Lone Star Ball: FanPosts

MNF tonight

2009-11-24T01:10:08Z

Clearly, I've been wrong.

VY is awesome.

Jordan Schafer Available?

2009-11-23T23:14:34Z

Over at MLBTR They have a link to a Braves mailbag, like TR's, where the writer claims that Jordan Schafer may be available in a trade. I think that this is a way to go in terms of looking for another outfielder. He may need a little bit of time in the minors because of injuries the last few years limiting his playing time but depending on the cost; Who is interested? What do u think that cost would be and is it a good idea?

NFL Week 11 GDT

2009-11-22T16:06:49Z

THU, NOV 19		HI PASSING	HI RUSHING	HI RECEIVING
Miami 24, Carolina 17		Delhomme 227	Williams 122	Smith 87
SUN, NOV 22	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Washington at Dallas	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets \| Travel	Cowboys Stadium
Cleveland at Detroit	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	Ford Field
San Francisco at Green Bay	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets \| Travel	Lambeau Field
Pittsburgh at Kansas City	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	Arrowhead Stadium
Atlanta at NY Giants	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets \| Travel	Giants Stadium
New Orleans at Tampa Bay	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets \| Travel	Raymond James Stadium
Buffalo at Jacksonville	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	Jacksonville Stadium
Indianapolis at Baltimore	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	M&T Bank Stadium
Seattle at Minnesota	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets \| Travel	Metrodome
Arizona at St. Louis	4:05 PM	FOX	Tickets \| Travel	Edward Jones Dome
NY Jets at New England	4:15 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	Gillette Stadium
Cincinnati at Oakland	4:15 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	Oakland County Coliseum
San Diego at Denver	4:15 PM	CBS	Tickets \| Travel	Invesco Field at Mile High
Philadelphia at Chicago	8:20 PM	NBC	Tickets \| Travel	Soldier Field
MON, NOV 23	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Tennessee at Houston	8:30 PM		Tickets \| Travel	Reliant Stadium

Josh Johnson Available?

2009-11-21T02:37:04Z

Cransick says that Johnson will not be signing an extension with Florida, as the negotiations have reached an impasse. The Marlins are now going to explore trade opportunities.

He is asking for a contract comparable to Greinke's 4 year, 38 million dollar deal. He had a 3.06 FIP last season and a career 3.49 FIP. He has a career K/9 around 8, walks around 2.5 per 9 innings, and he is only 25 years old. He is easily the best pitcher on the market now. I'd be willing to trade some serious prospects to acquire Johnson.

UPDATE: The Sun-Sentinel says that Johnson's days with the Marlins are numbered. His agent also says he will be traded.

Who is Josey Wales?

2009-11-21T02:24:32Z

Congratulations dear reader.. you've stepped into the third dimension of hell in about as many weeks.

But I figure... this fanpost just might give us an alternative to the ban stick (which we all know is never gonna happen anyway). He may not do it as often as he blows chunks, but Josey does make the occasional valid point and has essentially blossomed into blog celebrity for being nothing more than everybody's favorite punching bag

My only problem is that he marches some of you dildos into never-ending subthreads of poop. And if he's gonna do that, then we might as well know who's calling the shots

So, take a guess. Who is.. Josey Wales?

As you probably already know, Jamey Newberg and I are spearheading this campaign to unmask Josey. Here's a small list of information that we've gathered about our informant:

does NOT back Jon Daniels
DOES back Galloway
highest concentration of posts seems to be after breakfast and before lunch
is well-versed in DFW sports history
uses schtick vocabulary
listens to The Ticket
uses popular Ticket phrases
never admits defeat
sheepishly checks out of threads when he's cornered
possibly has a vagina

There's so much more we can add on, but study that list closely and you'll find all the redeeming characteristics of a shock-jock on the radio. Sure, Josey could just be a bonafide troll, or just a mindless nut whose brain has been fried from the DFW media blitz. But it's obvious the guy has an agenda

When you compare him with the rest of the community, few, if any, will make as many ridiculous claims as he has... which is why I'm calling his bluff

Mavs GDT 11/20/09--11/24/09

2009-11-21T02:20:20Z

Golden State at Dallas

Tim Thomas is underrated. If you think he can't make an impact on this team when healthy, you are dead wrong.
I'm not sure Drew Gooden has the mentality to consistently be the type of player he could be good at being, but he will flash it now and then.
Roddy B continues to wow me with the way he moves with the basketball in his hands. He's so raw, yet, he seems to have an innate ability to get into the lane and break down a defense, rarely looking out of control to do so. Oh, and his touch is oh so soft.



		Golden State 4-8 (Road: 1-6)		8:30pm ET

		Dallas 10-3 (Home: 5-1)		TV: CSBA, FSSW




Preview - Add to Calendar - Tickets

Three way deal only works if...

2009-11-20T22:04:40Z

Rangers receive: Bradley, Tom Gorzelanny and $5 million from Cubs

Rangers receive: John Maine and $5 million from Mets

Mets receive: Kevin Millwood and a player that we will expose in Rule 5 anyway

Cubs receive: Luis Castillo and a player we will expose in Rule 5 anyway

We get two serviceable pitchers to let Maddux try and re-discover, plus our RH bat for $10 million over two years.

If Bradley behaves for two years and gives 100%, I would rather do this deal and lose Byrd.

I know the teams are saying the original rumor isn't happening, but maybe there is a combination out there like this to make a deal better for the Rangers.

OT: The global warming hoax exposed?

2009-11-20T20:21:29Z

You know, usually in a global warming argument, generally accepted fundamental tenants even GW opponents accept, is that the world is warming. GW opponents and proponents alike will usually say something like "we all agree the world is warming. What we disagree on is if man is the cause". But I've been in plenty of these arguments, and I'll always say, frankly, I certainly dont know enough to say if the world is warming or not. I flatly dont accept "scientists" word for it. There's too much money and bias involved.

Call me a nutjob, but I've never, ever, bought that. I mean, I dont do the data, and quite frankly, I dont trust the "scientists" who do one bit, not one bit. I've already heard evidence that scientists do in fact "adjust" the raw temperature data. Of course then you could get into an argument whether the "adjustments" are legit.

Anyways the point of all this, is I dont even know how legit this is, maybe it'll blow over and turn into some fraud, but apparently the email at a major pro global warming "science" center was hacked, and well, lets just say they dont look good, it appears plenty of likely fraud occured. Of course, I'm sure this will all be spun away by the global warming cover up mainstream media machine in the next few days, pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. But anyway... link to get you started.

Link

Pertinent Fangraphs Articles

2009-11-20T18:36:25Z

These may not be fanpost worthy, but I figured that they might help distract from the Hicks imbroglio and help start or continue a few conversations we are having elsewhere regarding our offseason targets. Please forgive me if these have already been posted in old fanshots.

The first article is a comparison of the values and perceived values of Jason Bay and Mike Cameron. The second is a take on Dan Uggla's trade value, which may be lower than I initially realized. The last is a look at Adrian Beltre's potential away from Safeco, which habitually drives down RH power numbers. Given our need for a RH bat and that our only real defensive liability is at 3B, I figured I'd post it, even though the chances of us actually going after Beltre and shifting Young elsewhere are slim.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/bay-vs-cameron

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/ugglas-value

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/adrian-beltres-bat-away-from-safeco

For whatever reason, hyperlinks aren't working for me today, so I'll have to just post them like this...

Frankie Piliere scouting for fans now

2009-11-20T04:10:24Z

I typically just read and RARELY throw in any thoughts...Just haven't seen this on the site and wanted to throw it out there.

Former Ranger's Pro Scout Frankie Piliere is now "scouting for the fans." He's set up at fanhouse.com as well as twitter and plans to do everything he did for pro teams, but instead of report to them...he wants to report to the fans. He did a great Q/A session with fans the other day that's still up on his site(under subtitle-Free Agency Nears) . Gave a ton of love for Ranger prospects. (first one is here because of the debate on whether or not to sign Vlad. but the final two answers are my favorite!!!) Check out his stuff..follow him on twitter (he's the only reason I check twitter).

http://www.fanhouse.com/staff/frankie-piliere/

[Comment From Rick WeisbergRick Weisberg: ] Does it make sense for the Angels to retain Guerrero at his age and with his injuries?

4:04

Frankie Piliere: If they can get him for just one year then yes, absolutely. I really think he's got a lot left in the tank offensively

5:00

[Comment From TylerTyler: ] matt harrison showed signes of greatness in a few starts? can he be a sub 4.00 SP within 2 years?

5:00

Frankie Piliere: Yes he can. He can be a very solid guy, just a little inconsistent right now

[Comment From GuestGuest: ] Is Derek Holland a top of the rotation guy? if so how soon?

4:58

Frankie Piliere: I think he has that type of stuff, but i think he'll be learning on the job for a couple years

[Comment From ReillyReilly: ] How fast will Perez move in the Texas system?

Wednesday November 18, 2009 4:46 Reilly

4:47

Frankie Piliere:
As fast as they are willing to allow. I think his talent could move him very quick!

[Comment From ReillyReilly: ] What is the Martin Perez scouting report?

4:43

Frankie Piliere: He's very, very, very good. Ok, I can do better than that. Sits around 93-95 and can spot his secondary pitches. Sharp breaking ball. Best thing about him, though, is his demeanor. He's got a quiet presence that's hard to teach. He attacks hitters with no fear

Rangers AFL Review

2009-11-20T01:59:32Z

The Surprise Rafters' season ended today, and with it so did the stateside winter play of many of our beloved prospects. As a parting gift, many were active on its last day and most ended with a flourish. Lemon began his 2009 regular season on an amazing run, and appropriately bookended it with a strong stretch of games. He finished his season on a 17-40 run that included four HRs, which is neat until you realize he only hit one all year with Frisco, and then it becomes astonishing even in a hitter friendly environment like AZ. Mitch Moreland, on the other hand, was pretty consistent throughout the regular season, and continued that in the AFL, winning over many scouts and pundits along the way. Taylor Teagarden, part of a cache of young catchers that has failed to click at the big league level, had two solid games to end the season to save his bat from utter embarrassment. Gutcheck (a name I have given Gutierrez given his issues) gave up three runs today in three innings but struck out six and walked zero, so I won't write him off just yet. Scheppers rebounded from his worst professional start and threw a scoreless inning, and Harrison struck out three during three scoreless innings, so he finished with six scoreless and only two baserunners in his final two outings. I think he ends up being a very valuable member of our bullpen next year.

Other things to note: The Nationals are probably okay with their draft haul right now, finishing with the league leader in saves and ERA (Storen) and wins (Strasburg). Those stats are useless, but on the whole both pitchers apparently pitched quite well. Some kid named Robbie Weinhardt, an Okie State alum in the Tigers' system, put himself on my prospect map by striking out 29 hitters in just 18 innings, and Andrew Cashner dominated every start in which he didn't face Surprise...unfortunately three of his six starts came against the Rafters so he posted pretty pedestrian numbers overall.

If you want to spend some time looking through statistics and perhaps share greater insights than I am capable of, then be my guest...

Per Jayson Stark - Rangers interested in Uggla

2009-11-19T21:51:42Z

According to Jayson Stark, the Rangers are interested in Dan Uggla. The mention is about 3/4 of the way through the article. No details are provided other than the mention of the Giants and Rangers showing interest at the GM meetings.

Personally I'm not sure what to think about this report. I have yet to hear Uggla's name mentioned in connection with the Rangers. Obviously we have little use for him in our infield. Perhaps he's being considered as a LF/DH option.

Thoughts?

Lincecum wins NL Cy Young

2009-11-19T19:32:16Z

Remember when JD thought Tim had fallen to the Rangers in the draft? Good times, good times...

Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching Pitching

Rangers add Kirkman and Phillips to the 40

2009-11-19T18:49:31Z

Per the Newberg:

After a couple years of missing on my 40-man roster predictions by a player or two, I got it right this time around. As I speculated in this morning's report, the Rangers have announced that lefthanders Michael Kirkman and Zach Phillips have been added to the 40-man roster, protecting them from exposure to next month's Rule 5 Draft. x x x x x x x x x x x

Jamey

Playoff Ticket Refunds?

2009-11-18T17:54:06Z

Does anyone know the status of these refunds? I cannot find any mention of this on texasrangers.com and we are now a few weeks from the end of the World Series. This is frustrating to be out this long for that kind of money. This is becoming a little ridiculous.

Grateful for any feedback that you can provide.

Need more words. Need more words. Need more words. Need more words. Need more words. Need more words.

Texas Minor League Free Agents

2009-11-18T00:41:19Z

Didn't know AJ Murray was a FA. I expect the Rangers to resign Benjamin or a sign a FA SS to stash at OKC next year.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/?p=6994

Texas Rangers (19)
RHP: Bryan Corey (AAA), Brian Gordon (AAA), Jailen Peguero (AAA), Corey Ragsdale (Lo A), Elizardo Ramirez (AAA), Josh Rupe (AAA), Mike Wood (AAA)
LHP: Mike Hinckley (AAA), A.J. Murray (AAA)
1B: Ian Gac (Hi A), Mauro Gomez (Hi A), Royce Huffman (AAA)
3B: Adam Fox (AAA), Justin Leone (AAA)
3B: Travis Metcalf (AAA)
SS: Casey Benjamin (AAA)
OF: Ryan Freel (AAA), Dustin Majewski (AA), Kevin Thompson (AAA)

Pedro wants to pitch all of 2010. Interested?

2009-11-17T15:43:30Z

So according to ESPN Pedro felt so good pitching during the playoffs and World Series he wants to pitch all season in 2010. Last year he signed a 1 million dollar deal with Philly to pitch half the season. With all the talk of signing Sheets I think I would rather give Pedro a shot and it would probably cost the same if not less than what Sheets would. So who here would be interested in Pedro on a one year deal?

OT: Mavs vs. Bucks

2009-11-17T03:43:25Z

!!!!

I shouldn't be this excited for the Mavs beating such a crappy Bucks team but that whole game was such a clusterf starting with the third quarter.

And while Drew Gooden has done much to improve his stock with me, Barea is on notice. Beaubois can't grow up fast enough.

But Dirk really is the man. This is the best I think I've seen him. When he's on, he's on.

Oh, and Brandon Jennings will be amazing but you knew that today you could get him to make some rookie mistakes. He seemed to take missing that shot a little hard.

Bailey ROY, Elvis second

2009-11-16T19:16:52Z

Per Jamey's e-mail and also linked here, A's reliever Andrew Bailey was voted the AL Rookie of the Year and Elvis Andrus was second.

From the mlb.com article: OAKLAND -- Andrew Bailey's rise from Minor League obscurity to Major League limelight is a story that won't soon be forgotten. It turned historic on Monday when Bailey was named the winner of the American League Rookie of the Year Award. complete awards coverage The right-handed reliever beat out Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus, A's teammate Brett Anderson, infielder Gordon Beckham of the White Sox, catcher Matt Wieters of the Orioles and righty starters Rick Porcello of the Tigers and Jeff Niemann of the Rays, who were among the other candidates for the award. With a season strikingly similar to that a year earlier by fellow A's reliever Brad Ziegler, who took the baseball world by storm in 2008, Bailey's rags-to-riches story was among the feel-good highlights of 2009 -- and not just for A's fans. So compelling was Bailey's ascent -- from struggling Double-A starter to Arizona Fall League phenom to Spring Training sensation to All-Star big league closer -- that even President Barack Obama took notice. Sweeping through the AL clubhouse this July before the Midsummer Classic at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, President Obama stopped at the locker of Bailey, the only first-year player named to either team, and smiled. "Hey," President Obama said. "You're the rookie, right?" Bailey, 25, was blown away. "Come on," he said. "The president of the United States knows who I am? That's ridiculous." You could say the same about Bailey's stats. Moved from the starting rotation to the bullpen at midseason 2008 while with the Midland RockHounds of the Texas League, Bailey didn't just make a successful transition to relief work. He made the transition look like a breeze. Like he was born for relief work. "This is, I think, what Andrew was kind of meant to do," said A's pitching coach Curt Young. "His makeup, his demeanor, his stuff ... he's meant for this." Bailey, who dominated during the second half of the 2008 season at Midland, followed suit in the prestigious Arizona Fall League and did the same in his first trip to big league Spring Training to make the A's roster, posted an Oakland rookie-record 26 saves (in 30 chances) and a 6-3 record with a 1.84 ERA, a 0.88 WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched) and 91 strikeouts against 24 walks in 83 1/3 innings over 68 appearances. "Andrew," said A's catcher Kurt Suzuki, "was amazing."

LSB College Pick Choose Contest - Update

2009-11-15T21:26:27Z

1	Sam in So Cal	2032	180-35
2	BJilly	2021	183-32
3	hinduplaya	2007	179-36
4	EpicBoobGirlsaysEAndrusROY	2004	174-41
5	JBImaknee's Owls	1990	176-39

It's down to 2-3 people, but the top 5 are included (to demonstrate the mastery of the leaders by noting the separation).

Three weeks remaining in the 2009 College Pick Choose Contest, and anything could happen (not really, but I'm trying to keep it interesting).

POW! POW!