Sunday a.m. Rangers things
by Adam J. Morris on Mar 13, 2011 9:42 AM CDT
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PrintEvan Grant has a recap of yesterday's game, and Matt Harrison apparently had another impressive outing, despite not using his cutter. Richard Durrett talks about Harrison opting not to throw his cutter yesterday. T.R. Sullivan writes that Harrison is confident right now.
Anthony Andro has a story about Arthur Rhodes and Darren Oliver.
Sullivan has some notes from camp.
Durrett writes that Yorvit Torrealba is trying to get the young pitchers to throw more changeups in spring games, to work on it and improve their confidence in it.
The S-T's notes has a Q&A with Kevin Cash, updates on Adrian Beltre and Omar Beltre, and some roster moves, including Brett Tomko being moved over to the big league camp.
Note on Tomko...this does NOT mean Tomko is now on the 40 man roster. He's just been transferred from the minor league camp to the major league camp.
Gil Lebreton is mystified by the departure of Chuck Greenberg.
Evan Grant says that Jon Heyman -- who has been consistently critical of Greenberg -- is simply wrong when he says Greenberg is gone because he "ran his mouth" too much.
Jennifer Floyd Engel has a column about how Jon Daniels is once again having to deal with distractions and turmoil.
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Stop posting while driving!
Get yourself killed, dang.
Go Strangers.
by hightowersmith on Mar 13, 2011 11:35 AM CDT up reply actions
Yikes that I-10 can be a nightmare on the weekends from Tucson.
When I was there they shut down that 2 lane highway for 2 hours while we all sat in our cars (30 miles of parking lot)
Josh Hamilton is just like you, he puts his pants on one leg at a time, but once he's got his pants on he hits baseballs 430 feet.
That's not the most scenic drive in America.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 12:53 PM CDT up reply actions
no it's quite ugly...
and they have a lot of dust storms on that stretch which often leads to accidents/massive delays.
Josh Hamilton is just like you, he puts his pants on one leg at a time, but once he's got his pants on he hits baseballs 430 feet.
Sweetwater to Lubbock is butt ugly but at least you get epic windmills along the way.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 12:57 PM CDT up reply actions
Same goes for
Lubbock to Big Spring, Lubbock to Amarillo, Lubbock to Midland, etc.
I think there is a pattern forming here.
It is a great thing to know the season for speech and the season for silence.
--Seneca
If take Lubbock to Dallas via 114, that's not a terrible drive or at least it's much more
scenic than every other direction.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Never been that way
Never had a reason to but might have to try it out if the situation arises.
It is a great thing to know the season for speech and the season for silence.
--Seneca
To be fair...
if you drive from any of those towns to each other without Lubbock in the picture, it’s still awful.
Moral of the story is that West Texas… kinda blows.
Up in the panhandle, north of Amarillo near a town called ...wanna say
it’s called “Canadian” is really pretty.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
yuuuuup
hemphill county and lipscomb county are both beautiful…
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 1:58 PM CDT up reply actions
Close to Borger?
There’s some kind of huge lake there and lots of rolling hills.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
know some people that live up there
really beautiful country near lipscomb
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 2:03 PM CDT up reply actions
I have to admit
I’d never been much in the panhandle except for some awful experiences in Amarillo.
But I fucking hated living in the Permian basin. Such a shithole.
way up in the right it can be really pretty
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 2:04 PM CDT up reply actions
Okay JBI
I’m on the Harry bandwagon. Yesterday was really impressive.
RIght now my Opening Day rotation hope is:
CJ
Lewis
Holland
Kirkman
Harrison
With whoever is struggling out of HKH getting pulled and Webb being put in the 4th spot when he’s ready for a LRLRL rotation.
"I'll bet you an Internet he puts up a higher OPS than Beltre." | Scoop16 on Michael Young, 2/17/2011
BTW
It’s very nice to see the young guys all pitching well and fighting for spots. Much better than just picking who had the least worst spring.
"I'll bet you an Internet he puts up a higher OPS than Beltre." | Scoop16 on Michael Young, 2/17/2011
Is Hunter not guranteed a spot in the rotation?
"Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor."-Capote
"I’d love to walk in and hug everybody every day, but that’s not critical to us winning."-JD
Barring injury I put the chance of Hunter not making the rotation at 5%
I know the Rangers have said hes competing and everything but given how hes performed last year and really hsi entire career thus far I dont see any way they choose to go with 3 unproven lefties over him just based on a handful of spring training starts.
More importantly I also don't really think they want four lefties in the rotation
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
All of those unproven lefties have a higher ceiling than Hunter.
I’d rather give them a chance, and let Hunter step in if one of them falters.
by Wemedge on Mar 13, 2011 10:23 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions
I don't really think Harrison has a higher ceiling than Hunter
Annual spring training hype aside.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
Why?
"Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor."-Capote
"I’d love to walk in and hug everybody every day, but that’s not critical to us winning."-JD
Because he's shown zero actual indication of it on the mound in the majors or the minors
And all I’ve seen this year is a repeat of last year’s spring training performance and statements on how he’s “changing his delivery and approach” and a vague, undefined statement that his “stuff” is better than Holland’s from Parks, who I seem to recall being self-admittedly homeristic about Harry in the past.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
Well the ceiling isn't about the results on the field.
It’s if he puts it all together then the results will come.
"Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor."-Capote
"I’d love to walk in and hug everybody every day, but that’s not critical to us winning."-JD
They've basically been the same pitcher for most of their careers
Harrison walks more guys and is left-handed.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
And as such, obviously
I think you can say pretty similar things about the chances of them finding something and putting it together.
If Hunter could rediscover his changeup and stop throwing so many shitty fastballs, he’s probably got about as much chance as Harrison does to start missing more bats and turn into a solid mid-rotation guy.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
No he doesn't
Harrison has better stuff than Hunter, and a better chance of being a long-term fixture in a major league rotation. Do you watch baseball? Even with mixed results, it’s pretty obvious that Harrison has better natural stuff.
What exactly does that mean though?
Because it certainly isn’t reflected by anything tangible, like ability to miss bats.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
Stuff is velocity and movement
Not command… not “pitching”. Just velocity and movement.
Harry has more of that per Prof. Parks.
"I'll bet you an Internet he puts up a higher OPS than Beltre." | Scoop16 on Michael Young, 2/17/2011
PitchFX doesn't really back that up though.
More of a draw.
by AsDevilsRun on Mar 14, 2011 12:08 AM CDT up reply actions
So in other words even if it is true, it doesn't really mean Harry'
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
Doesn't really mean Harry's not a shitty pitcher.
Which he is.
Or has been his entire career up to this point, anyway.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
We cant be hitching our season to ceilings right now
I dont think I have ever argued Hunter has a higher ceiling than either of those guys but none of those guys have proven anything in the majors to warrant a rotation spot ahead of Hunter right now.
If this was 2009 I would say go for the ceilings and hope one or more of them reach it but in 2011 we need more dependability even if it is at a slight cost to ceiling.
I don't mind Harrison being in the rotation
I think Kirkman has an even higher ceiling, but I would send him down and if Hunter, Holland, or Harrison foul up, here comes Brandon Webb or Kirkman. I still think Dave Bush is the long man, but I don’t see Hunter getting bounced out of the rotation unless he just gets horrible this spring.
but hunter has a higher floor than those guys also
which is worth something
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 1:44 PM CDT up reply actions
glad to see you are back on your meds
Does all the Dave Bush love seem like a nightmare to you now? :)
What?
I still think Bush would be the best person for the teams sake for the rotation to start the season with Webb out.
I don’t want more than 1 unproven guy in the rotation on April 1st.
Bush
ERA+ of 87 or lower 3 of the last 4 years.
I don’t know that he’s any more proven at this point than the other options.
by Adam J. Morris on Mar 13, 2011 1:17 PM CDT up reply actions
I'm on this bandwagon
Josh Hamilton: "I just show up, look at the lineup and play where I’m told. If they want me to catch, I’ll catch."
Jon Daniels on relationship with #Rangers Young: "I’d love to walk in and hug everybody every day, but that’s not critical to us winning." 2/19/11
Yep, and he'd also be pitching in the AL for the first time in 5 years.
He’s extremely unproven, IMO.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
And if Webb is going to miss more than 2 starts to begin the season I am fine with him
If hes only gonna miss a couple starts then go with a young guy because the likelihood of it affecting our teams W/L record drastically is little to none.
If its more than 2 starts then I go with Bush
Webb? Who's that?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
It amazes me that some people just gloss over this fact
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
So I'm not the only one who's given up on Hunter.
Assuming everyone is healthy, the team is better without Hunter… because that means HKH are all outperforming him, which is a good thing.
by Wemedge on Mar 13, 2011 10:20 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions
disagree
Hunter is solid and a VERY good 5th starter; everybody is down on him because he couldn’t dominate in the postseason. I don’t think that’s a good argument for why he shouldn’t start for this team.
"Look at our current situation with that camel f$%ker over in Iraq. Pacifism is not something to hide behind."
by Walter Sobchak on Mar 13, 2011 12:34 PM CDT up reply actions
Seems like a lot of people in here insist Hunter was lucky last year (and the year before).
I understand the peripherals but the chances of somebody coming up here and being lucky two years in a row….not just two years in a row but his first two years in The Show… doesn’t resonate with me.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 12:55 PM CDT up reply actions
Meaning he's better than he's been given credit for being.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 12:55 PM CDT up reply actions
He wasn't terrible v Tampa or SFO in post-season. He got kicked around
a little by the MF Yanks but that’s a long list.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Yep, it works.
I got no problem w/ him being a back of the rotation guy. I think he’s gonna have to eventually start working people off the plate. He seems easy to dig in against and get to after 2-3 times thru the order.
Que sera, sera.
He was lucky last year.
But lucky doesn’t mean awful. For as much as he was overrated during stretches in 2010, he seems pretty underrated by a lot of people here now.
Hunter
Agreed. Hunter may not have the upside of a Holland or Perez, but I think he can be a guy who consistently pitches 180-200 innings of 4.50-4.75 ERA ball, and that’s not without value.
"Napoli batting regularly in Arlington will be the biggest explosion in the American Southwest since Robert Oppenheimer tested the Manahttan Project."
-- RevHaloFan
That's being conservative. I'm thinking that many innings, 4.00-4.50 ERA.
Scooter Feldman was a bedshitter early in his career, became a journeyman, had a solid 2009 but you could see how was not going to be able to sustain that success.
Hunter was successful right away and I think he may slip a little but I don’t see epic bedshitting in his future.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Throw out Hunter's first 3 starts in 2008 (ERA above 16.00) and his
career ERA in 41 starts is 3.89.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Actually
Feldman was pretty good early in his career
by Adam J. Morris on Mar 13, 2011 1:17 PM CDT up reply actions
I forgot he was here in 2006. I thought he was rotgut in 2007.
He seems to be all over the road in terms of consistency.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
"All over the road in terms of consistency":
by Sean Dignam on Mar 13, 2011 3:49 PM CDT up reply actions 2 recs
I was a big fan of Feldman in 2009.
In early September he was something like 17-5 and dragging This Thing to the finish line.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 14, 2011 12:11 AM CDT up reply actions
Let me spell it out for you:
On Sept. 9 2009 you said Feldman was one of the best 5 pitchers in the AL that season. I guess Adam and Perryman (I don’t know who the second guy is) said he was only top 10-20. You called bullshit.
Feldman started five more games. Three sucked. One was OK. One was good.
Six months later you said Feldman was probably only top 12-20 in the AL that season. You basically said not to give his win-loss too much importance.
A year after that you’re saying you were a big fan of his in 2009. You’re giving his win-loss as a reason.
Upon further review Feldman is more consistent than you. He doesn’t change his delivery to try to make people think he knows baseball.
by Sean Dignam on Mar 14, 2011 11:00 AM CDT up reply actions
This is where the outlaw rides away.
All’s quiet on the western front.
by matt dillion on Mar 14, 2011 5:53 PM CDT up reply actions
He is worse than his ERA and wins indicate
but he is a far better pitcher than he is being given credit for. Hunter is close to an average #3 pitcher (and above average 4th or 5th starter). He should be in this rotation unless he stinks it up all of April.
career 4.77 xFIP, 4.83 FIP
marcel projects a 4.42 FIP next year
look, he isnt going to post an ERA below 3, but he is going to give you a pretty solid 3.5-4 ERA and about 2 K/BB (wont walk many either) — hunter is mis-cast as a #3 or 4 guy. hunter is not mis-cast as a #4 (strech) or 5 on a playoff team.
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 1:50 PM CDT up reply actions
Who has cited postseason performance as a reason they don't believe in him?
Those people are stupid.
by AsDevilsRun on Mar 14, 2011 12:10 AM CDT up reply actions
I dont see the bottom 3 shaping up quite like that
more like
CJ
Lewis
Hunter
Harrison
Feliz
or
CJ
Lewis
Hunter
Harrison
Holland
I think Feliz ends up making the rotation, though.
Harrison sucks
he faced a CWS lineup that was out of sync. they even made tobin, eppley, tucker and mcclung look good
A baseball game is simply a nervous breakdown divided into nine innings.
Those were big league hitters. Pierre, Dunn, Konerko, AJP, Quentin, Ramirez, Teahen.
That team is gonna score more than 800 runs in 2011.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 12:58 PM CDT up reply actions
Agreed
Maybe Harrison was making them look bad.
Josh Hamilton: "I just show up, look at the lineup and play where I’m told. If they want me to catch, I’ll catch."
Jon Daniels on relationship with #Rangers Young: "I’d love to walk in and hug everybody every day, but that’s not critical to us winning." 2/19/11
Someone needs to tweet Evvan's article to Heyman
"Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor."-Capote
"I’d love to walk in and hug everybody every day, but that’s not critical to us winning."-JD
I haven't given up on Hunter...I fully expect him to be in the rotation.
JD said as much earlier in the week (Big Game is in the rotation with CJ & Cobra).
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
I had a nightmare this morning
JD was fired and replaced by someone on the outside. I woke up this morning uncertain if I dreamed it or if I read it last night. I hope that doesn’t happen again.
Baseball Musings likes the Texas Ranger offense.
http://baseballmusings.com/?p=65345
Probable line-up, 5.09 runs per game (825 runs for year).
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Only problem is this
Borbon
Facials
Hamilton
Belts
Cruz
Kinsler
Moreland
Yorvit
Elvis
Ain’t our probable lineup.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
We're not going to have a set line-up with this team.
I think they like our parts and that we should score 800-850 runs.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 11:36 AM CDT up reply actions
Every game I have seen this year is Kinsler leading off..
and I don’t know if his stats have gone down this week, but they were so high as of last week (OPS) that it is hard to imagine they didn’t go down.
The point being...
I think if Kins is healthy this year, from this position, the teams offensive production goes up even more.
Yeah, I agree.
Just saying if he thinks that’s actually gonna be our lineup he’s mistaken.
A nightingale in a golden cage
That's me locked inside reality's maze
I cannot really convey how sick of Heyman I am.
I refuse to watch the MLB Network when he’s on. I refuse to read anything he writes for SI. And yet I still can’t avoid how terrible of a person he is.
You seem to be bitter and angry with a lot of people in the megia.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
by Josey Wales on Mar 13, 2011 12:56 PM CDT up reply actions
I can understand that although there's facets from both sides, young & old that bug me. My problems usually
aren’t with age but political slants.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
With Heyman being old media is only a small part of it.
The major part is being a douchebag and a mouth piece for Boras.
Which 5 megia types to you trust and like?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Regardless of that...
He’s right about Heyman.
by ghostofErikThompson on Mar 13, 2011 4:21 PM CDT up reply actions
Hilarious
Adrian Gonzalez wants to play all 162 games this season.
“I want to play every game,” he said. "I’m a first baseman, you know? How much effort do you really put out there? Not effort, but as far as much how much energy do you really put out there. I don’t steal bases. I don’t run fast. I play first base. As long as my legs can take it, I’m good and thank God up until now my legs have been good enough to take it.
What would it be like around here if Chris Davis or Mitch Moreland had a quote like this. Or even Michael Young.
AG averages 160 games/year since he became a full time starter in 2006
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 1:53 PM CDT up reply actions
Still need that RH OF that can play a decent CF.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
Until Judy starts shitting the bed with a .465 OPS in April
and Josh has to play CF because there’s no other good options in the organization.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
i can honestly say i would rather have borbon in CF than murphy
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 1:57 PM CDT up reply actions
Not if he's sucking it for two months with a .520 OPS / 2 walks in his first 150 plate appearances.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
the issue/question
is murphy’s CF defense + offense > borbon’s CF defense + offense
i know you hate UZR, but per UZR murphy was the worst defensive player with 50+ innings at any position in baseball last year
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 2:07 PM CDT up reply actions
What if Murphy puts up a .900+ OPS like he did the last two months of 2010?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Don't become the '82 Milwaukee Brewers."
"You want false modesty? F that."
then i assume hamilton will move (back) to CF
or the rangers will acquire a true CF
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 2:12 PM CDT up reply actions
I'd love for you to meet Borbon and call him Judy to his face
I think it’s a pretty ridiculous nickname, and I can’t wait for him to shut you up.
"Look at our current situation with that camel f$%ker over in Iraq. Pacifism is not something to hide behind."
by Walter Sobchak on Mar 14, 2011 10:04 AM CDT up reply actions
a murphy/gentry could be a pretty damn solid 4th/5th OF combo
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
by knockoutking on Mar 13, 2011 1:53 PM CDT up reply actions
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