Well, that was a delightful trip out to the Bay Area.
My quick Mavs thoughts...
It is amazing to me how afraid everyone on the Mavs appears to be to shoot the ball.
It is amazing that a team that is supposed to be the deepest in the league would basically play only 6 guys in the second half.
I kept thinking, while watching the game, that the Mavs could really use a point guard who can distribute and knock down open 3s. And on a related note, kudos to Mark Cuban for overruling his then-head-coach and letting Steve Nash walk, and opting to spend the money on Erick Dampier instead.
And I wonder if all those in the D/FW media who were excoriating Cuban for dragging his feet on a raise for Avery after last season are going to be urging Avery to give some of that money back, given the way he's been thoroughly outclassed by Nellie in this series.
The only good thing about the Mavs collapse is that it is taking attention away from Brandon McCarthy's recent collapse. Evan Grant says that the Rangers aren't bumping him from the rotation yet, but if he can't get this straightened out -- and it sounds like everyone agrees that his problems stem from him rushing his motion -- I don't think they are going to have much choice but to send McCarthy to AAA. Sticking him in the bullpen and making him the long man isn't going to do much good, I don't think. And at the end of the day, McCarthy still has the potential to be the best starting pitcher on this staff.
Grant also suggests that either Scott Feldman or Willie Eyre -- both of whom have struggled -- could be optioned to AAA today to make room for Wes Littleton, in order to get some reinforcements in the pen. I've been wanting Littleton back up for a while, and hopefully, we'll see him in a Ranger uniform tonight.
Meanwhile, the Cat is hurt. He's going to get an MRI on Tuesday, and at that point, the Rangers will apparently decide what to do with him.
Presumably, if he has to go on the D.L., Victor Diaz will get the call. He's been mashing in AAA, and given the way Catalanotto has been struggling, Diaz is probably a more viable offensive threat right now anyway.