Today is the beginning of the rest of the season, the portion of the season where it doesn't matter so much whether the Rangers win or lose because they are out of the playoff race.
Along those lines, Edinson Volquez gets a start again on Saturday, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do with the opportunity.
I imagine Jon Daniels is going to start fielding calls about whatever players the Rangers have that cleared waivers, and is going to be going into "sell" mode.
But this team just looks like it is in disarray right now.
Jamey Newberg had this to say in his report this morning:
The fourth inning basically told the story, as both Texas and Oakland put their first two men on. The Rangers left their pair stranded on first and second. The A's scored four times.
The ninth was pretty telling, too. Wow.
The difference between the minor leagues and major leagues is executing consistently. The difference between major league teams that don't make the playoffs and those that do is capitalizing consistently.
The A's capitalize. They play loose. They catch the ball. They get ahead in the count, they hit and run, they exploit your mistakes.
They're missing one of the league's best young starting pitchers and have one of baseball's most pedestrian lineups, and yet they're playing like they know they're going to win.
The Rangers, on the other hand, are making lots of mistakes lately. In every phase.
I hate seeing a defeated look in the eyes of the guys who play for my team. It's one of the worst feelings in sports.
I agree. And the thing that immediately springs to mind is, these are the sort of things that a manager is generally held accountable for.
Buck has been here four seasons. In three of those, the team has disappointed, has failed to meet expectations. And the team appears to be going backwards right now.
I do not see how this organization can continue to justify having Buck Showalter at the helm of this team. And I do not see how the organization could justify bringing him back in 2007.