has looked pretty good thus far
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
Everybody thinks Ray looks great.
Lotsa praise in the press from coaches and the FO.
He’s looked like utter CRAP to me. What am I missing?
Really? SSSESTG and all, but
3.0 3 1 1 0 0 1 5
Don’t the K’s indicate his stuff is back?
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
Watched him pitched yesterday,
not that impressive. All over the place with the ball but got batters to chase the junk. I am not filled with confidence after watching him.
"There's not a man alive who can whup me. I'm too fast. I'm too smart. I'm too pretty. I should be a postage stamp. That's the only way I'll ever get licked." --Muhammad Ali
agreed
"Big whoop, wanna fight about it?"
by lost in space on Mar 19, 2010 12:31 PM CDT up reply actions
I'm not claiming to be right ...
just baffled I don’t see his magnificence. He looks hittable as heck to me.
Ah
I missed seeing him last night.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
If those two are in the rotation he almost has to, doesn't he?
"Sometimes you just want to sit back and watch somebody throw 100." - Jeff Passan on Neftali Feliz
"Baseball's all that's real" - JB
by Cecilio's Guante on Mar 19, 2010 11:58 AM CDT up reply actions
AAA
"I don’t know how these SN blog authors get their gigs, but I’m frankly surprised SN tolerates AJM’s lack of effort." Tex34
Neftali Feliz says sit your 5 dollar ass down before he makes change...
by Brian Thomas on Mar 19, 2010 1:58 PM CDT up reply actions
TL, DR
"I don’t know how these SN blog authors get their gigs, but I’m frankly surprised SN tolerates AJM’s lack of effort." Tex34
Neftali Feliz says sit your 5 dollar ass down before he makes change...
by Brian Thomas on Mar 19, 2010 2:29 PM CDT up reply actions
Just go on performance
If CJ and Harrison start out really well keep them starting. Like you said, Hunter will probably get some stints in AAA. If one of them struggles, you can always plug Hunter back in. If they pitch well, that’s a good problem to have!
Damn you RangerMad, you beat me!
I think they really want to see Wilson start
and they are taking the approach that unless he shows something terrible in ST, they are going to let him start in April.
And I think, as it concerns those 3 pitchers, that idea will be honored above all others.
So I would assume that means BMac gets the other rotation spot and Harrison gets sent down, but it is also likely that the team also really wants Harrison to start now given his new found ability to K (if he really has that) and woud just rather BMac spend the whole year as a long reliever.
Like I said, not sure on the last paragraph but the first idea, I would put a lot of money on
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
I'm worried about CJ's dependability IP total-wise.
You’d think he’s gonna have to spend a good chunk of the season in the pen if he’s to avoid dead-arm in September. How do you manage that inevitability up against CJ’s desire and the team’s needs?
I don't think dead arm is a really big deal
if he gets it, they’ll shut him down and just promote someone else. either way, he’ll still get more innings as a starter.
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
I am also worried about CJ's IP which
got me thinking about Scooter’s transition from the bullpen to the rotation.
Feldman had 79.1 ip in 2005, 68.2 ip in 2006, 69 ip in 2007, and 164 ip in 2008.
C.J. had 106.1 ip in 2005 (as a starter in minors and reliever in the Majors), 58.2 ip in 2006 (strictly as a reliever), 68.1 ip in 2007, 46.1 ip in 2008, and 73.2 ip in 2009.
So I think we might see CJ’s inning total close to somewhere around 164 innings which Feldman had in his first season as a starter in 2008. Don’t know if can be that durable but I think Feldman might be the guy I feel the most confident in comparing to C.J. as far as the transition from the bullpen to the rotation.
"There's not a man alive who can whup me. I'm too fast. I'm too smart. I'm too pretty. I should be a postage stamp. That's the only way I'll ever get licked." --Muhammad Ali
I am not worried about it
mainly due to his age and experience. Relievers get “dead arm” also.
Vladimir Guererro - 2010 AL MVP
If Ray can stay healthy...
then you’ve got Ray, O’Day, Oliver, and Frankie to anchor the back end of the bullpen (if you wanted to send Feliz as a starter to AAA). Otherwise, they might keep Feliz in the bullpen as insurance.
Damn, when’s the last time we had too many quality pitchers to fit into slots?
yup
both looking pretty viable as 7th inning guys by ASB
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
i can see him claiming unemployment
(Wife) "So what do you want to watch on the T.V.? UFC or porn?"
(Husband) "Hmm... well, porn, I guess."
He has blown up this spring
"I was going to say, 'You’re gay for Elvis.' But then I realized that I, too, am gay for Elvis." ~Adam J. Morris.
by Kinslerhomer on Mar 19, 2010 12:19 PM CDT up reply actions
How has Madrigal done this spring?
I seem to remember him struggling
We need to not always make hard work out of sex- Rick Carlisle.
He is injured, I think.
"There's not a man alive who can whup me. I'm too fast. I'm too smart. I'm too pretty. I should be a postage stamp. That's the only way I'll ever get licked." --Muhammad Ali
He hasn't pitched
forearm problems
"I was going to say, 'You’re gay for Elvis.' But then I realized that I, too, am gay for Elvis." ~Adam J. Morris.
by Kinslerhomer on Mar 19, 2010 12:22 PM CDT up reply actions
MRI was negative
For all that that means.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
do i honestly need to start rooting for injuries
for Derek Holland to be in the Opening Day rotation?
Seriously???
Greatest Inventions Ever? 1. TiVO, 2. Boobs, 3. Baseball
It won't matter
at all.
"I don't condone steroids or any other type of growth hormones or anything else, but I could care less, and, for the most part, I don't think the fans give a (bleep). The people that care about it are the people that probably don't like baseball," - Jim Leyland
Right.
Holland has to be sent to AAA camp in the next couple of days, I’d expect to get more innings. Probably after his next start.
by FuturePants on Mar 19, 2010 12:12 PM CDT up reply actions
I didn't get to watch yesterday
but if Harrison is for real, he needs to be in the rotation.
We need to not always make hard work out of sex- Rick Carlisle.
I still don't believe
But I sure wouldn’t mind being wrong.
by brettgardner on Mar 19, 2010 12:14 PM CDT up reply actions
No shit.
What a nice thing to have stashed in AAA for whatever purpose. I still am having a hard time actually coming to grips with something like pitching depth. Usually it’s “Welp. Who we gonna roll out there as 5? Jennings? Mr. Anna Benson? Fuck me.”
by FuturePants on Mar 19, 2010 12:21 PM CDT up reply actions
I still don’t believe
Why not?
"There's not a man alive who can whup me. I'm too fast. I'm too smart. I'm too pretty. I should be a postage stamp. That's the only way I'll ever get licked." --Muhammad Ali
For me it's sample size.
His dramatic uptick in velocity is certainly cool, though.
by FuturePants on Mar 19, 2010 12:23 PM CDT up reply actions
I did read he was back in teh 88-92 range yesterday
so…
We need to not always make hard work out of sex- Rick Carlisle.
Gameday had him 92-94
"I was going to say, 'You’re gay for Elvis.' But then I realized that I, too, am gay for Elvis." ~Adam J. Morris.
by Kinslerhomer on Mar 19, 2010 12:24 PM CDT up reply actions
there's always a "THIS" guy in ST
who ends up looking an awful lot like the previous guy. not saying it applies to Matt but it very well could. No reason not to test it out in AAA
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
I agree with this
see if he sustains it in AAA.
We need to not always make hard work out of sex- Rick Carlisle.
why
so we can watch BMac instead/?
Hey Tom - It's over now, so do you know how - to pick up the pieces and go home?
there's no need to be impatient about it
yeah, lets see Bmac for a month and if he’s done then he’s probably done for good and Harrison will be even more ready then
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
Yeah, I could care less where he starts
If it is for real, we’ll see it soon enough. Or we won’t because everyone is pitching well enough
While I'm on board with C.J. as a starter
if the team decides they need him in the pen, they may use Harrison’s spring as excuse for putting him in the rotation ahead of Ceej
This certainly has to lock in BMac.
Mediocre spring performance or not, it just makes so little sense to try and put him through revocable waivers out of camp.
unless revocable waivers aren't a big deal
which has a decent amount of support even if you don’t believe it.
relief is also another option
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
You're right - I do not believe the whole "gentleman's agreement" theory about waivers.
Relief is an option, I suppose. I still think it’s a poor one.
by FuturePants on Mar 19, 2010 12:03 PM CDT up reply actions
Has he had a mediocre spring though?
I’ve heard nothing but positives.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
my impression of revocable waivers is that
they help a GM gauge trade interest, or maybe serve as a start to trade negotiations with a team.
Fine, ok
But it still makes literally zero sense to not have BMac in the starting 5 out of camp. Either trade him before opening day or you’re going to have him for a couple of months. Not having any clue what we could get for him, I’d be wary of forcing a trade because his value has to be so low. Dude’s shoulder asplode every 20 IP.
For real – why not put him in the starting five? If you want to put him through waivers after 3 starts, then do it then! Why do it now? Especially with an extra spot? Makes no sense.
Sucks for Tommy.
Hopefully he bounces back quickly.
"Ok, post your favorite moment of the Tom Hicks era
Mine is today when he sold the team." - t ball
It's funny how
these things tend to work themselves out.
"There's not a man alive who can whup me. I'm too fast. I'm too smart. I'm too pretty. I should be a postage stamp. That's the only way I'll ever get licked." --Muhammad Ali
But
For those things to work themselves out it’s gonna take thousands of comments at LSB to accomplish. That’s where we come in.
Riiiight...
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
6-man rotation anyone?
OTOH, it’s not really feasible with the rotation that we’ve got, but the Rangers don’t technically need a 5th starter until the 24th, correct?
(Wife) "So what do you want to watch on the T.V.? UFC or porn?"
(Husband) "Hmm... well, porn, I guess."
24th is what Norm said too
However, do you want Harden to get as much rest as possible?
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
Yeah
I haven’t heard them talking about a 4 man for a few weeks this year, like they usually do. I’d expect them to break camp with a full 5 man rotation.
by FuturePants on Mar 19, 2010 12:07 PM CDT up reply actions
How pissed would CJ be if the Rangers put him in the pen and started with a 4-man rotation
not that we should care…. just sayin
he might have to go to 'director school'
(Wife) "So what do you want to watch on the T.V.? UFC or porn?"
(Husband) "Hmm... well, porn, I guess."
Or go race cars.
Or surf.
Or be in a band.
Or design clothing.
Or be a model for his brother’s clothing company.
Or play Rock Band professionally.
by FuturePants on Mar 19, 2010 12:33 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Rec for alternatives to actual baseball
"Josey drives to games???
I always assumed he rides in on his high horse"
jam0152
Martin Perez, "Mucho queso"
I figured that about the 4-man
doesn’t make any sense to pitch on short rest with as many viable SP… that’s why i suggested the 6-man rotation..
(Wife) "So what do you want to watch on the T.V.? UFC or porn?"
(Husband) "Hmm... well, porn, I guess."
I think
it would make a 13 man pitching staff, which is kind of a problem.
"I don't condone steroids or any other type of growth hormones or anything else, but I could care less, and, for the most part, I don't think the fans give a (bleep). The people that care about it are the people that probably don't like baseball," - Jim Leyland
But Maddox doesn't like to skip starters
He would rather give his pitchers the extra rest.
Vladimir Guererro - 2010 AL MVP
With our array of fragile pitchers and not-that-bad--5th-starter options
I like giving them extra rest.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
"The Influence continues." Josey Wales (1/18/10)
by Josey Wales on Mar 19, 2010 12:27 PM CDT up reply actions
I like the idea of a 6-man personally.
I think it would give added rest, as well as maybe keep guys like Harden, B-Mac, and Harrison healthy. Also didn’t Colby pitch with a 6-man in Japan?
"Josey drives to games???
I always assumed he rides in on his high horse"
jam0152
Martin Perez, "Mucho queso"
has that been done before in MLB?
You hear about the "Electric Arms", they're all the rage.
"If the Rangers have marked improvement in 2010, I'm going to need to give JD credit." Josey Wales, Feb. 10, 2010 11:45 AM CST
by sunlegend54 on Mar 19, 2010 12:57 PM CDT up reply actions
I would rather keep CJ in the pen and roll with Harrison and BMac
Bullpens are the hardest things to predict from year to year.
By taking CJ out…now we are depending on:
Frankie to stay healthy and consistently dominant
Oday to repeat what he did last year, but this time as an 8th inning guy
Oliver to do the same
Ray to be consistently good in the 7th(which is a huge if)
Someone to step up as the situational lefty out of the pen
Nippert to build on what he did last year
You have to think someone is going to regress or get hurt.
Now if we have Feliz up dominating the 8th….then we can afford to have CJ as a starter
Also how well does CJ have to do to make it worth it? 3rd starter material?
by death of the cool on Mar 19, 2010 12:27 PM CDT reply actions
Those criticisms/concerns
Could apply to anyone, including C.J.
by brettgardner on Mar 19, 2010 12:29 PM CDT up reply actions
true...but
Taking CJ away from the pen gives us one less guy with skins on the wall in our pen.
I am mostly worried about the 6th and 7th inning. I think Frankie and Oliver (and to some extent Oday) will be ok…but bridging the gap to those guys is my major concern.
I think one of the reasons our bullpen was so good last year was Oday was great at bridging the gap to the set-up men and closer.
Now that job will be to Ray/Nippert/ and whoever our situational lefty is….
With CJ in the pen our 6th-7th guys are Oliver/Oday
by death of the cool on Mar 19, 2010 12:35 PM CDT up reply actions
Well
I’m not really disagreeing, as I would prefer C.J to stay in the pen, but it’s not like the guys you mention are a huge collection of rookies.
by brettgardner on Mar 19, 2010 12:38 PM CDT up reply actions
I agree
CJ should probably stay in the pen. It’s the safe option right now, and I don’t know that the margin between him and BMac/Harrison/Hunter is great enough to justify losing (very plausibly) our best reliever.
by Conjunction on Mar 19, 2010 12:34 PM CDT up reply actions
x
LoneStarDugout Rangers Minor League Notes (3/18): This one is free, and it is big. From yesterday’s AA game. http://bit.ly/aZSbol
"I was going to say, 'You’re gay for Elvis.' But then I realized that I, too, am gay for Elvis." ~Adam J. Morris.
lol, whaaa
Bolden appears to be a plus defender at both first base and centerfield–that doesn’t happen very often.
WTF?
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
Wait, what?
If most plus center fielders were moved to first base, they would probably be plus fielders there.
no
different skill sets. you could say that about SS
""It was a ball, dude," Davis said. "I don’t swing at balls anymore." -CD
I'll bet you most of them would be.
Different skill sets is the reason not all of them would be. The baseline at first base is really, really low.
Eppley sounds like a
DOD starter kit, I likey.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"When you have a weapon on your shoulder like he has, you can be cool." RW on Perez
And the little bastard threw it for a swinging strike three in a 3-2 count. He’s blessed. And ballsy.
This has to be the one year
that the Rangers may actually benefit from some minor injury like this popping up. Nothing serious at all, just take one guy out of the mix for a few weeks to allow the team to go into the season without forcing someone to somewhere they don’t need to be.
Because we all know by April 20th, some other pitcher will be sucking or injured, so Hunter will have a spot
Go Rice Owls!
Good point
I was thinking this is a blessing in disguise (assuming it doesn’t become a lingering injury for Hunter). It gives McCarthy more of a chance to showcase himself. I would hate for the Rangers to give him away for some peanuts at the end of Spring Training.
by Randy Richardson on Mar 19, 2010 1:55 PM CDT up reply actions
Agreed
I would like to see us take a page out of Boston’s book. Stash a stud or 2 in AAA in the short term.
"I don’t know how these SN blog authors get their gigs, but I’m frankly surprised SN tolerates AJM’s lack of effort." Tex34
Neftali Feliz says sit your 5 dollar ass down before he makes change...
by Brian Thomas on Mar 19, 2010 2:27 PM CDT up reply actions
in regards to sample size
I understand the small sample size from ST. But seems I remember Harrison doing well last year to begin season until TOS problem showed up and affected performance. Made switch to speeded up deliverey mid-way through Baltimore game and from that point went 22 innings of no hit ball and believe it was 5 consecutive wins. Year before that was one of best showings for left handed rookie in ball club history after mid-year call up going 9 and 5. Pretty good “sample” of what he can do?
from EG
Hunter won’t throw for at least a week and is probably at least two weeks away from getting back in a game. All you have to do is the math: There are a little over two weeks remaining until Opening Day; Hunter, who hasn’t pitched more than three innings in an outing this spring, won’t pitch for two weeks. The probability grows he opens the season on the disabled list.
http://rangersblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/03/tommy-hunter-unlikely-to-start.html
Vladimir Guererro - 2010 AL MVP
Good point about Wilson/Hunter
I’m not sure that this actually impacts Wilson at all, or that it should anyway.
McCarthy...you are cut.
Lets run with BGL and Harrison in the rotation for now.
is a fan of Derek Freaking Holland!
At this point, I could live with that...
at least keep BMac in the bully though.
"Big whoop, wanna fight about it?"
by lost in space on Mar 19, 2010 3:21 PM CDT up reply actions
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