Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 4

This week I will continue the analysis of all the trades Tom Grieve made as the Rangers GM. I posted part 3 on January 12 of this year, if you want to see my last post of this. I will start in the middle of 1987, because I stopped the last one on June 25th of 1987.

18. 7-31-87 The Texas Rangers traded Dave Owen to the Kansas City Royals for a player to be named later. The Kansas City Royals sent Rufus Ellis (minors) (October 13, 1987) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Tie – Dave Owen only had 5 at-bats after the trade, and Rufus Ellis never made it to the majors.

Record: 4-4-10

19. 8-13-87 The Baltimore Orioles traded Kurt Beamesderfer (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Greg Ferlenda (minors).

Tie – Neither player made it to the majors.

Record: 4-4-11

20. 11-2-87 The Texas Rangers traded Don Slaught to the New York Yankees for a player to be named later. The New York Yankees sent Brad Arnsberg (November 10, 1987) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Loss – Both players played decent after the trade, but Don Slaught played until 1997, getting over 200 at-bats as a utility player 8 times. Brad Arnsberg only played until 1992, only pitching over 50 innings once. Don also hit .300 or better 5 times. Brad only had an ERA under 4.00 once, but he pitched 62.2 innings that year and had a 2.15 ERA, so it was legitimate.

Record: 4-5-11

21. 12-12-87 The Oakland Athletics traded Jose Tolentino to the Texas Rangers for Kris Killingworth (minors) and Tom Duggan (minors).

Tie – Jose never played for the Rangers, and Kris and Tom never made it to the majors.

Record: 4-5-12

22. 12-23-87 The Los Angeles Dodgers traded Scott May to the Texas Rangers for Javier Ortiz.

Tie - Scott May didn’t do much, only pitching 7.1 innings as a Ranger, and still allowed 7 earned runs. Javier Ortiz only had 160 career at-bats, none of them being with the Dodgers.

Record: 4-5-13

23. 3-17-88 The Chicago Cubs traded Ray Hayward to the Texas Rangers for Dave Meier and Greg Tabor.

Tie – Ray only played in 12 games as a Ranger and the Cubs only got 5 total at-bats out of the two players that they received.

Record: 4-5-14

24. 3-25-88 The Houston Astros traded Robbie Wine to the Texas Rangers for Mike Loynd

Tie – Neither player played in the majors after the trade.

Record: 4-5-15

25. 4-6-88 The Pittsburgh Pirates traded Billy Merrifield (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Dave Sax.

Tie – Billy Merrifield never made it to the majors and Dave Sax had 60 career at-bats, but they were all before the trade.

Record: 4-5-16

26. 8-30-88 The New York Yankees traded Cecilio Guante to the Texas Rangers for Dale Mohorcic.

Win - Both pitchers played 1 full season with the teams that they were traded to (both in 1989). Cecilio pitched 69 innings with the Rangers in 1989, with a 6-6 record and a 3.91 ERA. Dale pitched 57.2 innings with the Yankees in 1989, with a 2-1 record and a 4.99 ERA. They both played decent, but Cecilio was more efficient.

Record: 5-5-16

27. 9-1-88 The Texas Rangers traded Tom O'Malley to the Montreal Expos for a player to be named later. The Montreal Expos sent Jack Daugherty (September 13, 1988) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Win - Tom O’Malley only had 27 at-bats as a member of the Expos, before he joined the Mets. Jack Daugherty played four years with the Rangers as a back-up outfielder, first baseman, and DH. He had two good years and two bad years. In his first two years his batting averages were .302 and .300. In his last two years as a Ranger, his batting averages were .194 and .205.

Record: 6-5-16

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think has played the best so far in Spring Training?
Josh Hamilton – 65%
Ian Kinsler – 8%
Jason Ellison – 8%
Frank Francisco – 4%
Travis Metcalf – 4%
Vicente Padilla – 4%
Other – 4%

Come back next week for a report from my trip to Rangers Spring Training camp in Arizona.

Spring Training Recap

This week I did an analysis of how all of the Rangers are doing so far in Spring Training.

Outfield:

Nelson Cruz: .200 AVG, 0 HR, 1 RBI
Nelson is leading the team in at-bats with 20, and isn’t taking advantage of it with only 4 hits. With the way he’s playing, he probably won’t make the team.

Jason Botts: .375 AVG, 0 HR, 1 RBI
Jason is playing well, but his power numbers aren’t that great, so that’s the only thing he needs to step up on.

Marlon Byrd: .188 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI
Marlon has struggled going only 3-for-16, so his trade value might have gone down, but he’ll still make the team if not traded.

Jason Ellison: .438 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Jason has played very well getting on base over half the time with a .571 OBP. If he’s not getting a hit, he’s walking, as he leads the team in walks with 4. He might play himself onto the team.

David Murphy: .438 AVG, 1 HR, 4 RBI
David is playing very well, but hasn’t walked at all so far this Spring Training. He struck out twice already.

Josh Hamilton: .533, 1 HR, 8 RBI
I think Josh has played the best of anybody so far this Spring Training, with the most RBI’s and second best batting average.

Kevin Mench: .214 AVG, 1 HR, 4 RBI
Kevin has walked plenty, but to make the team he has to be able to hit better.

Brandon Boggs: .200 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Brandon hasn’t played well and has no chance of making the team.

John Mayberry, Jr.: .300 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI
John has played well, but has only had 10 at-bats, already striking out twice.

Julio Borbon: .429 AVG, 1 HR, 7 RBI
Julio has played incredibly well, with 7 RBI’s in only 7 at-bats. Even though he’s playing so well, he has no chance of making the team.

Frank Catalanotto: .286 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI
Frank has had a decent spring,


Infielders:

Ian Kinsler: .474 AVG, 0 HR, 1 RBI
Ian has had the most plate appearances of anyone on the team and has definitely taken advantage.

Michael Young: .222 AVG, 1 HR, 4 RBI
Michael has struggled so far and needs to pick it up by the time the season starts.

Travis Metcalf: .412 AVG, 2 HR, 5 RBI
Travis is fighting for the utility job and is playing very well, so he has a good chance of making the team.

Ramon Vazquez: .467 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI
Ramon is also doing very well, so it will be fun to see who wins the utility job.

Ben Broussard: .077 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI
The first base job is his, but he could lose it if he keeps this up.

Edgardo Alfonzo: .364 AVG, 0 HR, 3 RBI
Edgardo is playing well, but due to his competitors playing even better, he probably won’t make the team.

Elvis Andrus: .273 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Elvis is doing decent, but he has no shot at the team. He’s in major league camp for experience.

Chris Davis: .182 AVG, 2 HR, 4 RBI
Chris hasn’t played well, with only two hits, but both of them were homers.

Ryan Roberts: .455 AVG, 1 HR, 4 RBI
Ryan is playing very well, but he’ll have to play even better to make the team the way Travis Metcalf and Ramon Vazquez are playing.

German Duran: .200 AVG, 0 HR, 1 RBI
At this rate, German has no chance of being the utility guy.

Chris Shelton: .200 AVG, 0 HR, 3 RBI
Chris hasn’t played too well, but has outplayed Ben Broussard, so if he plays a little better and Ben Broussard keeps playing the way he has, he could make the team.

Nate Gold: .111 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI
Nate hasn’t played very well, but has 2 walks in 9 at-bats.

Joaquin Arias: .143 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Joaquin hasn’t played very well, but has only had 7 at-bats.

Hank Blalock: .400, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Hank might have been doing well, but a car crash has kept him from having any more than 5 Spring Training at-bats.


Catchers:

Gerald Laird: .286 AVG, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Gerald has played well, but will need to do better to win the starting job.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia: .200 AVG, 0 HR, 1 RBI
Jarrod hasn’t played well, but has only had 10 at-bats.

Adam Melhuse: .375 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Adam has a good batting average, but will need to bring up his power numbers to even have a shot at making the team.

Taylor Teagarden: .667 AVG, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Taylor has played well, but only in 3 at-bats.

Chris Stewart: .500 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Chris only has 2 at-bats.

Max Ramirez: .000 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI
Max struck out in his only at-bat.


Pitchers:

Scott Feldman: 5 IP, 0-0 W-L, 1.80 ERA
Scott leads the team in innings pitched and has played well, so he has a good shot at making the team at this point, especially with Rheinecker’s injury.

Vicente Padilla: 5 IP, 2-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Vicente is pitching really well so far and needs to keep it up into the regular season.

Elizardo Ramirez: 5 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Elizardo is doing pretty well, but still probably won’t make the team.

AJ Murray: 5 IP, 0-1 W-L, 10.80 ERA
AJ is not doing very well, and has probably lost any chance he had to make the team out of camp.

Eric Hurley: 4.2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 1.93 ERA
Eric is pitching very well and is getting some great experience to help him prepare for possibly being called up to the majors late in the season.

Jason Jennings: 4.2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
If Vicente Padilla starts to struggle, he might slide up to the #2 spot in the rotation.

Josh Rupe: 4.2 IP, 1-1 W-L, 7.71 ERA
Josh is playing poorly, and has lost whatever chance he had of making the team.

Jamey Wright: 4.2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 3.86 ERA
Jamey is doing decent, which is just what was expected of him.

Matt Harrison: 4.1 IP, 0-1 W-L, 6.23 ERA
Matt has struggled so far, but he has only been in A-ball, so it doesn’t mean anything to the roster and is great experience for him.

Kazuo Fukumori: 5 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Kazuo is playing very well and hopefully he can do well in the regular season, too.

Kason Gabbard: 4 IP, 0-1 W-L, 11.25 ERA
Kason is not pitching at all well so far and if he’s not careful, he could lose his major league job.

Robinson Tejeda: 4 IP, 0-0 W-L, 11.25 ERA
Robinson has been awful and won’t make the team.

Jason Davis: 3.2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 9.82 ERA
Jason still has a slight chance of making the team, but his window of opportunity is really closing.

Frank Francisco: 5.1 IP, 1-0 W-L, 1.69 ERA
Frank has played well and has clinched a bullpen spot.

Kea Kometani: 4.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Kea has played very well, but this is mostly about experience. He has almost no chance at the team, unless there’s another injury, but could be putting him in position for call-up during the season.

Kameron Loe: 3.2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 14.73 ERA
Kameron’s struggles are hurting his chances to make the team. Hopefully he’ll start putting together some strong outings. He’s been working on a new pitch, so the coaching staff might cut him some slack.

Luis Mendoza: 3.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 10.80 ERA
Luis has a chance of making the team, especially with the injuries to McCarthy and Millwood. He’s struggled so far but seems to be getting stronger.

Franklyn German: 3 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Franklyn has played very well, and due to his play and the injuries, he could make the team.

Eddie Gaurdado: 3 IP, 0-0 W-L, 6.00 ERA
Eddie isn’t playing very well, but might get the closer role due to CJ Wilson’s biceps tendinitis.

Bill White: 3 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Bill has done well, and might be setting himself up for a mid-season call-up.

Doug Mathis: 2.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Doug is not in big league camp, but has done well with his opportunity.

Wes Littleton: 2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 4.50 ERA
Wes might replace someone due to injury, but he hasn’t pitched many innings yet.

Warner Madrigal: 2 IP, 0-1 W-L, 13.50 ERA
Warner has struggled and has almost no chance of making the team.

Tommy Hunter: 1.1 IP, 1-0 W-L, 13.50 ERA
Tommy was just drafted last summer and is not part of major league camp. He’s probably excited to have gotten the chance to pitch in a big league spring training game.

Steve Rowe: 1.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 6.75 ERA
Steve has been in the minors for a long time and came up from minor league camp to pitch in a game. Even though he won’t be on the major league team, the Rangers respect them and might be looking at him as a coach when he retires.

Brandon McCarthy: 1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Brandon has only pitched 1 inning due to injury. Hopefully he’ll recover in time to start the season.

CJ Wilson: 1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
CJ Wilson has also only pitched 1 inning due to injury.

Kendy Batista: 0.2 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Kendy pitched 0.2 innings in an appearance out of minor league camp.

Eric Cyr: 0.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00
Eric was also making an appearance out of minor league camp.

Brennan Garr: 0.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA
Brennan has only gotten 1 out in an appearance out of minor league camp.

Omar Poveda: 0.1 IP, 0-0 W-L, 108.00 ERA
Omar allowed 4 ER and only got one out in an appearance out of minor league camp.

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will be the utility infielder?
Ramon Vazquez – 47%
German Duran – 23%
Travis Metcalf – 14%
Edgardo Alfonzo – 4%
Ryan Roberts – 4%
Other – 4%

Come back next week for Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 4.

Analysis of Spring Training Infielders

The Rangers opened Spring Training with 14 infielders in major league camp. I did an analysis of all the infielders in big league camp, gave their chances of making the team at the end of Spring Training, and predicted the infield roster.

Infielders:

Edgardo Alfonzo:
Last year, Edgardo didn’t make it to the majors all year after a terrible 2006. In 2006, he only had 87 at-bats, and hit .126 with 0 home runs and 5 RBI’s. In 2005, he hit .277 with 2 home runs and 43 RBI’s in 368 at-bats, so ’06 was a big drop-off for him. Just like last year, I don’t think Edgardo will make the team all year.
Percentage: 19.9% chance of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training

Elvis Andrus:
Elvis hit .244 in 385 at-bats with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans and .300 in 110 at-bats with the Bakersfield Blaze. Elvis is great at fielding. Even after he did so well after coming to Texas, he’s 19 years old and is just in major league camp for experience.
Percentage: 0%

Joaquin Arias:
Last year Joaquin only had 18 total at-bats due to injury. He had 7 at-bats in the rookie league and 11 in triple-A. Since he’s coming back from injury and I only have one back-up infield spot, he probably won’t make the team.
Percentage: 19.7%

Hank Blalock:
Last year Hank missed a lot of the year due to injury. When he was playing he hit .293 with 10 home runs and 33 RBI’s in only 208 at-bats. Hank had a very good year last year, but he has always been much better in his first month of the year than the others, and last year he pretty much had two first months because of the injury. He will be the starting third baseman, since he’s already shown in camp that he can make the throws from third to first.
Percentage: 100%

Ben Broussard:
Ben had a decent year last year with the Mariners, batting .275 with 7 homers and 29 RBI’s in 240 at-bats. He will be the starting first baseman for the Rangers unless Chris Shelton has an amazing spring.
Percentage: 97.5%

Chris Davis:
Last year, Chris hit .294 with 12 home runs and 25 RBI’s in 109 at-bats in Frisco. In Oklahoma City, he hit .298 with 24 homers and 93 RBI’s in 386 at-bats. His total power numbers last year were 36 home runs with 118 RBI’s, which is very good. Even though he played so well last year, the Rangers are trying to transform him into a first baseman this year, so he won’t make the team.
Percentage: 0%

German Duran:
Last year, German played great, hitting .300 with 22 home runs and 84 RBI’s in 480 at-bats in Frisco. He played so well that the Rangers are trying to make him a utility guy for this year. I don’t think he will be the utility guy, though.
Percentage: 23.4%

Nate Gold:
After a great 2006, where Nate hit .292 with 34 home runs and 103 RBI’s in 452 at-bats in Frisco, Nate played well again in 2007. Last year he hit .292 with 26 homers and 103 RBI’s in 469 at-bats. He had the same batting average and the same amount of RBI’s in both 2006 and 2007. The only stat differences are that he had 8 less home runs in 2007 and 17 more at-bats in 2007. Even though he’s played so well the last couple years, he probably won’t make the team, especially since he’s not on the 40-man roster.
Percentage: 2.3%

Ian Kinsler:
Ian had plenty of power last year, blasting out 20 home runs, with 61 RBI’s. His batting average fell from 06’s .286 to .263. His on-base percentage rose, though, as Ian got 22 more walks than he did in ’06. He will be the starting second baseman.
Percentage: 100%

Travis Metcalf:
In Travis’ 161 at-bats he hit .255 with 5 homers and 21 RBI’s. But he’s known for his fielding, which is very good, but he only had a .947 fielding percentage while in the majors last year. It’s between Travis, Ramon Vazquez, and German Duran for the backup infield spot, and I don’t think Travis will get it, since he’s mostly a third baseman.
Percentage: 40.2%

Ryan Roberts:
Ryan only had 13 at-bats in both 2006 and 2007 and he hit .077 in both years. He has hit 1 career homer with 1 career RBI in his 26 at-bats. His career minor league batting average is .268, although it was only .249 last year. Last year he had 12 home runs and 47 RBI’s while he was in the minors. He has a chance since he can play second and third base, but since he’s not on the 40-man roster, he probably won’t make the team.
Percentage: 18.3%

Chris Shelton:
Last year Chris didn’t play in the majors at all, and only hit .269 with 14 home runs and 64 RBI’s in AAA Tulsa. In 2006 he played for the Tigers and hit .273 with 16 home runs and 47 RBI’s in 373 at-bats. He has a decent chance at making the team, but I don’t think he will.
Percentage: 18.6%

Ramon Vazquez:
Ramon had 300 at-bats last year, and in those he hit .230 with 8 homers and 28 RBI’s. Even though he didn’t hit too well last year, I think he’ll get the back-up infield spot, since he can play second, short, and third base.
Percentage: 66.7%

Michael Young:
After a very slow start last year, Michael ended up getting 201 hits, while hitting .315 with 9 home runs and 94 RBI’s. He will be the starting shortstop.
Percentage: 100%

Infield Roster:
1B: Ben Broussard
2B: Ian Kinsler
3B: Hank Blalock
SS: Michael Young
Utility: Ramon Vazquez

Next in line:
Edgardo Alfonzo
German Duran
Travis Metcalf

Predicted Team Roster:
Starting pitcher #1: Kevin Millwood
Starting pitcher #2: Vicente Padilla
Starting pitcher #3: Jason Jennings
Starting pitcher #4: Brandon McCarthy
Starting pitcher #5: Kason Gabbard
Closer: CJ Wilson
Set-up man: Eddie Guardado
7th inning man: Kazuo Fukumori
Middle Reliever: Frankie FranciscoMiddle Reliever: Wes Littleton
Middle/Long Reliever: Joaquin Benoit
Long Reliever: Kameron Loe

Catcher: Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Backup Catcher: Gerald Laird

1B: Ben Broussard
2B: Ian Kinsler
3B: Hank Blalock
SS: Michael Young
Utility: Ramon Vazquez

OF: Josh Hamilton
OF: Marlon Byrd
OF: Milton Bradley
OF: David Murphy
OF: Frank Catalanotto
DH: Jason Botts

Next in line:
Edgardo Alfonzo
Nelson Cruz
Jason Davis
German Duran
Jason Ellison
Scott Feldman
Wes Littleton
Adam Melhuse
Kevin Mench
Luis Mendoza
Travis Metcalf
Chris Stewart
Jamey Wright

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will get the last outfield/DH spot?
Jason Botts – 72%
Kevin Mench – 20%
Nelson Cruz – 4%
Jason Ellison – 4%
Other – 0%

Come back next week for Part 4 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.

Analysis of Spring Training Outfielders and Catchers

The Rangers opened Spring Training last week with 12 outfielders and 6 catchers in major league camp. I did an analysis of all the outfielders and catchers in big league camp, gave their chances of making the team at the end of Spring Training, and predicted the outfield and catching rosters.

Outfielders:

Brandon Boggs:
Brandon hit .266 with the RoughRiders last year and .250 with the Blaze last year, with a .262 total average on the year. Overall last year he had 23 home runs, 73 RBI’s, and 84 walks. He strikes out a lot, though, striking out 131 times in just last year. Last year, he had a 75% stolen base percentage, stealing 15 out of 20 tries. He has almost no chance of making the team out of camp and probably for the whole year.
Percentage: 0.1% chance of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training

Julio Borbon:
Julio was drafted out of Tennessee just last year, and is a center fielder (where we already have Josh Hamilton), so there is no chance of him making the team, unless they plan to make him the center-field version of David Clyde.
Percentage: 0%

Jason Botts:
Jason has not played well in the majors; batting .242 with 3 home runs and 23 RBI’s in 244 at-bats. He’s played very well in the minors, though, batting a lifetime .293 with 112 home runs and 540 RBI’s in 3,053 at-bats. He has no options left so he will probably make the team, unless he has an incredibly bad camp.
Percentage: 86.7%

Milton Bradley:
Milton was just signed over the offseason after hitting .306 with 13 homers and 37 RBI’s in 209 major league at-bats split between Oakland and San Diego last year. He will be on the team, probably as the DH to start the season while he finishes recovering from injury. Once he’s recovered he’ll have a corner outfield spot.
Percentage: 100%

Marlon Byrd:
After hitting .223 with 18 RBI’s with the Nationals in 2006, he had a career year last year, batting .307 (career-high), with 10 homers (career-high), 70 RBI’s (career-high), 5 stolen bases (tied for second most), 60 runs (second most), and 414 at-bats (second most). He will make the team unless he’s traded before the end of camp.
Percentage: 100%

Frank Catalanotto:
After struggling early last year, Cat came on strong after injury and hit .260 on the year. He had 11 homers, which is tied for second most in his career, and 44 RBI’s. He only had 28 walks all year. Last year’s OBP for Frank was .337, only seven points higher than his highest batting average (.330 in 2001, in which he had 463 at-bats). Even after last year’s awful year for Cat, he’ll make the team as a backup outfielder, DH, and first baseman.
Percentage: 100%

Nelson Cruz:
Nelson was the key to the Francisco Cordero trade because he had a lot of potential, but even given multiple chances he hasn’t come through for the Rangers. He has a .282 career on base percentage and a .231 career batting average. He has no options left and I think he’ll be off the team at the end of spring.
Percentage: 26.3%

Jason Ellison:
Jason has a .251 career batting average in 541career at-bats. He’s played for the Giants and the Reds. Last year he hit .283 for the Giants in 46 at-bats, and .188 for the Reds in 48 at-bats totaling .234 in 94 at-bats. He had only one HR and 2 RBI’s. He struck out 27 times and walked only 8. He struck out in 29% of his at-bats. He might make it up to the majors sometime in the year, but not out of the spring, unless he does something incredible.
Percentage: 16.8%

Josh Hamilton:
Over the offseason the Rangers traded Edinson Volquez to the Reds for Josh, who batted .292 with 19 home runs and 49 RBI’s last year. He was the Reds leadoff man, even though he has a lot of power. It is unlikely that he will lead off here. He is injury prone, but pending injury he’ll make the team.
Percentage: 100%

John Mayberry Jr.:
Last year John didn’t do very well average wise, hitting only .241 in 245 at-bats in Frisco, and only .230 in 244 at-bats in Bakersfield. That totals up to a .235 batting average. But he had 30 home runs and 83 RBI’s over the course of the year. Last year’s average and the fact that John has only made it to AA (plus the fact that he’s not on the 40-man roster) will keep him from making the team.
Percentage: 0%

Kevin Mench:
Kevin had 288 at-bats last year, and hit .267 with 8 homers and 37 RBI’s for the Brewers. Kevin is a very streaky hitter. He has a very good chance of coming up due to an injury, but unless he plays terrific, there’s too much competition for him to make the team at the end of camp, since the Rangers have the option of sending him to AAA until June.
Percentage: 25.4%

David Murphy:
Last year with the Rangers, David hit .340 with 2 home runs, 14 RBI’s and 12 doubles in 103 at-bats after only having two AB’s with the Red Sox the first half of the year. After having a good year last year, he will probably plateau a left or right field position.
Percentage: 95.9%

Predicted outfield roster:
Center Field: Josh Hamilton
Right Field: Marlon Byrd/Milton Bradley
Left Field: David Murphy/Frank Catalanotto
DH: Milton Bradley/Jason Botts

Next in line:
Nelson Cruz
Jason Ellison
Kevin Mench

Catchers:

Gerald Laird:
Gerald really struggled last year, hitting only.224 with 9 homers and 47 RBI’s. It was a big disappointment after his 2006 batting average of .296. He also almost doubled his strikeout total from ’06. It went from 54 to 103. Last year might lead to him getting a backup role. He is very good at fielding, though, as he threw out 40% of baserunners trying to steal last year. The team’s ERA when Gerald was behing the plate last year was 4.78, which is okay. He’s going to spring training this year battling Saltalamacchia for the starting catcher position. I think he will be the backup catcher.
Percentage: 87.4%

Adam Melhuse:
Adam hit a total of .213 last year split between the A’s and the Rangers. He hit .231 in Oakland and .206 with the Rangers. He only had one home run and 9 RBI’s the whole year in his 94 total at-bats. He struck out 26 times in those at-bats, which is striking out 28 percent of the time. Melhuse threw out only 9% of baserunners trying to steal last year, while he was with the Rangers. But the pitchers had a good ERA in Adam’s 123 innings behind the plate. The Rangers’ ERA was 4.02 with Melhuse catching. Even though he didn’t play very well last year, his experience could make him the backup especially if the Rangers end up moving Laird.
Percentage: 28.9%

Max Ramirez:
We just got Max in the Kenny Lofton trade last year. He hit .303 with 12 home runs and 62 RBI’s in High-A Kinston before coming to the Rangers, and hit .307 with 4 home runs and 20 RBI’s in High-A Bakersfield after coming to the Rangers. Since Max is only in High-A, he doesn’t have any chance at making the team throughout the whole year.
Percentage: 0%

Jarrod Saltalamacchia:
After getting Salty in the Mark Teixeira trade last year he hit .251 with 7 home runs and 21 RBI’s after coming and hit .284 with 4 home runs and 12 RBI’s with the Braves before coming here. But Jarrod threw out only 16% of baserunners trying to steal (while with the Rangers) and the Rangers had a 4.75 ERA with Salty behind the plate. But unless he completely blows it in the spring, he’ll be on the team, most likely as the starting catcher.
Percentage: 98.7%

Chris Stewart:
Chris started the season on the team and hit .243 with 0 home runs and 3 RBI’s in 37 at-bats before being sent down to Oklahoma City. There he hit .242 with 2 home runs and 21 RBI’s. He has a chance at making the team on March 31st as a backup but he probably won’t. What gives him a chance is the fact that he can field very well and Gerald Laird might not accept a back-up role.
Percentage: 19.3%

Taylor Teagarden:
Last year in Bakersfield, Taylor hit .315 with 20 home runs and 67 RBI’s. In Frisco he hit .294 with 7 homers and 16 RBI’s in 102 at-bats. Also, Taylor is supposed to be able to field very well behind the plate and work well with pitchers. Even though he played very well last year, he’s not on the 40-man roster and he’s only made it to double-A, so he won’t make the team.
Percentage: 0%

Predicted catching roster:
Catcher: Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Backup: Gerald Laird

Next in Line:
Adam Melhuse
Chris Stewart

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will get the #5 starting spot?
Kason Gabbard – 82%
Luis Mendoza – 5%
Other – 5%
Jason Davis – 2%
Kameron Loe – 2%

Come back next week for infielders.

Analysis of Spring Training Pitchers

The Rangers opened Spring Training this week with 28 pitchers in major league camp. I did an analysis of all the pitchers in big league camp, gave their chances of making the team at the end of Spring Training, and predicted the pitching roster.

Joaquin Benoit – Joaquin was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year last year, after posting a 2.85 ERA in his best season ever. He’ll be on the team.
Percentage: 100% chance of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training

Jason Davis – Jason was signed to compete for a #5 starting pitcher role and long reliever role. He has pitched 427 career innings, with a 4.78 career ERA and only 256 strike-outs. He isn’t a very good fielder with a .895 career fielding percentage. Last year, with the Indians and Mariners, he combined for a 5.84 ERA, 4.76 with the Indians and 6.31 with the Mariners. He had 37 total innings. I don’t think he’ll make the team out of Spring Training, but he has a good shot at being called up during the year.
Percentage: 25.4%

Thomas Diamond – He probably won’t make the team, especially since he’s not fully recovered from Tommy John. He’ll probably be in Oklahoma City.
Percentage: 0.5 %

Scott Feldman – Last year, Scott really struggled, with a 5.77 ERA in 39 innings. In 2006, he had a 3.92 ERA in 41.1 innings. In ’07 Scott had 32 walks compared to 10 in ’06. If he pitches well in Spring Training, he could make the team. Otherwise, he’ll probably start in Oklahoma City.
Percentage: 33.9%

Frankie Francisco – Frankie had a 4.55 ERA with 49 strike-outs in 59.1 innings pitched. He will have the first shot at a bullpen spot. He should make the team.
Percentage: 94.7%

Kazuo Fukumori – Kazuo Fukumori, who we signed from Japan this offseason, will be the 7th or 8th inning guy unless he totally blows it in Spring Training. Last year with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, Kazuo had a 4.75 ERA with 33 strike-outs in 36 innings pitched. In 2006, he had a 2.17 ERA with 55 strike-outs in 58 innings pitched. He will make the team.
Percentage: 100%

Kason Gabbard – Kason, who was traded to the Rangers from the Red Sox last year, went 6-1on the year with a 4.65 ERA. He also had 55 strike-outs in 81.1 innings pitched. He’ll probably be the #4 or 5 starter. As long as he has a decent spring and based on his performance last year, the Rangers will want him in the rotation because he’ll be their only lefty.
Percentage: 98.6 %

Franklyn German - 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. In 2006, 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 was in Spring Training with the Rangers last year, but never made the team. I don’t think that he’ll make the team this year, either.
Percentage: 12.9%

Eddie Guardado – Eddie had been very injury-prone lately. He has only pitched 27.2 innings over the past two years. He had a 7.24 ERA last year. He could do very well or he could be on the DL the whole year.
Percentage: 78.9% (due to injury chance)

Matt Harrison – Matt is only in big league camp to get experience. He has no chance to make the team. Matt hasn’t played above double-A. Last year, in the twenty games he played before getting injured, he went 5-7 with a 3.39 ERA and 78 strike-outs in 116.1 innings pitched.
Percentage: 0%

Eric Hurley – Eric had a great year last year with the Roughriders, going 7-2 with a 3.25 ERA before getting promoted to Oklahoma, where he struggled with a 4-7 record and a 4.91 ERA. Eric probably will not make the team out of Spring Training due to his lack of experience and Oklahoma City troubles. He will probably be called up during the year, though, if he does well in Oklahoma City and the Rangers are out of the playoff race.
Percentage: 9.8%

Jason Jennings – Jason was signed to be part of the starting rotation. He had a rough year last year (6.45 ERA in 19 games) due to injury. Unless he gets injured he’ll make the team.
Percentage: 98.7%

Kea Kometani – Kea was converted into a middle reliever/set-up man/closer last year. He had a 4.27 ERA and 8 saves with the double-A Riders last year and will probably not make the team. He might make the team if there was less competition, but there’s too much competition for him to have much of a chance, especially since he’s not currently on the 40-man roster.
Percentage: 2.3%

Wes Littleton – In ’06 Wes had a 1.73 ERA and last year he had a 4.31 ERA. Wes has a career record of 5-3. He’s had major league success but I think he’ll barely miss making the team. He’ll probably be called up sometime during the year as an injury replacement.
Percentage: 48.9%

Kameron Loe – Kameron will probably make the team as a long reliever, but it’s not a sure thing. He should be competing for the last relief spot with Wes Littleton, Jamey Wright, Scott Feldman, and Jason Davis. Last year, he pitched 23 games as a starter with a 5.36 ERA and 5 games as a reliever with a 5.40 ERA. There are probably too many locks for the starting rotation for him to have much of a shot at being a starter, but hopefully he’ll make it tough on the Rangers like he did last spring.
Percentage: 66.6%

Warner Madrigal – Warner has only made it to single-A ball, so he has no chance to make the team. Last year in single-A he had a 2.07 ERA with 75 strike-outs in 61 innings pitched.
Percentage: 0%

Brandon McCarthy – Brandon will get the #4 or 5 spot. The Rangers hope he’ll bounce back from a rough year last year (5-10, 4.87 ERA in only 23 games).
Percentage: 100%

Luis Mendoza – Last year with the Rangers, Mendoza had a 2.25 ERA in 16 innings, and even though he pitched well, he probably won’t make the team. He’ll probably start in Oklahoma City but may be used as a spot starter during the season.
Percentage: 33.3%

Kevin Millwood – Kevin will be the #1 starter.
Percentage: 100%

A.J. Murray – Murray had a 4.50 ERA in 28 major league innings last year. In Oklahoma City last year, he had a 3.08 ERA. He probably won’t make the team out of camp unless John Rheinecker really struggles, but he has an outside chance. He’ll be on the short list to be called up during the season.
Percentage: 19.6%

Vicente Padilla – Vicente will be the #2 or 3 pitcher this year. The Rangers need a much better year from him in 2008.
Percentage: 100%

Elizardo Ramirez – Elizardo has been up and down ever since 2004. He has played for the Phillies and Reds. He has done very well in the minors, going 39-27 with a 3.45 career minor league ERA, and a 4-14 record with a 5.99 ERA in the majors. I think he might make it up sometime this year, but that he doesn’t stand much of a chance out of Spring Training.
Percentage: 7.1%

John Rheinecker – John had a 5.36 ERA in the majors last year, mostly as a reliever. He probably has first shot at the left-handed reliever role since he’s out of options.
Percentage: 74.1%

Josh Rupe – Josh is recovering from an injury. That will probably keep him from having a chance at making the team out of camp.
Percentage: 1%

Robinson Tejeda – After last year’s 5-9 record and 6.61 ERA in 95.1 innings, he almost has no chance at making the team. The fact that he wasn’t brought up in September probably means that he’s out of the Rangers’ plans. He has no options remaining so is probably out of the organization by the end of Spring Training.
Percentage: 6.7%

Bill White – Bill made it up to the team last year and went 2-0 with a 4.82 ERA in 9.1 innings in his major league debut. With the RoughRiders last year, he went 2-0 with a 4.44 ERA in 48.2 innings. I don’t think he’ll make the team for Opening Day, but that he might later make the team.
Percentage: 9.9%

C.J. Wilson – Last year he had a 3.03 ERA. He’ll be fighting for the closer spot this year and even if he loses that he’ll make the team.
Percentage: 100%

Jamey Wright – Jamey had a career year with the Rangers last year, with his best ever ERA (3.62). He did much better as a reliever than a starter with a 2.05 ERA in relief and a 4.66 ERA when he started. Jamey really struggles in the 3rd inning with a 9.35 ERA in that inning. With his good year last year, he definitely has a shot, but not being on the 40-man roster could hold him back. I don’t think he’ll make the team for their first game, but that he’ll be on the team sometime during the year.
Percentage: 35.7%

Predicted pitching roster:
Starting pitcher #1: Kevin Millwood
Starting pitcher #2: Vicente Padilla
Starting pitcher #3: Jason Jennings
Starting pitcher #4: Brandon McCarthy
Starting pitcher #5: Kason Gabbard
Closer: CJ Wilson
Set-up man: Eddie Guardado
7th inning man: Kazuo Fukumori
Middle Reliever: Frankie Francisco
Middle/Long Reliever: Joaquin Benoit
Long Reliever: Kameron Loe
Left-handed Reliever: John Rheinecker

Next in line:
Jason Davis
Scott Feldman
Wes Littleton
Luis Mendoza
Jamey Wright

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will be the closer in 2008?
CJ Wilson – 93%
Joaquin Benoit – 5%
Kazuo Fukumori – 2%
Others – 0%

Come back next week for an analysis of the Spring Training outfielders.

Travis Metcalf Interview

This week, I interviewed Rangers infielder Travis Metcalf.

1. What were you more proud of, getting the career Kansas home run record, or being ranked the top defensive third baseman in the Big 12 by Baseball America and why?
Top defensive 3rd baseman. I have always prided myself on my defense so when I got the award I really felt satisfied that my hard work paid off.

2. How difficult was the recovery from your knee injury in 2002? Can you describe the recovery process?
Very tough! I was told that it would be a 6 month recovery, and I actually got done in 5 months. However all the rehab and hours strengthening my knee were horrible.

3. Why didn’t you sign with the Twins when they drafted you in 2003?
It was more of a "Didn't feel right" type of thing. My scout with the Twins did a great job; however they never really got back to me in time before school started about how I was going to fit in or the money situation, so I just didn't feel right leaving school at the time.

4. In 2005, when you struggled in April, were you still glad to be in Bakersfield or did you wish you hadn’t skipped Clinton?
No, never. I knew I was ready to be at that level. I was just getting situated with a different swing. I have always been trying to tweak my swing to adjust to the levels of pitching.

5. What went through your mind when you won the Rangers Minor League Player of the Year Award?
It was a CRAZY feeling. I knew I had a good year. However so did Jason Botts that year. So when I got the phone call I was so happy and appreciative that the Rangers selected me.

6. Can you describe the day that you were called up to the majors for the first time last season? That was another Crazy day. That feeling is indescribable. It was something that I waited my whole life for, and when it actually happened I didn't know how to react. I was overwhelmed!

7. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league pitchers?
Being more selective. I know I can hit. The biggest adjustment was being selective and trying not to get myself out, instead make the pitcher get me out.

8. Is there anything specific you’ve been working on in the off-season and, if so, what is it?
- Just getting my strength back so i can stay healthy. Also just working with Rudy on my timing in my swing.

9. What do you think has been your best professional game and why?
It was a game against Seattle at home, when I went 4-for-4. I was having a tough time pulling the ball. During that game I got 3 pull hits, and still went opposite field for 1. I felt like I could hit anything.

10. Who are the three toughest pitchers you’ve faced and why?
Eric Bedard, Brad Lidge, K Rod. Same answer. Because they made me look stupid!!

11. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
That’s tough because, since I haven’t spent much time in the major leagues, I'm split between the two. Kevin Mahar, Brandon Boggs, and many guys that I spent time with coming up and in Frisco are really good friends of mine. Marlon Byrd, Frank Cattalanotto, Brandon McCarthy, Kam Loe, and Kinsler have all been huge helps when I got called up.

12. What is the toughest thing about major league life and why?
Just keeping up with it. Getting to the big leagues has been a challenge. However staying there is the toughest part. That's what I'm trying to do now!

13. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
Kansas City Royals. I lived close and they were my favorite team.

14. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
I played football, basketball, and baseball. I would like to think I was best at baseball.

15. What are your hobbies?
I'm a huge movie critic so I love watching movies. Anything outdoors, I love the lake. Also playing with my new puppy, an English bulldog named "Diesel".

I would like to thank Travis for giving so much of his time to do this interview. He agreed to do the interview when I saw him at the Rangers Fan Fest and it was very nice of him to contact me afterwards and follow up.

Also, this week the Rangers acquired OF Michael Hernandez from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for RHP Armando Galarraga.

Michael Hernandez:
Michael got drafted three times without signing, and then in 2005, when he needed to be drafted, he didn’t get drafted. Michael got signed by the Tigers before the 2006 baseball season started. That year Michael hit for the cycle twice. Last year in high-A he hit .260 and in double-A e hit .250. Michael could do well, but he doesn’t have that much potential.

Armando Galarraga:
Since 2006, Galarraga has gone from the rookie league to the majors in the Rangers organization, only skipping regular-A. Last year in Frisco, he went 9-6 with a 4.02 ERA in 127.2 innings pitched. In Oklahoma City, he went 2-2 with a 4.74 ERA in 24.2 innings and went 0-0 with a 6.23 ERA in 8.2 major league innings pitched. Galarraga still has an option, so I don’t know why we DFA’d him instead of Robinson Tejeda.

Evaluation:
Michael has a chance at becoming a good major leaguer, but probably won’t. Galarraga may not do much either, but has a better chance of having a major league impact than Michael. Even though Armando was DFA’d I think they could have gotten more for him and possibly should have DFA’d someone who had no options remaining and was unlikely to make the team out of spring training.
Grade: B-

This weekend my dad and I went to Ticketstock at the Plano Centre. It was a lot of fun like always. The highlight was getting an autograph from Nolan Ryan. We got there at 5:15am and waited outside for almost 6 hours for them to hand out autograph tickets. We were numbers 376 and 377 out of 500. I got to meet Nolan for the first time and tell him that I was named after him (my middle name). I also got autographs from CJ Wilson, Tank Johnson, Leon Lett, Philippe Boucher, Marty Turco, and Brenden Morrow. I also got to talk to some of the people who work at the Ticket like Mike Rhyner (who said he reads my blog), Craig Miller, and Gordon Keith.

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will be the Rangers starting catcher in 2010?
Taylor Teagarden – 54%
Jarrod Saltalamacchia – 34%
Gerald Laird – 6%
Other – 4%
Max Ramirez – 2%
Kevin Richardson – 0%

Come back next week for a Spring Training Pitchers Analysis.

Taylor Teagarden Interview

At the Rangers Fan Fest last week, I got to interview Taylor Teagarden. It was very nice of him and I would like to thank him for doing this. It was my first face-to-face interview.

1. What was it like to win championships with UT and Spokane in the same year? Was one more exciting than the other?

Taylor said that the college championship was definitely more memorable. It was his third season and he was pretty sure it would be his last one. They had battled all year and had lost games in the regional and super regional. He was playing with long-time teammates and lifelong friends and winning a championship with them in their final year together was amazing. Taylor said he didn’t mean to take anything away from the Spokane championship. That was also exciting especially because the team wasn’t expected to do much.

2. What led you to choosing Scott Boras as your agent?

Taylor said that Boras had contacted him in high school and was a good advisor to him in high school and college. He was contacted by a lot of other agents but Boras’ firm was the best and did the best job working with stats.

3. Why didn’t you sign with the Cubs when they drafted you in 2002?

Taylor wanted to go to UT. He had been a Longhorn fan his whole life and had been advised to go to college in case baseball didn’t work out. He said that he felt it was a good move.

4. What did you change in your batting approach between 2003 and 2004, when your batting average went from .315 to .273, but your walks went from 23 to 44 and your homers went from 5 to 10?

He said that it was just on off year. He got off to a good start but got really tired and worn down. ‘I put a lot of pressure on myself and was trying to do too much’.

5. How did the struggles of your first week in the minors affect your confidence level and how did you turn it around?

Taylor said that it didn’t affect his confidence. He knew he could play every day and that he only had a month before the end of the season, so he didn’t get too worried about it. Once he got his first hit, it triggered something for him and he found his swing again. He thought that part of it might have been getting used to a wooden bat.

6. What was the recovery process from Tommy John surgery like?

‘It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do’. He had always been able to play baseball and it was a bad feeling to not be able to. He had to be patient and keep a positive outlook. He called it a year of basically not doing anything.

7. Why do you think you hit so much better as a catcher than as a DH last year?

Taylor doesn’t seem to enjoy DHing very much. He says that you’re more in the game as a catcher. As a DH, you don’t have the same blood flow. DHing is harder in his opinion. ‘There’s too much sitting on the bench’.

8. What went through your mind when the Rangers traded for Saltalamacchia?

Taylor thought it was something they had to do. Teixeira obviously wasn’t going to sign here and everyone needs lots of catching. He’s not worried about the competition.

9. Is there anything specific you’ve been working on in the off-season and, if so, what is it?

Taylor’s working on flexibility and is focusing on his hips to keep them in shape year-round.

10. What’s the biggest difference between college and minor league pitching?

Minor leaguers are better. ‘It’s very hard to make it to the double-A level.’

11. What do you think has been your best professional game and why?

Taylor first mentioned that there were a couple of big offensive games, such as a game in the Cal League where he went 4-for-5 with a couple of home runs. But the game he said was his most fun game as a catcher was a complete game shutout against Midland last year where he caught Doug Mathis. He said that Doug ‘dominated’ and that that kind of game is fun.

12. Who are the three toughest pitchers you’ve faced and why?

Josh Geer from San Antonio – he’s ‘tough’.
Juan Morillo, a Tulsa reliever who throws 99 mph.
Brandon Hynick from the California League.

13. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?

Chris Davis – they spent the whole year together and are good friends.
Ben Harrison
Elvis Andrus

14. What is the toughest thing about minor league life and why?

Traveling. The trips are sometimes all day affairs. You have to eat and sleep a lot to keep fresh.

15. What was your favorite team growing up and why?

The Dallas Cowboys. Taylor’s still a big fan.

16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?

Basketball, which he says he was pretty good at, baseball, which was his best sport without a doubt, golf, and football in high school.

17. How is your arm doing?
‘My arm is strong’.

18. What are your hobbies?
Dove hunting, golf, and watching football.

I would like to thank Taylor again for doing this. It was very nice of him to take up his time for it. I would also like to thank Jamey Newberg and Eleanor Czajka for arranging for me to interview Taylor after he finished signing autographs at the Fan Fest Newberg table last week.

Results of last week’s poll:
Which new player do you think will make the biggest difference this year?
Josh Hamilton – 88%
Jason Jennings – 9%
Milton Bradley – 3%
Others – 0%

Come back next week for a Rangers Spring Training Roster Analysis or an interview with Travis Metcalf.

Rangers Fan Fest

First, I would like to congratulate Victor Rojas on winning the first annual Texas Rangers Trades Broadcaster of the Year award. Victor received 39% of the votes on the poll, which ran for over two weeks. Thanks to everyone who voted. I was able to give Victor the trophy at the Awards banquet on Friday and he really appreciated it.

I just got back from a trip to Disneyland with my parents, my sister, and my grandparents. We had a great time and spent four days at the Disneyland parks. While we were there we saw a Lakers game at the Staples Center. The Lakers beat the Nuggets 116-99.

This weekend I went to all the Rangers events. Friday night was the Awards Banquet, where they give out the yearly awards (player of the year, pitcher of the year, etc.) and do interviews. Eric Nadel and Victor Rojas did a great job hosting this year’s dinner. It was a lot of fun. I got to meet some of the new players and also talk to Jon Daniels and CJ Wilson for awhile. Eleno Ornelas was at our table and gave me some tips on broadcasting.

On Saturday, my dad and I went to the Rangers Fan Fest. I’ve gone every year since I was 3 and it’s always a great event.

We got there right around the time they opened at 9am and, unlike last year, the process for getting inside was pretty quick. We decided not to try to get any of the 10am autographs so that we could go to the 10am Josh Hamilton Q&A. So we spent the first hour doing the scavenger hunt. The scavenger hunt is where you go to different stations around the ballpark, and Rangers employees will stamp a piece of paper and give you small prizes at each stop. Once you have stamps from each station, you go to the last station to get free Rangers tickets and enter to win a trip.

At 10am, we went to the Legends of the Game Museum to see the Josh Hamilton Q&A. We sat with John Siburt, our preacher, who was saving seats for his family for the Michael Young Q&A at 11am. His daughter, Katie, is a huge Michael Young fan, but she couldn’t get in the Michael Young autograph line before the tickets ran out (she got in Marlon Byrd’s line instead) so they decided they had to be sure to get in the Michal Young Q&A. Katie is 6 years old, and a huge Rangers fan. She even had a Rangers birthday party and got on TV last summer during one of the Jim Knox segments of a game. Katie ended up getting Michael’s autograph after the Q&A, so everything worked out for her.

Victor Rojas hosted the Josh Hamilton Q&A. Josh seemed like a really good guy and very humble. He focused a lot on God and on how he knows that it’s because of God that he’s recovered from his issues and is still able to play so well. He talked about how amazing it is that he basically didn’t play baseball for years and came back at the level he did. He said that it could only be because of God.
Other interesting things:
- He got drafted on his dad’s birthday.
- Last year, when the Cubs took him in the Rule 5 draft, he called everyone to tell them he was going to the Cubs. He then had to call everyone back 20 minutes later and tell them that it was now the Reds.
- He was wearing a bandage on his middle finger and said that he had hurt it playing catch.
- I asked him what he learned from Ken Griffey Jr. and if there was any tension in taking Ken’s center field spot. Josh said that Griff was a great guy who never said anything negative about Josh taking center field. He was very helpful and would always yell ‘in’ or ‘back’ when a ball was hit.
- He took a call from his wife during the session to give her directions to a store.

After the Q&A session, I introduced myself to Josh and asked if I could interview him for my blog. He was friendly and agreed to contact me to set it up.

We then went to the Newberg table to see if we could still get his 10am guests (Chris Davis and John Whittleman). We were amazed to see that there was a huge line there, much longer than we normally see for the Newberg table. We got in line and by the time we got to the front, Jamey’s 11am guests (Doug Mathis and John Mayberry) had arrived. But Chris and John stayed extra time so we got all four autographs. All of the players were really nice and Doug, Chris, and John remembered me from the December Bound Edition release party.

We then walked around the booths in the Diamond Club, where different businesses had set up tables. TR Sullivan had a booth selling his new book that he wrote with scout Mel Didier, called ("Podnuh Let
Me Tell You a Story: A Baseball Life"). I spent some time talking with TR, which is always fun, and Mel, who’s been involved with baseball for a long time. I started reading the book during the day and it has some good stories in it. I also saw my friend, Ryan Wolfson, there in the Diamond Club.

At around noon, we went back to the Newberg table and got autographs from Blake Beavan and Taylor Teagarden. They were also very nice and both remembered me from other Newberg events.

We then got some lunch and waited in line to get autographs from Ben Broussard and Brandon McCarthy.

Eleanor and Jamey had arranged for me to interview Taylor after he was done signing, so Taylor, my dad, and I went to a private area and did the interview. It was my first face-to-face interview (all of the others have been over the phone or email). Taylor was really nice to do the interview and Eleanor and Jamey were really nice to set it up. I’ll have it on next week’s blog.

Next, we went back to the Newberg table to see Josh Lewin. He was very friendly like always and asked me how my basketball season was going. He was promoting one of his books (“You Never Forget Your First: Ballplayers Recall Their Big League Debuts”).

Next, we went to the alumni autograph table and got autographs from Rich Billings, Mike Jeffcoat, Pete O’Brien, Eric Nadel, Dan Smith, and Curtis Wilkerson.

We then went back to the Newberg table for their last guest, German Duran. He is also a great guy and said he had read my blog since I last saw him.

On our way out, we saw Mike Ogulnick and he said he was going to have me back on his show before Spring Training to break down the team.

Next we got into line to get Jason Jenning’s autograph (he was signing at 3pm). We finished up with the 4pm autographs: Kason Gabbard, Kameron Loe, and Travis Metcalf. I talked to Kameron for awhile about my LA trip and Travis agreed to let me interview him.

As we were walking out, we noticed that CJ Wilson was sitting at a table talking to people and signing autographs. He was promoting his Guitar Hero charity event this Friday night at the Southwest Airlines headquarters. We talked to him for awhile and got his autograph.

At that point it was 5pm and the Fan Fest was shutting down. We had a great time like always. Like usual, the best table was the Newberg table. He had great guests and I enjoyed talking with Jamey, Eleanor Czajka, and Allen Cordrey.

Come back next week for the Taylor Teagarden interview.

Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 3

This week the Rangers signed Eddie Guardado to a one-year contract and also signed Jamey Wright and Adam Melhuse to minor league contracts with invitations to Spring Training.

Eddie Guardado:
Eddie has been a quality, reliable reliever in the past but the last time he pitched 50 innings in a year was 2005 due to some injuries the last couple of years. Guardado could be on the DL a lot or could be healthy again and a very good reliever for us. He should compete with CJ for the closer role but will probably be our set-up man. I think that it was a good low-risk signing.

Jamey Wright:
Last year Wright did pretty well when relieving and should be a decent long reliever for us. I think that this was a very good signing, especially since it’s a minor league deal.

Adam Melhuse:
Adam probably won’t do much, but if Laird gets traded, he would fill in pretty well as a backup. I like this move.

This week I will continue my analysis of Tom Grieve’s trades. See my 12/9/07 blog entry for the last installment.

13. 7-26-86 The Chicago Cubs traded Ron Meridith to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later and Bryan Dial (minors). The Texas Rangers sent Rick Surhoff (July 28, 1986) to the Chicago Cubs to complete the trade.

Tie - Ron Meridith only pitched 23 innings after the trade. Bryan Dial never made it to the majors, and Rick Surhoff only pitched 9 career innings.

Record: 4-4-5

14. 9-30-86 The Pittsburgh Pirates traded Jeff Zaske to the Texas Rangers for Randy Kramer.

Tie - Zaske pitched 5 total innings in his career and Randy Krammer had a 6-15 career record.

Record: 4-4-6

15. 3-24-87 The Detroit Tigers traded Ruben Guzman (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Orlando Mercado.

Tie - Guzman never made the majors and Mercado had a .199 career batting average in 253 games over 8 seasons with 8 teams.

Record: 4-4-7

16. 5-15-87 The Texas Rangers traded Mike Mason to the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later. The Chicago Cubs sent Dave Pavlas (June 6, 1987) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Tie - Mason only pitched 44 innings after the trade and Pavlas never played for the Rangers.

Record: 4-4-8

17. 6-25-87 The Los Angeles Dodgers traded Larry See to the Texas Rangers for Jose Mota.

Tie - See had 23 at-bats after the trade, and Mota had 38 career at-bats.

Record: 4-4-9

I will be taking next week off. Come back in two weeks for a write-up of the Rangers Fan Fest.

Victor Rojas Interview

This week I interviewed Victor Rojas, radio broadcaster for the Rangers since 2004. I have met Victor quite a few times and he is always very nice. I would like to thank him for doing this interview and giving up some of his time to do it.

1. In college, did you like pitching or catching better and why?

I liked being a position player better because I got a chance to bat. At the junior college level, offense was the best part of my game...especially as a switch-hitter. When I moved on to Lewis-Clark, they had a senior starting behind the plate and there was a need for pitching...so I moved to pitching full time while serving as DH and PH.

2. What did you do when you worked at Upper Deck?

I was originally a Customer Service representative helping stores throughout the country with their orders. I eventually made the move to Holographic Products Coordinator (big title, I know) and there I put together the hologram inserts. As a matter of fact, the first edition holograms for Upper Deck Basketball and Hockey cards (the awards hologram cards) were put together by me.

3. How is broadcasting on MLB Radio different from broadcasting on regular radio?

No real difference other than MLB Radio is streamed via the internet while "regular" radio goes out over the air-waves. But as far as prep time and studying for a show or broadcast, it's exactly the same.

4. What’s the difference between broadcasting for the D’Backs and broadcasting for the Rangers?

One's in the National League and the other’s in the American League...just kidding. No real difference really...it's still baseball. The American League seems to take a little longer with all of the offense that is generated but that's pretty much it. My two partners are completely different in personalities...Gregg Schulte will always be the guy that showed me the ropes when I made the jump to the big leagues and Eric will be known as the guy who helped me hone my skills.

5. Was there anything difficult about being a talk-show host (The Baseball Breakfast on MLB Radio) and if so, what is it?

The most difficult thing about doing the show on MLB Radio was getting up as early as I did to research the previous night's games and then getting on the train to go to New York City. After that, it was the hustle to get back to Newark so that I could return to my Bears' duties for the rest of the day. I wouldn't trade that experience for anything...it was awesome and helped jump start my broadcasting career.

6. How did the Rio Grande Valley White Wings do in 1994 when you were pitching coach?

I think we were 5-6 games under .500 on the season. I was hired to be Alan Ashby's pitching coach for the Whitewings and with all of the injuries we incurred; I ended up playing more than anyone anticipated. It was a lot of fun playing down in Harlingen…the people down there were fantastic.

7. How did the Newark Bears do when you were the announcer and when you were the GM?

The Newark Bears hadn't made a post season before I got there...not that it had anything to do with my arrival, but we went to the finals in my first year (should've won, but didn't). After the season, I fired our manager and got rid of 22 of the 24 players (I kept Joe Mathis our CF and Pito Ramirez our catcher). I traded the "one dog" Lance Johnson to Nashua for Jimmy Hurst and all Jimmy did was win the triple-crown for our league as we won the Championship. Marvelous Marv Foley was our manager and we had a blast that year. Marv was then hired by the Colorado Rockies to be their Triple-A manager and I went on to the Diamondbacks. Not a bad stepping stone.

8. What has changed about the minor league systems from when you played in the Angels farm system and now?

I don't think much has changed...and that includes the pay. My first year, I got $800/month as salary and after earning an All-Star team berth, I negotiated an increase of $50/month for the next year...crazy. But overall it's pretty much the same. There are a lot more players now because of expansion, but that seems to be pretty much it. The escalating bonus money might have changed guys over the last 15 years, but that's tough for me to tell since I'm not really involved on the minor league side much.

9. How did you prepare yourself to be a broadcaster? What education did you have?

I went to broadcasting school in the late 80's to be a DJ...so I never really had the intention of becoming a play by play guy. That just kind of happened. I decided I wanted to give this gig a try and was fortunate enough to end up in Newark. From there, things just fell into place. I learned play by play as I did it during the season...I listened to a lot of the different broadcasts throughout the country in trying to pick up different little things so that I could improve. From that point on, I've just tried to tweak things by going back and re-listening to my parts of a game and dissecting it so that I could improve.

10. What are the three most fun things about your job?

Watching baseball. Talking baseball. My off-season.

11. What are the three toughest things about your job?

Travel. Being away from family. Chasing a player down for a pre-game interview (the worst).

12. What is the most fun season you’ve announced and why?

A tie...the 2003 season because it was my first in the big leagues. And the 2004 season because of the lowered expectations for the ballclub. It was a lot of fun watching that team run off 89 wins and stay in contention to the end.

13. What is the most fun game you’ve announced and why?

Before this year, I would've said a May game back in 2004 against the Tigers at the Ballpark. That was the game when the Tigers scored something like 8 runs in the top of the 5th to take a commanding lead only to have the Rangers drop a 10 spot in the bottom of the 5th to tie things up. An unbelievable game that the Rangers eventually won in extra innings. Now, it has to be the Orioles game this year. 30-3 is just stupid fun.

14. What is the best play you’ve announced and why?

Personally, Sammy's 600th home run. Perfect setting...vs. Cubs, at home and against the guy who was wearing his old number. Pretty cool.

15. Who have been the most fun players to interview and why?

The guys that talk a lot, those are my favorite. Nothing is worse than having to pull teeth to get guys to talk. But on the Rangers: CJ Wilson, Rod Barajas, David Dellucci, and Jeff Nelson are some of the guys that are/were very vocal and just fun to interview. Gerald Laird says what's on his mind and that's always a plus.

16. What is a typical day like in your job?

The typical day when we're at home would mean waking up around 5:30 or so to get my reading in. Once my kids are up (usually around 6-630), I get them ready and take them to school. When I get back home, I go back to my reading and will throughout the day go back to my computer a number of times to get updates on things going on around Major League Baseball. After lunch (and if nothing else is going on), I usually try to get some shut-eye (there's nothing like a good nap). I get to the yard around 4:00 for a 7:00 start and get the lineups, my pre game interview and chit chat out of the way before heading upstairs. When I get to the booth, I like to get my book done for the game. People pop in and out of the booth and we'll chit chat. I like to eat dinner an hour before game time and I'll usually hang out down there until 15 minutes before first pitch. Then it's back to the booth for the game. On the road, there's usually some golf sprinkled in during the morning hours.

17. What was your favorite team growing up and why?

Kansas City Royals...my dad played there and it's where I grew up.

I would like to thank Victor again for giving up so much of his time for this interview and for his great answers.

This year, I will be giving out the first annual Texas Rangers Trades Broadcaster of the Year Award. The poll (on the side of the blog) over the next 2-3 weeks will determine who the best broadcaster was for 2007. The winner will be given a trophy, plaque, or certificate. The candidates are Josh Lewin, Tom Grieve, Eric Nadel, Victor Rojas, Jose Guzman (Spanish broadcaster), and Eleno Ornelas (Spanish broadcaster).

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think had the best month of December?
Tigers – 39%
D’Backs – 30%
Rangers – 26%
Astros – 4%
Other – 0%

Come back next week for part 3 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.

December Transactions

This week I will analyze all the major December transactions made in baseball, except for Rangers transactions (covered last week).

12-2-07 The Houston Astros signed Kaz Matsui to a three-year contract.

Kazuo will take the starting second base job from Mark Loretta. Mark only did okay last year and Kaz will definitely be an upgrade. It should help the Astros, but they’re still far from a playoff team.

12-3-07 The Arizona Diamondbacks traded Carlos Quentin to the Chicago White Sox for Chris Carter.

Carlos Quentin has good potential, but struggled last year. I thought he would do well at the beginning of the year, but he hit .214 with only 5 homers and 31 RBI’s. Chris Carter has played very well in the minors, only hitting under .300 in 2005, when he hit .296.

12-5-07 The Detroit Tigers traded Burke Badenhop, Eulogio De La Cruz, Dallas Trahern, Andrew Miller, Mike Rabelo and Cameron Maybin to the Florida Marlins for Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera

The Tigers traded some very good prospects, but adding Miguel Cabrera to their already good lineup makes their batting as good as it gets. Also, Dontrelle will make a very good #3 pitcher in the rotation. From the Marlins side, they got a lot of good prospects and in 2 or 3 years, they should be pretty good.

12-10-07 The Milwaukee Brewers signed Eric Gagne to a one-year contract

Gagne could help the Brewers, he could hurt them, or he could not play. We’ve seen all those things in his career. He helped the Dodgers and the Rangers, he hurt the Red Sox, and he played only 2 games for the Dodgers in ’06. He might be able to fill in for Francisco Cordero’s absence, so I think this was a decent signing.

12-10-07 The San Diego Padres signed Randy Wolfe to a one-year contract

Wolfe had a shoulder injury in July last year and didn’t come back the rest of the season. He should make a good #5 starter, though.

12-12-07 The San Francisco Giants signed Aaron Rowand to a five-year contract

Rowand was an All-Star last year and should really help the Giants. He will take center field over Rajai Davis, a big jump in talent. The Giants are definitely not going to make the playoffs even with Aaron Rowand next year.

12-12-07 The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Andruw Jones to a two-year contract

Andruw really struggled last year in Atlanta and now is in a pitchers park. I don’t think he will do very well, but he definitely could help them, since their center fielder would have been Juan Pierre who will get moved to left, taking the job from Matt Kemp. So basically, Jones takes the job from Kemp.

12-12-07 The Houston Astros traded Luke Scott, Matt Albers, Troy Patton, Dennis Sarfate and Mike Costanzo to the Baltimore Orioles for Miguel Tejada

Since Tejada was mentioned in the Mitchell Report, his value goes down, but he’s still a very talented player. But trading all those prospects for one player who was in the Mitchell Report (unknown at the time, though) isn’t very good. Scott can hit for power. Albers throws lots of strike-outs and has had good minor league ERA’s in ’03, ’04, and ’06. Patton has had very good ERA’s for pretty much his whole minor league career. Sarfate has a minor league ERA of 3.68, and Costanzo had 27 homers and 86 RBI’s last year in AAA. Orioles won this trade.

12-14-07 The Toronto Blue Jays signed David Eckstein to a one-year contract

Since it is just a one-year contract, the Blue Jays will probably not get to the playoffs with Eckstein, but he should help them out next year. He will definitely be better than John McDonald would have been this year. David will fill in nicely until they can get a long-term shortstop.

12-14-07 The Oakland Athletics traded Dan Haren and Connor Robertson to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Brett Anderson, Dana Eveland, Greg Smith, Chris Carter, Aaron Cunningham, and Carlos Gonzalez

The A’s will definitely struggle next year, but in a few years they should be better than they would have been. Carlos Gonzalez is a very good prospect and 4 of these players are probably in the A’s top 10 prospects. The Diamondbacks now have two of the best pitchers in baseball in Brandon Webb and Dan Haren. Good trade for both teams.

12-14-07 The Houston Astros traded Chris Burke, Juan Gutierrez, and Chad Qualls to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Jose Valverde

I don’t understand why either team makes this trade. The D’Backs are going for next year and Valverde is one of the best closers in baseball. The Astros completely stunk last year and probably won’t do good next year, so I don’t get why they would give up prospects.

12-20-07 The Seattle Mariners signed Carlos Silva to a four-year contract

Carlos Silva might have had a losing record last year (13-14), but is still a good pitcher. His losing record was because of his team, though. He only had a 4.19 ERA. He will definitely help the Mariners’ not-so-good pitching.

12-24-07 The Florida Marlins signed Luis Castillo

Luis is just going to be a filler-inner for the Marlins, who aren’t going to do well next year. He will probably hit around .300. But why do this when you have Dan Uggla at second? I don’t get it.

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will win in the Hamilton-Volquez trade?
Rangers – 77%
Reds – 23%

Come back next week for part 3 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.

Hamilton Acquired

This week I’ll analyze three recent Rangers moves.

Transaction 1:

On December 21st, the Rangers traded pitchers Edinson Volquez and Danny Herrera to the Reds for outfielder Josh Hamilton.

Josh Hamilton – Hamilton is a RANGER!!!! Yeah!!!! After some serious off-the-field issues limiting him to 15 games from 2003 to 2006, he came back last year with a good year with the Reds. In 2003, Josh left the Devil Rays in Spring Training, and only came back twice to work out with the minor league teams. In 2004, MLB suspended Hamilton for 30 days for multiple drug violations. Later on, they changed it to a year for two more violations in just those 30 days. In 2005, Hamilton was DFA’d and passed through waivers. He had been drinking, taking illegal drugs and had three suicide attempts. In 2006, he injured his left knee, and the D’Rays let him go to the Rule 5 draft, where the Reds ended up acquiring him. Last year Hamilton batted .292 with 19 homers and 47 RBI in 298 at-bats. Hamilton has a real chance at becoming a top 3 center fielder in baseball in the next few years. Plus, he has 5 years left where the Rangers will control him. This is a fantastic addition to the Rangers organization. Josh should be our center fielder for years to come.

Edinson Volquez – Edinson can become a great pitcher or be the next Ruben Mateo. His major league ERA is over 7.00, but was 4.50 last year. He’s got incredible potential, though. Last year he worked his way up from High-A to the majors. As he went up in the minor leagues his ERA’s went down going in order, 7.13 (high-A), 3.55 (AA), and 1.41 (AAA). He’s probably going to start off next year as a number 4 or 5 starter.

Danny Ray Herrera – He was drafted in the 45th round. In his two years in the minor leagues, Herrera has an 11-5 record and a 2.65. He may end up being a solid piece of a major league bullpen someday.

Evaluation:It’s tough to give up Volquez, but we needed a center fielder badly. Also, we have more depth with minor league pitchers (Blake Beavan, Fabio Castillo, Thomas Diamond, Armando Galarraga, Matt Harrison, Eric Hurley, Kasey Kiker, Luis Mendoza, A.J. Murray, Josh Rupe) than center fielders (Julio Borbon, Engel Beltre, John Mayberry Jr.). I think that this is a pretty good deal for the Rangers.
Grade: A

Transaction 2:

On December 12th, the Rangers traded minor league infielder Tug Hulett to the Mariners for first baseman Ben Broussard.

Evaluation:
The best Tug Hulett was ever going to be for the Rangers was a utility player. The Rangers really needed a first baseman for this year and Broussard can be that guy. Last year in the majors he batted .275 with 7 home runs and 29 RBI’s in 240 at-bats with the Indians. Tug Hulett hit .275 with 11 homers and 67 RBI’s for triple-A Oklahoma. I think that this is a very good trade, filling a major league need without giving up a high prospect.
Grade: A

Transaction 3:

On December 13th, the Rangers signed Japanese RHP Kazuo Fukumori to a two-year deal. Last year, with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, Kazuo had an ERA of 4.75 with a 4-2 ERA, 17 saves, and 33 strike-outs in 36 innings pitched. Last year, Fukumori was the highest paid player on the team. He didn’t do that well last year, but I think he will do pretty well, given his 2.17 ERA in 2006.

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player in the Rangers' moves the past 2 weeks?
Milton Bradley – 72%
Kazuo Fukumori – 8%
Ben Broussard – 6%
Francisco Cordova – 4%
Chris Shelton – 4%
Edgardo Alfonzo – 1%
Levi Romero – 1%
Tug Hulett – 1%
Clayton Hamilton – 1%
All others – 0%

Record amount of votes – 75 - Thanks!!!

Come back next week for an analysis of December MLB Transactions.

Newberg Report Release Party

On Friday the 14th, Jamey Newberg had his Newberg Report Bound Edition Release Party. This time his guests were John Whittleman, German Duran, Blake Beavan, Chris Davis, and Doug Mathis. The Release Party is always very fun and is where Jamey releases his new book for the year. This week I will write about the Release Party.

The event was held at the Texas Rangers Dallas Office downtown. It was very rainy and trafficy getting there. The first thing my dad and I did was get the 2008 Bound Edition. The Bound Edition has every report Jamey did from the whole year, plus all the stats of every player in the Rangers organization and awards and articles by Jamey on the Rangers’ top prospects. It’s always a great book to read and the best reference anywhere on the Ranger farm system. This year, Jamey’s daughter, Erica Newberg, wrote Jamey’s biography at the end of the book. She did a very good job. Also, this year’s cover looks great.

After we got the books, I played my dad in the video game they had there (MLB2K7). We played as the Rangers (me) vs. Reds (my dad). I beat him 4-3, but we only played three innings. We’ve been to the Rangers Dallas Office twice now and they always seem to have that video game set up for anyone to play.

They had free food for the event. The food they had was hot dogs, pickles, sugar cookies, and sodas. It was pretty good and it was nice of the Rangers to provide it. While we ate, we got to talk with some of the other fans, Allen Cordrey, and Jamey’s wife, Ginger, who was there with Max and Erica and some of Erica’s friends.

After all the players got there, the five of them signed autographs. To get an autograph you had to buy a book. All the players were really nice about signing. I also got Erica’s autograph (on the bio page she wrote on her dad).

One of my friends from school, Ryan Wolfson, was also there with his parents. Once we got autographs, we played each other in MLB2K7. We replayed the World Series, I was the Red Sox, and he was the Rockies. I beat him 13-3.

The Q&A session started pretty soon after we finished. Here are some of the questions and answers:

Q: John: Did you really predict that you’d hit a homer when your suspended regional semifinal game against the Mustangs resumed? Can you tell us the story?
A: John said that he did. He also mentioned he had predicted that he’d homer on the 1st pitch, which he did. He led off the bottom of the12th when the game resumed and after one pitch, the game was over. He said he was no Babe Ruth and wouldn’t be calling any more shots.

Q: John and German: What was it like playing in the futures game?

A: John said it was unbelievable and that it was playing with the best of the best. German said that it felt like the big leagues, with 10,000 people watching.

Q: German: Why didn’t you sign with the Reds after being drafted in 2003?

A: German said that he wanted to go to school, and that he was a little scared because he was 17.

Q: German: What was the key to your offensive success this year?

A: He said that it was because he had a development plan. He was an aggressive hitter, but then became more selective. He also said that last year he tried to pull the ball every time, but that this year he tried to go with the ball. When he was successful with that, pitchers had to pitch him differently and gave him pitches that he could pull successfully.

Q: Doug: Why did you not sign when you were drafted out of Arizona High School or when you where drafted out of Central Arizona State?

A: Doug said he likes college and that he likes Central Arizona. He also said he ended up going to the Big 12 and that he doesn’t regret it.

Q: Chris: Why did you go to Navarro Junior College instead of staying with UT?

A: He said that he had some off-the-field problems at UT and that he wasn’t focused. He also said he was more at home in Navarro.

Q: Chris: Do you prefer pitching or playing the infield?

A: He misses pitching in some ways, but in other ways he doesn’t. He said he has more fun playing the infield.

Q: Blake: What was it like playing on the USA Junior National Team and going to Cuba?

A: Blake said that it was a good experience and that it was fun. He said it made him appreciate what he has, since there were so many poor people in Cuba.

Q: All: What role do you want to play with the Rangers and what role do you think you’ll play?

A: Everyone said that they didn’t really care what role they play as long as they get to the big leagues. They all said that they wanted to help the team. Doug said that he sees himself realistically as a back of the rotation guy. Chris said he thinks he can be a corner infielder or corner outfielder.

Here’s some information from other questions:
- Blake said that he had no idea where he was going to start the season.
- When asked what goes through their heads when they hear trade rumors, Chris said that you never want to see someone go but that trades do open up the door for other people.
- John was asked what he thinks of Elvis Andrus. He said that Elvis is a good player who can hit and run and is an all-around player. He also said that he speaks really good English.
- When asked about his hitting streak, Chris said that he didn’t even know about it until he was more than 20 games into it.
- Someone asked who everyone looked up to. John said he looked up to Derek Jeter and Manny Ramirez. German said Marcus Giles, Blake said Randy Johnson, Chris said Jim Thome, and Doug said he used to look up to Nolan Ryan, but that now he looks up to Brandon Webb (because he’s the same type of pitcher as Doug).
- When asked who they’ve played against or with that they knew would be great, John said Chris Davis.

After that it was over but we hung out and talked to Jamey, Scott Lucas, Mike Rhyner (from The Ticket), and Eleanor Czajka (and her mom) for a while. Jim Sundberg was also there but we didn’t get to talk to him much.

The night was a lot of fun like always. I would like to thank Jamey for putting it on every year. If you haven’t been before, you should go when he does it next year.

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player in the Rangers' moves this past week?
Milton Bradley – 90%
Chris Shelton – 7%
Freddy Guzman - 3%

Come back next week for the December Transactions Report, including an analysis of this week’s Rangers transactions (Kazuo Fukumori and the Ben Broussard trade).

Shelton Acquired and Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 2

This week, I will analyze the Freddy Guzman trade and continue my analysis of Tom Grieve’s trades.

On December 6th, the Rangers traded Freddy Guzman for Chris Shelton.

Evaluation: I think that this is a win. Freddy Guzman is a scrappy, speedy guy who hasn’t come around for the Rangers. He only had 13 at-bats during parts of two seasons with them and obviously wasn’t part of their plans. Chris Shelton had a very good year in 2005 and can hit for power against righties. He can really help out at 1st base and goes to spring training with a chance to be a starter at that spot. This is a good trade because we gave up someone who wasn’t part of our plans with little potential for someone with good potential to help us.

Grade: A

Also, the Rangers signed Milton Bradley to a 1-year contract for $5 dollars. I think he will be a good center field addition. He’s good defensively (.983 career fielding percentage) and can play well offensively. He has a career .273 average over 8 seasons but has had averages as high as .306 (last season) and .290 (2005). He has hit as many as 19 home runs in a season (2004).

This is part 2 of an analysis of the trades Tom Grieve made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover the end of 1985. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.

7. 6-20-85 The Detroit Tigers traded Duane James (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Frank Tanana.

Loss – Duane James never made it to the majors. After being traded, Frank Tanana had ERA’s of 3.34, 4.16, 3.91, 4.21, 3.58, 5.31, 3.77, 4.39, and 4.35. Not a very good trade.

Record: 2-3-2

8. 7-19-85 The Cincinnati Reds traded a player to be named later and Duane Walker to the Texas Rangers for Buddy Bell. The Cincinnati Reds sent Jeff Russell (July 23, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Win - Duane only hit .174 as a Ranger but Jeff Russell was incredible for us. He played 6 and a half very good years of relief for the Rangers. He was a 2-time All-Star, won the Rolaids Relief Man Award and led the league in saves, all as a Ranger. Buddy Bell didn’t do too much after the trade, his most RBI’s were 75 and best batting average was .284.

Record: 3-3-2

9. 8-28-85 The Texas Rangers traded Cliff Johnson to the Toronto Blue Jays for players to be named later. The Toronto Blue Jays sent Matt Williams (August 29, 1985), Jeff Mays (minors) (August 29, 1985), and Greg Ferlenda (minors) (November 14, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Tie - Cliff Johnson didn’t do much after the trade, only playing 1 more year. Matt Williams only pitched 26 innings as a Ranger, Jeff Mays never made it to the majors, and neither did Greg Ferlenda.

Record: 3-3-3

10. 9-13-85 The Philadelphia Phillies traded Rick Surhoff to the Texas Rangers for Dave Stewart.

Loss - Rick Surhoff only pitched 8 and a third innings as a Ranger. Dave Stewart had 5 years of over 225 innings pitched after the trade with ERA’s in those years of 3.68, 3.23, 3.32, 2.56, but then 5.18. Interestingly, Stewart only pitched 16.6 innings for the Phillies over parts of two seasons (with ERA’s of 6.23 and 6.57) before they released him. He then signed with the A’s, where he had some great years.

Record: 3-4-3

11. 11-2-85 The Montreal Expos traded Pete Incaviglia to the Texas Rangers for Jim Anderson and Bob Sebra.

Win - Pete Incavilia had 5 good years with the Rangers and a total of 124 home runs in those 5 years. Jim Anderson didn’t play in the majors after the trade, and Bob Sebra only had a career total of 366 and two-thirds innings pitched over 94 games in 6 years.

Record: 4-4-3

12. 11-25-85 The Chicago White Sox traded a player to be named later, Ed Correa, and Scott Fletcher to the Texas Rangers for Wayne Tolleson and Dave Schmidt. The Chicago White Sox sent Jose Mota (December 11, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Tie - Ed Correa only played two years with the Rangers and didn’t pitch very well either (ERA’s of 4.23 and 7.59 during two seasons). Scott Fletcher had 3 good years as a Ranger, with batting averages of .300, .287, and .276. Jose Mota has 38 career at-bats. Wayne Tolleson only had 9 career home runs and the best batting average he had after the trade was .265. Dave Schmidt pitched pretty well for the next 3 years after the trade, with ERA’s of 3.31, 3.77, and 3.40 in those three years.

Record: 4-4-4

Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in last week’s trades?
Mitch Williams – 52%
Toby Harrah - 41%
Don Slaught – 5%
All others – 0%

Come back next week for a write-up on Friday’s Newberg Bound Edition Release Party.

Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 1

This week I’m starting a multi-part analysis of all the trades Tom Grieve made when he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover the first half of his first year as GM. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.

1. 11-7-84 The Montreal Expos traded Chris Welsh to the Texas Rangers for Dave Hostetler.

Win – Dave Hostetler didn’t play in the majors again after the trade until ’88, and even then it was with Pittsburgh and only for 6 games. The Rangers got one good year out of Chris Welsh. Chris had a 4.13 ERA in 76 innings pitched, in his one year as a Ranger.

Record: 1-0-0

2. 1-18-85 As part of a 4-team trade: The Texas Rangers sent a player to be named later and Danny Darwin to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Milwaukee Brewers sent Jim Sundberg to the Kansas City Royals. The New York Mets sent Tim Leary to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Kansas City Royals sent Don Slaught to the Texas Rangers. The Kansas City Royals sent Frank Wills to the New York Mets. The Texas Rangers sent Bill Nance (minors) (January 30, 1985) to the Milwaukee Brewers to complete the trade. (From a Rangers standpoint, this was basically Danny Darwin and Bill Nance for Don Slaught.)

Loss – Bill Nance never played in the majors. But Danny Darwin pitched pretty well throughout his 21-year career including 11 years after the trade (career ERA of 3.84). He had an ERA under 4.00 (3.80 and 3.17) in both of the two years he spent with Milwaukee after the trade. In the three years Don Slaught was here, the most at-bats he got in a year was 343. His playing time decreased each of the three years he was here (343 AB to 314 to 237) as did he batting average (.280 to .264 to .224). He was good defensively behind the plate while here but I would rather have a solid pitcher than a part-time catcher.

Record: 1-1-0

3. 2-27-85 The New York Yankees traded Toby Harrah to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later and Bill Sample. The Texas Rangers sent Eric Dersin (minors) (July 14, 1985) to the New York Yankees to complete the trade.

Loss – After the trade Toby Harrah did almost nothing for us, batting .270 and .218 in the two year he played for us after the trade, with little power (16 homers over two years). He played in only 126 games in 1985 and 95 games in 1986 (his last year in the majors). Bill Sample was a solid back-up for the two years following the trade (.288 in 59 games in 1985 and .285 in 92 games in 1986) and Eric Dersin never made it to the majors.

Record: 1-2-0

4. 4-4-85 The Seattle Mariners traded Orlando Mercado to the Texas Rangers for Donnie Scott.

Tie - Orlando Mercado only had 102 at-bats as a Ranger. Donnie Scott had a .217 career batting average on 443 career at-bats.

Record: 1-2-1

5. 4-4-85 The Texas Rangers traded Kevin Buckley to the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later. The Cleveland Indians sent Jeff Moronko (April 29, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.

Tie - Kevin Buckley only had 7 career at-bats. Jeff Moronko only had 30.

Record: 1-2-2

6. 4-6-85 The San Diego Padres traded Mitch Williams to the Texas Rangers for Randy Asadoor.

Win – Randy Asadoor only had 55 career at-bats. Mitch Williams pitched three good years for the Rangers with ERA’s of 3.58, 3.23, and 4.63.

Record: 2-2-2

Results of last week’s poll:
What team do you think has had the best off-season so far?
Angels – 83%
Red Sox – 8%
Tigers – 4%
Other – 4%
All other teams – 0%

Come back next week for Part 2 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.

November Transactions

This week I will analyze all the major transactions so far in November. I will do this once every month during the off-season.

11/2 Red Sox - Acquired OF Sean Danielson from St. Louis to complete the Joel Pineiro trade on July 31.

Effect: Sean is a scrappy hitter who has only started two years in the minors. In those 2 years he has hit .249 and .291. He has almost no power, only hitting 4 home runs in 928 career minor league at-bats. He plays great defensively though. He will probably only become a 4th/5th outfielder.

11/6 Red Sox – Signed Curt Schilling to a one year contract

Effect: Just keeps them closer to last year’s team.

11/7 Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros – Phillies acquired RHP Brad Lidge and INF Eric Bruntlett from the Astros in exchange for OF Michael Bourn.

Phillies Effect: The Phillies needed a good closer and Brad Lidge should be able to give them that. Eric Bruntlett will upgrade their bench and back up Rollins and Utley.

Astros Effect: The Astros lose their only closer in Brad Lidge. They also lose a pretty good bench player in Eric Bruntlett. They’re obviously trying to build up for the future. Bourn hasn’t hit very well with a career .268 batting average in the majors. Also he has almost no power, only hitting 1 major league home run in 122 at-bats. But Bourn can field well, as he hasn’t made an error since AA in 2005 when he had 1.

Winner: Phillies

11/12 Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs – Tigers acquired OF Jacque Jones from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for INF Omar Infante.

Tigers Effect: The Tigers now have an upgrade at left field as Jones will replace Marcus Thames for the starting job, now making their outfield one of the best in baseball with Jones, Granderson, and Ordonez. But the Tigers bench took a hit, because with Omar Infante gone Ryan Raburn will have to back up CF, RF, 3B, and 2B.

Cubs Effect: Losing Jones will move Daryle Ward into a starting spot and, although he did good last year, he only had 110 at-bats so you can’t really trust him. Omar Infante won’t even start for the Cubs.

Winner: Tigers

11/14 Milwaukee Brewers - Signed LHP Randy Choate to a one-year contract.

Effect: Randy Choate has not pitched very well so far in his career but will help out the Brewers bullpen.

11/16 Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves - Houston acquired RHP Oscar Villarreal from the Braves in exchange for OF Josh Anderson

Astros Effect: The Astros definitely improved their bullpen. Oscar is a pretty good relief pitcher, with a 4.25 ERA last year and a 3.61 ERA in ’06. But losing Anderson is a hit, as he’s a very good prospect and it seems like they’re trying for the future. I don’t understand why they would make the trade, especially with Michael Bourn starting in center.

Braves Effect: Their bullpen will definitely go way down this year without Mahay and now Villarreal. But without Andruw Jones, they needed a starting center fielder and Anderson can be that guy. He’s got some serious speed, getting 78 stolen bases in 2005. He also hit .358 last year. But Josh has no power.

Winner: Braves

11/19 Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – White Sox acquired SS Orlando Cabrera and cash considerations from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for RHP Jon Garland.

White Sox Effect: The White Sox pitching really took a major hit. This trade makes John Danks, with stats of 5.50 ERA and a 6-13 record last year, the #3 starter. But with Juan Uribe gone, Cabrera will be a great upgrade from Alex Cintron starting.

Angels Effect: Jon Garland will take Bartolo Colon’s #3 spot in the rotation. But he’s an upgrade from Colon. Garland doesn’t get injured as much and has better stats (but not against the Rangers). Losing Cabrera will move Maicer Izturis into the starting role though.

Winner: Angels

11/19 Atlanta Braves - Signed LHP Tom Glavine to a one-year contract for the 2008 season.

Effect: Tom Glavine will definitely help the pitching staff and should move into the #3 spot before Chuck James. Tom could make the Braves a playoff team next year.

11/20 New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers – Mets acquired C Johnny Estrada from the Brewers in exchange for RHP Guillermo Mota.

Mets Effect: With Paul Lo Duca gone, Estrada will be a much better starter than Ramon Castro. Last year Estrada hit .278 with 10 homers and 54 RBI’s. Losing Mota will be tough, since last year he pitched almost 60 innings of relief, even though he didn’t have a good ERA.

Brewers Effect: Getting Mota will definitely improve their not-so-good bullpen (since Cordero left). But losing Estrada will hurt, because that moves Mike Rivera into a starting role.

Winner: Mets

11/22 Anaheim Angels – Angels sign Torii Hunter to a five-year deal.

Effect: Hunter will improve the already strong Angels. With Gary Matthews’ poor year last year, Torii will definitely help. It will be much harder for the Rangers to win the division in 2009, which is the year they’re targeting to compete. But on the bright side, with all the money the Angels are paying him, maybe they can’t afford too much else.

Results of last week’s poll:
Where do you think Torii Hunter will sign?
Rangers – 56%
Other – 21%
White Sox – 17%
Twins – 4%
Yankees – 0%

Come back next week for part 1 of an analysis of Tom Grieve’s trades as Rangers GM.