Nice game last night. Hitters hitting well, pitchers (other than Jamey Wright, who has a 6.49 ERA since June 1) pitching well, and Texas stays 4.5 games up on Oakland with 17 games to go. If Texas goes 8-9 the rest of the way, Oakland has to go 14-4 to pass the Rangers.
Evan Grant has some Taylor Teagarden love this morning, and while he drove in 3 runs last night, the defense is the focus of the conversation. He came to the majors with a reputation for being a great receiver and game caller, and his reputation has been borne out in the bigs thusfar. Jeff Wilson says that Teagarden has been compared to former Cards' catcher Mike Matheny, a defensive stalwart who didn't hit, although Teagarden's power and on-base skills appear to be better than Matheny's.
Wilson also has a piece on Scott Feldman, who will be making one more start this season then will head out to the bullpen, in an effort to keep his innings down.
Hank Blalock says he isn't worrying about the future and whether or not the Rangers will pick up his option. He'd make the decision on the option easier if he'd start hitting..he's currently at .259/.308/.394 on the year, and since getting hurt in April, he's posting a .226/.259/.340 line in 112 plate appearances. That's ugly.
Milton Bradley has a strained muscle in his lower back, which resulted in him leaving the game after one swing last night, and David Murphy got a cortisone shot.