The Rangers Report

Record As Of April 23, 2007

8-10, Third In American League West

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly Of The Was

The Good

• Ian Kinsler – Kinsler keeps on rolling and at the moment is looking like he’s going to be a rising star.
• Sammy!!!! – Yeah, the offense has been bad and the average looks ####, but Sosa has actually been on somewhat of a hot streak.
• The Fourth And Fifth Spots In The Rotation– Kameron Loe and Robinson Tejeda have been dealing lately and that’s great news.

The Bad

• Everyone Not Named Kinsler, Cruz, Lofton and Blalock– The offense has got to get it together people.
• Taylor Teagarden On The D.L. – Elbow injury.  That’s not good for a catcher.
• Gagne On The D.L. – Big surprise, but at the very least this means that Frank Francisco is returning to the majors.  Quite honestly, this isn't really ugly, as there is bullpen depth to help out.

The Ugly

• Daniel Haigwood Traded – Here’s another thing you can lay Jamey Wright’s doorstep.  His addition cost the Rangers Daniel Haigwood, a Jamey Moyer-esque lefty that had to be Designated For Assignment in order to add Wright to the 40 man roster.  Haigwood was traded to the Boston Red Sox on Friday for RHP Scott Shoemaker, a tall right hander with a solid fastball and plus slider, but little else and will likely be a swingman.  #### this trade!  #### Jamey Wright!

Deals That Best Didn’t Go Down – The 2004 Larry Walker Trade

It’s great to watch Ian Kinsler blossom into a superstar second baseman, as it makes the Alfonso Soriano trade more and more justifiable considering that it was done to clear a spot for this great young talent.

It’s also great that Larry Walker vetoed a trade that would have sent the young slugger to the Rockies back in July of 2004.

You see, back in 2004, the Rangers were suddenly in the thick of the AL West race and, seeking to add extra punch to a lineup that was already strong and just needed a capable DH, then General Manager Jon Hart negotiated a deal with the Rockies that would have sent Kinsler and pitching prospect Erik Thompson in exchange for the brittle, but still potent bat of Walker.

However, Walker exercised his no trade clause and killed the deal.  The Rangers were left with having to use Eric Young and others in the DH role and Walker was traded the next month to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Would it have been worth it?

Well, after losing Soriano to injury in the last part of the 2004 season, Walker would have made up for the difference in offense that would have been lost.  It could have been enough to put the Rangers over Oakland and LA to get to the playoffs, where they would have played…the New York Yankees and former Ranger, Alex Rodriguez.

More likely, it would have resulted in Soriano remaining a Ranger, only to see him leave elsewhere and the Rangers would likely have had to re-sign Mark DeRosa, assuming his breakout remained the same, or possibly have rushed Joaquin Arias up to second base.

In retrospect, the deal is great.  But who knows what would have happened had Walker not killed the trade?

Just a thought.

Danks And Masset Incorrect About Rangers Fanbase

In recent interviews, former Rangers prospects John Danks and Nick Masset took some shots at the organization that drafted them.

In his first interview since being traded, Danks expressed his dislike for the DVD moniker that was attached to him, Thomas Diamond and Edison Volquez, who were hyped under the moniker as the Rangers’ pitching rotation of the future.  He said that “We hated it."  He expressed some anger about the hype that followed him, in particular when he was in Double A Frisco, close to the Rangers’ fan base, and replied that "fans came over and expected great things, (and) If I got shelled, they'd say, 'Oh, that guy isn't very good.  It was all hype.  It was one of those things where they build you up. You have one rough game and people write you off. Rangers fans are pretty fair-weathered anyway.  Early on it was cool to get some attention, but after a while it just wore on us," he said.

Hold on there, cowboy!

First of all, Ranger fans can be grouped into two factions:  the die hards, like myself, the guys that hang out at Rangerfans.com and Lone Star Ball, and then there’s the faction that really aren’t Ranger fans, that simply followed the team because they were in the area, came aboard because of A-Rod, and have criticized the team because of mismanagement that has ensued almost since the inception of the franchise.  As far as Ranger fans being fair-weathered, I’d say “angsty” is a better term.  Ranger fans have seen so many pitching prospects implode, and so many poor scouting decisions, that to say that they hold a pessimistic view of their team is, suffice to say, an understatement.  There are several fans that followed Danks since he was drafted and throughout much of his career, were pretty even handed with the remarks and criticism about him.  All in all, it was the latter section of fans that I described that seemed to take the whole DVD thing out of proportion.  I can understand how that can wear on a kid.

But, that doesn’t stop Danks from sounding slightly bitter about how he left, and that’s unfortunate.  There are many Ranger fans that would have loved to have kept him and still follow his career with great interest.  Comments like these kind of change people’s opinion about a player and as a result causes a loss of some a player’s fanbase.

Danks did sound a little better in another interview about Rangers management.  ''We left, everything was all clear, all good.  'I understood that it was part of the business. Jon Daniels, all those guys over there, had nothing but great things to say to me. So I want nothing but good for them.  ''I have no anger toward them.  'I wish them the best, and I hope they win every game ... except when they play the White Sox.''

Suffice to say, the damage has still been done.

Masset sounds even worse in another interview.

"Pitching is a big thing over there, tThat's a big question for them all the time. The funny thing is there is a lot of good talent over there. I don't think they put together the right combinations when they needed to. I don't know what happened.”

I can actually answer that.

Poor scouting, poor drafting, free agency losses and signings have created a loss of talent in the Rangers’ farm system.  He’s right about there being talent, it’s just said talent took a collective step back last season.

"I couldn't be in a happier situation or a better situation," Masset said. "I'm happy where I am and with what I'm doing for the team."

When asked if he'd like to face his former organization and have a chance to stick it to them, Masset replied: ''A little bit because you think, 'Why did they get rid of me?' If I get a chance against them, I'll bring a little extra, show them what they're missing out on.''

In all honesty, I can answer that question as well.

Masset was a part of a huge collection of relievers, which Texas is still plagued with and needs to purge at the deadline in order to restock the organization with useful prospects that have a future with the team.  Masset, unfortunately, was simply caught in a glut of relievers and was far enough down the food chain where he wouldn’t be missed.

Masset always had great stuff, but could never put it together and really, only last season was he able to emerge as a prospect that was more interesting than much.

I wish both guys all the luck in the world, but quite frankly, after reading the interviews, I won’t miss them.  The Rangers need to have players that want to be there.  And in this case, they may be better off.

Ranger Notes

• Eric Chavez had originally given Rangers Manager Ron Washington his 2004 Gold Glove trophy.  Unfortuantely, the award was one of Washington’s belongings that had been lost during Hurricane Katrina.  However, the Rangers had a replica of the award made and asked Chavez to present it to Washington once again, which he did before Saturday's game at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
• Mark Connor feels that the problem with Brandon McCarthy is not mechanics, but rather with his head.  He advised McCarthy to relax, as he feels that McCarthy is trying hard to prove that the trade that brought him to Texas was worthwhile.
• The Bruce Chen era of the Rangers is over.  To make room for Eyre, Chen was designated for assignment.  Chen had five outings and is currently 0-0 with a 7.20 ERA (8 ER/10.0 IP) on 11 hits.  He has struck out seven and walked six and has finished three games.  With the starting pitching market in disarray at the moment, Chen will likely be traded within the ten day period that is specified, as it seems unlikely he'll make it to Oklahoma, where he has accepted a assignment to, as someone will claim him.  Hopefully, the Rangers will get something useful.
• The Tigers during the off-season were worried enough about the lack of a lefty in their bullpen that they inquired to see if LHP C.J. Wilson was available, but were told no.  That not only speaks volumes about how the organization feels about Wilson, who wants to close at some point, but it also means that for once, the Rangers have something that someone actually wants.  I wonder if they'd be interested in Chen or LHP John Rheinecker, who is currently on the DL.
• Torii Hunter is apparently looking for a 4 year deal worth $50 million dollars.  Looking at Hunter, the injury issues are a bit concerning, plus the fact that he’s going to be entering his decline seasons at the age of 32.  PETCOA’s projections are not very big on Hunter, frankly have him looking more or less like a backup player by the year 2009.  We’ll take a look at the centerfield market next time and see who the Rangers should head after.

That's all for now.  Have A Great Week Everyone!