I just got back from a vacation in Myrtle Beach so am posting for the first time this month. My grandparents have a condo in Myrtle Beach and we go there every year. We had a great trip which included one baseball game. We saw the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (an Atlanta Braves class high-A team) play the Lynchburg Hillcats (Pittsburgh Pirates) and beat them 5-3. The Pelicans were down 3-2 but scored three runs in the bottom of the 8th to get the win.
If you’re interested in reading any of my past interviews, I’ve created links to all of them on the left-hand side of my blog, under the Rangers Links section.
This week I will provide information on the Rangers top 5 draft picks and analyze the Adam Melhuse trade.
Earlier this month, the Rangers had their 2007 draft. Here are the Rangers’ first 5 picks, along with their scouting information.
Blake Beaven SP:
Beaven has a great fastball that goes up to 96 MPH, but a below average slider and change-up. He’s got good control and is good in pressure situations. Also, he beat Cuba in Cuba for Team USA last summer.
Michael Main SP, OF:
Michael’s fastball gets up on you quick and he can control it pretty well. His slider is more like a great slurve and he’s got a great change-up. He also has pretty good control.
Julio Borbon OF:
Borbon has good bat control and is more of a singles and doubles guy. He’s very fast and has great baserunning skills going 34-43 in stolen bases in his college career. He has a below average arm, but great range and great fielding skills. He’s also got a great instinct. Julio is kind of like Kenny Lofton and Johnny Damon.
Neil Ramirez SP:
Neil’s fastball, like Blake’s reaches 96 MPH. He’s also got a great curveball, but a below average change-up. Neil has average control.
Tommy Hunter SP:Tommy has an average fastball along with a below average change-up, slider, and control.
I think all of these players have good potential except for Tommy Hunter.
The Rangers traded future considerations to the A’s for Adam Melhuse on June 9th.
Adam Melhuse:
Adam is a good back-up catcher who could be a starter with a weak catching team or an a team with an injury to the starting catcher. He’s got good power for a catcher and 1 out of every 2 ½ hits is for extra bases.
Career:
.241 AVG
23 HR
90 RBI
276 G
643 AB
1 SB
Adam first appeared in the major leagues in 2000 for the Rockies. He has also appeared with the Dodgers and the A’s.
Adam Melhuse is a good back-up catcher and is definitely worth future considerations. He’s a big upgrade from Chris Stewart and if we end up giving the A’s anything at all, it will be very little.
Grade: A+
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: What do you think Kameron's long-term role with the team should be?
Bullpen: 51%
Starter: 32%
Set-up: 15%
Closer: 1%
Come back next week for an analysis of the Rangers minor league teams’ first half.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Kameron Loe Interview
This week I did an interview with Rangers pitcher Kameron Loe.
1. Who are the three toughest hitters you’ve faced and why?
Kameron mentioned Justin Morneau, Vladimir Guerrero, and Jim Thome because all three have excellent recognition of the strike zone, are very strong, and have long arms that allow them to reach balls out of the strike zone.
2. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
- CJ Wilson – they’ve been roommates for three years, are very good friends, have a lot of common interests (like martial arts and video games), and talk baseball a lot.
- Brandon McCarthy – they’re good friends mostly because they have the same sense of humor.
- Nick Masset – Nick is a real good friend. They lived together in spring training and instructional camp. Kameron said that Nick is very kind hearted.
3. Why did you decide not to sign with Philadelphia when they drafted you in 1999 and why did you decide to sign with the Rangers when they drafted you in 2002?
Kameron said that he was drafted by Philadelphia out of high school but really wanted to go to college. He told the scouts that if he wasn’t drafted in the first 2-3 rounds, he would go to college. It was going to take a certain amount of money for him to give up college. Philadelphia drafted him low anyway to see if he was bluffing but Kameron did what he said he would. After three years of college, he knew he was ready. He didn’t care about the money. He just wanted to play baseball.
4. What was the key to your success in 2003, when you went 7-3 with a 1.67 ERA between Clinton and Stockton, after going 4-4 with a 4.47 ERA in rookie ball the year before?
The biggest difference was experience pitching against wood bats. In college, he was taught not to pitch inside because aluminum bats don’t break and hitters can still get power on inside pitches. So he pitched away from hitters in the rookie leagues. After learning that he could pitch inside, he had more success. Also he read ‘The Mental Game of Baseball’, which he says really helped him. He thinks the book helped him get to the big leagues quicker.
5. What was it like to be called up to the Rangers for the first time in September 2004 in the middle of a pennant race?
Kameron said that it was ‘awesome for a number of reasons’. He didn’t expect a call-up. He finished the triple-A season and was sent home. He was in the car with his mom in LA and got a call. The Rangers were playing in Anaheim and they invited him to the field to work out with the team and said they might activate him. Since it was in his home town, he was able to pitch in front of his friends and family.
6. What is the best thing about being a major league ballplayer and why?
‘You get to spend half of the year just focusing on baseball.’
7. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league hitting?
Kameron said it was learning to throw off-speed pitches more. In the minors, he could just throw his fastball.
8. What was the recovery process for your injury in 2006 like?
‘Frustrating.’ They didn’t really know what was wrong with his elbow. First they tried to rehab it with no medications. After a month with no improvement, he got a cortisone shot and his arm was better in three days. But he needed to get his arm strength and location back. That took a long time, longer than the healing process.
9. What did you work on last offseason that led to you having such a dominant spring training?
Kameron said that he felt challenged and had to rise to the challenge to win a spot. He had to show that he was the best guy for the job. Also, he was in better condition because his offseason conditioning was more baseball specific. He also thought having more experience made a difference.
10. What did you think when you started the season in the bullpen this year?
He was a little disappointed. But he had been in the bullpen before and decided he’d be the best bullpen guy he could.
11. What do you think is working well for you this season and what are you still working on?
Working well: Fastball, slider, and changeup. He thinks he’s having much better success with his changeup.
Still working on: Pitching inside to lefties and holding runners.
12. What’s it like to room with CJ Wilson?
Kameron said that CJ is a smart guy. They’re good friends and he’s a good roommate. He’s fairly clean and they don’t crowd each other. Also, both are from California so they have that in common.
13. Do you take your pet snake with you on road trips?
No, he just feeds her one rat before a road trip and makes sure her water is full.
14. What is your best pitch and how was it developed?
He thinks his best pitch is his sinking (two-seam) fastball. He learned it at 13 years old when a coach taught it to him. He started pitching at 11 but only threw a four-seam fastball. With the two-seam fastball he started to get a lot of grounders.
15. What do you think your long-term role with the team will be and why? What would you prefer your long-term role to be and why?
He thinks he will be a starter and that’s what he wants to be. His entire career until the majors was as a starter. His body is conditioned to go deep into games and his arm can take it. His cardiovascular system is good and he has enough pitches to be a starter. He said ‘I love to have my own game’.
16. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career andwhy?
Kameron mentioned two games. The first was one of his starts in 2005 against the Twins in Minnesota. He pitched 8 innings, allowed no runs, and got the win. The second was this year against Toronto. He said he really battled in that game, giving up 1 run in 5 and 2/3 inning. He didn’t get the win but kept the team in the game and they won.
17. What was your favorite team growing up?
The Dodgers because he grew up in LA.
18. What are your hobbies?
Martial arts, kick boxing, playing video games, reading, talking to friends, camping, going to the beach, and taking vacations.
I would like to thank Kameron for giving me so much of his time to do this interview. I’ve gotten to talk to Kameron a lot at different Rangers events and games and he is always very friendly and willing to spend time with fans. For this interview Kameron was very nice and talked to me on the phone for half an hour in Oakland while he was taking the train to the game.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you should be the MVP of all of baseball out of my league MVPs and runner-ups?
A-Rod – 75%
Prince Fielder – 13%
JJ Hardy – 13%
Jorge Posada – 0%
I’m taking a week off. Come back in two weeks for my next column.
1. Who are the three toughest hitters you’ve faced and why?
Kameron mentioned Justin Morneau, Vladimir Guerrero, and Jim Thome because all three have excellent recognition of the strike zone, are very strong, and have long arms that allow them to reach balls out of the strike zone.
2. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
- CJ Wilson – they’ve been roommates for three years, are very good friends, have a lot of common interests (like martial arts and video games), and talk baseball a lot.
- Brandon McCarthy – they’re good friends mostly because they have the same sense of humor.
- Nick Masset – Nick is a real good friend. They lived together in spring training and instructional camp. Kameron said that Nick is very kind hearted.
3. Why did you decide not to sign with Philadelphia when they drafted you in 1999 and why did you decide to sign with the Rangers when they drafted you in 2002?
Kameron said that he was drafted by Philadelphia out of high school but really wanted to go to college. He told the scouts that if he wasn’t drafted in the first 2-3 rounds, he would go to college. It was going to take a certain amount of money for him to give up college. Philadelphia drafted him low anyway to see if he was bluffing but Kameron did what he said he would. After three years of college, he knew he was ready. He didn’t care about the money. He just wanted to play baseball.
4. What was the key to your success in 2003, when you went 7-3 with a 1.67 ERA between Clinton and Stockton, after going 4-4 with a 4.47 ERA in rookie ball the year before?
The biggest difference was experience pitching against wood bats. In college, he was taught not to pitch inside because aluminum bats don’t break and hitters can still get power on inside pitches. So he pitched away from hitters in the rookie leagues. After learning that he could pitch inside, he had more success. Also he read ‘The Mental Game of Baseball’, which he says really helped him. He thinks the book helped him get to the big leagues quicker.
5. What was it like to be called up to the Rangers for the first time in September 2004 in the middle of a pennant race?
Kameron said that it was ‘awesome for a number of reasons’. He didn’t expect a call-up. He finished the triple-A season and was sent home. He was in the car with his mom in LA and got a call. The Rangers were playing in Anaheim and they invited him to the field to work out with the team and said they might activate him. Since it was in his home town, he was able to pitch in front of his friends and family.
6. What is the best thing about being a major league ballplayer and why?
‘You get to spend half of the year just focusing on baseball.’
7. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league hitting?
Kameron said it was learning to throw off-speed pitches more. In the minors, he could just throw his fastball.
8. What was the recovery process for your injury in 2006 like?
‘Frustrating.’ They didn’t really know what was wrong with his elbow. First they tried to rehab it with no medications. After a month with no improvement, he got a cortisone shot and his arm was better in three days. But he needed to get his arm strength and location back. That took a long time, longer than the healing process.
9. What did you work on last offseason that led to you having such a dominant spring training?
Kameron said that he felt challenged and had to rise to the challenge to win a spot. He had to show that he was the best guy for the job. Also, he was in better condition because his offseason conditioning was more baseball specific. He also thought having more experience made a difference.
10. What did you think when you started the season in the bullpen this year?
He was a little disappointed. But he had been in the bullpen before and decided he’d be the best bullpen guy he could.
11. What do you think is working well for you this season and what are you still working on?
Working well: Fastball, slider, and changeup. He thinks he’s having much better success with his changeup.
Still working on: Pitching inside to lefties and holding runners.
12. What’s it like to room with CJ Wilson?
Kameron said that CJ is a smart guy. They’re good friends and he’s a good roommate. He’s fairly clean and they don’t crowd each other. Also, both are from California so they have that in common.
13. Do you take your pet snake with you on road trips?
No, he just feeds her one rat before a road trip and makes sure her water is full.
14. What is your best pitch and how was it developed?
He thinks his best pitch is his sinking (two-seam) fastball. He learned it at 13 years old when a coach taught it to him. He started pitching at 11 but only threw a four-seam fastball. With the two-seam fastball he started to get a lot of grounders.
15. What do you think your long-term role with the team will be and why? What would you prefer your long-term role to be and why?
He thinks he will be a starter and that’s what he wants to be. His entire career until the majors was as a starter. His body is conditioned to go deep into games and his arm can take it. His cardiovascular system is good and he has enough pitches to be a starter. He said ‘I love to have my own game’.
16. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career andwhy?
Kameron mentioned two games. The first was one of his starts in 2005 against the Twins in Minnesota. He pitched 8 innings, allowed no runs, and got the win. The second was this year against Toronto. He said he really battled in that game, giving up 1 run in 5 and 2/3 inning. He didn’t get the win but kept the team in the game and they won.
17. What was your favorite team growing up?
The Dodgers because he grew up in LA.
18. What are your hobbies?
Martial arts, kick boxing, playing video games, reading, talking to friends, camping, going to the beach, and taking vacations.
I would like to thank Kameron for giving me so much of his time to do this interview. I’ve gotten to talk to Kameron a lot at different Rangers events and games and he is always very friendly and willing to spend time with fans. For this interview Kameron was very nice and talked to me on the phone for half an hour in Oakland while he was taking the train to the game.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you should be the MVP of all of baseball out of my league MVPs and runner-ups?
A-Rod – 75%
Prince Fielder – 13%
JJ Hardy – 13%
Jorge Posada – 0%
I’m taking a week off. Come back in two weeks for my next column.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
May Awards
I went to two baseball games last week. On Wednesday, I went to see the RoughRiders play Wichita in Frisco. It was a great game. Eric Hurley pitched a complete game shutout and the Riders won 8-0. The Riders had a 5-run 5th and Manriquez and Duran homered. On Friday, I went to see the Rangers play Boston. It was my first day off from school and my dad and I spent the day in Arlington, going to Six Flags and then the Rangers game. Before the game, I arranged an interview with Kameron Loe and got autographs from Robinson Tejeda, Joaquin Benoit, and Frank Francisco. It rained for a long time and the game was delayed by two hours. McCarthy really struggled and only lasted two innings. Once again, the Rangers fielded poorly. The Rangers lost 10-6.
This week I will give my May Awards. The awards are for if the season ended now.
Rangers:
Rangers MVP: Mark Teixeira: Teixeira is one of only two Rangers batting over .300 and has 8 homers.
Runner-up: Sammy Sosa
Rangers Cy Young: C.J. Wilson: Wilson has a 2.35 ERA, 23 IP and great WHIP.
Runner-up: Akinori Otsuka
Rangers Rookie of the Year: Chris Stewart
Runner-up: Kevin Mahar
AL:
AL MVP: A-ROD NYY: A-ROD has 19 home runs already.
Runner-up: Jorge Posada NYY
AL Cy Young: Dan Haren OAK: Haren is the AL ERA leader and has 5 wins.
Runner-up: John Lackey LAA
NL:
NL MVP: JJ Hardy MIL: He is tied for 1st in the National League for home runs, leads the NL in RBI’s and is batting .314.
Runner-up: Prince Fielder MIL
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy SD: Peavy leads baseball in ERA, is tied for 2nd in the NL for wins, and is 2nd in the NL for strikeouts.
Runner-up: John Smoltz
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Which team do you think will have the most starting All-Stars?
Yankees – 42%
Red Sox – 25%
Cardinals – 17%
Tigers – 17%
Come back next week for a possible Kam Loe interview.
This week I will give my May Awards. The awards are for if the season ended now.
Rangers:
Rangers MVP: Mark Teixeira: Teixeira is one of only two Rangers batting over .300 and has 8 homers.
Runner-up: Sammy Sosa
Rangers Cy Young: C.J. Wilson: Wilson has a 2.35 ERA, 23 IP and great WHIP.
Runner-up: Akinori Otsuka
Rangers Rookie of the Year: Chris Stewart
Runner-up: Kevin Mahar
AL:
AL MVP: A-ROD NYY: A-ROD has 19 home runs already.
Runner-up: Jorge Posada NYY
AL Cy Young: Dan Haren OAK: Haren is the AL ERA leader and has 5 wins.
Runner-up: John Lackey LAA
NL:
NL MVP: JJ Hardy MIL: He is tied for 1st in the National League for home runs, leads the NL in RBI’s and is batting .314.
Runner-up: Prince Fielder MIL
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy SD: Peavy leads baseball in ERA, is tied for 2nd in the NL for wins, and is 2nd in the NL for strikeouts.
Runner-up: John Smoltz
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Which team do you think will have the most starting All-Stars?
Yankees – 42%
Red Sox – 25%
Cardinals – 17%
Tigers – 17%
Come back next week for a possible Kam Loe interview.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Analysis of All-Star Ballot
This week I will analyze the All-Star ballot and say who I think will be the starter and who I think should be the starter.
NL:
1st base:
Should be: Prince Fielder, Brewers
Will be: Albert Pujols, Cardinals
2nd base:
Should be: Chase Utley, Phillies
Will be: Craig Biggio, Astros
Shortstop:
Should be: J.J. Hardy, Brewers
Will be: David Eckstein, Cardinals
3rd base:
Should be: Chipper Jones, Braves
Will be: Chipper Jones, Braves
Catcher:
Should be: Russell Martin, Dodgers
Will be: Yadier Molina, Cardinals
Outfielders:
Should be: Matt Holliday, Carlos Lee, Ken Griffey, Jr
Will be: Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey, Jr., Jim Edmonds
AL:
1st base:
Should be: David Ortiz, Red Sox
Will be: David Ortiz, Red Sox
2nd base:
Should be: Ian Kinsler, Rangers
Will be: Robinson Cano, Yankees
Shortstop:
Should be: Johnny Peralta, Indians
Will be: Derek Jeter, Yankees
3rd base:
Should be: A-ROD, Yankees
Will be: A-ROD, Yankees
Catcher:
Should be: Jorge Posada, Yankees
Will be: Pudge, Tigers
Outfielders:
Should be: Vladamir Guerrero, Magglio Ordonez, Curtis Granderson
Will be: Sammy Sosa, Gary Sheffield, Ichiro
Also, I went back to Barry Newberg’s Mooyah Burgers yesterday. Their burgers are still great, plus now their fries are much better than they were when they first opened. They’re crispier and have more seasoning now.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think will show the biggest improvement the rest of the year off of my Going Up list?
Yankees – 61%
Phillies – 17%
Padres – 11%
Rangers – 6%
Blue Jays – 6%
Mets – 0%
Reds – 0%
Come back next week for my May Awards.
NL:
1st base:
Should be: Prince Fielder, Brewers
Will be: Albert Pujols, Cardinals
2nd base:
Should be: Chase Utley, Phillies
Will be: Craig Biggio, Astros
Shortstop:
Should be: J.J. Hardy, Brewers
Will be: David Eckstein, Cardinals
3rd base:
Should be: Chipper Jones, Braves
Will be: Chipper Jones, Braves
Catcher:
Should be: Russell Martin, Dodgers
Will be: Yadier Molina, Cardinals
Outfielders:
Should be: Matt Holliday, Carlos Lee, Ken Griffey, Jr
Will be: Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey, Jr., Jim Edmonds
AL:
1st base:
Should be: David Ortiz, Red Sox
Will be: David Ortiz, Red Sox
2nd base:
Should be: Ian Kinsler, Rangers
Will be: Robinson Cano, Yankees
Shortstop:
Should be: Johnny Peralta, Indians
Will be: Derek Jeter, Yankees
3rd base:
Should be: A-ROD, Yankees
Will be: A-ROD, Yankees
Catcher:
Should be: Jorge Posada, Yankees
Will be: Pudge, Tigers
Outfielders:
Should be: Vladamir Guerrero, Magglio Ordonez, Curtis Granderson
Will be: Sammy Sosa, Gary Sheffield, Ichiro
Also, I went back to Barry Newberg’s Mooyah Burgers yesterday. Their burgers are still great, plus now their fries are much better than they were when they first opened. They’re crispier and have more seasoning now.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think will show the biggest improvement the rest of the year off of my Going Up list?
Yankees – 61%
Phillies – 17%
Padres – 11%
Rangers – 6%
Blue Jays – 6%
Mets – 0%
Reds – 0%
Come back next week for my May Awards.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Team Projections
Last week I went to two baseball games and played one. On Tuesday, my dad took my little sister and me to the RoughRiders stadium to see a game. But when we got there, the traffic was really bad and we noticed that more people were leaving the ballpark’s parking lot than were coming in. It turns out that they forgot to cover the field the night before when it rained and the field was too muddy to play. So we went back the next night and saw them play. Doug Mathis pitched and he was great. He allowed no runs in 7 innings. Frisco won 2-1. Before the game, I tried to get autographs of the three players who joined the team since the last time I was there (Brandon Boggs, Bill White, and Jorge Vazquez). I got Boggs and White but a security guard wouldn’t let me ask for Vazquez’ for some reason.
On Saturday, I played a baseball game. I played third base the whole game. I caught two outs, tagged out a base stealer, and made no errors. I had two plate appearances. The first time I walked on 4 pitches with the bases loaded. The second time, I swung and hit the catcher in the arm with my bat, so I got to go to first base on catcher’s interference. So far this season, I have a 1.000 on base percentage. We won and are 2-0.
After the game, my dad and I went straight to the Rangers game. We got there during the first inning. It was Ian Kinsler bobblehead day and fortunately they still had a few left when we got there. Kameron Loe pitched well but the defense was very bad (3 errors) and we lost 6-3.
This week, I examined all of the teams in baseball and based on their current record and the strength of the rest of their schedule, I decided which teams I thought would improve their records, which would do worse, and which would stay the same. Below are the results of my analysis.
Going Up:
1. New York Yankees: The Yankees’ pitchers have gotten injured so much that it’s left their rotation a mess until the pitchers come back, and with the Yankees they’re not going to stay under .500 a whole season.
2. New York Mets: The Mets have one of the easiest schedules in baseball, along with maybe the best hitting in baseball. With a team that good combined with their schedule, there’s nowhere to go but up.
3. Philadelphia Phillies: You can’t have a team fighting for the wild card one year and not make many changes in the offseason with this good an offense do this bad the very next year.
4. Cincinnati Reds: Aaron Harang hasn’t been doing as well as he will yet and Adam Dunn isn’t hitting for much power. There’s no chance they’ll struggle this bad a whole year, and with the Pirates in their division they won’t stay in last place long.
5. Texas Rangers: A team can’t make three errors a game throughout a whole year. Plus, our hitters are coming out of their slump already.
6. Toronto Blue Jays
7. San Diego Padres
Going Down:
1. Kansas City Royals: The Royals have the hardest schedule in baseball, in my opinion, and are probably the worst team in baseball. If possible the way they’re playing they’ll plummet with that combination.
2. Pittsburgh Pirates: The Pirates have one of the hardest schedules in baseball, probably because they can’t play themselves, and are one of the worst teams in baseball. Like in the Royals case, that’s one of the worst combinations to have.
3. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: The Devil Rays have the same combination as the Pirates and Royals, and are in a tough division.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers have one of the toughest schedules in baseball and aren’t as good as their record shows.
5. Washington Nationals: The Nats have the same combination as the top three.
6. Boston Red Sox
7. San Francisco Giants
8. Baltimore Orioles
9. Chicago White Sox
10. Atlanta Braves
11. Los Angeles Angels
Staying the Same:
1. Detroit Tigers: The Tigers are probably the best team in the AL, and have an average schedule. There’s no way they go down, but they probably won’t go up with how good their division is.
2. Houston Astros: The Astros players are performing to the expectations and they still can’t win. They have a better chance of going down than up, but will probably keep playing like this.
3. Chicago Cubs: The Cubs have tried getting all these big stars in, but just can’t win with anybody. They’re probably not going to go anywhere but stay right where they are.
4. Florida Marlins: The Marlins aren’t good enough to do any better than they are now, but not bad enough to go behind the Nats. They’ve got an average schedule so unless the GM makes another decision that isn’t understandable, they won’t go down, but the GM isn’t good enough to get them players that will bring them up.
5. Oakland Athletics: The A’s talent is right where their record shows - around .500. Unless they get somebody good at the trade deadline they’ll stay just behind the Angels and just in front of the Mariners.
6. Milwaukee Brewers
7. St. Louis Cardinals
8. Cleveland Indians
9. Seattle Mariners
10. Minnesota Twins
11. Arizona Diamondbacks
12. Colorado Rockies
Result of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think should be the Rangers Cy Young winner so far?
Tejeda – 37%
Otsuka – 26%
Wilson – 16%
Benoit, Eyre, Loe, and Padilla – 5% each
Everyone else – 0%
Come back next week for an analysis of the All-Star ballot.
On Saturday, I played a baseball game. I played third base the whole game. I caught two outs, tagged out a base stealer, and made no errors. I had two plate appearances. The first time I walked on 4 pitches with the bases loaded. The second time, I swung and hit the catcher in the arm with my bat, so I got to go to first base on catcher’s interference. So far this season, I have a 1.000 on base percentage. We won and are 2-0.
After the game, my dad and I went straight to the Rangers game. We got there during the first inning. It was Ian Kinsler bobblehead day and fortunately they still had a few left when we got there. Kameron Loe pitched well but the defense was very bad (3 errors) and we lost 6-3.
This week, I examined all of the teams in baseball and based on their current record and the strength of the rest of their schedule, I decided which teams I thought would improve their records, which would do worse, and which would stay the same. Below are the results of my analysis.
Going Up:
1. New York Yankees: The Yankees’ pitchers have gotten injured so much that it’s left their rotation a mess until the pitchers come back, and with the Yankees they’re not going to stay under .500 a whole season.
2. New York Mets: The Mets have one of the easiest schedules in baseball, along with maybe the best hitting in baseball. With a team that good combined with their schedule, there’s nowhere to go but up.
3. Philadelphia Phillies: You can’t have a team fighting for the wild card one year and not make many changes in the offseason with this good an offense do this bad the very next year.
4. Cincinnati Reds: Aaron Harang hasn’t been doing as well as he will yet and Adam Dunn isn’t hitting for much power. There’s no chance they’ll struggle this bad a whole year, and with the Pirates in their division they won’t stay in last place long.
5. Texas Rangers: A team can’t make three errors a game throughout a whole year. Plus, our hitters are coming out of their slump already.
6. Toronto Blue Jays
7. San Diego Padres
Going Down:
1. Kansas City Royals: The Royals have the hardest schedule in baseball, in my opinion, and are probably the worst team in baseball. If possible the way they’re playing they’ll plummet with that combination.
2. Pittsburgh Pirates: The Pirates have one of the hardest schedules in baseball, probably because they can’t play themselves, and are one of the worst teams in baseball. Like in the Royals case, that’s one of the worst combinations to have.
3. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: The Devil Rays have the same combination as the Pirates and Royals, and are in a tough division.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers have one of the toughest schedules in baseball and aren’t as good as their record shows.
5. Washington Nationals: The Nats have the same combination as the top three.
6. Boston Red Sox
7. San Francisco Giants
8. Baltimore Orioles
9. Chicago White Sox
10. Atlanta Braves
11. Los Angeles Angels
Staying the Same:
1. Detroit Tigers: The Tigers are probably the best team in the AL, and have an average schedule. There’s no way they go down, but they probably won’t go up with how good their division is.
2. Houston Astros: The Astros players are performing to the expectations and they still can’t win. They have a better chance of going down than up, but will probably keep playing like this.
3. Chicago Cubs: The Cubs have tried getting all these big stars in, but just can’t win with anybody. They’re probably not going to go anywhere but stay right where they are.
4. Florida Marlins: The Marlins aren’t good enough to do any better than they are now, but not bad enough to go behind the Nats. They’ve got an average schedule so unless the GM makes another decision that isn’t understandable, they won’t go down, but the GM isn’t good enough to get them players that will bring them up.
5. Oakland Athletics: The A’s talent is right where their record shows - around .500. Unless they get somebody good at the trade deadline they’ll stay just behind the Angels and just in front of the Mariners.
6. Milwaukee Brewers
7. St. Louis Cardinals
8. Cleveland Indians
9. Seattle Mariners
10. Minnesota Twins
11. Arizona Diamondbacks
12. Colorado Rockies
Result of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think should be the Rangers Cy Young winner so far?
Tejeda – 37%
Otsuka – 26%
Wilson – 16%
Benoit, Eyre, Loe, and Padilla – 5% each
Everyone else – 0%
Come back next week for an analysis of the All-Star ballot.
Saturday, May 05, 2007
April Awards
This week I went to two Rangers games. The first one was the first game of the Yankees series on Tuesday. It was a bad game. The Rangers couldn’t pitch, hit, or field. They lost 10-1. The second one was the first game of the Blue Jays series. It was the exact opposite. The Rangers got great pitching from Brandon McCarthy and Willie Eyre, great hitting, and great fielding. They won 7-1. Also, before the game, I got autographs from Frank Thomas and Royce Clayton. I was the only one to get Royce. Frank signed for a long line of people and I was the last one he signed for. I now have a streak of 4 players where I was the last person to get an autograph (Mike Piazza, Nick Swisher, Royce Clayton, and Frank Thomas). Also, today my baseball season started. I’m on the Durham Bulls. I played third base and went 1-for-1 at the plate with a walk and a run scored. We won 8-7.
This week I will give my April awards. All the stats and explanations are as of April 30th.
Rangers MVP:
Ian Kinsler: .298 AVG., 9 HR, 22 RBI: He’s tied for second in baseball and is the only Rangers hitter batting over .260.
Runner-up: Sammy Sosa
Rangers Cy Young:
Robinson Tejeda: 3-1, 3.82 ERA, 21 SO, 30.2 IP: He’s been the only consistent starter.
Runner-up: Akinori Otsuka/Ron Mahay
Rangers Rookie of the Year:
Chris Stewart: .214 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI: He’s the only rookie on the team.
Runner-up: No other rookies
Rangers Biggest Underachiever:
Michael Young: .215 AVG, 2 HR, 14 RBI: a .300 hitter shouldn’t be batting .215 through April.
Runner-up: Mark Teixeira
AL MVP:
A-ROD: .355 AVG, 14 HR, 34 RBI: He tied the baseball record for the most home runs in one April.
Runner-up: Ian Kinsler
Last year’s MVP award: My pick – Frank Thomas, Actual – Justin Morneau
AL Cy Young:
Josh Beckett: 5-0, 2.48 ERA, 28 SO, 32.2 IP
Runner-up: Roy Halladay
Last year: My pick – Johan Santana, Actual – Johan Santana
NL MVP:
Adrian Gonzalez: .309 AVG, 7 HR, 25 RBI: He’s got over a .300 AVG and is on pace to hit 42 HR’s.
Runner-up: Jimmy Rollins
Last year: My pick – Ryan Howard, Actual – Ryan Howard
NL Cy Young:
John Maine: 4-0, 1.35 ERA, 30 SO, 33.1 IP: He’s leading the MLB in ERA and is getting plenty of strike-outs.
Runner-up: Aaron Harang
Last year: My pick – Derek Lowe, Actual – Chris Carpenter
AL Biggest Underachiever:
Paul Konerko: .198 AVG, 3 HR, 16 RBI, 22 SO: Konerko is hitting .198 and only has 3 HR’s.
Runner-up: Johan Santana
NL Biggest Underachiever:
Trevor Hoffman: 6.23 ERA, 1-2, 5 saves, 2 blown saves, 4 BB: Hoffman has a 6.23 ERA, 2 losses and 29 percent of the time he has blown the save.
Runner-up: Carlos Zambrano/Carlos Delgado
Results of last week’s poll:
Questions: Who do you think is the nicest hitter on the Rangers team?
Kinsler – 46%
Teixeira – 12%
Young – 12%
Sosa – 8%
Hairston – 4%
Laird – 4%
Stewart – 4%
Wilkerson – 4%
Come back next week for my predictions for each team for the rest of the year.
This week I will give my April awards. All the stats and explanations are as of April 30th.
Rangers MVP:
Ian Kinsler: .298 AVG., 9 HR, 22 RBI: He’s tied for second in baseball and is the only Rangers hitter batting over .260.
Runner-up: Sammy Sosa
Rangers Cy Young:
Robinson Tejeda: 3-1, 3.82 ERA, 21 SO, 30.2 IP: He’s been the only consistent starter.
Runner-up: Akinori Otsuka/Ron Mahay
Rangers Rookie of the Year:
Chris Stewart: .214 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI: He’s the only rookie on the team.
Runner-up: No other rookies
Rangers Biggest Underachiever:
Michael Young: .215 AVG, 2 HR, 14 RBI: a .300 hitter shouldn’t be batting .215 through April.
Runner-up: Mark Teixeira
AL MVP:
A-ROD: .355 AVG, 14 HR, 34 RBI: He tied the baseball record for the most home runs in one April.
Runner-up: Ian Kinsler
Last year’s MVP award: My pick – Frank Thomas, Actual – Justin Morneau
AL Cy Young:
Josh Beckett: 5-0, 2.48 ERA, 28 SO, 32.2 IP
Runner-up: Roy Halladay
Last year: My pick – Johan Santana, Actual – Johan Santana
NL MVP:
Adrian Gonzalez: .309 AVG, 7 HR, 25 RBI: He’s got over a .300 AVG and is on pace to hit 42 HR’s.
Runner-up: Jimmy Rollins
Last year: My pick – Ryan Howard, Actual – Ryan Howard
NL Cy Young:
John Maine: 4-0, 1.35 ERA, 30 SO, 33.1 IP: He’s leading the MLB in ERA and is getting plenty of strike-outs.
Runner-up: Aaron Harang
Last year: My pick – Derek Lowe, Actual – Chris Carpenter
AL Biggest Underachiever:
Paul Konerko: .198 AVG, 3 HR, 16 RBI, 22 SO: Konerko is hitting .198 and only has 3 HR’s.
Runner-up: Johan Santana
NL Biggest Underachiever:
Trevor Hoffman: 6.23 ERA, 1-2, 5 saves, 2 blown saves, 4 BB: Hoffman has a 6.23 ERA, 2 losses and 29 percent of the time he has blown the save.
Runner-up: Carlos Zambrano/Carlos Delgado
Results of last week’s poll:
Questions: Who do you think is the nicest hitter on the Rangers team?
Kinsler – 46%
Teixeira – 12%
Young – 12%
Sosa – 8%
Hairston – 4%
Laird – 4%
Stewart – 4%
Wilkerson – 4%
Come back next week for my predictions for each team for the rest of the year.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
My Experiences with the Rangers Hitters
This week I will give my experiences with all of the Rangers hitters.
Hank Blalock:
I’ve met Hank a few times. The first time was after the 2003 season, when he was doing autographs at the RoughRiders ballpark. I asked him what it was like to hit a home run in the All-Star game and he told me it was awesome. He also signed for me before a game once. Before a Spring Training game in 2006, he signed a card for me and then gave me a pair of his batting gloves. Hank doesn’t really talk very much but is nice.
Frank Catalanotto:
I only met Frank once and it was a long time ago, during his first time with the Rangers. He was signing autographs in the Gold Club. He seemed really nice. I also saw him once at a Q&A ‘Meet the Ranger’ Junior Rangers session.
Nelson Cruz:
I only met Nelson once, and he didn’t seem to like giving autographs. I was trying to get his autograph from behind the dugout last season. He said that he would sign after batting practice. I reminded him when he was walking back in and he signed my ball. He didn’t respond when I tried to talk to him and rolled the ball back over the top of the dugout and disappeared when he was done so he wouldn’t have to sign for anyone else. Still, I was glad he was willing to sign.
Jerry Hairston:
I haven’t met Jerry much, but when I have he’s always very friendly. I got his autograph before a game last year when he signed for a line of people. In Spring Training this year, I saw him at a Diamondbacks Spring Training game. He was there to see his brother Scott Hairston. My dad, granddad, and I talked to him for 5-10 minutes. He was great and seemed really happy to talk. The next day at workouts, he recognized me, and came over to say hello. I told him that Victor Diaz was the last autograph I needed to get to have the whole Spring Training roster. He told Victor, and I got Victor’s autograph. Then, about a week ago, he signed for me and my friend at a Ranger game.
Matt Kata:
I’ve only met Matt once, and he was kind of rude. Before a Spring Training game this year, I asked for an autograph and he said he would sign after he warmed up. After he warmed up, I asked again and he said he would sign after the game. After the game, I asked again and he walked right past me. I reminded him that he had said he would sign, and then he sighed, rolled his eyes, came over, signed, and ignored me when I thanked him.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian is a great guy. He has done an interview for my blog, and is always willing to sign for kids. He does a lot of autograph events too. Whenever I call out to him, he always comes over and talks to me. He is the nicest hitter on the team, although Michael Young and Jerry Hairston are both very nice too.
Gerald Laird:
I’ve met him three times, and he was nice every time. One time it was at a Redhawks game in Oklahoma City, and he came over and signed for me. Another time, he was at a Rangers autograph event at the RoughRiders stadium and the last time it was at a Rangers’ Spring Training game in Frisco.
Kenny Lofton:
I’ve only met Kenny twice, and I’ve learned that he’s nice until you ask for autographs. At Spring Training I talked to him after warm-ups on the backfields and he was really nice, asking me how I was. But when I asked him for his autograph, he seemed unhappy and said ‘just one’. He didn’t sign for anyone else at Spring Training that day and we noticed during the week that he basically never signed. At a Rangers game this year, he was nice and came over to sign for me and my friends when I asked. He seemed to get mad because he took a ball from my hand, when I wanted him to sign my card, so he had to stop, take the card, and give me the ball back. He then gave the card back, saying that he had already signed it. It was one of those cards that has a preprinted autograph on it. My dad told him that it wasn’t an autograph and was just printed on the card. He took the card back and signed it but that somehow made him so grumpy he walked off on one of my friends. So, Kenny seems like he can be nice but gets unhappy easily.
Sammy Sosa:
I’ve gotten Sammy’s autograph twice this year. Once during Spring Training, when he signed for me when he was walking between stations during workouts. Like with what happened with Kenny, I was the only one to get his autograph that day. Then at a game earlier this year, he signed for a long time for a huge line of people and I was able to get his autograph again. He doesn’t talk to you when he signs. During Spring Training, I saw him tell people he would sign for them after the game but then leave after the 5th or 6th inning without signing.
Chris Stewart:
I’ve only met Chris once and it was at Spring Training this year. He was one of the last two players at the game. I tossed a ball down to him when he said he would sign, and when I talked to him he seemed friendly.
Mark Teixeira:
I met Mark at an autograph event his rookie year at a sports card shop. They were selling 500 autograph tickets for $5 each and I got number 498. He was really friendly and when I told him that I thought he should be rookie of the year, he agreed. At the end of that season, I saw him and told him that I was going to go as him for Halloween. He told me he thought that was really cool. I got his autograph again before a game last year, when he was signing for a line of people. At Spring Training this year, he was really nice when I asked him to answer a poll question for my blog. This year, I came within one person of getting his autograph before a game, but he stopped when I was second in line. Mark doesn’t like to sign much but when he does, he seems pretty nice. He seems to basically like to only sign for kids.
Brad Wilkerson:
The first time I met Brad was at the Rangers Winter Awards Banquet in 2006. He was very nice and he signed an autograph for me. The next time I met him was at a Rangers Spring Training game in Frisco that same year. My friend and I asked him for an autograph and he said he had to go do an interview but would come back. After the interview, he came straight back to sign for me and my friend. It was really good that he kept his word. As I’ve said, either keep your word or don’t give a word.
Michael Young:
Michael Young is really nice. I’ve met him 5 times. Four times I got an autograph and the fifth time he was really nice and gave me a bat. The first time I met him was in 2001 on Fan Appreciation Day, when Rangers were giving out autographed cards. I also have gotten his autograph at two other autograph events and he came over to sign for me before a game a couple of years ago. At Spring Training this year, he was nice about answering a poll question for my blog and gave me a bat.
Results of last week’s poll.
Question: Who do you think is the nicest pitcher on the team?
Feldman – 13%
Gagne – 4%
Loe – 17%
McCarthy – 4%
Millwood – 4%
Otsuka – 22%
Wilson – 35%
Everyone else – 0%
Come back next week for my April awards.
Hank Blalock:
I’ve met Hank a few times. The first time was after the 2003 season, when he was doing autographs at the RoughRiders ballpark. I asked him what it was like to hit a home run in the All-Star game and he told me it was awesome. He also signed for me before a game once. Before a Spring Training game in 2006, he signed a card for me and then gave me a pair of his batting gloves. Hank doesn’t really talk very much but is nice.
Frank Catalanotto:
I only met Frank once and it was a long time ago, during his first time with the Rangers. He was signing autographs in the Gold Club. He seemed really nice. I also saw him once at a Q&A ‘Meet the Ranger’ Junior Rangers session.
Nelson Cruz:
I only met Nelson once, and he didn’t seem to like giving autographs. I was trying to get his autograph from behind the dugout last season. He said that he would sign after batting practice. I reminded him when he was walking back in and he signed my ball. He didn’t respond when I tried to talk to him and rolled the ball back over the top of the dugout and disappeared when he was done so he wouldn’t have to sign for anyone else. Still, I was glad he was willing to sign.
Jerry Hairston:
I haven’t met Jerry much, but when I have he’s always very friendly. I got his autograph before a game last year when he signed for a line of people. In Spring Training this year, I saw him at a Diamondbacks Spring Training game. He was there to see his brother Scott Hairston. My dad, granddad, and I talked to him for 5-10 minutes. He was great and seemed really happy to talk. The next day at workouts, he recognized me, and came over to say hello. I told him that Victor Diaz was the last autograph I needed to get to have the whole Spring Training roster. He told Victor, and I got Victor’s autograph. Then, about a week ago, he signed for me and my friend at a Ranger game.
Matt Kata:
I’ve only met Matt once, and he was kind of rude. Before a Spring Training game this year, I asked for an autograph and he said he would sign after he warmed up. After he warmed up, I asked again and he said he would sign after the game. After the game, I asked again and he walked right past me. I reminded him that he had said he would sign, and then he sighed, rolled his eyes, came over, signed, and ignored me when I thanked him.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian is a great guy. He has done an interview for my blog, and is always willing to sign for kids. He does a lot of autograph events too. Whenever I call out to him, he always comes over and talks to me. He is the nicest hitter on the team, although Michael Young and Jerry Hairston are both very nice too.
Gerald Laird:
I’ve met him three times, and he was nice every time. One time it was at a Redhawks game in Oklahoma City, and he came over and signed for me. Another time, he was at a Rangers autograph event at the RoughRiders stadium and the last time it was at a Rangers’ Spring Training game in Frisco.
Kenny Lofton:
I’ve only met Kenny twice, and I’ve learned that he’s nice until you ask for autographs. At Spring Training I talked to him after warm-ups on the backfields and he was really nice, asking me how I was. But when I asked him for his autograph, he seemed unhappy and said ‘just one’. He didn’t sign for anyone else at Spring Training that day and we noticed during the week that he basically never signed. At a Rangers game this year, he was nice and came over to sign for me and my friends when I asked. He seemed to get mad because he took a ball from my hand, when I wanted him to sign my card, so he had to stop, take the card, and give me the ball back. He then gave the card back, saying that he had already signed it. It was one of those cards that has a preprinted autograph on it. My dad told him that it wasn’t an autograph and was just printed on the card. He took the card back and signed it but that somehow made him so grumpy he walked off on one of my friends. So, Kenny seems like he can be nice but gets unhappy easily.
Sammy Sosa:
I’ve gotten Sammy’s autograph twice this year. Once during Spring Training, when he signed for me when he was walking between stations during workouts. Like with what happened with Kenny, I was the only one to get his autograph that day. Then at a game earlier this year, he signed for a long time for a huge line of people and I was able to get his autograph again. He doesn’t talk to you when he signs. During Spring Training, I saw him tell people he would sign for them after the game but then leave after the 5th or 6th inning without signing.
Chris Stewart:
I’ve only met Chris once and it was at Spring Training this year. He was one of the last two players at the game. I tossed a ball down to him when he said he would sign, and when I talked to him he seemed friendly.
Mark Teixeira:
I met Mark at an autograph event his rookie year at a sports card shop. They were selling 500 autograph tickets for $5 each and I got number 498. He was really friendly and when I told him that I thought he should be rookie of the year, he agreed. At the end of that season, I saw him and told him that I was going to go as him for Halloween. He told me he thought that was really cool. I got his autograph again before a game last year, when he was signing for a line of people. At Spring Training this year, he was really nice when I asked him to answer a poll question for my blog. This year, I came within one person of getting his autograph before a game, but he stopped when I was second in line. Mark doesn’t like to sign much but when he does, he seems pretty nice. He seems to basically like to only sign for kids.
Brad Wilkerson:
The first time I met Brad was at the Rangers Winter Awards Banquet in 2006. He was very nice and he signed an autograph for me. The next time I met him was at a Rangers Spring Training game in Frisco that same year. My friend and I asked him for an autograph and he said he had to go do an interview but would come back. After the interview, he came straight back to sign for me and my friend. It was really good that he kept his word. As I’ve said, either keep your word or don’t give a word.
Michael Young:
Michael Young is really nice. I’ve met him 5 times. Four times I got an autograph and the fifth time he was really nice and gave me a bat. The first time I met him was in 2001 on Fan Appreciation Day, when Rangers were giving out autographed cards. I also have gotten his autograph at two other autograph events and he came over to sign for me before a game a couple of years ago. At Spring Training this year, he was nice about answering a poll question for my blog and gave me a bat.
Results of last week’s poll.
Question: Who do you think is the nicest pitcher on the team?
Feldman – 13%
Gagne – 4%
Loe – 17%
McCarthy – 4%
Millwood – 4%
Otsuka – 22%
Wilson – 35%
Everyone else – 0%
Come back next week for my April awards.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Haigwood Traded and My Experiences with the Rangers Pitchers
Friday night I went to a Rangers game with my friends for my birthday party. I got seven autographs, including Sammy Sosa, Kenny Lofton and Mike Piazza. Mike signed for about 5 minutes with this huge line, and then I decided to go over and try, even though I thought the line was too long for me to have a chance. About 10 minutes later, I was within 10 people and he started leaving. As he walked away, he saw how disappointed I was and told me and another kid who was right in front of me to come up and get his autograph. Nick Swisher also signed for about 10-15 minutes and I was the last one to get an autograph, again, but not the same way. Sosa and Lofton both signed for 10-20 minutes, so yesterday there were a lot of autographs. C.J. Wilson signed for my friends and Scott Feldman came over to wish me a happy birthday. The game was terrible (16-4 A’s) but we had a great time. We saw Eleanor from the Newberg report. She has a good new blog at http://emc.mlblogs.com/my_weblog/.
This week, the Rangers traded Daniel Haigwood, who had been DFA’d, to Boston for pitcher Scott Shoemaker. Haigwood was the pitcher we got last year for Fabio Castro and had been DFA’d to make roster room for Jamey Wright last week.
Daniel Haigwood LHP:
Daniel’s career numbers are:
35-18 W-L
3.43 ERA
478 IP
475 SO
Daniel started his pro career in 2002, when he was an all-star for the Arizona League White Sox. Haigwood has spent 3 of his 4 seasons with the White Sox (making it to AA in 2005), becoming teammates with Chris Young (the Diamondbacks one) and Fabio Castro (who we eventually traded to get Haigwood).
Scott Shoemaker RHP:
Scott’s career numbers are:
19-10 W-L
4.19 ERA
247.1 IP
204 SO
Scott signed during his 5th year of college in 2004 and has been in the minors since. He has a very good slider, a good curveball and a decent fastball. He doesn’t throw many balls and gets ahead in the counts.
Trade Evaluation:I think this was a good trade after Haigwood didn’t work out for us so that we’d get something if he was taken in waivers. Shoemaker could be a good middle reliever or long reliever someday, but would need another pitch to be a starter.
Grade: A- for this trade, but it’s still very disappointing that we ever got Haigwood in the first place instead of holding on to Castro, who is a much better prospect than these two pitchers put together.
This week I will tell my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
Joaquin Benoit:
I’ve only met Benoit once and it was a couple years ago when he gave me an autograph when I asked before a game. He didn’t talk much, but he probably doesn’t speak good English.
Bruce Chen:
I’ve only seen Bruce twice and it was at Spring Training. One time I asked him for an autograph and the other time I asked him for an opinion poll and both times he was very willing and nice.
Scott Feldman:
Scott is a great guy and is always willing to sign for kids. He’s always very friendly and talks to them. I met Scott when he was in Frisco and talked to him a lot there, and he always remembers me when he sees me in Arlington. Scott was nice enough to let me interview him. CJ, Kam, Otsuka and Scott are probably the nicest pitchers on the team.
Eric Gagne:
I’ve talked to Eric twice, once at the Winter Awards Banquet when he was very nice and signed, and the other time it was at a Frisco game when he was the exact opposite. You can read about that on my April 7th post.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron is one of the nicest guys on the team and has always been great to me. Whenever he saw me at Spring Training workouts this year, he made sure to come over and say hi when he finished his work. He also does a lot of autograph appearances for the team. He signs autographs before games a lot.
Ron Mahay:
Ron is also very friendly. Whenever I talk to him, he’s always very nice and doesn’t ignore you, like some players do. He usually will sign autographs before games. I’ve gotten his autograph a few times.
Brandon McCarthy:
I’ve only met Brandon once and it was at the Winter Awards Banquet. He was very nice and gave me an autograph.
Kevin Millwood:
I haven’t met Kevin much, but when I have, he’s pretty friendly but doesn’t talk much. I got his autograph twice during 2006 Spring Training and again at TicketStock this year.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori will sign pretty much no matter what. He’s always very friendly and will talk to you. At Spring Training this year, he talked to me for about 5 minutes before a workout. I’ve seen him climb into the stands to get to a kid who wanted his autograph. I’ve gotten his autograph 3 or 4 times before games since he’s been here.
Vicente Padilla:
I have only met Vicente once, when he signed an autograph for me. It was at Spring Training in 2006. He was working out and I asked him to sign for me when he was done. When he was done, he remembered and looked around for me and called me over.
Robinson Tejeda:
I have only met Robinson once and he signed an autograph for me at the Winter Awards Banquet. Last year, I didn’t get his autograph after he was called up the first time, so I sent a letter to the Redhawks asking him to sign a picture for me. He sent it back to me with his autograph, which I thought was really nice.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a great guy, one of the three nicest guys on the team. He always shows up for autograph events, talks to me, and signs for people. He was even nice enough to let me interview him.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best hitter on the Rangers other than Young and Teixeira?
Results:
Blalock – 6%
Catalanotto – 3%
Cruz – 0%
Hairston – 0%
Kata – 0%
Kinsler – 81%
Laird – 0%
Lofton – 6%
Sosa – 3%
Stewart – 3%
Wilkerson – 0%
Come back next week for my experiences with the Rangers hitters.
This week, the Rangers traded Daniel Haigwood, who had been DFA’d, to Boston for pitcher Scott Shoemaker. Haigwood was the pitcher we got last year for Fabio Castro and had been DFA’d to make roster room for Jamey Wright last week.
Daniel Haigwood LHP:
Daniel’s career numbers are:
35-18 W-L
3.43 ERA
478 IP
475 SO
Daniel started his pro career in 2002, when he was an all-star for the Arizona League White Sox. Haigwood has spent 3 of his 4 seasons with the White Sox (making it to AA in 2005), becoming teammates with Chris Young (the Diamondbacks one) and Fabio Castro (who we eventually traded to get Haigwood).
Scott Shoemaker RHP:
Scott’s career numbers are:
19-10 W-L
4.19 ERA
247.1 IP
204 SO
Scott signed during his 5th year of college in 2004 and has been in the minors since. He has a very good slider, a good curveball and a decent fastball. He doesn’t throw many balls and gets ahead in the counts.
Trade Evaluation:I think this was a good trade after Haigwood didn’t work out for us so that we’d get something if he was taken in waivers. Shoemaker could be a good middle reliever or long reliever someday, but would need another pitch to be a starter.
Grade: A- for this trade, but it’s still very disappointing that we ever got Haigwood in the first place instead of holding on to Castro, who is a much better prospect than these two pitchers put together.
This week I will tell my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
Joaquin Benoit:
I’ve only met Benoit once and it was a couple years ago when he gave me an autograph when I asked before a game. He didn’t talk much, but he probably doesn’t speak good English.
Bruce Chen:
I’ve only seen Bruce twice and it was at Spring Training. One time I asked him for an autograph and the other time I asked him for an opinion poll and both times he was very willing and nice.
Scott Feldman:
Scott is a great guy and is always willing to sign for kids. He’s always very friendly and talks to them. I met Scott when he was in Frisco and talked to him a lot there, and he always remembers me when he sees me in Arlington. Scott was nice enough to let me interview him. CJ, Kam, Otsuka and Scott are probably the nicest pitchers on the team.
Eric Gagne:
I’ve talked to Eric twice, once at the Winter Awards Banquet when he was very nice and signed, and the other time it was at a Frisco game when he was the exact opposite. You can read about that on my April 7th post.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron is one of the nicest guys on the team and has always been great to me. Whenever he saw me at Spring Training workouts this year, he made sure to come over and say hi when he finished his work. He also does a lot of autograph appearances for the team. He signs autographs before games a lot.
Ron Mahay:
Ron is also very friendly. Whenever I talk to him, he’s always very nice and doesn’t ignore you, like some players do. He usually will sign autographs before games. I’ve gotten his autograph a few times.
Brandon McCarthy:
I’ve only met Brandon once and it was at the Winter Awards Banquet. He was very nice and gave me an autograph.
Kevin Millwood:
I haven’t met Kevin much, but when I have, he’s pretty friendly but doesn’t talk much. I got his autograph twice during 2006 Spring Training and again at TicketStock this year.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori will sign pretty much no matter what. He’s always very friendly and will talk to you. At Spring Training this year, he talked to me for about 5 minutes before a workout. I’ve seen him climb into the stands to get to a kid who wanted his autograph. I’ve gotten his autograph 3 or 4 times before games since he’s been here.
Vicente Padilla:
I have only met Vicente once, when he signed an autograph for me. It was at Spring Training in 2006. He was working out and I asked him to sign for me when he was done. When he was done, he remembered and looked around for me and called me over.
Robinson Tejeda:
I have only met Robinson once and he signed an autograph for me at the Winter Awards Banquet. Last year, I didn’t get his autograph after he was called up the first time, so I sent a letter to the Redhawks asking him to sign a picture for me. He sent it back to me with his autograph, which I thought was really nice.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a great guy, one of the three nicest guys on the team. He always shows up for autograph events, talks to me, and signs for people. He was even nice enough to let me interview him.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best hitter on the Rangers other than Young and Teixeira?
Results:
Blalock – 6%
Catalanotto – 3%
Cruz – 0%
Hairston – 0%
Kata – 0%
Kinsler – 81%
Laird – 0%
Lofton – 6%
Sosa – 3%
Stewart – 3%
Wilkerson – 0%
Come back next week for my experiences with the Rangers hitters.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Analysis of Rangers Hitters
A couple days ago, I went to Jamey Newberg’s brother, Barry Newberg’s new restaurant, Mooyah Burgers. They serve burgers, fries and shakes. Their burgers are some of the best I’ve ever had. Their fries are good if you put more salt on them. I haven’t had a shake, but my dad had one and said that it was good. I really recommend it because the burgers are awesome. It is on Park and the Tollway (see http://mooyah.com/).
This week I will analyze all the hitters on the Rangers active roster.
Hank Blalock:
Hank was a huge prospect when he came up and did very well his 1st and 2nd full years. He has steadily declined every year and has always done well in the 1st half and declined in the 2nd half. He has been an All-Star 2 times in his career. I think he will get a little better this year but not too much, because he’s indicating that he’s going to listen to Rudy better.
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank 1st became a starter in 2001 and played very well. 2001 was also his 1st year without some kind of injury. He has hit .300 or over four years during his career, 1 year with the Tigers, one year with the Rangers, and two with the Blue Jays. He has a weak arm which limits his outfield fielding ability. He doesn’t hit many home runs at all. His career high for one season is 13. In his 10-year career, he only has 72 total.
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is a huge prospect, and all we have left from the Carlos Lee trade. Nelson has the potential to be a huge power hitter. From what I’ve seen of him, which is very little, he let’s mistakes stick with him a little too long. If he reaches his potential, he’ll be great, but if he doesn’t, he’ll probably come nowhere close to it.
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry went into Spring Training this year fighting for a job and won a job by batting almost .500. He was what we got in return for Phil Nevin in a trade with the Cubs. Since then, Hairston has been more important to the Rangers than Phil Nevin was to the Cubs. Hairston has been a primary starter two years in his career, both with the Orioles. He’ll be a big part of the Rangers this year, filling in almost everywhere when a starter needs rest. I think he’ll bat better than last year’s .205 with Texas and will be solid defensively.
Matt Kata:
Matt has played with the Diamondbacks, Phillies and now Rangers. His best year so far was his rookie year, when he batted .257 and hit 7 HR with 29 RBI’s. He also played the most games in a season in his career, playing in 78 games. I don’t think he’ll play much, considering that he’s the 25th man, but will play well for his amount of playing time.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian had a very good rookie year last year, batting .286 with 14 HR’s and 55 RBI’s in 120 games. This year he has gotten off to a great start, batting .357 with 5 HR’s and 9 RBI’s in 9 games. Right now he’s on pace to bat .357 with about 80 HR’s and 144 RBI’s. Like Alfonso Soriano, he can make great plays on hard balls, but on easy balls he loses focus and sometimes makes errors.
Gerald Laird:
Of active catchers that have played at least 130 games, Gerald has the 4th highest percentage of throwing out baserunners trying to steal. Only Yadier Molina, Pudge, and Henry Blanco are higher. Last year was his 1st year of playing a large portion of the season, and he batted great, hitting .296. Now that he finally has the starting catcher job to himself, I expect him to continue to be strong on offense and defense and to keep improving at calling games.
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny has a weak arm that many teams will challenge. He has good speed and almost no power. He struggled in Spring Training and is struggling so far this year. But he has hit over .300 each of the last two years, so hopefully will bounce back and have another strong year.
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy took a year off last year after playing poorly for the Orioles the year before. He has been quickly declining every year since the 64 home-run year in 2001. He had a great Spring Training, which is why he’s on the team. If he hits 10 more home runs he’ll have 600. I expect him to come back and hit between .260 and .280 with about 25 homers.
Chris Stewart:
This is the second year Chris has been in the majors. Last year he was 0-for-8. He got his first major league hit this year and it was an RBI single. We got him in a trade with the White Sox in the offseason (for minor league pitcher Johnny Lujan). Chris is a strong defensive catcher.
Mark Teixeira:
Mark has 2 Gold Gloves and 1 All-Star appearance. He is one of the Rangers’ best players. He hits over or around .300 and hits about 30-40 home runs. Last year, he got a lot of doubles. He’s made a habit of starting slow and ending the year great. I predict Mark will do about the same as last year, but hit about 5 more homers and get about 10 more RBI’s.
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad never was a good hitter when it came to batting average, but last year he struck out about 1 time in 2.8 at-bats. This year he is striking out a lot again. I think he will do the same as last year and lose his platoon job.
Michael Young:
Michael has gotten over 200 hits for the past 4 years. He led the league in batting average in ’05. He doesn’t hit for much power, but he’s not real low on it, either. He is a 3-time All-Star. I expect him to be an All-Star once again and get over 220 hits.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best Rangers bullpen pitcher?
Results:
Benoit – 14%
Chen – 0%
Feldman – 5%
Gagne – 9%
Loe – 5%
Mahay – 0%
Otsuka – 60%
Wilson – 5%
Wood – 2%
Come back next week for my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
This week I will analyze all the hitters on the Rangers active roster.
Hank Blalock:
Hank was a huge prospect when he came up and did very well his 1st and 2nd full years. He has steadily declined every year and has always done well in the 1st half and declined in the 2nd half. He has been an All-Star 2 times in his career. I think he will get a little better this year but not too much, because he’s indicating that he’s going to listen to Rudy better.
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank 1st became a starter in 2001 and played very well. 2001 was also his 1st year without some kind of injury. He has hit .300 or over four years during his career, 1 year with the Tigers, one year with the Rangers, and two with the Blue Jays. He has a weak arm which limits his outfield fielding ability. He doesn’t hit many home runs at all. His career high for one season is 13. In his 10-year career, he only has 72 total.
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is a huge prospect, and all we have left from the Carlos Lee trade. Nelson has the potential to be a huge power hitter. From what I’ve seen of him, which is very little, he let’s mistakes stick with him a little too long. If he reaches his potential, he’ll be great, but if he doesn’t, he’ll probably come nowhere close to it.
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry went into Spring Training this year fighting for a job and won a job by batting almost .500. He was what we got in return for Phil Nevin in a trade with the Cubs. Since then, Hairston has been more important to the Rangers than Phil Nevin was to the Cubs. Hairston has been a primary starter two years in his career, both with the Orioles. He’ll be a big part of the Rangers this year, filling in almost everywhere when a starter needs rest. I think he’ll bat better than last year’s .205 with Texas and will be solid defensively.
Matt Kata:
Matt has played with the Diamondbacks, Phillies and now Rangers. His best year so far was his rookie year, when he batted .257 and hit 7 HR with 29 RBI’s. He also played the most games in a season in his career, playing in 78 games. I don’t think he’ll play much, considering that he’s the 25th man, but will play well for his amount of playing time.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian had a very good rookie year last year, batting .286 with 14 HR’s and 55 RBI’s in 120 games. This year he has gotten off to a great start, batting .357 with 5 HR’s and 9 RBI’s in 9 games. Right now he’s on pace to bat .357 with about 80 HR’s and 144 RBI’s. Like Alfonso Soriano, he can make great plays on hard balls, but on easy balls he loses focus and sometimes makes errors.
Gerald Laird:
Of active catchers that have played at least 130 games, Gerald has the 4th highest percentage of throwing out baserunners trying to steal. Only Yadier Molina, Pudge, and Henry Blanco are higher. Last year was his 1st year of playing a large portion of the season, and he batted great, hitting .296. Now that he finally has the starting catcher job to himself, I expect him to continue to be strong on offense and defense and to keep improving at calling games.
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny has a weak arm that many teams will challenge. He has good speed and almost no power. He struggled in Spring Training and is struggling so far this year. But he has hit over .300 each of the last two years, so hopefully will bounce back and have another strong year.
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy took a year off last year after playing poorly for the Orioles the year before. He has been quickly declining every year since the 64 home-run year in 2001. He had a great Spring Training, which is why he’s on the team. If he hits 10 more home runs he’ll have 600. I expect him to come back and hit between .260 and .280 with about 25 homers.
Chris Stewart:
This is the second year Chris has been in the majors. Last year he was 0-for-8. He got his first major league hit this year and it was an RBI single. We got him in a trade with the White Sox in the offseason (for minor league pitcher Johnny Lujan). Chris is a strong defensive catcher.
Mark Teixeira:
Mark has 2 Gold Gloves and 1 All-Star appearance. He is one of the Rangers’ best players. He hits over or around .300 and hits about 30-40 home runs. Last year, he got a lot of doubles. He’s made a habit of starting slow and ending the year great. I predict Mark will do about the same as last year, but hit about 5 more homers and get about 10 more RBI’s.
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad never was a good hitter when it came to batting average, but last year he struck out about 1 time in 2.8 at-bats. This year he is striking out a lot again. I think he will do the same as last year and lose his platoon job.
Michael Young:
Michael has gotten over 200 hits for the past 4 years. He led the league in batting average in ’05. He doesn’t hit for much power, but he’s not real low on it, either. He is a 3-time All-Star. I expect him to be an All-Star once again and get over 220 hits.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best Rangers bullpen pitcher?
Results:
Benoit – 14%
Chen – 0%
Feldman – 5%
Gagne – 9%
Loe – 5%
Mahay – 0%
Otsuka – 60%
Wilson – 5%
Wood – 2%
Come back next week for my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Analysis of Rangers Pitchers
Yesterday, my dad, granddad and I went to Opening Day, and then my dad and I went to the RoughRiders game. Rangers Opening Day is always great and is a lot of fun, especially when it’s a pitching duel and the Rangers win, like yesterday. It was very, very cold at the RoughRiders game and I got all the RoughRiders players’ autographs that I didn’t have.
Last night, we saw Eric Gagne pitch for the RoughRiders on his rehab assignment. Before the game I asked him to sign a ball that I’m getting the Rangers to sign as a prize for the Newberg charity toy drive this summer. He told me that he was going to sign for me after the game. I knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching and he knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching. Just like I figured, Eric pitched to three batters and then left the park as soon as he was done. This happens all the time, when a player says that they will sign after the game when they know that they’ll be gone before it’s over. We see it happen in Spring Training a lot. Why didn’t he just say that he had to pitch and couldn’t sign instead of saying something he knew wasn’t true? Players don’t have to sign for anyone but they should either be a man of their word or don't give a word.
This week I will analyze all the pitchers on the Rangers active roster.
Joaquin Benoit:
Joaquin takes a lot of time between pitches, which sometimes hurts the concentration of players fielding behind him. He needs to be more consistent, instead of having one game where he pitches 5 innings and they get 1 hit total and then another game where he gets no outs, allows 3 runs and leaves the game with the bases loaded. His inconsistency is the reason he isn’t normally put into close games (at least with Buck, we don’t know yet with Ron).
Bruce Chen:
Bruce is very home-run prone, which really hurts his chances, especially since he’s in a hitters’ park. He’s probably going to be replaced be Gagne or Wright. He allowed the most home runs by anyone in the AL last year. He, like Benoit, is inconsistent which also holds him back. He might improve if he goes back to AA ball where he isn’t thinking about the win as much as trying to improve on his weaknesses.
Scott Feldman:
Scott did great in ’05, but had an up and down year in ’06. His wind-up is strange, which helps him against more easily distracted batters. His fastball is about as fast as Kevin Millwood’s, so he doesn’t usually overpower hitters. He will be used as a middle reliever. I think he will have a good year and will be used more and more as the year goes on.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron became a starter for the Rangers in late 2005 and did a great job. He did good enough to go into last year as the #3 starter. He really struggled and got sent down to the minors after an injury, where he was the rest of the year. He had a great Spring Training this year and made it into the bullpen, when he was expected by many to not make the team at all going into Spring Training. He will probably join the starting rotation some time this year.
Ron Mahay:
Ron’s 1st two years with Texas were great, but he then struggled in ’05 and did well again in ’06. Like Feldman, he’s not an overpowering guy, but gets people out with control and getting them to ground out. He’ll mostly be used as a situational lefty.
Brandon McCarthy:
Brandon was a huge prospect with Chicago (White Sox) when he got traded. He had been in the majors, but never for a full season. He has not done particularly well in the majors, but seems to be getting better and less home run prone.
Kevin Millwood:
Kevin had an off year (for him) last year with a 4.52 ERA after being the AL ERA leader in ’05. He has good movement and control with a fastball at around 92. He is not a strike-out pitcher, but is good at getting ground balls.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year last year, getting many saves and almost never blowing one. He also does well with precision and control and doesn’t get many strike-outs.
Vicente Padilla:
Padilla is an overpowering pitcher that can’t be hit on a good day and serves meatballs on a bad day. He is very inconsistent, especially at the end of the year. He can hit the high 90’s with a fastball. Last year was arguably his best year yet.
Robinson Tejeda:
Tejeda, like Padilla, was a pitcher from the Phillies that we acquired last year. He started the season poorly, walking an average of 8 per 9 innings. He finished off the year great after being in the minors for a while, except for a few spot starts, and has the only good starting pitcher performance for the Rangers so far this year.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a very good prospect who can be any type of bullpen pitcher: long reliever, middle reliever, set-up man, situational lefty and closer. He can shut down hitters with any of his pitches, except for maybe his Spring Training experiment, the gyroball.
Mike Wood:
Mike is a former Royals pitcher who has an ERA in the mid-5’s. He will probably be replaced by Gagne or Wright.
Overall, I predict the Rangers to go 84-78 and go 25-20 in the division.
Come back next week for an analysis on the hitters.
Last night, we saw Eric Gagne pitch for the RoughRiders on his rehab assignment. Before the game I asked him to sign a ball that I’m getting the Rangers to sign as a prize for the Newberg charity toy drive this summer. He told me that he was going to sign for me after the game. I knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching and he knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching. Just like I figured, Eric pitched to three batters and then left the park as soon as he was done. This happens all the time, when a player says that they will sign after the game when they know that they’ll be gone before it’s over. We see it happen in Spring Training a lot. Why didn’t he just say that he had to pitch and couldn’t sign instead of saying something he knew wasn’t true? Players don’t have to sign for anyone but they should either be a man of their word or don't give a word.
This week I will analyze all the pitchers on the Rangers active roster.
Joaquin Benoit:
Joaquin takes a lot of time between pitches, which sometimes hurts the concentration of players fielding behind him. He needs to be more consistent, instead of having one game where he pitches 5 innings and they get 1 hit total and then another game where he gets no outs, allows 3 runs and leaves the game with the bases loaded. His inconsistency is the reason he isn’t normally put into close games (at least with Buck, we don’t know yet with Ron).
Bruce Chen:
Bruce is very home-run prone, which really hurts his chances, especially since he’s in a hitters’ park. He’s probably going to be replaced be Gagne or Wright. He allowed the most home runs by anyone in the AL last year. He, like Benoit, is inconsistent which also holds him back. He might improve if he goes back to AA ball where he isn’t thinking about the win as much as trying to improve on his weaknesses.
Scott Feldman:
Scott did great in ’05, but had an up and down year in ’06. His wind-up is strange, which helps him against more easily distracted batters. His fastball is about as fast as Kevin Millwood’s, so he doesn’t usually overpower hitters. He will be used as a middle reliever. I think he will have a good year and will be used more and more as the year goes on.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron became a starter for the Rangers in late 2005 and did a great job. He did good enough to go into last year as the #3 starter. He really struggled and got sent down to the minors after an injury, where he was the rest of the year. He had a great Spring Training this year and made it into the bullpen, when he was expected by many to not make the team at all going into Spring Training. He will probably join the starting rotation some time this year.
Ron Mahay:
Ron’s 1st two years with Texas were great, but he then struggled in ’05 and did well again in ’06. Like Feldman, he’s not an overpowering guy, but gets people out with control and getting them to ground out. He’ll mostly be used as a situational lefty.
Brandon McCarthy:
Brandon was a huge prospect with Chicago (White Sox) when he got traded. He had been in the majors, but never for a full season. He has not done particularly well in the majors, but seems to be getting better and less home run prone.
Kevin Millwood:
Kevin had an off year (for him) last year with a 4.52 ERA after being the AL ERA leader in ’05. He has good movement and control with a fastball at around 92. He is not a strike-out pitcher, but is good at getting ground balls.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year last year, getting many saves and almost never blowing one. He also does well with precision and control and doesn’t get many strike-outs.
Vicente Padilla:
Padilla is an overpowering pitcher that can’t be hit on a good day and serves meatballs on a bad day. He is very inconsistent, especially at the end of the year. He can hit the high 90’s with a fastball. Last year was arguably his best year yet.
Robinson Tejeda:
Tejeda, like Padilla, was a pitcher from the Phillies that we acquired last year. He started the season poorly, walking an average of 8 per 9 innings. He finished off the year great after being in the minors for a while, except for a few spot starts, and has the only good starting pitcher performance for the Rangers so far this year.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a very good prospect who can be any type of bullpen pitcher: long reliever, middle reliever, set-up man, situational lefty and closer. He can shut down hitters with any of his pitches, except for maybe his Spring Training experiment, the gyroball.
Mike Wood:
Mike is a former Royals pitcher who has an ERA in the mid-5’s. He will probably be replaced by Gagne or Wright.
Overall, I predict the Rangers to go 84-78 and go 25-20 in the division.
Come back next week for an analysis on the hitters.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
2007 Season Predictions
This week I will give my predictions for the standings, playoffs, and awards.
Regular Season Standings:
AL West:
1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
2. Texas Rangers
3. Oakland A’s
4. Seattle Mariners
AL Central:
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians – wild card
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
AL East:
1. New York Yankees
2. Boston Red Sox
3. Baltimore Orioles
4. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
NL West:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Diego Padres
3. Colorado Rockies
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
5. San Francisco Giants
NL Central:
1. Cincinnati Reds
2. St. Louis Cardinals – wild card
3. Chicago Cubs
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates
NL East:
1. New York Mets
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. Florida Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Washington Nationals
Playoffs:
AL Division Series:
New York Yankees over Cleveland Indians
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Detroit Tigers
NL Division Series:
New York Mets over St. Louis Cardinals
Cincinnati Reds over Los Angeles Dodgers
Championship Games:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over New York Yankees
Cincinnati Reds over New York Mets
World Series:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Cincinnati Reds
Champions:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Awards:
AL MVP: Travis Hafner because last year he hit 42 HR and drove in 117 RBI’s. He also hit over .300. Travis did all this and was injured for almost a month. If he does get the MVP award, that would be another reason why the Hafner/Drese/Diaz trade was awful.
NL MVP: Ryan Howard because he hit almost 60 homers last year, hit .313, and will probably get better as he gets more experience.
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana because nobody in baseball can compete with him.
NL Cy Young: Roy Oswalt because he has the ability to fool, overpower, and make players miss.
AL Rookie of the Year: Dice-K Matsuzaka because he is one of the very few top rookies this year that will get a lot of playing time on a competing team.
NL Rookie of the Year: Chris Young because he can hit for power very well.
Come back next week for a Rangers roster analysis.
Regular Season Standings:
AL West:
1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
2. Texas Rangers
3. Oakland A’s
4. Seattle Mariners
AL Central:
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians – wild card
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
AL East:
1. New York Yankees
2. Boston Red Sox
3. Baltimore Orioles
4. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
NL West:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Diego Padres
3. Colorado Rockies
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
5. San Francisco Giants
NL Central:
1. Cincinnati Reds
2. St. Louis Cardinals – wild card
3. Chicago Cubs
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates
NL East:
1. New York Mets
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. Florida Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Washington Nationals
Playoffs:
AL Division Series:
New York Yankees over Cleveland Indians
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Detroit Tigers
NL Division Series:
New York Mets over St. Louis Cardinals
Cincinnati Reds over Los Angeles Dodgers
Championship Games:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over New York Yankees
Cincinnati Reds over New York Mets
World Series:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Cincinnati Reds
Champions:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Awards:
AL MVP: Travis Hafner because last year he hit 42 HR and drove in 117 RBI’s. He also hit over .300. Travis did all this and was injured for almost a month. If he does get the MVP award, that would be another reason why the Hafner/Drese/Diaz trade was awful.
NL MVP: Ryan Howard because he hit almost 60 homers last year, hit .313, and will probably get better as he gets more experience.
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana because nobody in baseball can compete with him.
NL Cy Young: Roy Oswalt because he has the ability to fool, overpower, and make players miss.
AL Rookie of the Year: Dice-K Matsuzaka because he is one of the very few top rookies this year that will get a lot of playing time on a competing team.
NL Rookie of the Year: Chris Young because he can hit for power very well.
Come back next week for a Rangers roster analysis.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Ian Kinsler Interview
This week I did an interview with Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler.
1. Why did you decide to go to college instead of going to the Diamondbacks when they drafted you in 2000 and 2001?
At the time I felt like I wasn't ready for minor league baseball, I had to make that decision and live with it. I also thought that going to college would make me a more rounded baseball player.
2. What was the key to your high school success, when you won 2 state titles and hit over .500 in your senior year?
I think the key to my high school success was the players that played around me for those 4 years. The likes of Scott Haristion, Brian Anderson, Chris Duncan, Shelly Duncan, and Ryan Schroyer. We were a very dominate high school team and we all knew what we where capable of doing. As far as hitting .500, honestly I think that happened because I was trying to win every game I played and that was just the result.
3. What was the key to making it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season in 2004?
The key was playing well in low A. I worked really hard that off season to be prepared to make a jump like that because I believed I could do it.
4. What was it like for you to transfer from shortstop to second base in 2005 with the Redhawks?
It was tough on the ego at first. But really the toughest part of the switch was the double play, starting the turn and making the turn. I had some great people around me to help me with that transition.
5. Were you excited when you were named to the AAA All-Star team in 2005 or would you rather have had the time off?
Of course I was excited. I had to miss the All-Star game the previous year in A ball because of the move to AA, so that gave me a little more reason to be excited to attend that All-Star game and see what it was all about. The best part was the home run derby.
6. What is the Arizona Fall League like? Are there many fans? What’s the overall experience like?
There aren't many fans in the fall league, but that isn't what it is about. It is about having the honor to play with the best prospects in the game at the time. I loved my experience.
7. What was the recovery process for your injured thumb last year and how frustrating was it to get injured so early in your rookie year?
The process was a lot of ice and more ice on top of the ice. It was a cold month and a couple of weeks. On the other hand I learned a lot, like how to come back from an injury and be successful and to be patient with the process of being injured.
8. How different is winning the Rangers Rookie of the Year award (2006) than winning the Rangers Minor League Player of the Year award (2004)?
I think that one is a minor league award and the other is a major league award. I was excited to receive both awards.
9. What are the three toughest pitchers you’ve faced and why?
The toughest pitchers that I have faced are Mike Mussina, Johan Santana, and Jose Contreras. The reason is because of their off speed pitches - top notch.
10. How exciting was it to win a championship in AA in 2004?
That team was the best I have been on. We all loved to play together and we had a good mix of vets and young players. That season was a lot of fun.
11. Is there any specific thing you’ve been working on in the off-season, and if so, what is it?
I have been working on the strength in my legs. I thought that was a weakness that I had to attack. It should help my speed and my quickness.
12. In your first pro season in 2003 at Spokane, you struggled at first (.239 in July). What adjustments did you make to hit .298 the rest of the season?
I think it was a little adjustment to the wood bat and also an adjustment to play the game everyday. I was lucky I adjusted that fast.
13. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Jason Botts because I have gotten to know him really well. We understand each other. I have also lived with him for 3 years. Dane Bubbela, I don't know if you remember him, he won the batting title in Spokane in 03. The other has to be Michael Young. I have only played with him for one year but I see a lot of myself in him as a ball player and a person.
14. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career and why?
The first game I came back after injury. We came back from a 7 to 1 deficit and won a game against Oakland with a Phil Nevin walk off home run. The two home runs that I hit that night also helped my decision.
15. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league pitchers?
Not too many adjustments for me. I think the biggest and most important is to be patient at the plate and realize that I am in charge of the situation. I choose what I swing at, not the pitcher.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
The sport I played growing up was soccer. That was also my best sport besides baseball. I was all state my senior year. I really enjoyed that sport, and still do.
17. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
The New York Mets, my father is from New York and loved the Yankees. Everyone knows how New Yorkers are - they need adversity at all times. When he moved to Arizona he didn't have any so he decided to make some by making me a Mets fan. Try to figure that one out.
I would like to thank Ian for giving such great answers and for being really nice about doing this interview.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
1. Why did you decide to go to college instead of going to the Diamondbacks when they drafted you in 2000 and 2001?
At the time I felt like I wasn't ready for minor league baseball, I had to make that decision and live with it. I also thought that going to college would make me a more rounded baseball player.
2. What was the key to your high school success, when you won 2 state titles and hit over .500 in your senior year?
I think the key to my high school success was the players that played around me for those 4 years. The likes of Scott Haristion, Brian Anderson, Chris Duncan, Shelly Duncan, and Ryan Schroyer. We were a very dominate high school team and we all knew what we where capable of doing. As far as hitting .500, honestly I think that happened because I was trying to win every game I played and that was just the result.
3. What was the key to making it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season in 2004?
The key was playing well in low A. I worked really hard that off season to be prepared to make a jump like that because I believed I could do it.
4. What was it like for you to transfer from shortstop to second base in 2005 with the Redhawks?
It was tough on the ego at first. But really the toughest part of the switch was the double play, starting the turn and making the turn. I had some great people around me to help me with that transition.
5. Were you excited when you were named to the AAA All-Star team in 2005 or would you rather have had the time off?
Of course I was excited. I had to miss the All-Star game the previous year in A ball because of the move to AA, so that gave me a little more reason to be excited to attend that All-Star game and see what it was all about. The best part was the home run derby.
6. What is the Arizona Fall League like? Are there many fans? What’s the overall experience like?
There aren't many fans in the fall league, but that isn't what it is about. It is about having the honor to play with the best prospects in the game at the time. I loved my experience.
7. What was the recovery process for your injured thumb last year and how frustrating was it to get injured so early in your rookie year?
The process was a lot of ice and more ice on top of the ice. It was a cold month and a couple of weeks. On the other hand I learned a lot, like how to come back from an injury and be successful and to be patient with the process of being injured.
8. How different is winning the Rangers Rookie of the Year award (2006) than winning the Rangers Minor League Player of the Year award (2004)?
I think that one is a minor league award and the other is a major league award. I was excited to receive both awards.
9. What are the three toughest pitchers you’ve faced and why?
The toughest pitchers that I have faced are Mike Mussina, Johan Santana, and Jose Contreras. The reason is because of their off speed pitches - top notch.
10. How exciting was it to win a championship in AA in 2004?
That team was the best I have been on. We all loved to play together and we had a good mix of vets and young players. That season was a lot of fun.
11. Is there any specific thing you’ve been working on in the off-season, and if so, what is it?
I have been working on the strength in my legs. I thought that was a weakness that I had to attack. It should help my speed and my quickness.
12. In your first pro season in 2003 at Spokane, you struggled at first (.239 in July). What adjustments did you make to hit .298 the rest of the season?
I think it was a little adjustment to the wood bat and also an adjustment to play the game everyday. I was lucky I adjusted that fast.
13. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Jason Botts because I have gotten to know him really well. We understand each other. I have also lived with him for 3 years. Dane Bubbela, I don't know if you remember him, he won the batting title in Spokane in 03. The other has to be Michael Young. I have only played with him for one year but I see a lot of myself in him as a ball player and a person.
14. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career and why?
The first game I came back after injury. We came back from a 7 to 1 deficit and won a game against Oakland with a Phil Nevin walk off home run. The two home runs that I hit that night also helped my decision.
15. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league pitchers?
Not too many adjustments for me. I think the biggest and most important is to be patient at the plate and realize that I am in charge of the situation. I choose what I swing at, not the pitcher.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
The sport I played growing up was soccer. That was also my best sport besides baseball. I was all state my senior year. I really enjoyed that sport, and still do.
17. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
The New York Mets, my father is from New York and loved the Yankees. Everyone knows how New Yorkers are - they need adversity at all times. When he moved to Arizona he didn't have any so he decided to make some by making me a Mets fan. Try to figure that one out.
I would like to thank Ian for giving such great answers and for being really nice about doing this interview.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Description of my Trip to Spring Training with my Dad and Granddad
Day 1 – Sunday March 4th
We flew out to Phoenix on an 11:30am flight. The flight was delayed for about an hour. We landed a little after 1:30pm. We went straight to Surprise Stadium for the Royals home game against the Rangers. We got there during the bottom of the 7th. It was 4-0 Rangers when we got there and they ended up winning 5-0.
After the game, I got autographs from Desi Relaford and Marlon Byrd, watched Thomas Diamond and Jose Vargas have a bullpen session, and then got autographs from Chris Stewart and Jose Vargas. During the bullpen session, Jose Vargas’ fastball was very fast.
We checked into the Hampton Inn and Suites in Surprise. It was a nice room with two beds and a sleeper sofa. It was a nice hotel overall – and I would recommend it. They have a free breakfast in the morning and cookies and sodas in the evening, plus free wireless access.
We tried to eat at Outback for dinner but it was too crowded, so we went to the Chili’s on Bell Road instead.
Day 2 – Monday March 5th
We went to the Rangers workouts on the backfields in the morning. The Rangers were in Tucson but a lot of the players stayed behind. When we got there, they were all doing warm-up exercises. I was wearing a Peter Warrick Bengals jersey and the players were all trying to figure out who it was. CJ Wilson and Michael Young asked me to tell them who it was. None of them had guessed right.
When they were moving from warm-ups to the hitting and pitching stations, I got autographs from Kenny Lofton and Sammy Sosa. I noticed during the week that Kenny was really nice until you asked him for an autograph. I was the only person he signed for that day. The hitters took batting practice and the pitchers took fielding practice. As workouts were breaking up, I got autographs from Bruce Chen, Jamey Wright, Mike Wood, Francisco Cruceta, Rick Bauer, Salomon Manriquez, and Taylor Teagarden. Salomon didn’t seem to like signing but everyone else was really nice about it. Taylor remembered us from the Newberg Bound Edition release party.
After workouts, we went to Maryvale Baseball Park to see a Brewers game. They were playing the White Sox and won 4-3. Mark Buerhle and Jeff Suppan started. During the game, Brewers GM (and former Rangers GM) Doug Melvin sat behind us and we got to talk to him for a while. He was very friendly and seemed to enjoy talking about baseball.
It was the worst of the Spring Training stadiums in Phoenix. It wasn’t clean and had nothing special – just a plain ballpark. It was the last Spring Training ballpark in the Phoenix area we hadn’t seen a game at.
We went to Outback for dinner. Scott Servais and some other Rangers people were eating dinner there too.
We watched Eragon in the hotel room after dinner. It was a good movie, but I expected more after the book was so good. Over the trip, I spent my spare time reading the sequel to Eragon, Eldest. It is also great.
Day 3 – Tuesday March 6th
We went to the Rangers workouts in the backfields in the morning. The gates for the workouts open at 10am. Shirley the Cookie Lady, her friend Dorothy and their husbands were there every morning. They were staying in Surprise for a month.
It is very easy to talk to players, because they go to different stations, where fans are allowed to be.
We saw Eric Gagne take a bullpen session. The pitchers were taking fielding practice again. We saw Evan Grant and talked to him for a while. We met Tim Cowlishaw. We also talked to Gregg Elkin and he let us go into the stadium an hour before the gates opened so that we could watch the star players take BP.
Before the game, I got autographs from Ramon Vazquez and Franklyn German. During the game, I talked to Jon Daniels. The Rangers lost 10-3. After the game, I got autographs from Willie Eyre and Matt Kata. Matt really doesn’t like to sign.
We ate at Red Robin, then went to a nighttime Padres game at Peoria Stadium. They beat the Diamondbacks 5-3. Chris Young and Brandon Webb started. Jerry Hairston sat two rows in front of us. We talked to him for a while when he was leaving and he was really friendly and happy to talk.
Day 4 – Wednesday March 7th
The Rangers had a B game at 10am on the backfields. The B games have very unofficial rules, and barely have any fans. One time Matt Connor just yelled out “1 more,” after the third out and Kevin Millwood got a fourth out. They don’t play all 9 innings.
During the game, we talked with Thad Levine, Keith Meister, Jon Daniels, Josh Lewin, some scouts, Randy Galloway and a Royals official named Dan Glass.
I got autographs from Scott Rice and Guillermo Quiroz. At that point, I had autographs from everyone on the Spring Training roster except for Victor Diaz. I mentioned this to Jerry Hairston and he said that he would tell Victor to look for me at the game.
I went to the Rangers game against the Diamondbacks. Before the game, I got Victor Diaz’s autograph. Jerry had probably told him to look for me. That completed my spring collection – I had autographs from all 57 players in major league camp. The Rangers won 9-8.
I went to the Suns game that night. The arena was better than the Mavs one, but wasn’t great. It had a good kids area. The game was really close, even though the Suns were playing the Bobcats. It went to overtime, but the Bobcats fell apart in it.
Day 5 – Thursday March 8th
We checked out of the hotel, and then went to the workouts on the backfields. When we got there, they had already split up for batting practice and pitchers’ fielding practice. I asked a lot of people my poll question (below). Otsuka talked to us a long time – he’s very friendly. Michael Young gave me a bat. I talked to Kevin Harmon too.
We drove to the A’s stadium for the Rangers/A’s game. The Rangers won 7-6. We left after the 7th inning to get to the airport and fly home on a 6:30pm flight.
I took a player poll during the week. The question was: Do you think the AL and NL should have the same DH system, and if so, which league should change? The following people responded:
- Kevin Millwood
- Jamey Wright
- Michael Young
- Kameron Loe
- Josh Rupe
- Jon Daniels
- Frank Catalanotto
- Brad Wilkerson
- Ramon Vazquez
- Bruce Chen
- Akinori Otsuka
- Brandon McCarthy
- Gerald Laird
- Mark Teixeira
- CJ Wilson
- Scott Feldman
Here are the results of the poll:
- The AL should lose the DH – 8 (50%)
- It should stay the same – 6 (37.5%)
- The NL should get the DH – 2 (12.5%)
I will also rate all the Pheonix Spring Training stadiums 1-10, 10 being the best.
1. Surprise Stadium (Rangers/Royals) - 10
2. Peoria Stadium (Mariners/Padres) - 9
3. Scottsdale Stadium (Giants) - 8
4. HoHoKam Park (Cubs) - 6
5. Pheonix Municipal Stadium (A’s) - 5
6. Tempe Diablo Stadium (Angels) -4
7. Maryvale Baseball Park (Brewers) - 3
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
We flew out to Phoenix on an 11:30am flight. The flight was delayed for about an hour. We landed a little after 1:30pm. We went straight to Surprise Stadium for the Royals home game against the Rangers. We got there during the bottom of the 7th. It was 4-0 Rangers when we got there and they ended up winning 5-0.
After the game, I got autographs from Desi Relaford and Marlon Byrd, watched Thomas Diamond and Jose Vargas have a bullpen session, and then got autographs from Chris Stewart and Jose Vargas. During the bullpen session, Jose Vargas’ fastball was very fast.
We checked into the Hampton Inn and Suites in Surprise. It was a nice room with two beds and a sleeper sofa. It was a nice hotel overall – and I would recommend it. They have a free breakfast in the morning and cookies and sodas in the evening, plus free wireless access.
We tried to eat at Outback for dinner but it was too crowded, so we went to the Chili’s on Bell Road instead.
Day 2 – Monday March 5th
We went to the Rangers workouts on the backfields in the morning. The Rangers were in Tucson but a lot of the players stayed behind. When we got there, they were all doing warm-up exercises. I was wearing a Peter Warrick Bengals jersey and the players were all trying to figure out who it was. CJ Wilson and Michael Young asked me to tell them who it was. None of them had guessed right.
When they were moving from warm-ups to the hitting and pitching stations, I got autographs from Kenny Lofton and Sammy Sosa. I noticed during the week that Kenny was really nice until you asked him for an autograph. I was the only person he signed for that day. The hitters took batting practice and the pitchers took fielding practice. As workouts were breaking up, I got autographs from Bruce Chen, Jamey Wright, Mike Wood, Francisco Cruceta, Rick Bauer, Salomon Manriquez, and Taylor Teagarden. Salomon didn’t seem to like signing but everyone else was really nice about it. Taylor remembered us from the Newberg Bound Edition release party.
After workouts, we went to Maryvale Baseball Park to see a Brewers game. They were playing the White Sox and won 4-3. Mark Buerhle and Jeff Suppan started. During the game, Brewers GM (and former Rangers GM) Doug Melvin sat behind us and we got to talk to him for a while. He was very friendly and seemed to enjoy talking about baseball.
It was the worst of the Spring Training stadiums in Phoenix. It wasn’t clean and had nothing special – just a plain ballpark. It was the last Spring Training ballpark in the Phoenix area we hadn’t seen a game at.
We went to Outback for dinner. Scott Servais and some other Rangers people were eating dinner there too.
We watched Eragon in the hotel room after dinner. It was a good movie, but I expected more after the book was so good. Over the trip, I spent my spare time reading the sequel to Eragon, Eldest. It is also great.
Day 3 – Tuesday March 6th
We went to the Rangers workouts in the backfields in the morning. The gates for the workouts open at 10am. Shirley the Cookie Lady, her friend Dorothy and their husbands were there every morning. They were staying in Surprise for a month.
It is very easy to talk to players, because they go to different stations, where fans are allowed to be.
We saw Eric Gagne take a bullpen session. The pitchers were taking fielding practice again. We saw Evan Grant and talked to him for a while. We met Tim Cowlishaw. We also talked to Gregg Elkin and he let us go into the stadium an hour before the gates opened so that we could watch the star players take BP.
Before the game, I got autographs from Ramon Vazquez and Franklyn German. During the game, I talked to Jon Daniels. The Rangers lost 10-3. After the game, I got autographs from Willie Eyre and Matt Kata. Matt really doesn’t like to sign.
We ate at Red Robin, then went to a nighttime Padres game at Peoria Stadium. They beat the Diamondbacks 5-3. Chris Young and Brandon Webb started. Jerry Hairston sat two rows in front of us. We talked to him for a while when he was leaving and he was really friendly and happy to talk.
Day 4 – Wednesday March 7th
The Rangers had a B game at 10am on the backfields. The B games have very unofficial rules, and barely have any fans. One time Matt Connor just yelled out “1 more,” after the third out and Kevin Millwood got a fourth out. They don’t play all 9 innings.
During the game, we talked with Thad Levine, Keith Meister, Jon Daniels, Josh Lewin, some scouts, Randy Galloway and a Royals official named Dan Glass.
I got autographs from Scott Rice and Guillermo Quiroz. At that point, I had autographs from everyone on the Spring Training roster except for Victor Diaz. I mentioned this to Jerry Hairston and he said that he would tell Victor to look for me at the game.
I went to the Rangers game against the Diamondbacks. Before the game, I got Victor Diaz’s autograph. Jerry had probably told him to look for me. That completed my spring collection – I had autographs from all 57 players in major league camp. The Rangers won 9-8.
I went to the Suns game that night. The arena was better than the Mavs one, but wasn’t great. It had a good kids area. The game was really close, even though the Suns were playing the Bobcats. It went to overtime, but the Bobcats fell apart in it.
Day 5 – Thursday March 8th
We checked out of the hotel, and then went to the workouts on the backfields. When we got there, they had already split up for batting practice and pitchers’ fielding practice. I asked a lot of people my poll question (below). Otsuka talked to us a long time – he’s very friendly. Michael Young gave me a bat. I talked to Kevin Harmon too.
We drove to the A’s stadium for the Rangers/A’s game. The Rangers won 7-6. We left after the 7th inning to get to the airport and fly home on a 6:30pm flight.
I took a player poll during the week. The question was: Do you think the AL and NL should have the same DH system, and if so, which league should change? The following people responded:
- Kevin Millwood
- Jamey Wright
- Michael Young
- Kameron Loe
- Josh Rupe
- Jon Daniels
- Frank Catalanotto
- Brad Wilkerson
- Ramon Vazquez
- Bruce Chen
- Akinori Otsuka
- Brandon McCarthy
- Gerald Laird
- Mark Teixeira
- CJ Wilson
- Scott Feldman
Here are the results of the poll:
- The AL should lose the DH – 8 (50%)
- It should stay the same – 6 (37.5%)
- The NL should get the DH – 2 (12.5%)
I will also rate all the Pheonix Spring Training stadiums 1-10, 10 being the best.
1. Surprise Stadium (Rangers/Royals) - 10
2. Peoria Stadium (Mariners/Padres) - 9
3. Scottsdale Stadium (Giants) - 8
4. HoHoKam Park (Cubs) - 6
5. Pheonix Municipal Stadium (A’s) - 5
6. Tempe Diablo Stadium (Angels) -4
7. Maryvale Baseball Park (Brewers) - 3
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Spring Training Trip Report Part 1 of 2 - Player Performance
This week I went to Spring Training and took notes on how the players performed. I went to 3 full Rangers games and took notes from every one of them.
After seeing them play, I don’t think Desi Relaford will make the team anymore. Instead, I think Jerry Hairston Jr. will take his spot.
Mariners @ Rangers, Tuesday March 6th:
For this game, I’ll provide a play-by-play analysis of the first three innings, to give a feel for what to expect in the season.
Top of the 1st: Jamey Wright pitching:
Jamey struck out Ichiro, and allowed no hits. He did allow a warning track fly ball, though.
Bottom of the 1st: Horacio Ramirez against:
Kenny Lofton: Lofton took three straight balls to start off the at-bat, all of them close. He then swung at two straight pitches, one of them foul, and he didn’t connect on the other one. The next pitch was a ball and he walked. The at-bat was seven pitches long.
Frank Catalanotto: Like Kenny, Frank took three straight balls to start off the count. He then grounded out, moving Lofton to 2nd.
Michael Young: Michael hit a grounder to the pitcher and Lofton was caught in between 2nd and 3rd. Lofton got out but Young got to second safely.
Sammy Sosa: He swung and missed at the first two pitches, fouled one off, then took a close ball. He then had a check swing on a pitch, which was called a ball, fouled one off, and was way in front of the curveball as he struck out on another 7-pitch at-bat.
Top of the 2nd: Jamey Wright against:
Richie Sexson: When the count was 1-1, Sexson hit a liner to right field where Cruz made a good play to get the out.
Ben Broussard: Jamey threw a good fastball on the corner to start the at-bat. The next pitch was outside. He ended up walking Broussard.
Bryan LaHair: Jamey threw two pitches on the outside corner after a ball to get the count to 1-2. Then with a 2-2 count, Bryan grounded to second for a probable double play but Ramon Vazquez made a bad throw to Young and there were runners on 2nd and 3rd.
Jamie Burke: With a 0-2 count, Jamie lined a ball to center for a single. 2-0 Mariners.
Oswaldo Navarro: A change-up in the dirt was the first pitch and the next pitch was fouled off. With a 1-2 count Navarro hit a grounder to Young for an out.
Rey Ordonez: A high chopper was hit on the first pitch. It was a close play but he was out after bad communication, when Blalock cut right in front of Young, who was almost to the ball, almost creating a collision.
Bottom of the 2nd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Hank Blalock: With a 2-2 count, Blalock grounded to third, for an out.
Nelson Cruz: Cruz got under the ball and flew out.
Jared Sandberg: Sandberg had a good eye and walked on four pitches.
Gerald Laird: After hitting a hard ball foul, he hit a soft grounder to 3rd, and a great play got a hustling Laird out.
Top of the 3rd: Akinori Otsuka against:
Ichiro: Ichiro fouled off the 1st and 3rd pitches and then grounded out to third. Blalock made a nice play to get him out.
Jeremy Reed: A great curveball was taken for the first strike. The next pitch was a fastball that was fouled off. Reed was fooled on the 3rd pitch and struck out.
Willie Bloomquist: The first two pitches were balls and the third pitch a strike. Then Bloomquist hit a grounder to third and Blalock got the out.
Bottom of the 3rd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Ramon Vazquez: Ramon took the first pitch, which was right down the middle, and he also took the second pitch, which was a strike. Then he hit a grounder to 2nd and got out.
Kenny Lofton: Kenny took the first three pitches and they were all balls, then grounded out to 2nd.
Frank Catalanotto: Frank fouled off the first pitch and then was robbed of a single by Rey Ordonez.
The Rangers pitchers struggled from this point on. The Rangers ended up losing the game 10-3.
Diamondbacks @ Rangers, Wednesday March 7th:
For this game, I took general notes for the whole game.
John Koronka: Koronka pitched great and really fooled the hitters. He had a good mix of speed and his curveball really broke well. He pitched three hitless innings to start the game.
Kameron Loe: Kameron pitched well, only allowing one unearned run on a Blalock error in three innings.
Freddy Guzman: Freddy dropped two balls, although they would have been great plays if he made the catches. Earlier in the game, Freddy really hustled and tripled. After that, he struck out.
Desi Relaford: Desi made an error on a very easy play. He also struck out, looking awful.
Francisco Cruceta: Francisco pitched awful and was hit very hard. He allowed one home run, allowed 4 earned runs, and hit a batter in two-thirds of an inning.
Sammy Sosa: Sammy hit a moon shot past the lawn seats. He went 2-for-3 on the day.
Gerald Laird: Gerald hit a homer to center that started a rally. When he got back in the dugout, his teammates ignored him as a joke, so Laird high-fived the air.
Brad Wilkerson: Brad struck out but went 2-for-3. On defense, he threw a strike to second to get an out.
Jose Vargas: Jose has a strange wind-up. It’s very jerky. He had poor control, walking one, giving up two hits, and giving up an earned run in two-thirds of an inning.
Victor Diaz: Victor swung too hard in his only at-bat, which resulted in a strike out.
Guillermo Quiroz: Guillermo struck out on three whiffs in his only at-bat.
Drew Meyer: Drew made a quick throw to second to get a quick start to a possible double play.
Mike Wood: Mike had a pretty good curveball and got ahead of hitters most of the time. He made great use of the corners.
Jerry Hairston: Jerry made a great defensive play but did not get the out.
Joaquin Arias: Joaquin didn’t play well as the DH, going 0-for-4.
The Rangers won 9-8.
Rangers @ A’s, Thursday March 8th.
For this game, I will give you some key statistics from the first 7 innings.
Strikeouts: Brad Wilkerson, Mark Teixeira (2), Hank Blalock, Kenny Lofton, Gerald Laird.
Grounded into double play: Mark Teixeira, Sammy Sosa
Caught-stealing: Gerald Laird
Walks: Frank Catalanotto, Hank Blalock, Gerald Laird, Marlon Byrd
Hits: Sammy Sosa (2), Michael Young, Gerald Laird, Ian Kinsler (2), Frank Catalanotto (2), Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz
Doubles: Frank Catalanotto, Sammy Sosa
Triples: Nelson Cruz
RBI’s: Gerald Laird, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz (2)
Runs: Sammy Sosa, Marlon Byrd, Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata
Hits allowed: Vicente Padilla (6), Franklyn German (3)
Walks committed: Vicente Padilla (1), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
Strike-outs: Vicente Padilla (1), Joaquin Benoit (1), Frank Francisco (1)
Errors: Jason Botts
Runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Earned runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Innings pitched: Vicente Padilla (3), Joaquin Benoit (2), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
The Rangers won 7-6.
Conclusion:
Everybody was off-and-on, which is to be expected this early in spring training. The power numbers aren’t too great yet. The trip confirmed my picks of who would make the team, except for Jerry Hairston replacing Desi Relaford.
Come back next week for a day-by-day description of my Spring Training trip.
After seeing them play, I don’t think Desi Relaford will make the team anymore. Instead, I think Jerry Hairston Jr. will take his spot.
Mariners @ Rangers, Tuesday March 6th:
For this game, I’ll provide a play-by-play analysis of the first three innings, to give a feel for what to expect in the season.
Top of the 1st: Jamey Wright pitching:
Jamey struck out Ichiro, and allowed no hits. He did allow a warning track fly ball, though.
Bottom of the 1st: Horacio Ramirez against:
Kenny Lofton: Lofton took three straight balls to start off the at-bat, all of them close. He then swung at two straight pitches, one of them foul, and he didn’t connect on the other one. The next pitch was a ball and he walked. The at-bat was seven pitches long.
Frank Catalanotto: Like Kenny, Frank took three straight balls to start off the count. He then grounded out, moving Lofton to 2nd.
Michael Young: Michael hit a grounder to the pitcher and Lofton was caught in between 2nd and 3rd. Lofton got out but Young got to second safely.
Sammy Sosa: He swung and missed at the first two pitches, fouled one off, then took a close ball. He then had a check swing on a pitch, which was called a ball, fouled one off, and was way in front of the curveball as he struck out on another 7-pitch at-bat.
Top of the 2nd: Jamey Wright against:
Richie Sexson: When the count was 1-1, Sexson hit a liner to right field where Cruz made a good play to get the out.
Ben Broussard: Jamey threw a good fastball on the corner to start the at-bat. The next pitch was outside. He ended up walking Broussard.
Bryan LaHair: Jamey threw two pitches on the outside corner after a ball to get the count to 1-2. Then with a 2-2 count, Bryan grounded to second for a probable double play but Ramon Vazquez made a bad throw to Young and there were runners on 2nd and 3rd.
Jamie Burke: With a 0-2 count, Jamie lined a ball to center for a single. 2-0 Mariners.
Oswaldo Navarro: A change-up in the dirt was the first pitch and the next pitch was fouled off. With a 1-2 count Navarro hit a grounder to Young for an out.
Rey Ordonez: A high chopper was hit on the first pitch. It was a close play but he was out after bad communication, when Blalock cut right in front of Young, who was almost to the ball, almost creating a collision.
Bottom of the 2nd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Hank Blalock: With a 2-2 count, Blalock grounded to third, for an out.
Nelson Cruz: Cruz got under the ball and flew out.
Jared Sandberg: Sandberg had a good eye and walked on four pitches.
Gerald Laird: After hitting a hard ball foul, he hit a soft grounder to 3rd, and a great play got a hustling Laird out.
Top of the 3rd: Akinori Otsuka against:
Ichiro: Ichiro fouled off the 1st and 3rd pitches and then grounded out to third. Blalock made a nice play to get him out.
Jeremy Reed: A great curveball was taken for the first strike. The next pitch was a fastball that was fouled off. Reed was fooled on the 3rd pitch and struck out.
Willie Bloomquist: The first two pitches were balls and the third pitch a strike. Then Bloomquist hit a grounder to third and Blalock got the out.
Bottom of the 3rd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Ramon Vazquez: Ramon took the first pitch, which was right down the middle, and he also took the second pitch, which was a strike. Then he hit a grounder to 2nd and got out.
Kenny Lofton: Kenny took the first three pitches and they were all balls, then grounded out to 2nd.
Frank Catalanotto: Frank fouled off the first pitch and then was robbed of a single by Rey Ordonez.
The Rangers pitchers struggled from this point on. The Rangers ended up losing the game 10-3.
Diamondbacks @ Rangers, Wednesday March 7th:
For this game, I took general notes for the whole game.
John Koronka: Koronka pitched great and really fooled the hitters. He had a good mix of speed and his curveball really broke well. He pitched three hitless innings to start the game.
Kameron Loe: Kameron pitched well, only allowing one unearned run on a Blalock error in three innings.
Freddy Guzman: Freddy dropped two balls, although they would have been great plays if he made the catches. Earlier in the game, Freddy really hustled and tripled. After that, he struck out.
Desi Relaford: Desi made an error on a very easy play. He also struck out, looking awful.
Francisco Cruceta: Francisco pitched awful and was hit very hard. He allowed one home run, allowed 4 earned runs, and hit a batter in two-thirds of an inning.
Sammy Sosa: Sammy hit a moon shot past the lawn seats. He went 2-for-3 on the day.
Gerald Laird: Gerald hit a homer to center that started a rally. When he got back in the dugout, his teammates ignored him as a joke, so Laird high-fived the air.
Brad Wilkerson: Brad struck out but went 2-for-3. On defense, he threw a strike to second to get an out.
Jose Vargas: Jose has a strange wind-up. It’s very jerky. He had poor control, walking one, giving up two hits, and giving up an earned run in two-thirds of an inning.
Victor Diaz: Victor swung too hard in his only at-bat, which resulted in a strike out.
Guillermo Quiroz: Guillermo struck out on three whiffs in his only at-bat.
Drew Meyer: Drew made a quick throw to second to get a quick start to a possible double play.
Mike Wood: Mike had a pretty good curveball and got ahead of hitters most of the time. He made great use of the corners.
Jerry Hairston: Jerry made a great defensive play but did not get the out.
Joaquin Arias: Joaquin didn’t play well as the DH, going 0-for-4.
The Rangers won 9-8.
Rangers @ A’s, Thursday March 8th.
For this game, I will give you some key statistics from the first 7 innings.
Strikeouts: Brad Wilkerson, Mark Teixeira (2), Hank Blalock, Kenny Lofton, Gerald Laird.
Grounded into double play: Mark Teixeira, Sammy Sosa
Caught-stealing: Gerald Laird
Walks: Frank Catalanotto, Hank Blalock, Gerald Laird, Marlon Byrd
Hits: Sammy Sosa (2), Michael Young, Gerald Laird, Ian Kinsler (2), Frank Catalanotto (2), Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz
Doubles: Frank Catalanotto, Sammy Sosa
Triples: Nelson Cruz
RBI’s: Gerald Laird, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz (2)
Runs: Sammy Sosa, Marlon Byrd, Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata
Hits allowed: Vicente Padilla (6), Franklyn German (3)
Walks committed: Vicente Padilla (1), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
Strike-outs: Vicente Padilla (1), Joaquin Benoit (1), Frank Francisco (1)
Errors: Jason Botts
Runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Earned runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Innings pitched: Vicente Padilla (3), Joaquin Benoit (2), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
The Rangers won 7-6.
Conclusion:
Everybody was off-and-on, which is to be expected this early in spring training. The power numbers aren’t too great yet. The trip confirmed my picks of who would make the team, except for Jerry Hairston replacing Desi Relaford.
Come back next week for a day-by-day description of my Spring Training trip.
Friday, March 02, 2007
Analysis of Spring Training Infielders and Catchers
The Rangers have 9 infielders and 6 catchers in major league Spring Training camp. Below, I will rate each infielder and catcher and give their chances of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training.
Infielders:
Joaquin Arias:
Joaquin is learning the outfield positions and might be the utility guy or back-up infielder. I think he will be the utility guy.
Percentage: 62.4%
Hank Blalock:
He’s our third baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Nate Gold:
Nate played great last year but isn’t going to make the team. He’s a first baseman and back-up infielders need to be able to play 2nd and short.
Percentage: 0%
Ian Kinsler:
Ian’s our second baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Drew Meyer:
Drew was called up part of last year and batted .214 in 14 AB. He was DFA’d this off-season and cleared waivers. He’s probably not going to make the team.
Percentage: 8.2%
Desi Relaford:
Desi is 33 years old and has never been a starter. He hasn’t been that good, with a career average of .244 and 40 career home runs. Last year, he didn’t play in the majors, but in ’05 he hit .224 with 1 HR and 16 RBI. But I don’t think any of the other players competing for the job will outplay him, except for Joaquin Arias.
Percentage: 53.7%
Mark Teixeira:
Mark’s our first baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Ramon Vazquez:
Ramon hasn’t had a very good career, batting .255 with 7 HR and 92 RBI. Last year, with Cleveland, he batted .209 with 1 HR and 8 RBI. He has been getting worse every year since 2002. He probably won’t make the team unless Desi Relaford or Joaquin Arias does awful.
Percentage: 12.7%
Michael Young:
Michael is the Rangers’ starting shortstop.
Percentage: 100%
Catchers:
Gerald Laird:
Gerald is the starting catcher
Percentage: 100%
Salomon Manriquez:
Solomon has never played in the majors and probably won’t this year. He’s got career minor league totals of a .254 AVG with 41 HR and 240 RBI. His best year was 2005 with Potomac, when he hit .287 with 15 HR and 68 RBI.
Percentage: 1.5%
Miguel Ojeda:
Miguel has a career .224 AVG with 15 HR and 72 RBI. He has never started and has only played 4 years in the majors. He has one option left which probably puts him a little behind Guillermo Quiroz.
Percentage: 34.1%
Guillermo Quiroz:
Guillermo was signed to a major league contract and has no options. He is the main runner for the back-up catcher job, in my opinion. He is the only one without options of the three main competitors. He only has 90 career major league at-bats. He isn’t that great a hitter (.238 minor league average), although his power numbers have been decent in the minors. He is 25 years old.
Percentage: 63.4%
Kevin Richardson:
Kevin isn’t going to make the team because he hasn’t gotten past AA yet.
Percentage 0%
Chris Stewart:
Chris probably isn’t going to make the team this year since he has options and only has 8 major-league at-bats. He hasn’t gotten any hits out of those at-bats. He is a great fielder and a decent hitter.
Percentage: 21.3%
Projected infielders and catchers at the beginning of the year:
Gerald Laird-catcher
Guillermo Quiroz-back-up catcher
Mark Teixeira-1B
Ian Kinsler-2B
Hank Blalock-3B
Michael Young-SS
Joaquin Arias-utility
Desi Relaford-back-up infielder
Next in line:
Miguel Ojeda
Come back next week for a report from Spring Training in Surprise.
Infielders:
Joaquin Arias:
Joaquin is learning the outfield positions and might be the utility guy or back-up infielder. I think he will be the utility guy.
Percentage: 62.4%
Hank Blalock:
He’s our third baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Nate Gold:
Nate played great last year but isn’t going to make the team. He’s a first baseman and back-up infielders need to be able to play 2nd and short.
Percentage: 0%
Ian Kinsler:
Ian’s our second baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Drew Meyer:
Drew was called up part of last year and batted .214 in 14 AB. He was DFA’d this off-season and cleared waivers. He’s probably not going to make the team.
Percentage: 8.2%
Desi Relaford:
Desi is 33 years old and has never been a starter. He hasn’t been that good, with a career average of .244 and 40 career home runs. Last year, he didn’t play in the majors, but in ’05 he hit .224 with 1 HR and 16 RBI. But I don’t think any of the other players competing for the job will outplay him, except for Joaquin Arias.
Percentage: 53.7%
Mark Teixeira:
Mark’s our first baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Ramon Vazquez:
Ramon hasn’t had a very good career, batting .255 with 7 HR and 92 RBI. Last year, with Cleveland, he batted .209 with 1 HR and 8 RBI. He has been getting worse every year since 2002. He probably won’t make the team unless Desi Relaford or Joaquin Arias does awful.
Percentage: 12.7%
Michael Young:
Michael is the Rangers’ starting shortstop.
Percentage: 100%
Catchers:
Gerald Laird:
Gerald is the starting catcher
Percentage: 100%
Salomon Manriquez:
Solomon has never played in the majors and probably won’t this year. He’s got career minor league totals of a .254 AVG with 41 HR and 240 RBI. His best year was 2005 with Potomac, when he hit .287 with 15 HR and 68 RBI.
Percentage: 1.5%
Miguel Ojeda:
Miguel has a career .224 AVG with 15 HR and 72 RBI. He has never started and has only played 4 years in the majors. He has one option left which probably puts him a little behind Guillermo Quiroz.
Percentage: 34.1%
Guillermo Quiroz:
Guillermo was signed to a major league contract and has no options. He is the main runner for the back-up catcher job, in my opinion. He is the only one without options of the three main competitors. He only has 90 career major league at-bats. He isn’t that great a hitter (.238 minor league average), although his power numbers have been decent in the minors. He is 25 years old.
Percentage: 63.4%
Kevin Richardson:
Kevin isn’t going to make the team because he hasn’t gotten past AA yet.
Percentage 0%
Chris Stewart:
Chris probably isn’t going to make the team this year since he has options and only has 8 major-league at-bats. He hasn’t gotten any hits out of those at-bats. He is a great fielder and a decent hitter.
Percentage: 21.3%
Projected infielders and catchers at the beginning of the year:
Gerald Laird-catcher
Guillermo Quiroz-back-up catcher
Mark Teixeira-1B
Ian Kinsler-2B
Hank Blalock-3B
Michael Young-SS
Joaquin Arias-utility
Desi Relaford-back-up infielder
Next in line:
Miguel Ojeda
Come back next week for a report from Spring Training in Surprise.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Analysis of Spring Training Outfielders
The Rangers have 11 outfielders in major league Spring Training camp. Below, I will rate each outfielder and give their chances of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training.
Jason Botts:
Jason is competing for the 5th OF/DH role. He has dominated the minors, but hasn’t done too great yet in the majors, batting .247 with 1 HR and 9 RBI’s in 77 AB. He won’t need to play great, but to play well to get the job out of camp. Sammy Sosa is his biggest competition.
Percentage: 33.5%
Marlon Byrd:
Marlon hasn’t reached anywhere near his potential and he’ll need to, to make the team. He’s very speedy and fields well, but his hitting isn’t that great. His career stats are a .263 AVG with 20 HR in 1302 AB. He started for the Phillies in 03-04 but ever since he has split the center field position. He had a great minor league career batting over .300 4 out of 8 years and never batted below .260 but hasn’t gotten it done in the majors. If he can play like he did in the minors, I think he will make the team as the 5th outfielder.
Percentage: 32.8%
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank is the DH/back-up outfielder for the Rangers, unless he gets injured, or Sammy Sosa does great. If Sammy makes the team than he will be just the DH or a starting outfielder, depending on how Sammy fields.
Percentage: 100%
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is the starting right fielder unless he gets injured or has a terrible camp.
Percentage: 98.9%
Victor Diaz:
Victor is not one of the major runners for the outfield job although he has a better chance than most people give him. He had been having a great career until he fell apart last year, batting .224 with Triple-A Norfolk and .182 with the Mets. Also, he didn’t have anywhere close to his normal power getting fewer home runs in more at-bats than the previous 3 years. He will have to get his hitting back up to where it used to be to make the team.
Percentage: 15.2%
Freddy Guzman:
Freddy is a really speedy guy who was great in the minor leagues but hasn’t done that well in the majors. He’s only gotten 83 at-bats but his batting average is .217. He needs to have an outstanding camp to win the 5th outfielder job.
Percentage: 12.3%
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry is a very good fielder. He’s competing for an outfield job and the utility job. He’s been declining over the past few years and he’ll need to stop declining to win the job.
Percentage: 23.4%
Matt Kata:
Last year Kata was with the Triple-A Louisville Bats. He hit .263 with 9 HR and 34 RBI in 331 AB. He’s spent parts of three seasons in the majors in 2003-2005. He played for the D’Backs and Phillies, batting .308 with 9 HR and 42 RBI in 487 AB. He is the least likely of anyone on the outfield Spring Training roster to make the team.
Percentage: 7.6%
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny is the Rangers’ starting center fielder.
Percentage: 100%
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy has had a great career, but has been suspected of using steroids. He has also corked his bats. He very quickly declined after his great year in 2003, although his power numbers were still good in ’04. In 2005, he had a .221 batting average, only hitting 14 HR and 45 RBI’s with the Orioles. He didn’t play in 2006. He will need to play at least in between what he did in ’04 and ’05 to make the team.
Percentage: 34.9%
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad is our 4th outfielder or may platoon with Cruz.
Percentage: 100%
Projected outfielders at the beginning of the year:
Kenny Lofton-center fielder
Nelson Cruz-right fielder
Frank Catalanotto-left fielder/DH
Sammy Sosa-DH
Brad Wilkerson-4th outfielder
Next in line:
Jason Botts
Marlon Byrd
Jerry Hairston
Come back next week for the infielders and catchers.
Jason Botts:
Jason is competing for the 5th OF/DH role. He has dominated the minors, but hasn’t done too great yet in the majors, batting .247 with 1 HR and 9 RBI’s in 77 AB. He won’t need to play great, but to play well to get the job out of camp. Sammy Sosa is his biggest competition.
Percentage: 33.5%
Marlon Byrd:
Marlon hasn’t reached anywhere near his potential and he’ll need to, to make the team. He’s very speedy and fields well, but his hitting isn’t that great. His career stats are a .263 AVG with 20 HR in 1302 AB. He started for the Phillies in 03-04 but ever since he has split the center field position. He had a great minor league career batting over .300 4 out of 8 years and never batted below .260 but hasn’t gotten it done in the majors. If he can play like he did in the minors, I think he will make the team as the 5th outfielder.
Percentage: 32.8%
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank is the DH/back-up outfielder for the Rangers, unless he gets injured, or Sammy Sosa does great. If Sammy makes the team than he will be just the DH or a starting outfielder, depending on how Sammy fields.
Percentage: 100%
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is the starting right fielder unless he gets injured or has a terrible camp.
Percentage: 98.9%
Victor Diaz:
Victor is not one of the major runners for the outfield job although he has a better chance than most people give him. He had been having a great career until he fell apart last year, batting .224 with Triple-A Norfolk and .182 with the Mets. Also, he didn’t have anywhere close to his normal power getting fewer home runs in more at-bats than the previous 3 years. He will have to get his hitting back up to where it used to be to make the team.
Percentage: 15.2%
Freddy Guzman:
Freddy is a really speedy guy who was great in the minor leagues but hasn’t done that well in the majors. He’s only gotten 83 at-bats but his batting average is .217. He needs to have an outstanding camp to win the 5th outfielder job.
Percentage: 12.3%
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry is a very good fielder. He’s competing for an outfield job and the utility job. He’s been declining over the past few years and he’ll need to stop declining to win the job.
Percentage: 23.4%
Matt Kata:
Last year Kata was with the Triple-A Louisville Bats. He hit .263 with 9 HR and 34 RBI in 331 AB. He’s spent parts of three seasons in the majors in 2003-2005. He played for the D’Backs and Phillies, batting .308 with 9 HR and 42 RBI in 487 AB. He is the least likely of anyone on the outfield Spring Training roster to make the team.
Percentage: 7.6%
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny is the Rangers’ starting center fielder.
Percentage: 100%
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy has had a great career, but has been suspected of using steroids. He has also corked his bats. He very quickly declined after his great year in 2003, although his power numbers were still good in ’04. In 2005, he had a .221 batting average, only hitting 14 HR and 45 RBI’s with the Orioles. He didn’t play in 2006. He will need to play at least in between what he did in ’04 and ’05 to make the team.
Percentage: 34.9%
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad is our 4th outfielder or may platoon with Cruz.
Percentage: 100%
Projected outfielders at the beginning of the year:
Kenny Lofton-center fielder
Nelson Cruz-right fielder
Frank Catalanotto-left fielder/DH
Sammy Sosa-DH
Brad Wilkerson-4th outfielder
Next in line:
Jason Botts
Marlon Byrd
Jerry Hairston
Come back next week for the infielders and catchers.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Analysis of Spring Training Pitchers
The Rangers opened Spring Training this week with 32 pitchers in the major league camp. Below, I will rate each pitcher and give their chances of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training.
Rick Bauer, RHP:
Rick had a very good season last year, but ended it badly. He will probably make the team unless he either gets injured or plays awful.
Percentage: 86.7%
Joaquin Benoit, RHP:
Benoit’s a clinch at the long reliever position.
Percentage: 100%
Bruce Chen, LHP:
He is very home run prone and had a very bad year last year. He had a 6.93 ERA for the Orioles last year, a 3.83 ERA in ’05 and a 4.60 ERA in his 9-year career, playing for the Braves, Phillies, Mets, Expos, Reds, Astros, Red Sox, and finally the Orioles. The Rangers might be the 9th team on that list. But he does have a decent chance because he’s had a decent career and he would be the only lefty in the rotation. He will also be competing with two other left-handers (John Koronka and John Rheinecker) who is more likely to win the job. Even if Chen isn’t the 5th starter, he could become a long relief pitcher. If he doesn’t make the Rangers out of camp, he’ll probably be brought up during the season.
Percentage: 39.7%
Francisco Cruceta, RHP:
The Rangers acquired Cruceta off waivers from the Mariners after last season. He was a starter with AAA Tacoma last season, where he went 13-9 with a 4.38 ERA in 28 games. Cruceta is probably not going to make the team with our strong bullpen. He has a pretty low chance although he probably will be called up in September, since he’s on the 40-man roster.
Percentage: 2.1%
Thomas Diamond, RHP:
Thomas probably won’t make it to the bigs until September this year, much less out of camp. He’ll spend the year at AAA.
Percentage: 2.1%
Willie Eyre, RHP:
Willie’s only year in the majors was last year with the Twins, where he had a 5.31 ERA in 42 games, all in relief. He’ll probably get called up in September if he has a great year but not out of Spring Training.
Percentage: 1.4%
Scott Feldman, RHP:
Scott has proven himself in the bigs and has almost clinched a middle relief spot.
Percentage: 98.9%
Frank Francisco, RHP:
Frank can be a good pitcher if he stays healthy. I think if he is healthy, that he gets a real shot at a middle relief role or the seventh inning role.
Percentage: 89.6%
Eric Gagne, RHP:
Eric’s our closer unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Armando Galarraga, RHP:
Armando struggled with injuries last year and went 1-6 with a 4.61 ERA in 9 starts with Frisco. He isn’t going to the majors this year and will probably be gone by the time Spring Training is halfway through.
Percentage: 0%
Franklyn German, RHP:
Franklyn has a chance of making the team, although not a very good one. He has a 4.60 ERA in 137 IP spread throughout five years. Last year, he had a 3.00 ERA in 12.0 innings pitched. He is not home run prone nor is he great against home runs. He has 99 strikeouts in his career. He doesn’t have bad stats but he’s coming off of shoulder surgery, which could really limit his effectiveness.
Percentage: 19.4%
Daniel Haigwood, LHP:
Daniel won’t make it to the bigs this year. He had a 3.63 ERA with Frisco last year in 62 innings. He allowed 4 HR and had a record of 1-2.
Percentage: 0%
Eric Hurley, RHP:
Eric Hurley isn’t ready for the majors nor is he going to be in the majors. The Rangers probably brought him to big league camp to show him how highly they think of him.
Percentage: 0%
John Koronka, LHP:
John Koronka, John Rheinecker and Bruce Chen are the left-handers competing for the 5th starter and will be the only lefty in the rotation if they win the 5th job. Koronka is the most likely of the three since he pitched so well at the beginning of the season last year.
Percentage: 45.6%
Wes Littleton, RHP:
With Wes’ performance last year he is going to make the team if he doesn’t do awful.
Percentage: 95.8%
Kameron Loe, RHP:
Kameron is going to compete for the 5th starter role but probably won’t make it. He also could be a reliever but probably not out of spring training. He struggled last year in both the majors and the minors and probably will need to pitch well in AAA before getting called up.
Percentage: 25.4%
Ron Mahay, LHP:
Mahay was 1-3 with a 3.95 ERA in 62 appearances last season, his fourth in Texas. He has a guaranteed contract so probably will make the team.
Percentage: 92.9%
Brandon McCarthy, RHP:
Brandon is the #3 starter no matter what, in my opinion.
Percentage: 100%
Kevin Millwood, RHP:
Kevin is the ace of this team and the ace makes the team.
Percentage: 100%
AJ Murray, LHP:
AJ has had a decent minor league career but has struggled with injuries (he didn’t pitch in 2004 or 2006). He won’t make the team for at least two more years.
Percentage: 0%
Alexi Ogando, RHP:
Alexi can’t come to camp because he can’t get a visa.
Percentage: 0%
Akinori Otsuka, RHP:
Aki’s the set-up man unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Vicente Padilla, RHP:
Padilla’s the #2 starter.
Percentage: 100%
John Rheinecker, LHP:
John is going to compete for the 5th starting pitcher job in Spring Training, but with his shaky finish last year, I don’t think he’ll win the job.
Percentage: 10.6%
Scott Rice, LHP:
Scott is a middle reliever who will compete for a job at Spring Training. He had a 3.86 ERA in 65.1 innings last year. That was his first year in Triple-A. If he wins the job, he’s going to be one of the least used relievers.
Percentage: 11.4%
Josh Rupe, RHP:
Josh was held back from injuries last year, and he probably would have been the 5th starter. When he got back he posted a 3.41 ERA in 29 innings pitched for the Rangers.
Percentage: 31.9%
Robinson Tejeda, RHP:
Robinson is our #4 starter unless he really struggles in camp.
Percentage: 99.9%
Jose Vargas, RHP:
Jose spent the last two years in the Triple-A Mexican League. Last year, he went 6-4 with a 1.36 ERA in 73 innings. He had 70 strikeouts and only allowed one homer. He also had 27 saves, leading the league. He seems like a very good player who could win a relieving spot.
Percentage: 45.9%
Edinson Volquez, RHP:
Edinson is probably one of the least likely of the competitors for the 5th starting job because he has options and has really struggled in the majors so far in his career.
Percentage: 9.7%
CJ Wilson, LHP:
CJ has clinched a bullpen job.
Percentage: 100%
Mike Wood, RHP:
Wood has career stats of a 13-20 record with a 5.52 ERA in 293.1 innings pitched. He has given up 45 HR’s, becoming more and more home run prone each year. He probably won’t make the team.
Percentage: 6.1%
Jamey Wright, RHP:
Jamey has 11 years of MLB experience. His career stats are a 67-98 record with a 5.14 ERA in 1461.2 IP. Last year he had a 6-10 record posting a 5.19 ERA in 156 IP. Jamey hasn’t had a good career so far and probably will not win the job.
Percentage: 8.6%
Predicted pitchers at the beginning of the year:
1. Kevin Millwood-starter
2. Vicente Padilla-starter
3. Brandon McCarthy-starter
4. Robinson Tejeda-starter
5. John Koronka-left-handed starter
6. Joaquin Benoit-long reliever
7. Scott Feldman-middle reliever
8. CJ Wilson-middle reliever
9. Ron Mahay-middle reliever
10. Wes Littleton-middle reliever
11. Akinori Otsuka-setup
12. Eric Gagne-closer
Next in line:
1. Rick Bauer
2. Bruce Chen
3. Josh Rupe
4. Jose Vargas
5. Frank Francisco
Come back next week for outfielders and the one DH. I’ll continue my analysis of the divisions after this series.
Rick Bauer, RHP:
Rick had a very good season last year, but ended it badly. He will probably make the team unless he either gets injured or plays awful.
Percentage: 86.7%
Joaquin Benoit, RHP:
Benoit’s a clinch at the long reliever position.
Percentage: 100%
Bruce Chen, LHP:
He is very home run prone and had a very bad year last year. He had a 6.93 ERA for the Orioles last year, a 3.83 ERA in ’05 and a 4.60 ERA in his 9-year career, playing for the Braves, Phillies, Mets, Expos, Reds, Astros, Red Sox, and finally the Orioles. The Rangers might be the 9th team on that list. But he does have a decent chance because he’s had a decent career and he would be the only lefty in the rotation. He will also be competing with two other left-handers (John Koronka and John Rheinecker) who is more likely to win the job. Even if Chen isn’t the 5th starter, he could become a long relief pitcher. If he doesn’t make the Rangers out of camp, he’ll probably be brought up during the season.
Percentage: 39.7%
Francisco Cruceta, RHP:
The Rangers acquired Cruceta off waivers from the Mariners after last season. He was a starter with AAA Tacoma last season, where he went 13-9 with a 4.38 ERA in 28 games. Cruceta is probably not going to make the team with our strong bullpen. He has a pretty low chance although he probably will be called up in September, since he’s on the 40-man roster.
Percentage: 2.1%
Thomas Diamond, RHP:
Thomas probably won’t make it to the bigs until September this year, much less out of camp. He’ll spend the year at AAA.
Percentage: 2.1%
Willie Eyre, RHP:
Willie’s only year in the majors was last year with the Twins, where he had a 5.31 ERA in 42 games, all in relief. He’ll probably get called up in September if he has a great year but not out of Spring Training.
Percentage: 1.4%
Scott Feldman, RHP:
Scott has proven himself in the bigs and has almost clinched a middle relief spot.
Percentage: 98.9%
Frank Francisco, RHP:
Frank can be a good pitcher if he stays healthy. I think if he is healthy, that he gets a real shot at a middle relief role or the seventh inning role.
Percentage: 89.6%
Eric Gagne, RHP:
Eric’s our closer unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Armando Galarraga, RHP:
Armando struggled with injuries last year and went 1-6 with a 4.61 ERA in 9 starts with Frisco. He isn’t going to the majors this year and will probably be gone by the time Spring Training is halfway through.
Percentage: 0%
Franklyn German, RHP:
Franklyn has a chance of making the team, although not a very good one. He has a 4.60 ERA in 137 IP spread throughout five years. Last year, he had a 3.00 ERA in 12.0 innings pitched. He is not home run prone nor is he great against home runs. He has 99 strikeouts in his career. He doesn’t have bad stats but he’s coming off of shoulder surgery, which could really limit his effectiveness.
Percentage: 19.4%
Daniel Haigwood, LHP:
Daniel won’t make it to the bigs this year. He had a 3.63 ERA with Frisco last year in 62 innings. He allowed 4 HR and had a record of 1-2.
Percentage: 0%
Eric Hurley, RHP:
Eric Hurley isn’t ready for the majors nor is he going to be in the majors. The Rangers probably brought him to big league camp to show him how highly they think of him.
Percentage: 0%
John Koronka, LHP:
John Koronka, John Rheinecker and Bruce Chen are the left-handers competing for the 5th starter and will be the only lefty in the rotation if they win the 5th job. Koronka is the most likely of the three since he pitched so well at the beginning of the season last year.
Percentage: 45.6%
Wes Littleton, RHP:
With Wes’ performance last year he is going to make the team if he doesn’t do awful.
Percentage: 95.8%
Kameron Loe, RHP:
Kameron is going to compete for the 5th starter role but probably won’t make it. He also could be a reliever but probably not out of spring training. He struggled last year in both the majors and the minors and probably will need to pitch well in AAA before getting called up.
Percentage: 25.4%
Ron Mahay, LHP:
Mahay was 1-3 with a 3.95 ERA in 62 appearances last season, his fourth in Texas. He has a guaranteed contract so probably will make the team.
Percentage: 92.9%
Brandon McCarthy, RHP:
Brandon is the #3 starter no matter what, in my opinion.
Percentage: 100%
Kevin Millwood, RHP:
Kevin is the ace of this team and the ace makes the team.
Percentage: 100%
AJ Murray, LHP:
AJ has had a decent minor league career but has struggled with injuries (he didn’t pitch in 2004 or 2006). He won’t make the team for at least two more years.
Percentage: 0%
Alexi Ogando, RHP:
Alexi can’t come to camp because he can’t get a visa.
Percentage: 0%
Akinori Otsuka, RHP:
Aki’s the set-up man unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Vicente Padilla, RHP:
Padilla’s the #2 starter.
Percentage: 100%
John Rheinecker, LHP:
John is going to compete for the 5th starting pitcher job in Spring Training, but with his shaky finish last year, I don’t think he’ll win the job.
Percentage: 10.6%
Scott Rice, LHP:
Scott is a middle reliever who will compete for a job at Spring Training. He had a 3.86 ERA in 65.1 innings last year. That was his first year in Triple-A. If he wins the job, he’s going to be one of the least used relievers.
Percentage: 11.4%
Josh Rupe, RHP:
Josh was held back from injuries last year, and he probably would have been the 5th starter. When he got back he posted a 3.41 ERA in 29 innings pitched for the Rangers.
Percentage: 31.9%
Robinson Tejeda, RHP:
Robinson is our #4 starter unless he really struggles in camp.
Percentage: 99.9%
Jose Vargas, RHP:
Jose spent the last two years in the Triple-A Mexican League. Last year, he went 6-4 with a 1.36 ERA in 73 innings. He had 70 strikeouts and only allowed one homer. He also had 27 saves, leading the league. He seems like a very good player who could win a relieving spot.
Percentage: 45.9%
Edinson Volquez, RHP:
Edinson is probably one of the least likely of the competitors for the 5th starting job because he has options and has really struggled in the majors so far in his career.
Percentage: 9.7%
CJ Wilson, LHP:
CJ has clinched a bullpen job.
Percentage: 100%
Mike Wood, RHP:
Wood has career stats of a 13-20 record with a 5.52 ERA in 293.1 innings pitched. He has given up 45 HR’s, becoming more and more home run prone each year. He probably won’t make the team.
Percentage: 6.1%
Jamey Wright, RHP:
Jamey has 11 years of MLB experience. His career stats are a 67-98 record with a 5.14 ERA in 1461.2 IP. Last year he had a 6-10 record posting a 5.19 ERA in 156 IP. Jamey hasn’t had a good career so far and probably will not win the job.
Percentage: 8.6%
Predicted pitchers at the beginning of the year:
1. Kevin Millwood-starter
2. Vicente Padilla-starter
3. Brandon McCarthy-starter
4. Robinson Tejeda-starter
5. John Koronka-left-handed starter
6. Joaquin Benoit-long reliever
7. Scott Feldman-middle reliever
8. CJ Wilson-middle reliever
9. Ron Mahay-middle reliever
10. Wes Littleton-middle reliever
11. Akinori Otsuka-setup
12. Eric Gagne-closer
Next in line:
1. Rick Bauer
2. Bruce Chen
3. Josh Rupe
4. Jose Vargas
5. Frank Francisco
Come back next week for outfielders and the one DH. I’ll continue my analysis of the divisions after this series.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
AL Central Off-Season Analysis
This week, I will analyze the off-seasons of the teams in the AL Central.
White Sox:
Players gained:
Toby Hall
Luis Terrero
John Danks
Nick Masset
Junior Spivey
Darin Erstad
John Lujan
Rusty Tucker
Bucky Jacobsen
Gavin Floyd
Gio Gonzalez
Mike MacDougal
Andrew Sisco
Jacob Rasner
David Aardsma
Carlos Vasquez
Ross Gload
Players lost:
Dustin Hermanson
Jeff Nelson
David Riske
Cliff Polite
Freddy Garcia
Brandon McCarthy
Neal Cotts
David Paisano
Eduardo Sierra
Chris Stewart
Evaluation:
They have gained plenty of decent young people but lost some very good players.
Grade: B-
Cleveland Indians:
Players gained:
Joe Borowski
David Dellucci
Aaron Fultz
Roberto Hernandez
Mike Rose
Keith Foulke
Trot Nixon
Jason Michaels
Keith Ginter
Luis Rivas
Jeff Harris
Mike Rose
Josh Barfield
Players lost:
Kevin Kouzmanoff
Andrew Brown
Aaron Boone
Danny Graves
Ramon Vazquez
Evaluation:
The Indians have not lost much at all but have gained plenty.
Grade: A+
Detroit Tigers:
Players gained:
Jose Mesa
Gary Sheffield
Yorman Bazardo
Joey Eischen
Timo Perez
Edward Campusano
Players lost:
Dustin Mohr
Troy Percival
Matt Stairs
Jamie Walker
Dmitri Young
Alexis Gomez
Humberto Sanchez
Kevin Whelan
Anthony Claggett
Evaluation:
The Tigers didn’t give up any starters but they got one of the best players in the league in Gary Sheffield.
Grade: A-
Minnesota Twins:
Players gained:
Carmen Cali
Randy Choate
Jeff Cirillo
Ken Harvey
Mike Venafro
Sidney Ponson
Alejandro Machado
Players lost:
Willie Eyre
Brad Radke
Mike Smith
Evaluation:
They haven’t gained anything big and they lost a big part of their rotation, especially with the fact that Francisco Liriano is out for the year with an injury.
Grade: D+
Kansas City Royals:
Players gained:
Dewon Brazelton
Octavio Dotel
Wayne Franklin
Gil Meche
Jason LaRue
Russ Haltiwanger
Alex S. Gonzalez
Max Pierre
David Riske
Brandon Duckworth
Zach Day
Joakim Soria
Rich Lewis
Brian Bannister
Ken Ray
Players lost:
Steve Andrade
Paul Bako
Ken Harvey
Doug Mientkiewicz
Mark Redman
Jeff Keppinger
Andrew Sisco
Ambiorix Burgos
Runelvys Hernandez
Donnie Murphy
Evaluation:
The Royals haven’t lost much but haven’t gained much either. They have gained more than they lost, though.
Grade: B+
Off-Season Rankings
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Kansas City Royals
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Minnesota Twins
Projected Standings
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
Come back next week for an analysis of the off-seasons of the teams in the AL East.
White Sox:
Players gained:
Toby Hall
Luis Terrero
John Danks
Nick Masset
Junior Spivey
Darin Erstad
John Lujan
Rusty Tucker
Bucky Jacobsen
Gavin Floyd
Gio Gonzalez
Mike MacDougal
Andrew Sisco
Jacob Rasner
David Aardsma
Carlos Vasquez
Ross Gload
Players lost:
Dustin Hermanson
Jeff Nelson
David Riske
Cliff Polite
Freddy Garcia
Brandon McCarthy
Neal Cotts
David Paisano
Eduardo Sierra
Chris Stewart
Evaluation:
They have gained plenty of decent young people but lost some very good players.
Grade: B-
Cleveland Indians:
Players gained:
Joe Borowski
David Dellucci
Aaron Fultz
Roberto Hernandez
Mike Rose
Keith Foulke
Trot Nixon
Jason Michaels
Keith Ginter
Luis Rivas
Jeff Harris
Mike Rose
Josh Barfield
Players lost:
Kevin Kouzmanoff
Andrew Brown
Aaron Boone
Danny Graves
Ramon Vazquez
Evaluation:
The Indians have not lost much at all but have gained plenty.
Grade: A+
Detroit Tigers:
Players gained:
Jose Mesa
Gary Sheffield
Yorman Bazardo
Joey Eischen
Timo Perez
Edward Campusano
Players lost:
Dustin Mohr
Troy Percival
Matt Stairs
Jamie Walker
Dmitri Young
Alexis Gomez
Humberto Sanchez
Kevin Whelan
Anthony Claggett
Evaluation:
The Tigers didn’t give up any starters but they got one of the best players in the league in Gary Sheffield.
Grade: A-
Minnesota Twins:
Players gained:
Carmen Cali
Randy Choate
Jeff Cirillo
Ken Harvey
Mike Venafro
Sidney Ponson
Alejandro Machado
Players lost:
Willie Eyre
Brad Radke
Mike Smith
Evaluation:
They haven’t gained anything big and they lost a big part of their rotation, especially with the fact that Francisco Liriano is out for the year with an injury.
Grade: D+
Kansas City Royals:
Players gained:
Dewon Brazelton
Octavio Dotel
Wayne Franklin
Gil Meche
Jason LaRue
Russ Haltiwanger
Alex S. Gonzalez
Max Pierre
David Riske
Brandon Duckworth
Zach Day
Joakim Soria
Rich Lewis
Brian Bannister
Ken Ray
Players lost:
Steve Andrade
Paul Bako
Ken Harvey
Doug Mientkiewicz
Mark Redman
Jeff Keppinger
Andrew Sisco
Ambiorix Burgos
Runelvys Hernandez
Donnie Murphy
Evaluation:
The Royals haven’t lost much but haven’t gained much either. They have gained more than they lost, though.
Grade: B+
Off-Season Rankings
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Kansas City Royals
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Minnesota Twins
Projected Standings
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
Come back next week for an analysis of the off-seasons of the teams in the AL East.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
CJ Wilson Interview
This week I did an interview with Rangers relief pitcher CJ Wilson.
1. Who are the three toughest hitters you’ve faced and why?
Little guys like Chone Figgins and Ichiro used to give me a headache, but my favorite 'tough hitters' to face now are Vlad Guerrero and Derek Jeter. They're very aggressive and can hit the ball to any part of the field.
2. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Kameron Loe, Mark DeRosa, and Chris Young. Since DeRo and C.Y. are gone - I'd say Aki and Josh Rupe.
3. What did you think your role would be for the team you were drafted by heading into the 2001 draft (starting pitcher, relief pitcher, or hitter)?
I was drafted as a starting pitcher, although some teams wanted me to be a hitter in later rounds of the draft. The Rangers picked me before other teams, so they gave me some good money and said, ‘We want to see you in the starting rotation for us in a few years’.
4. What was your first thought when you found out you were going to need Tommy John surgery in 2003?
I was relieved actually. It was an excruciating pain every day just to play catch. I threw for almost a month with no ligament and it was terrible. Once I found out that's what it was, I knew I'd come back stronger just like John Smoltz, Mariano Rivera, and some other guys have.
5. What was the recovery process for your Tommy John surgery like?
The worst part is just not being able to play baseball for so long. ObviouslyI really enjoy competing and being on the field, and you have to get somenew hobbies to deal with all the extra energy you're not used to having. I spent a lot of time working out, and getting my body stronger and moreflexible so that it would handle throwing harder when I came back.
6. During your first major league season in 2005, why do you think you were so much more successful as a reliever (2.73 ERA in 18 games) than as a starter (12.05 ERA in 6 games)?
That summer I wasn't ready to be a starter. My pitch count and stamina were so low I really had no chance to succeed. It was a great experience though, and I learned a lot of things not to do. I really enjoy relief pitching – it's a lot more adrenaline,more my natural style.
7. What is the best thing about being a major league ballplayer and why?
The best things are being able to play every day, and facing guys like Jeter who I know will end up in the hall of fame one day. It's the ultimate challenge.
8. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league hitting?
The best hitters on the team in AA and AAA are about as good as some of the hitters in the majors, so you just have to remember that nobody hits .400, not even Albert Pujols. I do the same things I've always done – I just have to do it more often.
9. What was it like to be called up to the Rangers in June 2005 in Florida?
I was really surprised because I knew I wasn't ready physically. I had only been pitching for about 8 weeks or so after missing 20 months. But I was very excited because it was my dream since I was about 8 years old.
10. What’s it like to room with Kameron Loe? Do you ever have to feed his snake?
He's a great guy, and we've grown to be like brothers. We laugh at the same movies and hang out all the time. We have a lot of fun together and it's good for both of us. He's the funny one and I'm the responsible one I guess. I've fed the snake a few times, the hardest part is just going to buy the rat. You feel bad feeding a live animal to another live animal. It's usually over really quick.
11. How did it feel to make it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season?
My main goal when I got drafted was to get to the big leagues as fast as possible, and I told myself I'd buy a Porsche 911 if I got to AA n my first full season as an incentive. I wasn't really surprised, because I worked so hard and it meant more to me than anything to learn as fast as possible. The low minors are very hard to understand until you live through it, but you don't want to spend a lot of time thereif possible. So instead of 'enjoying' myself with the guys, I just sat at home and thought of ways to get better.
12. What is your best pitch and how was it developed?
My best pitch is my fastball. I guess the key ingredient is having a lot of confidencewhen I throw it. I've worked for over 15 years to try and build arm strength, smooth out my mechanics, and gain velocity. When I was 16 I threw about 75 mph and now I can throw 95. I went to Alaska in 2000 as a closer and a centerfielder. I worked out really hard and read a lot of pitching books. Before the summer I topped out at 87 mph and after I could hit 91. I gained about 10 lbs of muscle in my shoulders and back and that's probably the biggest reason. After Tommy John surgery my elbow was stronger than ever and my velocity went up again, but this time it was probably because of better use of my mechanics.
13. What do you think your long-term role with the team will be and why?
Eventually I will either be a starting pitcher or the closer. Some of the coaches think I should do one or the other, but I think being the closer is a great job.
14. What was the key to your success in the second half of 2006?
I had some nagging tendonitis when I got sent down to Oklahoma City in June, and when it healed I was concerned more with my location for my pitches. When I got sent back up, I stopped walking people and my ERA went down a lot. Walks really hurt relievers because the coach usually pulls you out of the game when you walk guys, so they're on base and the next guy doesn't always strike out the first hitter. Usually if you walk a hitter as a relief pitcher, they score.
15. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career andwhy?
I had some really good games in the minors, but I would say in the majors, my first save against the Twins, or my first win against the White Sox in 2005 were really awesome. For the save, Kameron and I combined to shut out the Twins on only 6 hits I think. The win against the White Sox was great because it was about 5 days later, and I was really sick that day. I pitched 5 innings and only gave up one run. It was my first win since June or July of 2003 - that's a really long time.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
I played soccer, basketball, golf, and I also swam and surfed. I was a better golfer than the rest, but I wish I would have played more soccer. I still play soccer with my friends back in California when I go home. I really hope Tom Hicks decides to buy the Liverpool team so I can go to England and watch them play next off-season.
17. What was your favorite team growing up?
My favorite sports team was the L.A. Lakers, but I really liked baseball and was able to watch a lot of it with both the Dodgers and Angels always on TV.
18. What are you working on in the off-season?
Baseball wise, I've been working on a new windup, and also getting my change-up and curveball back to where they were before 2005. Having more weapons as a pitcher just means I can be even better. This off-season I am working on being a more complete part of the organization by doing as many media events and charity projects as I can. The better player you are, the more you can help people, and also the more demand there is for your time. Being able to juggle all the phases of thatis very difficult for most players.
19. The Rangers website lists one of your hobbies as traveling. Where do you like to travel?
I like to go to the beach, so San Diego, Newport Beach, and Mexico rank really high. After 2005 I went to Japan and China. Tokyo is a great city. This off-season I am going to Europe, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, and maybe England if Mr. Hicks buys Liverpool.
20. How much time do you spend on the computer in an average day? Whatare your favorite sites?
During the off-season I probably spend three or four hours a day online. I maintain my myspace fan site (www.myspace.com/blueglove36) as well as post on message boards like the Newberg report and lonestarball. I try to see what's going on in the world with news sites, and stay in touch with my friends with email. I also read a lot about cars, movies, and video games, and my friends forward me funny links. So...autotrader.com, rennlist.com, bestbuy.com, moviefone.com, imdb.com, ebaumsworld.com, and youtube.com. And of course I search Google a few times a day.
I would like to thank CJ for giving me so much of his time to do this interview. I’ve gotten to talk to CJ a lot at different Rangers events and he is always very friendly and willing to spend time with fans.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL Central off-season.
1. Who are the three toughest hitters you’ve faced and why?
Little guys like Chone Figgins and Ichiro used to give me a headache, but my favorite 'tough hitters' to face now are Vlad Guerrero and Derek Jeter. They're very aggressive and can hit the ball to any part of the field.
2. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Kameron Loe, Mark DeRosa, and Chris Young. Since DeRo and C.Y. are gone - I'd say Aki and Josh Rupe.
3. What did you think your role would be for the team you were drafted by heading into the 2001 draft (starting pitcher, relief pitcher, or hitter)?
I was drafted as a starting pitcher, although some teams wanted me to be a hitter in later rounds of the draft. The Rangers picked me before other teams, so they gave me some good money and said, ‘We want to see you in the starting rotation for us in a few years’.
4. What was your first thought when you found out you were going to need Tommy John surgery in 2003?
I was relieved actually. It was an excruciating pain every day just to play catch. I threw for almost a month with no ligament and it was terrible. Once I found out that's what it was, I knew I'd come back stronger just like John Smoltz, Mariano Rivera, and some other guys have.
5. What was the recovery process for your Tommy John surgery like?
The worst part is just not being able to play baseball for so long. ObviouslyI really enjoy competing and being on the field, and you have to get somenew hobbies to deal with all the extra energy you're not used to having. I spent a lot of time working out, and getting my body stronger and moreflexible so that it would handle throwing harder when I came back.
6. During your first major league season in 2005, why do you think you were so much more successful as a reliever (2.73 ERA in 18 games) than as a starter (12.05 ERA in 6 games)?
That summer I wasn't ready to be a starter. My pitch count and stamina were so low I really had no chance to succeed. It was a great experience though, and I learned a lot of things not to do. I really enjoy relief pitching – it's a lot more adrenaline,more my natural style.
7. What is the best thing about being a major league ballplayer and why?
The best things are being able to play every day, and facing guys like Jeter who I know will end up in the hall of fame one day. It's the ultimate challenge.
8. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league hitting?
The best hitters on the team in AA and AAA are about as good as some of the hitters in the majors, so you just have to remember that nobody hits .400, not even Albert Pujols. I do the same things I've always done – I just have to do it more often.
9. What was it like to be called up to the Rangers in June 2005 in Florida?
I was really surprised because I knew I wasn't ready physically. I had only been pitching for about 8 weeks or so after missing 20 months. But I was very excited because it was my dream since I was about 8 years old.
10. What’s it like to room with Kameron Loe? Do you ever have to feed his snake?
He's a great guy, and we've grown to be like brothers. We laugh at the same movies and hang out all the time. We have a lot of fun together and it's good for both of us. He's the funny one and I'm the responsible one I guess. I've fed the snake a few times, the hardest part is just going to buy the rat. You feel bad feeding a live animal to another live animal. It's usually over really quick.
11. How did it feel to make it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season?
My main goal when I got drafted was to get to the big leagues as fast as possible, and I told myself I'd buy a Porsche 911 if I got to AA n my first full season as an incentive. I wasn't really surprised, because I worked so hard and it meant more to me than anything to learn as fast as possible. The low minors are very hard to understand until you live through it, but you don't want to spend a lot of time thereif possible. So instead of 'enjoying' myself with the guys, I just sat at home and thought of ways to get better.
12. What is your best pitch and how was it developed?
My best pitch is my fastball. I guess the key ingredient is having a lot of confidencewhen I throw it. I've worked for over 15 years to try and build arm strength, smooth out my mechanics, and gain velocity. When I was 16 I threw about 75 mph and now I can throw 95. I went to Alaska in 2000 as a closer and a centerfielder. I worked out really hard and read a lot of pitching books. Before the summer I topped out at 87 mph and after I could hit 91. I gained about 10 lbs of muscle in my shoulders and back and that's probably the biggest reason. After Tommy John surgery my elbow was stronger than ever and my velocity went up again, but this time it was probably because of better use of my mechanics.
13. What do you think your long-term role with the team will be and why?
Eventually I will either be a starting pitcher or the closer. Some of the coaches think I should do one or the other, but I think being the closer is a great job.
14. What was the key to your success in the second half of 2006?
I had some nagging tendonitis when I got sent down to Oklahoma City in June, and when it healed I was concerned more with my location for my pitches. When I got sent back up, I stopped walking people and my ERA went down a lot. Walks really hurt relievers because the coach usually pulls you out of the game when you walk guys, so they're on base and the next guy doesn't always strike out the first hitter. Usually if you walk a hitter as a relief pitcher, they score.
15. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career andwhy?
I had some really good games in the minors, but I would say in the majors, my first save against the Twins, or my first win against the White Sox in 2005 were really awesome. For the save, Kameron and I combined to shut out the Twins on only 6 hits I think. The win against the White Sox was great because it was about 5 days later, and I was really sick that day. I pitched 5 innings and only gave up one run. It was my first win since June or July of 2003 - that's a really long time.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
I played soccer, basketball, golf, and I also swam and surfed. I was a better golfer than the rest, but I wish I would have played more soccer. I still play soccer with my friends back in California when I go home. I really hope Tom Hicks decides to buy the Liverpool team so I can go to England and watch them play next off-season.
17. What was your favorite team growing up?
My favorite sports team was the L.A. Lakers, but I really liked baseball and was able to watch a lot of it with both the Dodgers and Angels always on TV.
18. What are you working on in the off-season?
Baseball wise, I've been working on a new windup, and also getting my change-up and curveball back to where they were before 2005. Having more weapons as a pitcher just means I can be even better. This off-season I am working on being a more complete part of the organization by doing as many media events and charity projects as I can. The better player you are, the more you can help people, and also the more demand there is for your time. Being able to juggle all the phases of thatis very difficult for most players.
19. The Rangers website lists one of your hobbies as traveling. Where do you like to travel?
I like to go to the beach, so San Diego, Newport Beach, and Mexico rank really high. After 2005 I went to Japan and China. Tokyo is a great city. This off-season I am going to Europe, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, and maybe England if Mr. Hicks buys Liverpool.
20. How much time do you spend on the computer in an average day? Whatare your favorite sites?
During the off-season I probably spend three or four hours a day online. I maintain my myspace fan site (www.myspace.com/blueglove36) as well as post on message boards like the Newberg report and lonestarball. I try to see what's going on in the world with news sites, and stay in touch with my friends with email. I also read a lot about cars, movies, and video games, and my friends forward me funny links. So...autotrader.com, rennlist.com, bestbuy.com, moviefone.com, imdb.com, ebaumsworld.com, and youtube.com. And of course I search Google a few times a day.
I would like to thank CJ for giving me so much of his time to do this interview. I’ve gotten to talk to CJ a lot at different Rangers events and he is always very friendly and willing to spend time with fans.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL Central off-season.
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