This week I will give my experiences with all of the Rangers hitters.
Hank Blalock:
I’ve met Hank a few times. The first time was after the 2003 season, when he was doing autographs at the RoughRiders ballpark. I asked him what it was like to hit a home run in the All-Star game and he told me it was awesome. He also signed for me before a game once. Before a Spring Training game in 2006, he signed a card for me and then gave me a pair of his batting gloves. Hank doesn’t really talk very much but is nice.
Frank Catalanotto:
I only met Frank once and it was a long time ago, during his first time with the Rangers. He was signing autographs in the Gold Club. He seemed really nice. I also saw him once at a Q&A ‘Meet the Ranger’ Junior Rangers session.
Nelson Cruz:
I only met Nelson once, and he didn’t seem to like giving autographs. I was trying to get his autograph from behind the dugout last season. He said that he would sign after batting practice. I reminded him when he was walking back in and he signed my ball. He didn’t respond when I tried to talk to him and rolled the ball back over the top of the dugout and disappeared when he was done so he wouldn’t have to sign for anyone else. Still, I was glad he was willing to sign.
Jerry Hairston:
I haven’t met Jerry much, but when I have he’s always very friendly. I got his autograph before a game last year when he signed for a line of people. In Spring Training this year, I saw him at a Diamondbacks Spring Training game. He was there to see his brother Scott Hairston. My dad, granddad, and I talked to him for 5-10 minutes. He was great and seemed really happy to talk. The next day at workouts, he recognized me, and came over to say hello. I told him that Victor Diaz was the last autograph I needed to get to have the whole Spring Training roster. He told Victor, and I got Victor’s autograph. Then, about a week ago, he signed for me and my friend at a Ranger game.
Matt Kata:
I’ve only met Matt once, and he was kind of rude. Before a Spring Training game this year, I asked for an autograph and he said he would sign after he warmed up. After he warmed up, I asked again and he said he would sign after the game. After the game, I asked again and he walked right past me. I reminded him that he had said he would sign, and then he sighed, rolled his eyes, came over, signed, and ignored me when I thanked him.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian is a great guy. He has done an interview for my blog, and is always willing to sign for kids. He does a lot of autograph events too. Whenever I call out to him, he always comes over and talks to me. He is the nicest hitter on the team, although Michael Young and Jerry Hairston are both very nice too.
Gerald Laird:
I’ve met him three times, and he was nice every time. One time it was at a Redhawks game in Oklahoma City, and he came over and signed for me. Another time, he was at a Rangers autograph event at the RoughRiders stadium and the last time it was at a Rangers’ Spring Training game in Frisco.
Kenny Lofton:
I’ve only met Kenny twice, and I’ve learned that he’s nice until you ask for autographs. At Spring Training I talked to him after warm-ups on the backfields and he was really nice, asking me how I was. But when I asked him for his autograph, he seemed unhappy and said ‘just one’. He didn’t sign for anyone else at Spring Training that day and we noticed during the week that he basically never signed. At a Rangers game this year, he was nice and came over to sign for me and my friends when I asked. He seemed to get mad because he took a ball from my hand, when I wanted him to sign my card, so he had to stop, take the card, and give me the ball back. He then gave the card back, saying that he had already signed it. It was one of those cards that has a preprinted autograph on it. My dad told him that it wasn’t an autograph and was just printed on the card. He took the card back and signed it but that somehow made him so grumpy he walked off on one of my friends. So, Kenny seems like he can be nice but gets unhappy easily.
Sammy Sosa:
I’ve gotten Sammy’s autograph twice this year. Once during Spring Training, when he signed for me when he was walking between stations during workouts. Like with what happened with Kenny, I was the only one to get his autograph that day. Then at a game earlier this year, he signed for a long time for a huge line of people and I was able to get his autograph again. He doesn’t talk to you when he signs. During Spring Training, I saw him tell people he would sign for them after the game but then leave after the 5th or 6th inning without signing.
Chris Stewart:
I’ve only met Chris once and it was at Spring Training this year. He was one of the last two players at the game. I tossed a ball down to him when he said he would sign, and when I talked to him he seemed friendly.
Mark Teixeira:
I met Mark at an autograph event his rookie year at a sports card shop. They were selling 500 autograph tickets for $5 each and I got number 498. He was really friendly and when I told him that I thought he should be rookie of the year, he agreed. At the end of that season, I saw him and told him that I was going to go as him for Halloween. He told me he thought that was really cool. I got his autograph again before a game last year, when he was signing for a line of people. At Spring Training this year, he was really nice when I asked him to answer a poll question for my blog. This year, I came within one person of getting his autograph before a game, but he stopped when I was second in line. Mark doesn’t like to sign much but when he does, he seems pretty nice. He seems to basically like to only sign for kids.
Brad Wilkerson:
The first time I met Brad was at the Rangers Winter Awards Banquet in 2006. He was very nice and he signed an autograph for me. The next time I met him was at a Rangers Spring Training game in Frisco that same year. My friend and I asked him for an autograph and he said he had to go do an interview but would come back. After the interview, he came straight back to sign for me and my friend. It was really good that he kept his word. As I’ve said, either keep your word or don’t give a word.
Michael Young:
Michael Young is really nice. I’ve met him 5 times. Four times I got an autograph and the fifth time he was really nice and gave me a bat. The first time I met him was in 2001 on Fan Appreciation Day, when Rangers were giving out autographed cards. I also have gotten his autograph at two other autograph events and he came over to sign for me before a game a couple of years ago. At Spring Training this year, he was nice about answering a poll question for my blog and gave me a bat.
Results of last week’s poll.
Question: Who do you think is the nicest pitcher on the team?
Feldman – 13%
Gagne – 4%
Loe – 17%
McCarthy – 4%
Millwood – 4%
Otsuka – 22%
Wilson – 35%
Everyone else – 0%
Come back next week for my April awards.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Haigwood Traded and My Experiences with the Rangers Pitchers
Friday night I went to a Rangers game with my friends for my birthday party. I got seven autographs, including Sammy Sosa, Kenny Lofton and Mike Piazza. Mike signed for about 5 minutes with this huge line, and then I decided to go over and try, even though I thought the line was too long for me to have a chance. About 10 minutes later, I was within 10 people and he started leaving. As he walked away, he saw how disappointed I was and told me and another kid who was right in front of me to come up and get his autograph. Nick Swisher also signed for about 10-15 minutes and I was the last one to get an autograph, again, but not the same way. Sosa and Lofton both signed for 10-20 minutes, so yesterday there were a lot of autographs. C.J. Wilson signed for my friends and Scott Feldman came over to wish me a happy birthday. The game was terrible (16-4 A’s) but we had a great time. We saw Eleanor from the Newberg report. She has a good new blog at http://emc.mlblogs.com/my_weblog/.
This week, the Rangers traded Daniel Haigwood, who had been DFA’d, to Boston for pitcher Scott Shoemaker. Haigwood was the pitcher we got last year for Fabio Castro and had been DFA’d to make roster room for Jamey Wright last week.
Daniel Haigwood LHP:
Daniel’s career numbers are:
35-18 W-L
3.43 ERA
478 IP
475 SO
Daniel started his pro career in 2002, when he was an all-star for the Arizona League White Sox. Haigwood has spent 3 of his 4 seasons with the White Sox (making it to AA in 2005), becoming teammates with Chris Young (the Diamondbacks one) and Fabio Castro (who we eventually traded to get Haigwood).
Scott Shoemaker RHP:
Scott’s career numbers are:
19-10 W-L
4.19 ERA
247.1 IP
204 SO
Scott signed during his 5th year of college in 2004 and has been in the minors since. He has a very good slider, a good curveball and a decent fastball. He doesn’t throw many balls and gets ahead in the counts.
Trade Evaluation:I think this was a good trade after Haigwood didn’t work out for us so that we’d get something if he was taken in waivers. Shoemaker could be a good middle reliever or long reliever someday, but would need another pitch to be a starter.
Grade: A- for this trade, but it’s still very disappointing that we ever got Haigwood in the first place instead of holding on to Castro, who is a much better prospect than these two pitchers put together.
This week I will tell my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
Joaquin Benoit:
I’ve only met Benoit once and it was a couple years ago when he gave me an autograph when I asked before a game. He didn’t talk much, but he probably doesn’t speak good English.
Bruce Chen:
I’ve only seen Bruce twice and it was at Spring Training. One time I asked him for an autograph and the other time I asked him for an opinion poll and both times he was very willing and nice.
Scott Feldman:
Scott is a great guy and is always willing to sign for kids. He’s always very friendly and talks to them. I met Scott when he was in Frisco and talked to him a lot there, and he always remembers me when he sees me in Arlington. Scott was nice enough to let me interview him. CJ, Kam, Otsuka and Scott are probably the nicest pitchers on the team.
Eric Gagne:
I’ve talked to Eric twice, once at the Winter Awards Banquet when he was very nice and signed, and the other time it was at a Frisco game when he was the exact opposite. You can read about that on my April 7th post.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron is one of the nicest guys on the team and has always been great to me. Whenever he saw me at Spring Training workouts this year, he made sure to come over and say hi when he finished his work. He also does a lot of autograph appearances for the team. He signs autographs before games a lot.
Ron Mahay:
Ron is also very friendly. Whenever I talk to him, he’s always very nice and doesn’t ignore you, like some players do. He usually will sign autographs before games. I’ve gotten his autograph a few times.
Brandon McCarthy:
I’ve only met Brandon once and it was at the Winter Awards Banquet. He was very nice and gave me an autograph.
Kevin Millwood:
I haven’t met Kevin much, but when I have, he’s pretty friendly but doesn’t talk much. I got his autograph twice during 2006 Spring Training and again at TicketStock this year.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori will sign pretty much no matter what. He’s always very friendly and will talk to you. At Spring Training this year, he talked to me for about 5 minutes before a workout. I’ve seen him climb into the stands to get to a kid who wanted his autograph. I’ve gotten his autograph 3 or 4 times before games since he’s been here.
Vicente Padilla:
I have only met Vicente once, when he signed an autograph for me. It was at Spring Training in 2006. He was working out and I asked him to sign for me when he was done. When he was done, he remembered and looked around for me and called me over.
Robinson Tejeda:
I have only met Robinson once and he signed an autograph for me at the Winter Awards Banquet. Last year, I didn’t get his autograph after he was called up the first time, so I sent a letter to the Redhawks asking him to sign a picture for me. He sent it back to me with his autograph, which I thought was really nice.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a great guy, one of the three nicest guys on the team. He always shows up for autograph events, talks to me, and signs for people. He was even nice enough to let me interview him.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best hitter on the Rangers other than Young and Teixeira?
Results:
Blalock – 6%
Catalanotto – 3%
Cruz – 0%
Hairston – 0%
Kata – 0%
Kinsler – 81%
Laird – 0%
Lofton – 6%
Sosa – 3%
Stewart – 3%
Wilkerson – 0%
Come back next week for my experiences with the Rangers hitters.
This week, the Rangers traded Daniel Haigwood, who had been DFA’d, to Boston for pitcher Scott Shoemaker. Haigwood was the pitcher we got last year for Fabio Castro and had been DFA’d to make roster room for Jamey Wright last week.
Daniel Haigwood LHP:
Daniel’s career numbers are:
35-18 W-L
3.43 ERA
478 IP
475 SO
Daniel started his pro career in 2002, when he was an all-star for the Arizona League White Sox. Haigwood has spent 3 of his 4 seasons with the White Sox (making it to AA in 2005), becoming teammates with Chris Young (the Diamondbacks one) and Fabio Castro (who we eventually traded to get Haigwood).
Scott Shoemaker RHP:
Scott’s career numbers are:
19-10 W-L
4.19 ERA
247.1 IP
204 SO
Scott signed during his 5th year of college in 2004 and has been in the minors since. He has a very good slider, a good curveball and a decent fastball. He doesn’t throw many balls and gets ahead in the counts.
Trade Evaluation:I think this was a good trade after Haigwood didn’t work out for us so that we’d get something if he was taken in waivers. Shoemaker could be a good middle reliever or long reliever someday, but would need another pitch to be a starter.
Grade: A- for this trade, but it’s still very disappointing that we ever got Haigwood in the first place instead of holding on to Castro, who is a much better prospect than these two pitchers put together.
This week I will tell my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
Joaquin Benoit:
I’ve only met Benoit once and it was a couple years ago when he gave me an autograph when I asked before a game. He didn’t talk much, but he probably doesn’t speak good English.
Bruce Chen:
I’ve only seen Bruce twice and it was at Spring Training. One time I asked him for an autograph and the other time I asked him for an opinion poll and both times he was very willing and nice.
Scott Feldman:
Scott is a great guy and is always willing to sign for kids. He’s always very friendly and talks to them. I met Scott when he was in Frisco and talked to him a lot there, and he always remembers me when he sees me in Arlington. Scott was nice enough to let me interview him. CJ, Kam, Otsuka and Scott are probably the nicest pitchers on the team.
Eric Gagne:
I’ve talked to Eric twice, once at the Winter Awards Banquet when he was very nice and signed, and the other time it was at a Frisco game when he was the exact opposite. You can read about that on my April 7th post.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron is one of the nicest guys on the team and has always been great to me. Whenever he saw me at Spring Training workouts this year, he made sure to come over and say hi when he finished his work. He also does a lot of autograph appearances for the team. He signs autographs before games a lot.
Ron Mahay:
Ron is also very friendly. Whenever I talk to him, he’s always very nice and doesn’t ignore you, like some players do. He usually will sign autographs before games. I’ve gotten his autograph a few times.
Brandon McCarthy:
I’ve only met Brandon once and it was at the Winter Awards Banquet. He was very nice and gave me an autograph.
Kevin Millwood:
I haven’t met Kevin much, but when I have, he’s pretty friendly but doesn’t talk much. I got his autograph twice during 2006 Spring Training and again at TicketStock this year.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori will sign pretty much no matter what. He’s always very friendly and will talk to you. At Spring Training this year, he talked to me for about 5 minutes before a workout. I’ve seen him climb into the stands to get to a kid who wanted his autograph. I’ve gotten his autograph 3 or 4 times before games since he’s been here.
Vicente Padilla:
I have only met Vicente once, when he signed an autograph for me. It was at Spring Training in 2006. He was working out and I asked him to sign for me when he was done. When he was done, he remembered and looked around for me and called me over.
Robinson Tejeda:
I have only met Robinson once and he signed an autograph for me at the Winter Awards Banquet. Last year, I didn’t get his autograph after he was called up the first time, so I sent a letter to the Redhawks asking him to sign a picture for me. He sent it back to me with his autograph, which I thought was really nice.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a great guy, one of the three nicest guys on the team. He always shows up for autograph events, talks to me, and signs for people. He was even nice enough to let me interview him.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best hitter on the Rangers other than Young and Teixeira?
Results:
Blalock – 6%
Catalanotto – 3%
Cruz – 0%
Hairston – 0%
Kata – 0%
Kinsler – 81%
Laird – 0%
Lofton – 6%
Sosa – 3%
Stewart – 3%
Wilkerson – 0%
Come back next week for my experiences with the Rangers hitters.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Analysis of Rangers Hitters
A couple days ago, I went to Jamey Newberg’s brother, Barry Newberg’s new restaurant, Mooyah Burgers. They serve burgers, fries and shakes. Their burgers are some of the best I’ve ever had. Their fries are good if you put more salt on them. I haven’t had a shake, but my dad had one and said that it was good. I really recommend it because the burgers are awesome. It is on Park and the Tollway (see http://mooyah.com/).
This week I will analyze all the hitters on the Rangers active roster.
Hank Blalock:
Hank was a huge prospect when he came up and did very well his 1st and 2nd full years. He has steadily declined every year and has always done well in the 1st half and declined in the 2nd half. He has been an All-Star 2 times in his career. I think he will get a little better this year but not too much, because he’s indicating that he’s going to listen to Rudy better.
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank 1st became a starter in 2001 and played very well. 2001 was also his 1st year without some kind of injury. He has hit .300 or over four years during his career, 1 year with the Tigers, one year with the Rangers, and two with the Blue Jays. He has a weak arm which limits his outfield fielding ability. He doesn’t hit many home runs at all. His career high for one season is 13. In his 10-year career, he only has 72 total.
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is a huge prospect, and all we have left from the Carlos Lee trade. Nelson has the potential to be a huge power hitter. From what I’ve seen of him, which is very little, he let’s mistakes stick with him a little too long. If he reaches his potential, he’ll be great, but if he doesn’t, he’ll probably come nowhere close to it.
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry went into Spring Training this year fighting for a job and won a job by batting almost .500. He was what we got in return for Phil Nevin in a trade with the Cubs. Since then, Hairston has been more important to the Rangers than Phil Nevin was to the Cubs. Hairston has been a primary starter two years in his career, both with the Orioles. He’ll be a big part of the Rangers this year, filling in almost everywhere when a starter needs rest. I think he’ll bat better than last year’s .205 with Texas and will be solid defensively.
Matt Kata:
Matt has played with the Diamondbacks, Phillies and now Rangers. His best year so far was his rookie year, when he batted .257 and hit 7 HR with 29 RBI’s. He also played the most games in a season in his career, playing in 78 games. I don’t think he’ll play much, considering that he’s the 25th man, but will play well for his amount of playing time.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian had a very good rookie year last year, batting .286 with 14 HR’s and 55 RBI’s in 120 games. This year he has gotten off to a great start, batting .357 with 5 HR’s and 9 RBI’s in 9 games. Right now he’s on pace to bat .357 with about 80 HR’s and 144 RBI’s. Like Alfonso Soriano, he can make great plays on hard balls, but on easy balls he loses focus and sometimes makes errors.
Gerald Laird:
Of active catchers that have played at least 130 games, Gerald has the 4th highest percentage of throwing out baserunners trying to steal. Only Yadier Molina, Pudge, and Henry Blanco are higher. Last year was his 1st year of playing a large portion of the season, and he batted great, hitting .296. Now that he finally has the starting catcher job to himself, I expect him to continue to be strong on offense and defense and to keep improving at calling games.
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny has a weak arm that many teams will challenge. He has good speed and almost no power. He struggled in Spring Training and is struggling so far this year. But he has hit over .300 each of the last two years, so hopefully will bounce back and have another strong year.
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy took a year off last year after playing poorly for the Orioles the year before. He has been quickly declining every year since the 64 home-run year in 2001. He had a great Spring Training, which is why he’s on the team. If he hits 10 more home runs he’ll have 600. I expect him to come back and hit between .260 and .280 with about 25 homers.
Chris Stewart:
This is the second year Chris has been in the majors. Last year he was 0-for-8. He got his first major league hit this year and it was an RBI single. We got him in a trade with the White Sox in the offseason (for minor league pitcher Johnny Lujan). Chris is a strong defensive catcher.
Mark Teixeira:
Mark has 2 Gold Gloves and 1 All-Star appearance. He is one of the Rangers’ best players. He hits over or around .300 and hits about 30-40 home runs. Last year, he got a lot of doubles. He’s made a habit of starting slow and ending the year great. I predict Mark will do about the same as last year, but hit about 5 more homers and get about 10 more RBI’s.
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad never was a good hitter when it came to batting average, but last year he struck out about 1 time in 2.8 at-bats. This year he is striking out a lot again. I think he will do the same as last year and lose his platoon job.
Michael Young:
Michael has gotten over 200 hits for the past 4 years. He led the league in batting average in ’05. He doesn’t hit for much power, but he’s not real low on it, either. He is a 3-time All-Star. I expect him to be an All-Star once again and get over 220 hits.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best Rangers bullpen pitcher?
Results:
Benoit – 14%
Chen – 0%
Feldman – 5%
Gagne – 9%
Loe – 5%
Mahay – 0%
Otsuka – 60%
Wilson – 5%
Wood – 2%
Come back next week for my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
This week I will analyze all the hitters on the Rangers active roster.
Hank Blalock:
Hank was a huge prospect when he came up and did very well his 1st and 2nd full years. He has steadily declined every year and has always done well in the 1st half and declined in the 2nd half. He has been an All-Star 2 times in his career. I think he will get a little better this year but not too much, because he’s indicating that he’s going to listen to Rudy better.
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank 1st became a starter in 2001 and played very well. 2001 was also his 1st year without some kind of injury. He has hit .300 or over four years during his career, 1 year with the Tigers, one year with the Rangers, and two with the Blue Jays. He has a weak arm which limits his outfield fielding ability. He doesn’t hit many home runs at all. His career high for one season is 13. In his 10-year career, he only has 72 total.
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is a huge prospect, and all we have left from the Carlos Lee trade. Nelson has the potential to be a huge power hitter. From what I’ve seen of him, which is very little, he let’s mistakes stick with him a little too long. If he reaches his potential, he’ll be great, but if he doesn’t, he’ll probably come nowhere close to it.
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry went into Spring Training this year fighting for a job and won a job by batting almost .500. He was what we got in return for Phil Nevin in a trade with the Cubs. Since then, Hairston has been more important to the Rangers than Phil Nevin was to the Cubs. Hairston has been a primary starter two years in his career, both with the Orioles. He’ll be a big part of the Rangers this year, filling in almost everywhere when a starter needs rest. I think he’ll bat better than last year’s .205 with Texas and will be solid defensively.
Matt Kata:
Matt has played with the Diamondbacks, Phillies and now Rangers. His best year so far was his rookie year, when he batted .257 and hit 7 HR with 29 RBI’s. He also played the most games in a season in his career, playing in 78 games. I don’t think he’ll play much, considering that he’s the 25th man, but will play well for his amount of playing time.
Ian Kinsler:
Ian had a very good rookie year last year, batting .286 with 14 HR’s and 55 RBI’s in 120 games. This year he has gotten off to a great start, batting .357 with 5 HR’s and 9 RBI’s in 9 games. Right now he’s on pace to bat .357 with about 80 HR’s and 144 RBI’s. Like Alfonso Soriano, he can make great plays on hard balls, but on easy balls he loses focus and sometimes makes errors.
Gerald Laird:
Of active catchers that have played at least 130 games, Gerald has the 4th highest percentage of throwing out baserunners trying to steal. Only Yadier Molina, Pudge, and Henry Blanco are higher. Last year was his 1st year of playing a large portion of the season, and he batted great, hitting .296. Now that he finally has the starting catcher job to himself, I expect him to continue to be strong on offense and defense and to keep improving at calling games.
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny has a weak arm that many teams will challenge. He has good speed and almost no power. He struggled in Spring Training and is struggling so far this year. But he has hit over .300 each of the last two years, so hopefully will bounce back and have another strong year.
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy took a year off last year after playing poorly for the Orioles the year before. He has been quickly declining every year since the 64 home-run year in 2001. He had a great Spring Training, which is why he’s on the team. If he hits 10 more home runs he’ll have 600. I expect him to come back and hit between .260 and .280 with about 25 homers.
Chris Stewart:
This is the second year Chris has been in the majors. Last year he was 0-for-8. He got his first major league hit this year and it was an RBI single. We got him in a trade with the White Sox in the offseason (for minor league pitcher Johnny Lujan). Chris is a strong defensive catcher.
Mark Teixeira:
Mark has 2 Gold Gloves and 1 All-Star appearance. He is one of the Rangers’ best players. He hits over or around .300 and hits about 30-40 home runs. Last year, he got a lot of doubles. He’s made a habit of starting slow and ending the year great. I predict Mark will do about the same as last year, but hit about 5 more homers and get about 10 more RBI’s.
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad never was a good hitter when it came to batting average, but last year he struck out about 1 time in 2.8 at-bats. This year he is striking out a lot again. I think he will do the same as last year and lose his platoon job.
Michael Young:
Michael has gotten over 200 hits for the past 4 years. He led the league in batting average in ’05. He doesn’t hit for much power, but he’s not real low on it, either. He is a 3-time All-Star. I expect him to be an All-Star once again and get over 220 hits.
Results of last week’s poll:
Question: Who do you think is the best Rangers bullpen pitcher?
Results:
Benoit – 14%
Chen – 0%
Feldman – 5%
Gagne – 9%
Loe – 5%
Mahay – 0%
Otsuka – 60%
Wilson – 5%
Wood – 2%
Come back next week for my personal experiences with each of the Rangers pitchers.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Analysis of Rangers Pitchers
Yesterday, my dad, granddad and I went to Opening Day, and then my dad and I went to the RoughRiders game. Rangers Opening Day is always great and is a lot of fun, especially when it’s a pitching duel and the Rangers win, like yesterday. It was very, very cold at the RoughRiders game and I got all the RoughRiders players’ autographs that I didn’t have.
Last night, we saw Eric Gagne pitch for the RoughRiders on his rehab assignment. Before the game I asked him to sign a ball that I’m getting the Rangers to sign as a prize for the Newberg charity toy drive this summer. He told me that he was going to sign for me after the game. I knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching and he knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching. Just like I figured, Eric pitched to three batters and then left the park as soon as he was done. This happens all the time, when a player says that they will sign after the game when they know that they’ll be gone before it’s over. We see it happen in Spring Training a lot. Why didn’t he just say that he had to pitch and couldn’t sign instead of saying something he knew wasn’t true? Players don’t have to sign for anyone but they should either be a man of their word or don't give a word.
This week I will analyze all the pitchers on the Rangers active roster.
Joaquin Benoit:
Joaquin takes a lot of time between pitches, which sometimes hurts the concentration of players fielding behind him. He needs to be more consistent, instead of having one game where he pitches 5 innings and they get 1 hit total and then another game where he gets no outs, allows 3 runs and leaves the game with the bases loaded. His inconsistency is the reason he isn’t normally put into close games (at least with Buck, we don’t know yet with Ron).
Bruce Chen:
Bruce is very home-run prone, which really hurts his chances, especially since he’s in a hitters’ park. He’s probably going to be replaced be Gagne or Wright. He allowed the most home runs by anyone in the AL last year. He, like Benoit, is inconsistent which also holds him back. He might improve if he goes back to AA ball where he isn’t thinking about the win as much as trying to improve on his weaknesses.
Scott Feldman:
Scott did great in ’05, but had an up and down year in ’06. His wind-up is strange, which helps him against more easily distracted batters. His fastball is about as fast as Kevin Millwood’s, so he doesn’t usually overpower hitters. He will be used as a middle reliever. I think he will have a good year and will be used more and more as the year goes on.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron became a starter for the Rangers in late 2005 and did a great job. He did good enough to go into last year as the #3 starter. He really struggled and got sent down to the minors after an injury, where he was the rest of the year. He had a great Spring Training this year and made it into the bullpen, when he was expected by many to not make the team at all going into Spring Training. He will probably join the starting rotation some time this year.
Ron Mahay:
Ron’s 1st two years with Texas were great, but he then struggled in ’05 and did well again in ’06. Like Feldman, he’s not an overpowering guy, but gets people out with control and getting them to ground out. He’ll mostly be used as a situational lefty.
Brandon McCarthy:
Brandon was a huge prospect with Chicago (White Sox) when he got traded. He had been in the majors, but never for a full season. He has not done particularly well in the majors, but seems to be getting better and less home run prone.
Kevin Millwood:
Kevin had an off year (for him) last year with a 4.52 ERA after being the AL ERA leader in ’05. He has good movement and control with a fastball at around 92. He is not a strike-out pitcher, but is good at getting ground balls.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year last year, getting many saves and almost never blowing one. He also does well with precision and control and doesn’t get many strike-outs.
Vicente Padilla:
Padilla is an overpowering pitcher that can’t be hit on a good day and serves meatballs on a bad day. He is very inconsistent, especially at the end of the year. He can hit the high 90’s with a fastball. Last year was arguably his best year yet.
Robinson Tejeda:
Tejeda, like Padilla, was a pitcher from the Phillies that we acquired last year. He started the season poorly, walking an average of 8 per 9 innings. He finished off the year great after being in the minors for a while, except for a few spot starts, and has the only good starting pitcher performance for the Rangers so far this year.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a very good prospect who can be any type of bullpen pitcher: long reliever, middle reliever, set-up man, situational lefty and closer. He can shut down hitters with any of his pitches, except for maybe his Spring Training experiment, the gyroball.
Mike Wood:
Mike is a former Royals pitcher who has an ERA in the mid-5’s. He will probably be replaced by Gagne or Wright.
Overall, I predict the Rangers to go 84-78 and go 25-20 in the division.
Come back next week for an analysis on the hitters.
Last night, we saw Eric Gagne pitch for the RoughRiders on his rehab assignment. Before the game I asked him to sign a ball that I’m getting the Rangers to sign as a prize for the Newberg charity toy drive this summer. He told me that he was going to sign for me after the game. I knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching and he knew he would be gone as soon as he was done pitching. Just like I figured, Eric pitched to three batters and then left the park as soon as he was done. This happens all the time, when a player says that they will sign after the game when they know that they’ll be gone before it’s over. We see it happen in Spring Training a lot. Why didn’t he just say that he had to pitch and couldn’t sign instead of saying something he knew wasn’t true? Players don’t have to sign for anyone but they should either be a man of their word or don't give a word.
This week I will analyze all the pitchers on the Rangers active roster.
Joaquin Benoit:
Joaquin takes a lot of time between pitches, which sometimes hurts the concentration of players fielding behind him. He needs to be more consistent, instead of having one game where he pitches 5 innings and they get 1 hit total and then another game where he gets no outs, allows 3 runs and leaves the game with the bases loaded. His inconsistency is the reason he isn’t normally put into close games (at least with Buck, we don’t know yet with Ron).
Bruce Chen:
Bruce is very home-run prone, which really hurts his chances, especially since he’s in a hitters’ park. He’s probably going to be replaced be Gagne or Wright. He allowed the most home runs by anyone in the AL last year. He, like Benoit, is inconsistent which also holds him back. He might improve if he goes back to AA ball where he isn’t thinking about the win as much as trying to improve on his weaknesses.
Scott Feldman:
Scott did great in ’05, but had an up and down year in ’06. His wind-up is strange, which helps him against more easily distracted batters. His fastball is about as fast as Kevin Millwood’s, so he doesn’t usually overpower hitters. He will be used as a middle reliever. I think he will have a good year and will be used more and more as the year goes on.
Kameron Loe:
Kameron became a starter for the Rangers in late 2005 and did a great job. He did good enough to go into last year as the #3 starter. He really struggled and got sent down to the minors after an injury, where he was the rest of the year. He had a great Spring Training this year and made it into the bullpen, when he was expected by many to not make the team at all going into Spring Training. He will probably join the starting rotation some time this year.
Ron Mahay:
Ron’s 1st two years with Texas were great, but he then struggled in ’05 and did well again in ’06. Like Feldman, he’s not an overpowering guy, but gets people out with control and getting them to ground out. He’ll mostly be used as a situational lefty.
Brandon McCarthy:
Brandon was a huge prospect with Chicago (White Sox) when he got traded. He had been in the majors, but never for a full season. He has not done particularly well in the majors, but seems to be getting better and less home run prone.
Kevin Millwood:
Kevin had an off year (for him) last year with a 4.52 ERA after being the AL ERA leader in ’05. He has good movement and control with a fastball at around 92. He is not a strike-out pitcher, but is good at getting ground balls.
Akinori Otsuka:
Akinori was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year last year, getting many saves and almost never blowing one. He also does well with precision and control and doesn’t get many strike-outs.
Vicente Padilla:
Padilla is an overpowering pitcher that can’t be hit on a good day and serves meatballs on a bad day. He is very inconsistent, especially at the end of the year. He can hit the high 90’s with a fastball. Last year was arguably his best year yet.
Robinson Tejeda:
Tejeda, like Padilla, was a pitcher from the Phillies that we acquired last year. He started the season poorly, walking an average of 8 per 9 innings. He finished off the year great after being in the minors for a while, except for a few spot starts, and has the only good starting pitcher performance for the Rangers so far this year.
C.J. Wilson:
CJ is a very good prospect who can be any type of bullpen pitcher: long reliever, middle reliever, set-up man, situational lefty and closer. He can shut down hitters with any of his pitches, except for maybe his Spring Training experiment, the gyroball.
Mike Wood:
Mike is a former Royals pitcher who has an ERA in the mid-5’s. He will probably be replaced by Gagne or Wright.
Overall, I predict the Rangers to go 84-78 and go 25-20 in the division.
Come back next week for an analysis on the hitters.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
2007 Season Predictions
This week I will give my predictions for the standings, playoffs, and awards.
Regular Season Standings:
AL West:
1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
2. Texas Rangers
3. Oakland A’s
4. Seattle Mariners
AL Central:
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians – wild card
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
AL East:
1. New York Yankees
2. Boston Red Sox
3. Baltimore Orioles
4. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
NL West:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Diego Padres
3. Colorado Rockies
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
5. San Francisco Giants
NL Central:
1. Cincinnati Reds
2. St. Louis Cardinals – wild card
3. Chicago Cubs
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates
NL East:
1. New York Mets
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. Florida Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Washington Nationals
Playoffs:
AL Division Series:
New York Yankees over Cleveland Indians
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Detroit Tigers
NL Division Series:
New York Mets over St. Louis Cardinals
Cincinnati Reds over Los Angeles Dodgers
Championship Games:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over New York Yankees
Cincinnati Reds over New York Mets
World Series:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Cincinnati Reds
Champions:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Awards:
AL MVP: Travis Hafner because last year he hit 42 HR and drove in 117 RBI’s. He also hit over .300. Travis did all this and was injured for almost a month. If he does get the MVP award, that would be another reason why the Hafner/Drese/Diaz trade was awful.
NL MVP: Ryan Howard because he hit almost 60 homers last year, hit .313, and will probably get better as he gets more experience.
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana because nobody in baseball can compete with him.
NL Cy Young: Roy Oswalt because he has the ability to fool, overpower, and make players miss.
AL Rookie of the Year: Dice-K Matsuzaka because he is one of the very few top rookies this year that will get a lot of playing time on a competing team.
NL Rookie of the Year: Chris Young because he can hit for power very well.
Come back next week for a Rangers roster analysis.
Regular Season Standings:
AL West:
1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
2. Texas Rangers
3. Oakland A’s
4. Seattle Mariners
AL Central:
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians – wild card
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
AL East:
1. New York Yankees
2. Boston Red Sox
3. Baltimore Orioles
4. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
NL West:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Diego Padres
3. Colorado Rockies
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
5. San Francisco Giants
NL Central:
1. Cincinnati Reds
2. St. Louis Cardinals – wild card
3. Chicago Cubs
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates
NL East:
1. New York Mets
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. Florida Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Washington Nationals
Playoffs:
AL Division Series:
New York Yankees over Cleveland Indians
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Detroit Tigers
NL Division Series:
New York Mets over St. Louis Cardinals
Cincinnati Reds over Los Angeles Dodgers
Championship Games:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over New York Yankees
Cincinnati Reds over New York Mets
World Series:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Cincinnati Reds
Champions:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Awards:
AL MVP: Travis Hafner because last year he hit 42 HR and drove in 117 RBI’s. He also hit over .300. Travis did all this and was injured for almost a month. If he does get the MVP award, that would be another reason why the Hafner/Drese/Diaz trade was awful.
NL MVP: Ryan Howard because he hit almost 60 homers last year, hit .313, and will probably get better as he gets more experience.
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana because nobody in baseball can compete with him.
NL Cy Young: Roy Oswalt because he has the ability to fool, overpower, and make players miss.
AL Rookie of the Year: Dice-K Matsuzaka because he is one of the very few top rookies this year that will get a lot of playing time on a competing team.
NL Rookie of the Year: Chris Young because he can hit for power very well.
Come back next week for a Rangers roster analysis.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Ian Kinsler Interview
This week I did an interview with Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler.
1. Why did you decide to go to college instead of going to the Diamondbacks when they drafted you in 2000 and 2001?
At the time I felt like I wasn't ready for minor league baseball, I had to make that decision and live with it. I also thought that going to college would make me a more rounded baseball player.
2. What was the key to your high school success, when you won 2 state titles and hit over .500 in your senior year?
I think the key to my high school success was the players that played around me for those 4 years. The likes of Scott Haristion, Brian Anderson, Chris Duncan, Shelly Duncan, and Ryan Schroyer. We were a very dominate high school team and we all knew what we where capable of doing. As far as hitting .500, honestly I think that happened because I was trying to win every game I played and that was just the result.
3. What was the key to making it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season in 2004?
The key was playing well in low A. I worked really hard that off season to be prepared to make a jump like that because I believed I could do it.
4. What was it like for you to transfer from shortstop to second base in 2005 with the Redhawks?
It was tough on the ego at first. But really the toughest part of the switch was the double play, starting the turn and making the turn. I had some great people around me to help me with that transition.
5. Were you excited when you were named to the AAA All-Star team in 2005 or would you rather have had the time off?
Of course I was excited. I had to miss the All-Star game the previous year in A ball because of the move to AA, so that gave me a little more reason to be excited to attend that All-Star game and see what it was all about. The best part was the home run derby.
6. What is the Arizona Fall League like? Are there many fans? What’s the overall experience like?
There aren't many fans in the fall league, but that isn't what it is about. It is about having the honor to play with the best prospects in the game at the time. I loved my experience.
7. What was the recovery process for your injured thumb last year and how frustrating was it to get injured so early in your rookie year?
The process was a lot of ice and more ice on top of the ice. It was a cold month and a couple of weeks. On the other hand I learned a lot, like how to come back from an injury and be successful and to be patient with the process of being injured.
8. How different is winning the Rangers Rookie of the Year award (2006) than winning the Rangers Minor League Player of the Year award (2004)?
I think that one is a minor league award and the other is a major league award. I was excited to receive both awards.
9. What are the three toughest pitchers you’ve faced and why?
The toughest pitchers that I have faced are Mike Mussina, Johan Santana, and Jose Contreras. The reason is because of their off speed pitches - top notch.
10. How exciting was it to win a championship in AA in 2004?
That team was the best I have been on. We all loved to play together and we had a good mix of vets and young players. That season was a lot of fun.
11. Is there any specific thing you’ve been working on in the off-season, and if so, what is it?
I have been working on the strength in my legs. I thought that was a weakness that I had to attack. It should help my speed and my quickness.
12. In your first pro season in 2003 at Spokane, you struggled at first (.239 in July). What adjustments did you make to hit .298 the rest of the season?
I think it was a little adjustment to the wood bat and also an adjustment to play the game everyday. I was lucky I adjusted that fast.
13. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Jason Botts because I have gotten to know him really well. We understand each other. I have also lived with him for 3 years. Dane Bubbela, I don't know if you remember him, he won the batting title in Spokane in 03. The other has to be Michael Young. I have only played with him for one year but I see a lot of myself in him as a ball player and a person.
14. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career and why?
The first game I came back after injury. We came back from a 7 to 1 deficit and won a game against Oakland with a Phil Nevin walk off home run. The two home runs that I hit that night also helped my decision.
15. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league pitchers?
Not too many adjustments for me. I think the biggest and most important is to be patient at the plate and realize that I am in charge of the situation. I choose what I swing at, not the pitcher.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
The sport I played growing up was soccer. That was also my best sport besides baseball. I was all state my senior year. I really enjoyed that sport, and still do.
17. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
The New York Mets, my father is from New York and loved the Yankees. Everyone knows how New Yorkers are - they need adversity at all times. When he moved to Arizona he didn't have any so he decided to make some by making me a Mets fan. Try to figure that one out.
I would like to thank Ian for giving such great answers and for being really nice about doing this interview.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
1. Why did you decide to go to college instead of going to the Diamondbacks when they drafted you in 2000 and 2001?
At the time I felt like I wasn't ready for minor league baseball, I had to make that decision and live with it. I also thought that going to college would make me a more rounded baseball player.
2. What was the key to your high school success, when you won 2 state titles and hit over .500 in your senior year?
I think the key to my high school success was the players that played around me for those 4 years. The likes of Scott Haristion, Brian Anderson, Chris Duncan, Shelly Duncan, and Ryan Schroyer. We were a very dominate high school team and we all knew what we where capable of doing. As far as hitting .500, honestly I think that happened because I was trying to win every game I played and that was just the result.
3. What was the key to making it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season in 2004?
The key was playing well in low A. I worked really hard that off season to be prepared to make a jump like that because I believed I could do it.
4. What was it like for you to transfer from shortstop to second base in 2005 with the Redhawks?
It was tough on the ego at first. But really the toughest part of the switch was the double play, starting the turn and making the turn. I had some great people around me to help me with that transition.
5. Were you excited when you were named to the AAA All-Star team in 2005 or would you rather have had the time off?
Of course I was excited. I had to miss the All-Star game the previous year in A ball because of the move to AA, so that gave me a little more reason to be excited to attend that All-Star game and see what it was all about. The best part was the home run derby.
6. What is the Arizona Fall League like? Are there many fans? What’s the overall experience like?
There aren't many fans in the fall league, but that isn't what it is about. It is about having the honor to play with the best prospects in the game at the time. I loved my experience.
7. What was the recovery process for your injured thumb last year and how frustrating was it to get injured so early in your rookie year?
The process was a lot of ice and more ice on top of the ice. It was a cold month and a couple of weeks. On the other hand I learned a lot, like how to come back from an injury and be successful and to be patient with the process of being injured.
8. How different is winning the Rangers Rookie of the Year award (2006) than winning the Rangers Minor League Player of the Year award (2004)?
I think that one is a minor league award and the other is a major league award. I was excited to receive both awards.
9. What are the three toughest pitchers you’ve faced and why?
The toughest pitchers that I have faced are Mike Mussina, Johan Santana, and Jose Contreras. The reason is because of their off speed pitches - top notch.
10. How exciting was it to win a championship in AA in 2004?
That team was the best I have been on. We all loved to play together and we had a good mix of vets and young players. That season was a lot of fun.
11. Is there any specific thing you’ve been working on in the off-season, and if so, what is it?
I have been working on the strength in my legs. I thought that was a weakness that I had to attack. It should help my speed and my quickness.
12. In your first pro season in 2003 at Spokane, you struggled at first (.239 in July). What adjustments did you make to hit .298 the rest of the season?
I think it was a little adjustment to the wood bat and also an adjustment to play the game everyday. I was lucky I adjusted that fast.
13. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Jason Botts because I have gotten to know him really well. We understand each other. I have also lived with him for 3 years. Dane Bubbela, I don't know if you remember him, he won the batting title in Spokane in 03. The other has to be Michael Young. I have only played with him for one year but I see a lot of myself in him as a ball player and a person.
14. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career and why?
The first game I came back after injury. We came back from a 7 to 1 deficit and won a game against Oakland with a Phil Nevin walk off home run. The two home runs that I hit that night also helped my decision.
15. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league pitchers?
Not too many adjustments for me. I think the biggest and most important is to be patient at the plate and realize that I am in charge of the situation. I choose what I swing at, not the pitcher.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
The sport I played growing up was soccer. That was also my best sport besides baseball. I was all state my senior year. I really enjoyed that sport, and still do.
17. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
The New York Mets, my father is from New York and loved the Yankees. Everyone knows how New Yorkers are - they need adversity at all times. When he moved to Arizona he didn't have any so he decided to make some by making me a Mets fan. Try to figure that one out.
I would like to thank Ian for giving such great answers and for being really nice about doing this interview.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Description of my Trip to Spring Training with my Dad and Granddad
Day 1 – Sunday March 4th
We flew out to Phoenix on an 11:30am flight. The flight was delayed for about an hour. We landed a little after 1:30pm. We went straight to Surprise Stadium for the Royals home game against the Rangers. We got there during the bottom of the 7th. It was 4-0 Rangers when we got there and they ended up winning 5-0.
After the game, I got autographs from Desi Relaford and Marlon Byrd, watched Thomas Diamond and Jose Vargas have a bullpen session, and then got autographs from Chris Stewart and Jose Vargas. During the bullpen session, Jose Vargas’ fastball was very fast.
We checked into the Hampton Inn and Suites in Surprise. It was a nice room with two beds and a sleeper sofa. It was a nice hotel overall – and I would recommend it. They have a free breakfast in the morning and cookies and sodas in the evening, plus free wireless access.
We tried to eat at Outback for dinner but it was too crowded, so we went to the Chili’s on Bell Road instead.
Day 2 – Monday March 5th
We went to the Rangers workouts on the backfields in the morning. The Rangers were in Tucson but a lot of the players stayed behind. When we got there, they were all doing warm-up exercises. I was wearing a Peter Warrick Bengals jersey and the players were all trying to figure out who it was. CJ Wilson and Michael Young asked me to tell them who it was. None of them had guessed right.
When they were moving from warm-ups to the hitting and pitching stations, I got autographs from Kenny Lofton and Sammy Sosa. I noticed during the week that Kenny was really nice until you asked him for an autograph. I was the only person he signed for that day. The hitters took batting practice and the pitchers took fielding practice. As workouts were breaking up, I got autographs from Bruce Chen, Jamey Wright, Mike Wood, Francisco Cruceta, Rick Bauer, Salomon Manriquez, and Taylor Teagarden. Salomon didn’t seem to like signing but everyone else was really nice about it. Taylor remembered us from the Newberg Bound Edition release party.
After workouts, we went to Maryvale Baseball Park to see a Brewers game. They were playing the White Sox and won 4-3. Mark Buerhle and Jeff Suppan started. During the game, Brewers GM (and former Rangers GM) Doug Melvin sat behind us and we got to talk to him for a while. He was very friendly and seemed to enjoy talking about baseball.
It was the worst of the Spring Training stadiums in Phoenix. It wasn’t clean and had nothing special – just a plain ballpark. It was the last Spring Training ballpark in the Phoenix area we hadn’t seen a game at.
We went to Outback for dinner. Scott Servais and some other Rangers people were eating dinner there too.
We watched Eragon in the hotel room after dinner. It was a good movie, but I expected more after the book was so good. Over the trip, I spent my spare time reading the sequel to Eragon, Eldest. It is also great.
Day 3 – Tuesday March 6th
We went to the Rangers workouts in the backfields in the morning. The gates for the workouts open at 10am. Shirley the Cookie Lady, her friend Dorothy and their husbands were there every morning. They were staying in Surprise for a month.
It is very easy to talk to players, because they go to different stations, where fans are allowed to be.
We saw Eric Gagne take a bullpen session. The pitchers were taking fielding practice again. We saw Evan Grant and talked to him for a while. We met Tim Cowlishaw. We also talked to Gregg Elkin and he let us go into the stadium an hour before the gates opened so that we could watch the star players take BP.
Before the game, I got autographs from Ramon Vazquez and Franklyn German. During the game, I talked to Jon Daniels. The Rangers lost 10-3. After the game, I got autographs from Willie Eyre and Matt Kata. Matt really doesn’t like to sign.
We ate at Red Robin, then went to a nighttime Padres game at Peoria Stadium. They beat the Diamondbacks 5-3. Chris Young and Brandon Webb started. Jerry Hairston sat two rows in front of us. We talked to him for a while when he was leaving and he was really friendly and happy to talk.
Day 4 – Wednesday March 7th
The Rangers had a B game at 10am on the backfields. The B games have very unofficial rules, and barely have any fans. One time Matt Connor just yelled out “1 more,” after the third out and Kevin Millwood got a fourth out. They don’t play all 9 innings.
During the game, we talked with Thad Levine, Keith Meister, Jon Daniels, Josh Lewin, some scouts, Randy Galloway and a Royals official named Dan Glass.
I got autographs from Scott Rice and Guillermo Quiroz. At that point, I had autographs from everyone on the Spring Training roster except for Victor Diaz. I mentioned this to Jerry Hairston and he said that he would tell Victor to look for me at the game.
I went to the Rangers game against the Diamondbacks. Before the game, I got Victor Diaz’s autograph. Jerry had probably told him to look for me. That completed my spring collection – I had autographs from all 57 players in major league camp. The Rangers won 9-8.
I went to the Suns game that night. The arena was better than the Mavs one, but wasn’t great. It had a good kids area. The game was really close, even though the Suns were playing the Bobcats. It went to overtime, but the Bobcats fell apart in it.
Day 5 – Thursday March 8th
We checked out of the hotel, and then went to the workouts on the backfields. When we got there, they had already split up for batting practice and pitchers’ fielding practice. I asked a lot of people my poll question (below). Otsuka talked to us a long time – he’s very friendly. Michael Young gave me a bat. I talked to Kevin Harmon too.
We drove to the A’s stadium for the Rangers/A’s game. The Rangers won 7-6. We left after the 7th inning to get to the airport and fly home on a 6:30pm flight.
I took a player poll during the week. The question was: Do you think the AL and NL should have the same DH system, and if so, which league should change? The following people responded:
- Kevin Millwood
- Jamey Wright
- Michael Young
- Kameron Loe
- Josh Rupe
- Jon Daniels
- Frank Catalanotto
- Brad Wilkerson
- Ramon Vazquez
- Bruce Chen
- Akinori Otsuka
- Brandon McCarthy
- Gerald Laird
- Mark Teixeira
- CJ Wilson
- Scott Feldman
Here are the results of the poll:
- The AL should lose the DH – 8 (50%)
- It should stay the same – 6 (37.5%)
- The NL should get the DH – 2 (12.5%)
I will also rate all the Pheonix Spring Training stadiums 1-10, 10 being the best.
1. Surprise Stadium (Rangers/Royals) - 10
2. Peoria Stadium (Mariners/Padres) - 9
3. Scottsdale Stadium (Giants) - 8
4. HoHoKam Park (Cubs) - 6
5. Pheonix Municipal Stadium (A’s) - 5
6. Tempe Diablo Stadium (Angels) -4
7. Maryvale Baseball Park (Brewers) - 3
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
We flew out to Phoenix on an 11:30am flight. The flight was delayed for about an hour. We landed a little after 1:30pm. We went straight to Surprise Stadium for the Royals home game against the Rangers. We got there during the bottom of the 7th. It was 4-0 Rangers when we got there and they ended up winning 5-0.
After the game, I got autographs from Desi Relaford and Marlon Byrd, watched Thomas Diamond and Jose Vargas have a bullpen session, and then got autographs from Chris Stewart and Jose Vargas. During the bullpen session, Jose Vargas’ fastball was very fast.
We checked into the Hampton Inn and Suites in Surprise. It was a nice room with two beds and a sleeper sofa. It was a nice hotel overall – and I would recommend it. They have a free breakfast in the morning and cookies and sodas in the evening, plus free wireless access.
We tried to eat at Outback for dinner but it was too crowded, so we went to the Chili’s on Bell Road instead.
Day 2 – Monday March 5th
We went to the Rangers workouts on the backfields in the morning. The Rangers were in Tucson but a lot of the players stayed behind. When we got there, they were all doing warm-up exercises. I was wearing a Peter Warrick Bengals jersey and the players were all trying to figure out who it was. CJ Wilson and Michael Young asked me to tell them who it was. None of them had guessed right.
When they were moving from warm-ups to the hitting and pitching stations, I got autographs from Kenny Lofton and Sammy Sosa. I noticed during the week that Kenny was really nice until you asked him for an autograph. I was the only person he signed for that day. The hitters took batting practice and the pitchers took fielding practice. As workouts were breaking up, I got autographs from Bruce Chen, Jamey Wright, Mike Wood, Francisco Cruceta, Rick Bauer, Salomon Manriquez, and Taylor Teagarden. Salomon didn’t seem to like signing but everyone else was really nice about it. Taylor remembered us from the Newberg Bound Edition release party.
After workouts, we went to Maryvale Baseball Park to see a Brewers game. They were playing the White Sox and won 4-3. Mark Buerhle and Jeff Suppan started. During the game, Brewers GM (and former Rangers GM) Doug Melvin sat behind us and we got to talk to him for a while. He was very friendly and seemed to enjoy talking about baseball.
It was the worst of the Spring Training stadiums in Phoenix. It wasn’t clean and had nothing special – just a plain ballpark. It was the last Spring Training ballpark in the Phoenix area we hadn’t seen a game at.
We went to Outback for dinner. Scott Servais and some other Rangers people were eating dinner there too.
We watched Eragon in the hotel room after dinner. It was a good movie, but I expected more after the book was so good. Over the trip, I spent my spare time reading the sequel to Eragon, Eldest. It is also great.
Day 3 – Tuesday March 6th
We went to the Rangers workouts in the backfields in the morning. The gates for the workouts open at 10am. Shirley the Cookie Lady, her friend Dorothy and their husbands were there every morning. They were staying in Surprise for a month.
It is very easy to talk to players, because they go to different stations, where fans are allowed to be.
We saw Eric Gagne take a bullpen session. The pitchers were taking fielding practice again. We saw Evan Grant and talked to him for a while. We met Tim Cowlishaw. We also talked to Gregg Elkin and he let us go into the stadium an hour before the gates opened so that we could watch the star players take BP.
Before the game, I got autographs from Ramon Vazquez and Franklyn German. During the game, I talked to Jon Daniels. The Rangers lost 10-3. After the game, I got autographs from Willie Eyre and Matt Kata. Matt really doesn’t like to sign.
We ate at Red Robin, then went to a nighttime Padres game at Peoria Stadium. They beat the Diamondbacks 5-3. Chris Young and Brandon Webb started. Jerry Hairston sat two rows in front of us. We talked to him for a while when he was leaving and he was really friendly and happy to talk.
Day 4 – Wednesday March 7th
The Rangers had a B game at 10am on the backfields. The B games have very unofficial rules, and barely have any fans. One time Matt Connor just yelled out “1 more,” after the third out and Kevin Millwood got a fourth out. They don’t play all 9 innings.
During the game, we talked with Thad Levine, Keith Meister, Jon Daniels, Josh Lewin, some scouts, Randy Galloway and a Royals official named Dan Glass.
I got autographs from Scott Rice and Guillermo Quiroz. At that point, I had autographs from everyone on the Spring Training roster except for Victor Diaz. I mentioned this to Jerry Hairston and he said that he would tell Victor to look for me at the game.
I went to the Rangers game against the Diamondbacks. Before the game, I got Victor Diaz’s autograph. Jerry had probably told him to look for me. That completed my spring collection – I had autographs from all 57 players in major league camp. The Rangers won 9-8.
I went to the Suns game that night. The arena was better than the Mavs one, but wasn’t great. It had a good kids area. The game was really close, even though the Suns were playing the Bobcats. It went to overtime, but the Bobcats fell apart in it.
Day 5 – Thursday March 8th
We checked out of the hotel, and then went to the workouts on the backfields. When we got there, they had already split up for batting practice and pitchers’ fielding practice. I asked a lot of people my poll question (below). Otsuka talked to us a long time – he’s very friendly. Michael Young gave me a bat. I talked to Kevin Harmon too.
We drove to the A’s stadium for the Rangers/A’s game. The Rangers won 7-6. We left after the 7th inning to get to the airport and fly home on a 6:30pm flight.
I took a player poll during the week. The question was: Do you think the AL and NL should have the same DH system, and if so, which league should change? The following people responded:
- Kevin Millwood
- Jamey Wright
- Michael Young
- Kameron Loe
- Josh Rupe
- Jon Daniels
- Frank Catalanotto
- Brad Wilkerson
- Ramon Vazquez
- Bruce Chen
- Akinori Otsuka
- Brandon McCarthy
- Gerald Laird
- Mark Teixeira
- CJ Wilson
- Scott Feldman
Here are the results of the poll:
- The AL should lose the DH – 8 (50%)
- It should stay the same – 6 (37.5%)
- The NL should get the DH – 2 (12.5%)
I will also rate all the Pheonix Spring Training stadiums 1-10, 10 being the best.
1. Surprise Stadium (Rangers/Royals) - 10
2. Peoria Stadium (Mariners/Padres) - 9
3. Scottsdale Stadium (Giants) - 8
4. HoHoKam Park (Cubs) - 6
5. Pheonix Municipal Stadium (A’s) - 5
6. Tempe Diablo Stadium (Angels) -4
7. Maryvale Baseball Park (Brewers) - 3
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL East and NL West.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Spring Training Trip Report Part 1 of 2 - Player Performance
This week I went to Spring Training and took notes on how the players performed. I went to 3 full Rangers games and took notes from every one of them.
After seeing them play, I don’t think Desi Relaford will make the team anymore. Instead, I think Jerry Hairston Jr. will take his spot.
Mariners @ Rangers, Tuesday March 6th:
For this game, I’ll provide a play-by-play analysis of the first three innings, to give a feel for what to expect in the season.
Top of the 1st: Jamey Wright pitching:
Jamey struck out Ichiro, and allowed no hits. He did allow a warning track fly ball, though.
Bottom of the 1st: Horacio Ramirez against:
Kenny Lofton: Lofton took three straight balls to start off the at-bat, all of them close. He then swung at two straight pitches, one of them foul, and he didn’t connect on the other one. The next pitch was a ball and he walked. The at-bat was seven pitches long.
Frank Catalanotto: Like Kenny, Frank took three straight balls to start off the count. He then grounded out, moving Lofton to 2nd.
Michael Young: Michael hit a grounder to the pitcher and Lofton was caught in between 2nd and 3rd. Lofton got out but Young got to second safely.
Sammy Sosa: He swung and missed at the first two pitches, fouled one off, then took a close ball. He then had a check swing on a pitch, which was called a ball, fouled one off, and was way in front of the curveball as he struck out on another 7-pitch at-bat.
Top of the 2nd: Jamey Wright against:
Richie Sexson: When the count was 1-1, Sexson hit a liner to right field where Cruz made a good play to get the out.
Ben Broussard: Jamey threw a good fastball on the corner to start the at-bat. The next pitch was outside. He ended up walking Broussard.
Bryan LaHair: Jamey threw two pitches on the outside corner after a ball to get the count to 1-2. Then with a 2-2 count, Bryan grounded to second for a probable double play but Ramon Vazquez made a bad throw to Young and there were runners on 2nd and 3rd.
Jamie Burke: With a 0-2 count, Jamie lined a ball to center for a single. 2-0 Mariners.
Oswaldo Navarro: A change-up in the dirt was the first pitch and the next pitch was fouled off. With a 1-2 count Navarro hit a grounder to Young for an out.
Rey Ordonez: A high chopper was hit on the first pitch. It was a close play but he was out after bad communication, when Blalock cut right in front of Young, who was almost to the ball, almost creating a collision.
Bottom of the 2nd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Hank Blalock: With a 2-2 count, Blalock grounded to third, for an out.
Nelson Cruz: Cruz got under the ball and flew out.
Jared Sandberg: Sandberg had a good eye and walked on four pitches.
Gerald Laird: After hitting a hard ball foul, he hit a soft grounder to 3rd, and a great play got a hustling Laird out.
Top of the 3rd: Akinori Otsuka against:
Ichiro: Ichiro fouled off the 1st and 3rd pitches and then grounded out to third. Blalock made a nice play to get him out.
Jeremy Reed: A great curveball was taken for the first strike. The next pitch was a fastball that was fouled off. Reed was fooled on the 3rd pitch and struck out.
Willie Bloomquist: The first two pitches were balls and the third pitch a strike. Then Bloomquist hit a grounder to third and Blalock got the out.
Bottom of the 3rd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Ramon Vazquez: Ramon took the first pitch, which was right down the middle, and he also took the second pitch, which was a strike. Then he hit a grounder to 2nd and got out.
Kenny Lofton: Kenny took the first three pitches and they were all balls, then grounded out to 2nd.
Frank Catalanotto: Frank fouled off the first pitch and then was robbed of a single by Rey Ordonez.
The Rangers pitchers struggled from this point on. The Rangers ended up losing the game 10-3.
Diamondbacks @ Rangers, Wednesday March 7th:
For this game, I took general notes for the whole game.
John Koronka: Koronka pitched great and really fooled the hitters. He had a good mix of speed and his curveball really broke well. He pitched three hitless innings to start the game.
Kameron Loe: Kameron pitched well, only allowing one unearned run on a Blalock error in three innings.
Freddy Guzman: Freddy dropped two balls, although they would have been great plays if he made the catches. Earlier in the game, Freddy really hustled and tripled. After that, he struck out.
Desi Relaford: Desi made an error on a very easy play. He also struck out, looking awful.
Francisco Cruceta: Francisco pitched awful and was hit very hard. He allowed one home run, allowed 4 earned runs, and hit a batter in two-thirds of an inning.
Sammy Sosa: Sammy hit a moon shot past the lawn seats. He went 2-for-3 on the day.
Gerald Laird: Gerald hit a homer to center that started a rally. When he got back in the dugout, his teammates ignored him as a joke, so Laird high-fived the air.
Brad Wilkerson: Brad struck out but went 2-for-3. On defense, he threw a strike to second to get an out.
Jose Vargas: Jose has a strange wind-up. It’s very jerky. He had poor control, walking one, giving up two hits, and giving up an earned run in two-thirds of an inning.
Victor Diaz: Victor swung too hard in his only at-bat, which resulted in a strike out.
Guillermo Quiroz: Guillermo struck out on three whiffs in his only at-bat.
Drew Meyer: Drew made a quick throw to second to get a quick start to a possible double play.
Mike Wood: Mike had a pretty good curveball and got ahead of hitters most of the time. He made great use of the corners.
Jerry Hairston: Jerry made a great defensive play but did not get the out.
Joaquin Arias: Joaquin didn’t play well as the DH, going 0-for-4.
The Rangers won 9-8.
Rangers @ A’s, Thursday March 8th.
For this game, I will give you some key statistics from the first 7 innings.
Strikeouts: Brad Wilkerson, Mark Teixeira (2), Hank Blalock, Kenny Lofton, Gerald Laird.
Grounded into double play: Mark Teixeira, Sammy Sosa
Caught-stealing: Gerald Laird
Walks: Frank Catalanotto, Hank Blalock, Gerald Laird, Marlon Byrd
Hits: Sammy Sosa (2), Michael Young, Gerald Laird, Ian Kinsler (2), Frank Catalanotto (2), Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz
Doubles: Frank Catalanotto, Sammy Sosa
Triples: Nelson Cruz
RBI’s: Gerald Laird, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz (2)
Runs: Sammy Sosa, Marlon Byrd, Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata
Hits allowed: Vicente Padilla (6), Franklyn German (3)
Walks committed: Vicente Padilla (1), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
Strike-outs: Vicente Padilla (1), Joaquin Benoit (1), Frank Francisco (1)
Errors: Jason Botts
Runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Earned runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Innings pitched: Vicente Padilla (3), Joaquin Benoit (2), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
The Rangers won 7-6.
Conclusion:
Everybody was off-and-on, which is to be expected this early in spring training. The power numbers aren’t too great yet. The trip confirmed my picks of who would make the team, except for Jerry Hairston replacing Desi Relaford.
Come back next week for a day-by-day description of my Spring Training trip.
After seeing them play, I don’t think Desi Relaford will make the team anymore. Instead, I think Jerry Hairston Jr. will take his spot.
Mariners @ Rangers, Tuesday March 6th:
For this game, I’ll provide a play-by-play analysis of the first three innings, to give a feel for what to expect in the season.
Top of the 1st: Jamey Wright pitching:
Jamey struck out Ichiro, and allowed no hits. He did allow a warning track fly ball, though.
Bottom of the 1st: Horacio Ramirez against:
Kenny Lofton: Lofton took three straight balls to start off the at-bat, all of them close. He then swung at two straight pitches, one of them foul, and he didn’t connect on the other one. The next pitch was a ball and he walked. The at-bat was seven pitches long.
Frank Catalanotto: Like Kenny, Frank took three straight balls to start off the count. He then grounded out, moving Lofton to 2nd.
Michael Young: Michael hit a grounder to the pitcher and Lofton was caught in between 2nd and 3rd. Lofton got out but Young got to second safely.
Sammy Sosa: He swung and missed at the first two pitches, fouled one off, then took a close ball. He then had a check swing on a pitch, which was called a ball, fouled one off, and was way in front of the curveball as he struck out on another 7-pitch at-bat.
Top of the 2nd: Jamey Wright against:
Richie Sexson: When the count was 1-1, Sexson hit a liner to right field where Cruz made a good play to get the out.
Ben Broussard: Jamey threw a good fastball on the corner to start the at-bat. The next pitch was outside. He ended up walking Broussard.
Bryan LaHair: Jamey threw two pitches on the outside corner after a ball to get the count to 1-2. Then with a 2-2 count, Bryan grounded to second for a probable double play but Ramon Vazquez made a bad throw to Young and there were runners on 2nd and 3rd.
Jamie Burke: With a 0-2 count, Jamie lined a ball to center for a single. 2-0 Mariners.
Oswaldo Navarro: A change-up in the dirt was the first pitch and the next pitch was fouled off. With a 1-2 count Navarro hit a grounder to Young for an out.
Rey Ordonez: A high chopper was hit on the first pitch. It was a close play but he was out after bad communication, when Blalock cut right in front of Young, who was almost to the ball, almost creating a collision.
Bottom of the 2nd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Hank Blalock: With a 2-2 count, Blalock grounded to third, for an out.
Nelson Cruz: Cruz got under the ball and flew out.
Jared Sandberg: Sandberg had a good eye and walked on four pitches.
Gerald Laird: After hitting a hard ball foul, he hit a soft grounder to 3rd, and a great play got a hustling Laird out.
Top of the 3rd: Akinori Otsuka against:
Ichiro: Ichiro fouled off the 1st and 3rd pitches and then grounded out to third. Blalock made a nice play to get him out.
Jeremy Reed: A great curveball was taken for the first strike. The next pitch was a fastball that was fouled off. Reed was fooled on the 3rd pitch and struck out.
Willie Bloomquist: The first two pitches were balls and the third pitch a strike. Then Bloomquist hit a grounder to third and Blalock got the out.
Bottom of the 3rd: Horacio Ramirez against:
Ramon Vazquez: Ramon took the first pitch, which was right down the middle, and he also took the second pitch, which was a strike. Then he hit a grounder to 2nd and got out.
Kenny Lofton: Kenny took the first three pitches and they were all balls, then grounded out to 2nd.
Frank Catalanotto: Frank fouled off the first pitch and then was robbed of a single by Rey Ordonez.
The Rangers pitchers struggled from this point on. The Rangers ended up losing the game 10-3.
Diamondbacks @ Rangers, Wednesday March 7th:
For this game, I took general notes for the whole game.
John Koronka: Koronka pitched great and really fooled the hitters. He had a good mix of speed and his curveball really broke well. He pitched three hitless innings to start the game.
Kameron Loe: Kameron pitched well, only allowing one unearned run on a Blalock error in three innings.
Freddy Guzman: Freddy dropped two balls, although they would have been great plays if he made the catches. Earlier in the game, Freddy really hustled and tripled. After that, he struck out.
Desi Relaford: Desi made an error on a very easy play. He also struck out, looking awful.
Francisco Cruceta: Francisco pitched awful and was hit very hard. He allowed one home run, allowed 4 earned runs, and hit a batter in two-thirds of an inning.
Sammy Sosa: Sammy hit a moon shot past the lawn seats. He went 2-for-3 on the day.
Gerald Laird: Gerald hit a homer to center that started a rally. When he got back in the dugout, his teammates ignored him as a joke, so Laird high-fived the air.
Brad Wilkerson: Brad struck out but went 2-for-3. On defense, he threw a strike to second to get an out.
Jose Vargas: Jose has a strange wind-up. It’s very jerky. He had poor control, walking one, giving up two hits, and giving up an earned run in two-thirds of an inning.
Victor Diaz: Victor swung too hard in his only at-bat, which resulted in a strike out.
Guillermo Quiroz: Guillermo struck out on three whiffs in his only at-bat.
Drew Meyer: Drew made a quick throw to second to get a quick start to a possible double play.
Mike Wood: Mike had a pretty good curveball and got ahead of hitters most of the time. He made great use of the corners.
Jerry Hairston: Jerry made a great defensive play but did not get the out.
Joaquin Arias: Joaquin didn’t play well as the DH, going 0-for-4.
The Rangers won 9-8.
Rangers @ A’s, Thursday March 8th.
For this game, I will give you some key statistics from the first 7 innings.
Strikeouts: Brad Wilkerson, Mark Teixeira (2), Hank Blalock, Kenny Lofton, Gerald Laird.
Grounded into double play: Mark Teixeira, Sammy Sosa
Caught-stealing: Gerald Laird
Walks: Frank Catalanotto, Hank Blalock, Gerald Laird, Marlon Byrd
Hits: Sammy Sosa (2), Michael Young, Gerald Laird, Ian Kinsler (2), Frank Catalanotto (2), Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz
Doubles: Frank Catalanotto, Sammy Sosa
Triples: Nelson Cruz
RBI’s: Gerald Laird, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata, Nelson Cruz (2)
Runs: Sammy Sosa, Marlon Byrd, Jason Botts, Ramon Vazquez, Chris Stewart, Matt Kata
Hits allowed: Vicente Padilla (6), Franklyn German (3)
Walks committed: Vicente Padilla (1), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
Strike-outs: Vicente Padilla (1), Joaquin Benoit (1), Frank Francisco (1)
Errors: Jason Botts
Runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Earned runs allowed: Vicente Padilla (3), Franklyn German (2)
Innings pitched: Vicente Padilla (3), Joaquin Benoit (2), Frank Francisco (1), Franklyn German (1)
The Rangers won 7-6.
Conclusion:
Everybody was off-and-on, which is to be expected this early in spring training. The power numbers aren’t too great yet. The trip confirmed my picks of who would make the team, except for Jerry Hairston replacing Desi Relaford.
Come back next week for a day-by-day description of my Spring Training trip.
Friday, March 02, 2007
Analysis of Spring Training Infielders and Catchers
The Rangers have 9 infielders and 6 catchers in major league Spring Training camp. Below, I will rate each infielder and catcher and give their chances of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training.
Infielders:
Joaquin Arias:
Joaquin is learning the outfield positions and might be the utility guy or back-up infielder. I think he will be the utility guy.
Percentage: 62.4%
Hank Blalock:
He’s our third baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Nate Gold:
Nate played great last year but isn’t going to make the team. He’s a first baseman and back-up infielders need to be able to play 2nd and short.
Percentage: 0%
Ian Kinsler:
Ian’s our second baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Drew Meyer:
Drew was called up part of last year and batted .214 in 14 AB. He was DFA’d this off-season and cleared waivers. He’s probably not going to make the team.
Percentage: 8.2%
Desi Relaford:
Desi is 33 years old and has never been a starter. He hasn’t been that good, with a career average of .244 and 40 career home runs. Last year, he didn’t play in the majors, but in ’05 he hit .224 with 1 HR and 16 RBI. But I don’t think any of the other players competing for the job will outplay him, except for Joaquin Arias.
Percentage: 53.7%
Mark Teixeira:
Mark’s our first baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Ramon Vazquez:
Ramon hasn’t had a very good career, batting .255 with 7 HR and 92 RBI. Last year, with Cleveland, he batted .209 with 1 HR and 8 RBI. He has been getting worse every year since 2002. He probably won’t make the team unless Desi Relaford or Joaquin Arias does awful.
Percentage: 12.7%
Michael Young:
Michael is the Rangers’ starting shortstop.
Percentage: 100%
Catchers:
Gerald Laird:
Gerald is the starting catcher
Percentage: 100%
Salomon Manriquez:
Solomon has never played in the majors and probably won’t this year. He’s got career minor league totals of a .254 AVG with 41 HR and 240 RBI. His best year was 2005 with Potomac, when he hit .287 with 15 HR and 68 RBI.
Percentage: 1.5%
Miguel Ojeda:
Miguel has a career .224 AVG with 15 HR and 72 RBI. He has never started and has only played 4 years in the majors. He has one option left which probably puts him a little behind Guillermo Quiroz.
Percentage: 34.1%
Guillermo Quiroz:
Guillermo was signed to a major league contract and has no options. He is the main runner for the back-up catcher job, in my opinion. He is the only one without options of the three main competitors. He only has 90 career major league at-bats. He isn’t that great a hitter (.238 minor league average), although his power numbers have been decent in the minors. He is 25 years old.
Percentage: 63.4%
Kevin Richardson:
Kevin isn’t going to make the team because he hasn’t gotten past AA yet.
Percentage 0%
Chris Stewart:
Chris probably isn’t going to make the team this year since he has options and only has 8 major-league at-bats. He hasn’t gotten any hits out of those at-bats. He is a great fielder and a decent hitter.
Percentage: 21.3%
Projected infielders and catchers at the beginning of the year:
Gerald Laird-catcher
Guillermo Quiroz-back-up catcher
Mark Teixeira-1B
Ian Kinsler-2B
Hank Blalock-3B
Michael Young-SS
Joaquin Arias-utility
Desi Relaford-back-up infielder
Next in line:
Miguel Ojeda
Come back next week for a report from Spring Training in Surprise.
Infielders:
Joaquin Arias:
Joaquin is learning the outfield positions and might be the utility guy or back-up infielder. I think he will be the utility guy.
Percentage: 62.4%
Hank Blalock:
He’s our third baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Nate Gold:
Nate played great last year but isn’t going to make the team. He’s a first baseman and back-up infielders need to be able to play 2nd and short.
Percentage: 0%
Ian Kinsler:
Ian’s our second baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Drew Meyer:
Drew was called up part of last year and batted .214 in 14 AB. He was DFA’d this off-season and cleared waivers. He’s probably not going to make the team.
Percentage: 8.2%
Desi Relaford:
Desi is 33 years old and has never been a starter. He hasn’t been that good, with a career average of .244 and 40 career home runs. Last year, he didn’t play in the majors, but in ’05 he hit .224 with 1 HR and 16 RBI. But I don’t think any of the other players competing for the job will outplay him, except for Joaquin Arias.
Percentage: 53.7%
Mark Teixeira:
Mark’s our first baseman.
Percentage: 100%
Ramon Vazquez:
Ramon hasn’t had a very good career, batting .255 with 7 HR and 92 RBI. Last year, with Cleveland, he batted .209 with 1 HR and 8 RBI. He has been getting worse every year since 2002. He probably won’t make the team unless Desi Relaford or Joaquin Arias does awful.
Percentage: 12.7%
Michael Young:
Michael is the Rangers’ starting shortstop.
Percentage: 100%
Catchers:
Gerald Laird:
Gerald is the starting catcher
Percentage: 100%
Salomon Manriquez:
Solomon has never played in the majors and probably won’t this year. He’s got career minor league totals of a .254 AVG with 41 HR and 240 RBI. His best year was 2005 with Potomac, when he hit .287 with 15 HR and 68 RBI.
Percentage: 1.5%
Miguel Ojeda:
Miguel has a career .224 AVG with 15 HR and 72 RBI. He has never started and has only played 4 years in the majors. He has one option left which probably puts him a little behind Guillermo Quiroz.
Percentage: 34.1%
Guillermo Quiroz:
Guillermo was signed to a major league contract and has no options. He is the main runner for the back-up catcher job, in my opinion. He is the only one without options of the three main competitors. He only has 90 career major league at-bats. He isn’t that great a hitter (.238 minor league average), although his power numbers have been decent in the minors. He is 25 years old.
Percentage: 63.4%
Kevin Richardson:
Kevin isn’t going to make the team because he hasn’t gotten past AA yet.
Percentage 0%
Chris Stewart:
Chris probably isn’t going to make the team this year since he has options and only has 8 major-league at-bats. He hasn’t gotten any hits out of those at-bats. He is a great fielder and a decent hitter.
Percentage: 21.3%
Projected infielders and catchers at the beginning of the year:
Gerald Laird-catcher
Guillermo Quiroz-back-up catcher
Mark Teixeira-1B
Ian Kinsler-2B
Hank Blalock-3B
Michael Young-SS
Joaquin Arias-utility
Desi Relaford-back-up infielder
Next in line:
Miguel Ojeda
Come back next week for a report from Spring Training in Surprise.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Analysis of Spring Training Outfielders
The Rangers have 11 outfielders in major league Spring Training camp. Below, I will rate each outfielder and give their chances of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training.
Jason Botts:
Jason is competing for the 5th OF/DH role. He has dominated the minors, but hasn’t done too great yet in the majors, batting .247 with 1 HR and 9 RBI’s in 77 AB. He won’t need to play great, but to play well to get the job out of camp. Sammy Sosa is his biggest competition.
Percentage: 33.5%
Marlon Byrd:
Marlon hasn’t reached anywhere near his potential and he’ll need to, to make the team. He’s very speedy and fields well, but his hitting isn’t that great. His career stats are a .263 AVG with 20 HR in 1302 AB. He started for the Phillies in 03-04 but ever since he has split the center field position. He had a great minor league career batting over .300 4 out of 8 years and never batted below .260 but hasn’t gotten it done in the majors. If he can play like he did in the minors, I think he will make the team as the 5th outfielder.
Percentage: 32.8%
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank is the DH/back-up outfielder for the Rangers, unless he gets injured, or Sammy Sosa does great. If Sammy makes the team than he will be just the DH or a starting outfielder, depending on how Sammy fields.
Percentage: 100%
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is the starting right fielder unless he gets injured or has a terrible camp.
Percentage: 98.9%
Victor Diaz:
Victor is not one of the major runners for the outfield job although he has a better chance than most people give him. He had been having a great career until he fell apart last year, batting .224 with Triple-A Norfolk and .182 with the Mets. Also, he didn’t have anywhere close to his normal power getting fewer home runs in more at-bats than the previous 3 years. He will have to get his hitting back up to where it used to be to make the team.
Percentage: 15.2%
Freddy Guzman:
Freddy is a really speedy guy who was great in the minor leagues but hasn’t done that well in the majors. He’s only gotten 83 at-bats but his batting average is .217. He needs to have an outstanding camp to win the 5th outfielder job.
Percentage: 12.3%
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry is a very good fielder. He’s competing for an outfield job and the utility job. He’s been declining over the past few years and he’ll need to stop declining to win the job.
Percentage: 23.4%
Matt Kata:
Last year Kata was with the Triple-A Louisville Bats. He hit .263 with 9 HR and 34 RBI in 331 AB. He’s spent parts of three seasons in the majors in 2003-2005. He played for the D’Backs and Phillies, batting .308 with 9 HR and 42 RBI in 487 AB. He is the least likely of anyone on the outfield Spring Training roster to make the team.
Percentage: 7.6%
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny is the Rangers’ starting center fielder.
Percentage: 100%
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy has had a great career, but has been suspected of using steroids. He has also corked his bats. He very quickly declined after his great year in 2003, although his power numbers were still good in ’04. In 2005, he had a .221 batting average, only hitting 14 HR and 45 RBI’s with the Orioles. He didn’t play in 2006. He will need to play at least in between what he did in ’04 and ’05 to make the team.
Percentage: 34.9%
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad is our 4th outfielder or may platoon with Cruz.
Percentage: 100%
Projected outfielders at the beginning of the year:
Kenny Lofton-center fielder
Nelson Cruz-right fielder
Frank Catalanotto-left fielder/DH
Sammy Sosa-DH
Brad Wilkerson-4th outfielder
Next in line:
Jason Botts
Marlon Byrd
Jerry Hairston
Come back next week for the infielders and catchers.
Jason Botts:
Jason is competing for the 5th OF/DH role. He has dominated the minors, but hasn’t done too great yet in the majors, batting .247 with 1 HR and 9 RBI’s in 77 AB. He won’t need to play great, but to play well to get the job out of camp. Sammy Sosa is his biggest competition.
Percentage: 33.5%
Marlon Byrd:
Marlon hasn’t reached anywhere near his potential and he’ll need to, to make the team. He’s very speedy and fields well, but his hitting isn’t that great. His career stats are a .263 AVG with 20 HR in 1302 AB. He started for the Phillies in 03-04 but ever since he has split the center field position. He had a great minor league career batting over .300 4 out of 8 years and never batted below .260 but hasn’t gotten it done in the majors. If he can play like he did in the minors, I think he will make the team as the 5th outfielder.
Percentage: 32.8%
Frank Catalanotto:
Frank is the DH/back-up outfielder for the Rangers, unless he gets injured, or Sammy Sosa does great. If Sammy makes the team than he will be just the DH or a starting outfielder, depending on how Sammy fields.
Percentage: 100%
Nelson Cruz:
Nelson is the starting right fielder unless he gets injured or has a terrible camp.
Percentage: 98.9%
Victor Diaz:
Victor is not one of the major runners for the outfield job although he has a better chance than most people give him. He had been having a great career until he fell apart last year, batting .224 with Triple-A Norfolk and .182 with the Mets. Also, he didn’t have anywhere close to his normal power getting fewer home runs in more at-bats than the previous 3 years. He will have to get his hitting back up to where it used to be to make the team.
Percentage: 15.2%
Freddy Guzman:
Freddy is a really speedy guy who was great in the minor leagues but hasn’t done that well in the majors. He’s only gotten 83 at-bats but his batting average is .217. He needs to have an outstanding camp to win the 5th outfielder job.
Percentage: 12.3%
Jerry Hairston:
Jerry is a very good fielder. He’s competing for an outfield job and the utility job. He’s been declining over the past few years and he’ll need to stop declining to win the job.
Percentage: 23.4%
Matt Kata:
Last year Kata was with the Triple-A Louisville Bats. He hit .263 with 9 HR and 34 RBI in 331 AB. He’s spent parts of three seasons in the majors in 2003-2005. He played for the D’Backs and Phillies, batting .308 with 9 HR and 42 RBI in 487 AB. He is the least likely of anyone on the outfield Spring Training roster to make the team.
Percentage: 7.6%
Kenny Lofton:
Kenny is the Rangers’ starting center fielder.
Percentage: 100%
Sammy Sosa:
Sammy has had a great career, but has been suspected of using steroids. He has also corked his bats. He very quickly declined after his great year in 2003, although his power numbers were still good in ’04. In 2005, he had a .221 batting average, only hitting 14 HR and 45 RBI’s with the Orioles. He didn’t play in 2006. He will need to play at least in between what he did in ’04 and ’05 to make the team.
Percentage: 34.9%
Brad Wilkerson:
Brad is our 4th outfielder or may platoon with Cruz.
Percentage: 100%
Projected outfielders at the beginning of the year:
Kenny Lofton-center fielder
Nelson Cruz-right fielder
Frank Catalanotto-left fielder/DH
Sammy Sosa-DH
Brad Wilkerson-4th outfielder
Next in line:
Jason Botts
Marlon Byrd
Jerry Hairston
Come back next week for the infielders and catchers.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Analysis of Spring Training Pitchers
The Rangers opened Spring Training this week with 32 pitchers in the major league camp. Below, I will rate each pitcher and give their chances of making the 25-man active roster at the end of Spring Training.
Rick Bauer, RHP:
Rick had a very good season last year, but ended it badly. He will probably make the team unless he either gets injured or plays awful.
Percentage: 86.7%
Joaquin Benoit, RHP:
Benoit’s a clinch at the long reliever position.
Percentage: 100%
Bruce Chen, LHP:
He is very home run prone and had a very bad year last year. He had a 6.93 ERA for the Orioles last year, a 3.83 ERA in ’05 and a 4.60 ERA in his 9-year career, playing for the Braves, Phillies, Mets, Expos, Reds, Astros, Red Sox, and finally the Orioles. The Rangers might be the 9th team on that list. But he does have a decent chance because he’s had a decent career and he would be the only lefty in the rotation. He will also be competing with two other left-handers (John Koronka and John Rheinecker) who is more likely to win the job. Even if Chen isn’t the 5th starter, he could become a long relief pitcher. If he doesn’t make the Rangers out of camp, he’ll probably be brought up during the season.
Percentage: 39.7%
Francisco Cruceta, RHP:
The Rangers acquired Cruceta off waivers from the Mariners after last season. He was a starter with AAA Tacoma last season, where he went 13-9 with a 4.38 ERA in 28 games. Cruceta is probably not going to make the team with our strong bullpen. He has a pretty low chance although he probably will be called up in September, since he’s on the 40-man roster.
Percentage: 2.1%
Thomas Diamond, RHP:
Thomas probably won’t make it to the bigs until September this year, much less out of camp. He’ll spend the year at AAA.
Percentage: 2.1%
Willie Eyre, RHP:
Willie’s only year in the majors was last year with the Twins, where he had a 5.31 ERA in 42 games, all in relief. He’ll probably get called up in September if he has a great year but not out of Spring Training.
Percentage: 1.4%
Scott Feldman, RHP:
Scott has proven himself in the bigs and has almost clinched a middle relief spot.
Percentage: 98.9%
Frank Francisco, RHP:
Frank can be a good pitcher if he stays healthy. I think if he is healthy, that he gets a real shot at a middle relief role or the seventh inning role.
Percentage: 89.6%
Eric Gagne, RHP:
Eric’s our closer unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Armando Galarraga, RHP:
Armando struggled with injuries last year and went 1-6 with a 4.61 ERA in 9 starts with Frisco. He isn’t going to the majors this year and will probably be gone by the time Spring Training is halfway through.
Percentage: 0%
Franklyn German, RHP:
Franklyn has a chance of making the team, although not a very good one. He has a 4.60 ERA in 137 IP spread throughout five years. Last year, he had a 3.00 ERA in 12.0 innings pitched. He is not home run prone nor is he great against home runs. He has 99 strikeouts in his career. He doesn’t have bad stats but he’s coming off of shoulder surgery, which could really limit his effectiveness.
Percentage: 19.4%
Daniel Haigwood, LHP:
Daniel won’t make it to the bigs this year. He had a 3.63 ERA with Frisco last year in 62 innings. He allowed 4 HR and had a record of 1-2.
Percentage: 0%
Eric Hurley, RHP:
Eric Hurley isn’t ready for the majors nor is he going to be in the majors. The Rangers probably brought him to big league camp to show him how highly they think of him.
Percentage: 0%
John Koronka, LHP:
John Koronka, John Rheinecker and Bruce Chen are the left-handers competing for the 5th starter and will be the only lefty in the rotation if they win the 5th job. Koronka is the most likely of the three since he pitched so well at the beginning of the season last year.
Percentage: 45.6%
Wes Littleton, RHP:
With Wes’ performance last year he is going to make the team if he doesn’t do awful.
Percentage: 95.8%
Kameron Loe, RHP:
Kameron is going to compete for the 5th starter role but probably won’t make it. He also could be a reliever but probably not out of spring training. He struggled last year in both the majors and the minors and probably will need to pitch well in AAA before getting called up.
Percentage: 25.4%
Ron Mahay, LHP:
Mahay was 1-3 with a 3.95 ERA in 62 appearances last season, his fourth in Texas. He has a guaranteed contract so probably will make the team.
Percentage: 92.9%
Brandon McCarthy, RHP:
Brandon is the #3 starter no matter what, in my opinion.
Percentage: 100%
Kevin Millwood, RHP:
Kevin is the ace of this team and the ace makes the team.
Percentage: 100%
AJ Murray, LHP:
AJ has had a decent minor league career but has struggled with injuries (he didn’t pitch in 2004 or 2006). He won’t make the team for at least two more years.
Percentage: 0%
Alexi Ogando, RHP:
Alexi can’t come to camp because he can’t get a visa.
Percentage: 0%
Akinori Otsuka, RHP:
Aki’s the set-up man unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Vicente Padilla, RHP:
Padilla’s the #2 starter.
Percentage: 100%
John Rheinecker, LHP:
John is going to compete for the 5th starting pitcher job in Spring Training, but with his shaky finish last year, I don’t think he’ll win the job.
Percentage: 10.6%
Scott Rice, LHP:
Scott is a middle reliever who will compete for a job at Spring Training. He had a 3.86 ERA in 65.1 innings last year. That was his first year in Triple-A. If he wins the job, he’s going to be one of the least used relievers.
Percentage: 11.4%
Josh Rupe, RHP:
Josh was held back from injuries last year, and he probably would have been the 5th starter. When he got back he posted a 3.41 ERA in 29 innings pitched for the Rangers.
Percentage: 31.9%
Robinson Tejeda, RHP:
Robinson is our #4 starter unless he really struggles in camp.
Percentage: 99.9%
Jose Vargas, RHP:
Jose spent the last two years in the Triple-A Mexican League. Last year, he went 6-4 with a 1.36 ERA in 73 innings. He had 70 strikeouts and only allowed one homer. He also had 27 saves, leading the league. He seems like a very good player who could win a relieving spot.
Percentage: 45.9%
Edinson Volquez, RHP:
Edinson is probably one of the least likely of the competitors for the 5th starting job because he has options and has really struggled in the majors so far in his career.
Percentage: 9.7%
CJ Wilson, LHP:
CJ has clinched a bullpen job.
Percentage: 100%
Mike Wood, RHP:
Wood has career stats of a 13-20 record with a 5.52 ERA in 293.1 innings pitched. He has given up 45 HR’s, becoming more and more home run prone each year. He probably won’t make the team.
Percentage: 6.1%
Jamey Wright, RHP:
Jamey has 11 years of MLB experience. His career stats are a 67-98 record with a 5.14 ERA in 1461.2 IP. Last year he had a 6-10 record posting a 5.19 ERA in 156 IP. Jamey hasn’t had a good career so far and probably will not win the job.
Percentage: 8.6%
Predicted pitchers at the beginning of the year:
1. Kevin Millwood-starter
2. Vicente Padilla-starter
3. Brandon McCarthy-starter
4. Robinson Tejeda-starter
5. John Koronka-left-handed starter
6. Joaquin Benoit-long reliever
7. Scott Feldman-middle reliever
8. CJ Wilson-middle reliever
9. Ron Mahay-middle reliever
10. Wes Littleton-middle reliever
11. Akinori Otsuka-setup
12. Eric Gagne-closer
Next in line:
1. Rick Bauer
2. Bruce Chen
3. Josh Rupe
4. Jose Vargas
5. Frank Francisco
Come back next week for outfielders and the one DH. I’ll continue my analysis of the divisions after this series.
Rick Bauer, RHP:
Rick had a very good season last year, but ended it badly. He will probably make the team unless he either gets injured or plays awful.
Percentage: 86.7%
Joaquin Benoit, RHP:
Benoit’s a clinch at the long reliever position.
Percentage: 100%
Bruce Chen, LHP:
He is very home run prone and had a very bad year last year. He had a 6.93 ERA for the Orioles last year, a 3.83 ERA in ’05 and a 4.60 ERA in his 9-year career, playing for the Braves, Phillies, Mets, Expos, Reds, Astros, Red Sox, and finally the Orioles. The Rangers might be the 9th team on that list. But he does have a decent chance because he’s had a decent career and he would be the only lefty in the rotation. He will also be competing with two other left-handers (John Koronka and John Rheinecker) who is more likely to win the job. Even if Chen isn’t the 5th starter, he could become a long relief pitcher. If he doesn’t make the Rangers out of camp, he’ll probably be brought up during the season.
Percentage: 39.7%
Francisco Cruceta, RHP:
The Rangers acquired Cruceta off waivers from the Mariners after last season. He was a starter with AAA Tacoma last season, where he went 13-9 with a 4.38 ERA in 28 games. Cruceta is probably not going to make the team with our strong bullpen. He has a pretty low chance although he probably will be called up in September, since he’s on the 40-man roster.
Percentage: 2.1%
Thomas Diamond, RHP:
Thomas probably won’t make it to the bigs until September this year, much less out of camp. He’ll spend the year at AAA.
Percentage: 2.1%
Willie Eyre, RHP:
Willie’s only year in the majors was last year with the Twins, where he had a 5.31 ERA in 42 games, all in relief. He’ll probably get called up in September if he has a great year but not out of Spring Training.
Percentage: 1.4%
Scott Feldman, RHP:
Scott has proven himself in the bigs and has almost clinched a middle relief spot.
Percentage: 98.9%
Frank Francisco, RHP:
Frank can be a good pitcher if he stays healthy. I think if he is healthy, that he gets a real shot at a middle relief role or the seventh inning role.
Percentage: 89.6%
Eric Gagne, RHP:
Eric’s our closer unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Armando Galarraga, RHP:
Armando struggled with injuries last year and went 1-6 with a 4.61 ERA in 9 starts with Frisco. He isn’t going to the majors this year and will probably be gone by the time Spring Training is halfway through.
Percentage: 0%
Franklyn German, RHP:
Franklyn has a chance of making the team, although not a very good one. He has a 4.60 ERA in 137 IP spread throughout five years. Last year, he had a 3.00 ERA in 12.0 innings pitched. He is not home run prone nor is he great against home runs. He has 99 strikeouts in his career. He doesn’t have bad stats but he’s coming off of shoulder surgery, which could really limit his effectiveness.
Percentage: 19.4%
Daniel Haigwood, LHP:
Daniel won’t make it to the bigs this year. He had a 3.63 ERA with Frisco last year in 62 innings. He allowed 4 HR and had a record of 1-2.
Percentage: 0%
Eric Hurley, RHP:
Eric Hurley isn’t ready for the majors nor is he going to be in the majors. The Rangers probably brought him to big league camp to show him how highly they think of him.
Percentage: 0%
John Koronka, LHP:
John Koronka, John Rheinecker and Bruce Chen are the left-handers competing for the 5th starter and will be the only lefty in the rotation if they win the 5th job. Koronka is the most likely of the three since he pitched so well at the beginning of the season last year.
Percentage: 45.6%
Wes Littleton, RHP:
With Wes’ performance last year he is going to make the team if he doesn’t do awful.
Percentage: 95.8%
Kameron Loe, RHP:
Kameron is going to compete for the 5th starter role but probably won’t make it. He also could be a reliever but probably not out of spring training. He struggled last year in both the majors and the minors and probably will need to pitch well in AAA before getting called up.
Percentage: 25.4%
Ron Mahay, LHP:
Mahay was 1-3 with a 3.95 ERA in 62 appearances last season, his fourth in Texas. He has a guaranteed contract so probably will make the team.
Percentage: 92.9%
Brandon McCarthy, RHP:
Brandon is the #3 starter no matter what, in my opinion.
Percentage: 100%
Kevin Millwood, RHP:
Kevin is the ace of this team and the ace makes the team.
Percentage: 100%
AJ Murray, LHP:
AJ has had a decent minor league career but has struggled with injuries (he didn’t pitch in 2004 or 2006). He won’t make the team for at least two more years.
Percentage: 0%
Alexi Ogando, RHP:
Alexi can’t come to camp because he can’t get a visa.
Percentage: 0%
Akinori Otsuka, RHP:
Aki’s the set-up man unless he gets injured.
Percentage: 100%
Vicente Padilla, RHP:
Padilla’s the #2 starter.
Percentage: 100%
John Rheinecker, LHP:
John is going to compete for the 5th starting pitcher job in Spring Training, but with his shaky finish last year, I don’t think he’ll win the job.
Percentage: 10.6%
Scott Rice, LHP:
Scott is a middle reliever who will compete for a job at Spring Training. He had a 3.86 ERA in 65.1 innings last year. That was his first year in Triple-A. If he wins the job, he’s going to be one of the least used relievers.
Percentage: 11.4%
Josh Rupe, RHP:
Josh was held back from injuries last year, and he probably would have been the 5th starter. When he got back he posted a 3.41 ERA in 29 innings pitched for the Rangers.
Percentage: 31.9%
Robinson Tejeda, RHP:
Robinson is our #4 starter unless he really struggles in camp.
Percentage: 99.9%
Jose Vargas, RHP:
Jose spent the last two years in the Triple-A Mexican League. Last year, he went 6-4 with a 1.36 ERA in 73 innings. He had 70 strikeouts and only allowed one homer. He also had 27 saves, leading the league. He seems like a very good player who could win a relieving spot.
Percentage: 45.9%
Edinson Volquez, RHP:
Edinson is probably one of the least likely of the competitors for the 5th starting job because he has options and has really struggled in the majors so far in his career.
Percentage: 9.7%
CJ Wilson, LHP:
CJ has clinched a bullpen job.
Percentage: 100%
Mike Wood, RHP:
Wood has career stats of a 13-20 record with a 5.52 ERA in 293.1 innings pitched. He has given up 45 HR’s, becoming more and more home run prone each year. He probably won’t make the team.
Percentage: 6.1%
Jamey Wright, RHP:
Jamey has 11 years of MLB experience. His career stats are a 67-98 record with a 5.14 ERA in 1461.2 IP. Last year he had a 6-10 record posting a 5.19 ERA in 156 IP. Jamey hasn’t had a good career so far and probably will not win the job.
Percentage: 8.6%
Predicted pitchers at the beginning of the year:
1. Kevin Millwood-starter
2. Vicente Padilla-starter
3. Brandon McCarthy-starter
4. Robinson Tejeda-starter
5. John Koronka-left-handed starter
6. Joaquin Benoit-long reliever
7. Scott Feldman-middle reliever
8. CJ Wilson-middle reliever
9. Ron Mahay-middle reliever
10. Wes Littleton-middle reliever
11. Akinori Otsuka-setup
12. Eric Gagne-closer
Next in line:
1. Rick Bauer
2. Bruce Chen
3. Josh Rupe
4. Jose Vargas
5. Frank Francisco
Come back next week for outfielders and the one DH. I’ll continue my analysis of the divisions after this series.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
AL Central Off-Season Analysis
This week, I will analyze the off-seasons of the teams in the AL Central.
White Sox:
Players gained:
Toby Hall
Luis Terrero
John Danks
Nick Masset
Junior Spivey
Darin Erstad
John Lujan
Rusty Tucker
Bucky Jacobsen
Gavin Floyd
Gio Gonzalez
Mike MacDougal
Andrew Sisco
Jacob Rasner
David Aardsma
Carlos Vasquez
Ross Gload
Players lost:
Dustin Hermanson
Jeff Nelson
David Riske
Cliff Polite
Freddy Garcia
Brandon McCarthy
Neal Cotts
David Paisano
Eduardo Sierra
Chris Stewart
Evaluation:
They have gained plenty of decent young people but lost some very good players.
Grade: B-
Cleveland Indians:
Players gained:
Joe Borowski
David Dellucci
Aaron Fultz
Roberto Hernandez
Mike Rose
Keith Foulke
Trot Nixon
Jason Michaels
Keith Ginter
Luis Rivas
Jeff Harris
Mike Rose
Josh Barfield
Players lost:
Kevin Kouzmanoff
Andrew Brown
Aaron Boone
Danny Graves
Ramon Vazquez
Evaluation:
The Indians have not lost much at all but have gained plenty.
Grade: A+
Detroit Tigers:
Players gained:
Jose Mesa
Gary Sheffield
Yorman Bazardo
Joey Eischen
Timo Perez
Edward Campusano
Players lost:
Dustin Mohr
Troy Percival
Matt Stairs
Jamie Walker
Dmitri Young
Alexis Gomez
Humberto Sanchez
Kevin Whelan
Anthony Claggett
Evaluation:
The Tigers didn’t give up any starters but they got one of the best players in the league in Gary Sheffield.
Grade: A-
Minnesota Twins:
Players gained:
Carmen Cali
Randy Choate
Jeff Cirillo
Ken Harvey
Mike Venafro
Sidney Ponson
Alejandro Machado
Players lost:
Willie Eyre
Brad Radke
Mike Smith
Evaluation:
They haven’t gained anything big and they lost a big part of their rotation, especially with the fact that Francisco Liriano is out for the year with an injury.
Grade: D+
Kansas City Royals:
Players gained:
Dewon Brazelton
Octavio Dotel
Wayne Franklin
Gil Meche
Jason LaRue
Russ Haltiwanger
Alex S. Gonzalez
Max Pierre
David Riske
Brandon Duckworth
Zach Day
Joakim Soria
Rich Lewis
Brian Bannister
Ken Ray
Players lost:
Steve Andrade
Paul Bako
Ken Harvey
Doug Mientkiewicz
Mark Redman
Jeff Keppinger
Andrew Sisco
Ambiorix Burgos
Runelvys Hernandez
Donnie Murphy
Evaluation:
The Royals haven’t lost much but haven’t gained much either. They have gained more than they lost, though.
Grade: B+
Off-Season Rankings
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Kansas City Royals
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Minnesota Twins
Projected Standings
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
Come back next week for an analysis of the off-seasons of the teams in the AL East.
White Sox:
Players gained:
Toby Hall
Luis Terrero
John Danks
Nick Masset
Junior Spivey
Darin Erstad
John Lujan
Rusty Tucker
Bucky Jacobsen
Gavin Floyd
Gio Gonzalez
Mike MacDougal
Andrew Sisco
Jacob Rasner
David Aardsma
Carlos Vasquez
Ross Gload
Players lost:
Dustin Hermanson
Jeff Nelson
David Riske
Cliff Polite
Freddy Garcia
Brandon McCarthy
Neal Cotts
David Paisano
Eduardo Sierra
Chris Stewart
Evaluation:
They have gained plenty of decent young people but lost some very good players.
Grade: B-
Cleveland Indians:
Players gained:
Joe Borowski
David Dellucci
Aaron Fultz
Roberto Hernandez
Mike Rose
Keith Foulke
Trot Nixon
Jason Michaels
Keith Ginter
Luis Rivas
Jeff Harris
Mike Rose
Josh Barfield
Players lost:
Kevin Kouzmanoff
Andrew Brown
Aaron Boone
Danny Graves
Ramon Vazquez
Evaluation:
The Indians have not lost much at all but have gained plenty.
Grade: A+
Detroit Tigers:
Players gained:
Jose Mesa
Gary Sheffield
Yorman Bazardo
Joey Eischen
Timo Perez
Edward Campusano
Players lost:
Dustin Mohr
Troy Percival
Matt Stairs
Jamie Walker
Dmitri Young
Alexis Gomez
Humberto Sanchez
Kevin Whelan
Anthony Claggett
Evaluation:
The Tigers didn’t give up any starters but they got one of the best players in the league in Gary Sheffield.
Grade: A-
Minnesota Twins:
Players gained:
Carmen Cali
Randy Choate
Jeff Cirillo
Ken Harvey
Mike Venafro
Sidney Ponson
Alejandro Machado
Players lost:
Willie Eyre
Brad Radke
Mike Smith
Evaluation:
They haven’t gained anything big and they lost a big part of their rotation, especially with the fact that Francisco Liriano is out for the year with an injury.
Grade: D+
Kansas City Royals:
Players gained:
Dewon Brazelton
Octavio Dotel
Wayne Franklin
Gil Meche
Jason LaRue
Russ Haltiwanger
Alex S. Gonzalez
Max Pierre
David Riske
Brandon Duckworth
Zach Day
Joakim Soria
Rich Lewis
Brian Bannister
Ken Ray
Players lost:
Steve Andrade
Paul Bako
Ken Harvey
Doug Mientkiewicz
Mark Redman
Jeff Keppinger
Andrew Sisco
Ambiorix Burgos
Runelvys Hernandez
Donnie Murphy
Evaluation:
The Royals haven’t lost much but haven’t gained much either. They have gained more than they lost, though.
Grade: B+
Off-Season Rankings
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Kansas City Royals
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Minnesota Twins
Projected Standings
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Cleveland Indians
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Kansas City Royals
Come back next week for an analysis of the off-seasons of the teams in the AL East.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
CJ Wilson Interview
This week I did an interview with Rangers relief pitcher CJ Wilson.
1. Who are the three toughest hitters you’ve faced and why?
Little guys like Chone Figgins and Ichiro used to give me a headache, but my favorite 'tough hitters' to face now are Vlad Guerrero and Derek Jeter. They're very aggressive and can hit the ball to any part of the field.
2. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Kameron Loe, Mark DeRosa, and Chris Young. Since DeRo and C.Y. are gone - I'd say Aki and Josh Rupe.
3. What did you think your role would be for the team you were drafted by heading into the 2001 draft (starting pitcher, relief pitcher, or hitter)?
I was drafted as a starting pitcher, although some teams wanted me to be a hitter in later rounds of the draft. The Rangers picked me before other teams, so they gave me some good money and said, ‘We want to see you in the starting rotation for us in a few years’.
4. What was your first thought when you found out you were going to need Tommy John surgery in 2003?
I was relieved actually. It was an excruciating pain every day just to play catch. I threw for almost a month with no ligament and it was terrible. Once I found out that's what it was, I knew I'd come back stronger just like John Smoltz, Mariano Rivera, and some other guys have.
5. What was the recovery process for your Tommy John surgery like?
The worst part is just not being able to play baseball for so long. ObviouslyI really enjoy competing and being on the field, and you have to get somenew hobbies to deal with all the extra energy you're not used to having. I spent a lot of time working out, and getting my body stronger and moreflexible so that it would handle throwing harder when I came back.
6. During your first major league season in 2005, why do you think you were so much more successful as a reliever (2.73 ERA in 18 games) than as a starter (12.05 ERA in 6 games)?
That summer I wasn't ready to be a starter. My pitch count and stamina were so low I really had no chance to succeed. It was a great experience though, and I learned a lot of things not to do. I really enjoy relief pitching – it's a lot more adrenaline,more my natural style.
7. What is the best thing about being a major league ballplayer and why?
The best things are being able to play every day, and facing guys like Jeter who I know will end up in the hall of fame one day. It's the ultimate challenge.
8. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league hitting?
The best hitters on the team in AA and AAA are about as good as some of the hitters in the majors, so you just have to remember that nobody hits .400, not even Albert Pujols. I do the same things I've always done – I just have to do it more often.
9. What was it like to be called up to the Rangers in June 2005 in Florida?
I was really surprised because I knew I wasn't ready physically. I had only been pitching for about 8 weeks or so after missing 20 months. But I was very excited because it was my dream since I was about 8 years old.
10. What’s it like to room with Kameron Loe? Do you ever have to feed his snake?
He's a great guy, and we've grown to be like brothers. We laugh at the same movies and hang out all the time. We have a lot of fun together and it's good for both of us. He's the funny one and I'm the responsible one I guess. I've fed the snake a few times, the hardest part is just going to buy the rat. You feel bad feeding a live animal to another live animal. It's usually over really quick.
11. How did it feel to make it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season?
My main goal when I got drafted was to get to the big leagues as fast as possible, and I told myself I'd buy a Porsche 911 if I got to AA n my first full season as an incentive. I wasn't really surprised, because I worked so hard and it meant more to me than anything to learn as fast as possible. The low minors are very hard to understand until you live through it, but you don't want to spend a lot of time thereif possible. So instead of 'enjoying' myself with the guys, I just sat at home and thought of ways to get better.
12. What is your best pitch and how was it developed?
My best pitch is my fastball. I guess the key ingredient is having a lot of confidencewhen I throw it. I've worked for over 15 years to try and build arm strength, smooth out my mechanics, and gain velocity. When I was 16 I threw about 75 mph and now I can throw 95. I went to Alaska in 2000 as a closer and a centerfielder. I worked out really hard and read a lot of pitching books. Before the summer I topped out at 87 mph and after I could hit 91. I gained about 10 lbs of muscle in my shoulders and back and that's probably the biggest reason. After Tommy John surgery my elbow was stronger than ever and my velocity went up again, but this time it was probably because of better use of my mechanics.
13. What do you think your long-term role with the team will be and why?
Eventually I will either be a starting pitcher or the closer. Some of the coaches think I should do one or the other, but I think being the closer is a great job.
14. What was the key to your success in the second half of 2006?
I had some nagging tendonitis when I got sent down to Oklahoma City in June, and when it healed I was concerned more with my location for my pitches. When I got sent back up, I stopped walking people and my ERA went down a lot. Walks really hurt relievers because the coach usually pulls you out of the game when you walk guys, so they're on base and the next guy doesn't always strike out the first hitter. Usually if you walk a hitter as a relief pitcher, they score.
15. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career andwhy?
I had some really good games in the minors, but I would say in the majors, my first save against the Twins, or my first win against the White Sox in 2005 were really awesome. For the save, Kameron and I combined to shut out the Twins on only 6 hits I think. The win against the White Sox was great because it was about 5 days later, and I was really sick that day. I pitched 5 innings and only gave up one run. It was my first win since June or July of 2003 - that's a really long time.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
I played soccer, basketball, golf, and I also swam and surfed. I was a better golfer than the rest, but I wish I would have played more soccer. I still play soccer with my friends back in California when I go home. I really hope Tom Hicks decides to buy the Liverpool team so I can go to England and watch them play next off-season.
17. What was your favorite team growing up?
My favorite sports team was the L.A. Lakers, but I really liked baseball and was able to watch a lot of it with both the Dodgers and Angels always on TV.
18. What are you working on in the off-season?
Baseball wise, I've been working on a new windup, and also getting my change-up and curveball back to where they were before 2005. Having more weapons as a pitcher just means I can be even better. This off-season I am working on being a more complete part of the organization by doing as many media events and charity projects as I can. The better player you are, the more you can help people, and also the more demand there is for your time. Being able to juggle all the phases of thatis very difficult for most players.
19. The Rangers website lists one of your hobbies as traveling. Where do you like to travel?
I like to go to the beach, so San Diego, Newport Beach, and Mexico rank really high. After 2005 I went to Japan and China. Tokyo is a great city. This off-season I am going to Europe, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, and maybe England if Mr. Hicks buys Liverpool.
20. How much time do you spend on the computer in an average day? Whatare your favorite sites?
During the off-season I probably spend three or four hours a day online. I maintain my myspace fan site (www.myspace.com/blueglove36) as well as post on message boards like the Newberg report and lonestarball. I try to see what's going on in the world with news sites, and stay in touch with my friends with email. I also read a lot about cars, movies, and video games, and my friends forward me funny links. So...autotrader.com, rennlist.com, bestbuy.com, moviefone.com, imdb.com, ebaumsworld.com, and youtube.com. And of course I search Google a few times a day.
I would like to thank CJ for giving me so much of his time to do this interview. I’ve gotten to talk to CJ a lot at different Rangers events and he is always very friendly and willing to spend time with fans.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL Central off-season.
1. Who are the three toughest hitters you’ve faced and why?
Little guys like Chone Figgins and Ichiro used to give me a headache, but my favorite 'tough hitters' to face now are Vlad Guerrero and Derek Jeter. They're very aggressive and can hit the ball to any part of the field.
2. Who are your three favorite teammates since you joined the Rangers organization and why?
Kameron Loe, Mark DeRosa, and Chris Young. Since DeRo and C.Y. are gone - I'd say Aki and Josh Rupe.
3. What did you think your role would be for the team you were drafted by heading into the 2001 draft (starting pitcher, relief pitcher, or hitter)?
I was drafted as a starting pitcher, although some teams wanted me to be a hitter in later rounds of the draft. The Rangers picked me before other teams, so they gave me some good money and said, ‘We want to see you in the starting rotation for us in a few years’.
4. What was your first thought when you found out you were going to need Tommy John surgery in 2003?
I was relieved actually. It was an excruciating pain every day just to play catch. I threw for almost a month with no ligament and it was terrible. Once I found out that's what it was, I knew I'd come back stronger just like John Smoltz, Mariano Rivera, and some other guys have.
5. What was the recovery process for your Tommy John surgery like?
The worst part is just not being able to play baseball for so long. ObviouslyI really enjoy competing and being on the field, and you have to get somenew hobbies to deal with all the extra energy you're not used to having. I spent a lot of time working out, and getting my body stronger and moreflexible so that it would handle throwing harder when I came back.
6. During your first major league season in 2005, why do you think you were so much more successful as a reliever (2.73 ERA in 18 games) than as a starter (12.05 ERA in 6 games)?
That summer I wasn't ready to be a starter. My pitch count and stamina were so low I really had no chance to succeed. It was a great experience though, and I learned a lot of things not to do. I really enjoy relief pitching – it's a lot more adrenaline,more my natural style.
7. What is the best thing about being a major league ballplayer and why?
The best things are being able to play every day, and facing guys like Jeter who I know will end up in the hall of fame one day. It's the ultimate challenge.
8. What is the biggest adjustment you had to make when you started facing major-league hitting?
The best hitters on the team in AA and AAA are about as good as some of the hitters in the majors, so you just have to remember that nobody hits .400, not even Albert Pujols. I do the same things I've always done – I just have to do it more often.
9. What was it like to be called up to the Rangers in June 2005 in Florida?
I was really surprised because I knew I wasn't ready physically. I had only been pitching for about 8 weeks or so after missing 20 months. But I was very excited because it was my dream since I was about 8 years old.
10. What’s it like to room with Kameron Loe? Do you ever have to feed his snake?
He's a great guy, and we've grown to be like brothers. We laugh at the same movies and hang out all the time. We have a lot of fun together and it's good for both of us. He's the funny one and I'm the responsible one I guess. I've fed the snake a few times, the hardest part is just going to buy the rat. You feel bad feeding a live animal to another live animal. It's usually over really quick.
11. How did it feel to make it all the way to double-AA during your first full pro season?
My main goal when I got drafted was to get to the big leagues as fast as possible, and I told myself I'd buy a Porsche 911 if I got to AA n my first full season as an incentive. I wasn't really surprised, because I worked so hard and it meant more to me than anything to learn as fast as possible. The low minors are very hard to understand until you live through it, but you don't want to spend a lot of time thereif possible. So instead of 'enjoying' myself with the guys, I just sat at home and thought of ways to get better.
12. What is your best pitch and how was it developed?
My best pitch is my fastball. I guess the key ingredient is having a lot of confidencewhen I throw it. I've worked for over 15 years to try and build arm strength, smooth out my mechanics, and gain velocity. When I was 16 I threw about 75 mph and now I can throw 95. I went to Alaska in 2000 as a closer and a centerfielder. I worked out really hard and read a lot of pitching books. Before the summer I topped out at 87 mph and after I could hit 91. I gained about 10 lbs of muscle in my shoulders and back and that's probably the biggest reason. After Tommy John surgery my elbow was stronger than ever and my velocity went up again, but this time it was probably because of better use of my mechanics.
13. What do you think your long-term role with the team will be and why?
Eventually I will either be a starting pitcher or the closer. Some of the coaches think I should do one or the other, but I think being the closer is a great job.
14. What was the key to your success in the second half of 2006?
I had some nagging tendonitis when I got sent down to Oklahoma City in June, and when it healed I was concerned more with my location for my pitches. When I got sent back up, I stopped walking people and my ERA went down a lot. Walks really hurt relievers because the coach usually pulls you out of the game when you walk guys, so they're on base and the next guy doesn't always strike out the first hitter. Usually if you walk a hitter as a relief pitcher, they score.
15. What’s been the best game so far of your professional career andwhy?
I had some really good games in the minors, but I would say in the majors, my first save against the Twins, or my first win against the White Sox in 2005 were really awesome. For the save, Kameron and I combined to shut out the Twins on only 6 hits I think. The win against the White Sox was great because it was about 5 days later, and I was really sick that day. I pitched 5 innings and only gave up one run. It was my first win since June or July of 2003 - that's a really long time.
16. What sports did you play growing up and which were you best at?
I played soccer, basketball, golf, and I also swam and surfed. I was a better golfer than the rest, but I wish I would have played more soccer. I still play soccer with my friends back in California when I go home. I really hope Tom Hicks decides to buy the Liverpool team so I can go to England and watch them play next off-season.
17. What was your favorite team growing up?
My favorite sports team was the L.A. Lakers, but I really liked baseball and was able to watch a lot of it with both the Dodgers and Angels always on TV.
18. What are you working on in the off-season?
Baseball wise, I've been working on a new windup, and also getting my change-up and curveball back to where they were before 2005. Having more weapons as a pitcher just means I can be even better. This off-season I am working on being a more complete part of the organization by doing as many media events and charity projects as I can. The better player you are, the more you can help people, and also the more demand there is for your time. Being able to juggle all the phases of thatis very difficult for most players.
19. The Rangers website lists one of your hobbies as traveling. Where do you like to travel?
I like to go to the beach, so San Diego, Newport Beach, and Mexico rank really high. After 2005 I went to Japan and China. Tokyo is a great city. This off-season I am going to Europe, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, and maybe England if Mr. Hicks buys Liverpool.
20. How much time do you spend on the computer in an average day? Whatare your favorite sites?
During the off-season I probably spend three or four hours a day online. I maintain my myspace fan site (www.myspace.com/blueglove36) as well as post on message boards like the Newberg report and lonestarball. I try to see what's going on in the world with news sites, and stay in touch with my friends with email. I also read a lot about cars, movies, and video games, and my friends forward me funny links. So...autotrader.com, rennlist.com, bestbuy.com, moviefone.com, imdb.com, ebaumsworld.com, and youtube.com. And of course I search Google a few times a day.
I would like to thank CJ for giving me so much of his time to do this interview. I’ve gotten to talk to CJ a lot at different Rangers events and he is always very friendly and willing to spend time with fans.
Come back next week for an analysis of the AL Central off-season.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Rangers Fan Fest Summary
The Rangers had their Fan Fest yesterday (January 27th). My dad and I spent the day there and I will describe what happened in this week’s blog.
9:00 am: We got in line a little before 9am, which was when they were supposed to open the gates. We ended up being in line with Shirley (The Cookie Lady), who was very nice, as always, and gave cookies to me and my dad. It was very chaotic getting in. They had a piece of paper you had to sign before you could get in but they didn’t tell you anything about it. They had no organization to it and just had people standing around with clipboards at different spots towards the front of the line. You had to figure out on your own that you had to sign the clipboard. Then you had to go into a mob of people to get to the clipboard and shove your way to the front because there was no line for getting to those people. Then you had to go into another mob to get a wristband (that you didn’t end up needing for anything) from other people standing around, near the people with clipboards. Then you had to wait in a line to get in. It took over half an hour to get into the ballpark. Because of that, we missed two Q&A sessions, including the Mark Teixeira one.
10:00 am: I went to the Newberg table and got Chris Davis’ autograph. Like usual, the Newberg table had my favorite autograph guests. Jamey and Eleanor were there and I got to talk to them a lot during the day, which was great. Then I went and checked out the booths. T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com was at one. He’s very nice and has a great blog at http://trsullivan.mlblogs.com/. Then I talked to Roger Emrich. He’s a great guy and does sports on KRLD.
11:00 am: I went back to the Newberg Table and got Nate Gold’s autograph. After that, we had lunch. I caught the very end of the John Lombardo / Scott Servais Q&A session. They said that the biggest difference between Buck Showalter and Ron Washington is that Buck paid a lot of attention to the minors while Ron focuses on the guys on the 25-man roster.
12:00 pm: I was at the broadcasters’ Q&A session. Eric Nadel said that the best move this off-season was the Brandon McCarthy trade. He said that the most disappointing one was to see Gary Matthews, Jr. go even though he agreed that it was too much money. After that I stayed for the Comedy Improv. A very nice photographer for the Rangers, Brad, leads the Improv. They did 5 different things and were very funny. I was brought up to be in Storytime, where there is a pointer who will point at a member of the Improv and he will make up part of a story. Then the pointer will point at someone else and that person will continue the story. They let me be part of it and it was really fun.
1:00 pm: I went back to the Newberg table and got Eric Hurley’s autograph. I then went back to the booths and met Mike Ogulnick, who does Rangers sports for KRLD. He was really friendly and I enjoyed meeting him.
2:00 pm: I watched part of another Improv then stayed for the Jeff Cogen Q&A session. I asked when they were going to update the bricks outside the ballpark that have all of the player information (stats and awards) from each year of the Rangers. The last year they updated it was 1997. Jeff agreed that they needed to update it and said that he would take care of it. I also learned that the Rangers and away team are going to switch batting practice times when the Rangers are at home, so the visitors will bat first and the Rangers second. They’re doing this so that more fans can watch the Rangers take batting practice.
3:00 pm: I went back to the Newberg table and got Thomas Diamond’s autograph. Then I got CJ Wilson’s autograph and he said that I could interview him sometime soon for a blog entry. And the last thing I did before we left was get Rich Hand’s and Larry Hardy’s autographs.
It was a great day as always at the Fan Fest. I particularly enjoyed the Q&A sessions, the Improvs, and talking to people like Jamey, Eleanor, Roger, and T.R. during the day.
Come back next week for an interview with CJ Wilson (if it’s done).
9:00 am: We got in line a little before 9am, which was when they were supposed to open the gates. We ended up being in line with Shirley (The Cookie Lady), who was very nice, as always, and gave cookies to me and my dad. It was very chaotic getting in. They had a piece of paper you had to sign before you could get in but they didn’t tell you anything about it. They had no organization to it and just had people standing around with clipboards at different spots towards the front of the line. You had to figure out on your own that you had to sign the clipboard. Then you had to go into a mob of people to get to the clipboard and shove your way to the front because there was no line for getting to those people. Then you had to go into another mob to get a wristband (that you didn’t end up needing for anything) from other people standing around, near the people with clipboards. Then you had to wait in a line to get in. It took over half an hour to get into the ballpark. Because of that, we missed two Q&A sessions, including the Mark Teixeira one.
10:00 am: I went to the Newberg table and got Chris Davis’ autograph. Like usual, the Newberg table had my favorite autograph guests. Jamey and Eleanor were there and I got to talk to them a lot during the day, which was great. Then I went and checked out the booths. T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com was at one. He’s very nice and has a great blog at http://trsullivan.mlblogs.com/. Then I talked to Roger Emrich. He’s a great guy and does sports on KRLD.
11:00 am: I went back to the Newberg Table and got Nate Gold’s autograph. After that, we had lunch. I caught the very end of the John Lombardo / Scott Servais Q&A session. They said that the biggest difference between Buck Showalter and Ron Washington is that Buck paid a lot of attention to the minors while Ron focuses on the guys on the 25-man roster.
12:00 pm: I was at the broadcasters’ Q&A session. Eric Nadel said that the best move this off-season was the Brandon McCarthy trade. He said that the most disappointing one was to see Gary Matthews, Jr. go even though he agreed that it was too much money. After that I stayed for the Comedy Improv. A very nice photographer for the Rangers, Brad, leads the Improv. They did 5 different things and were very funny. I was brought up to be in Storytime, where there is a pointer who will point at a member of the Improv and he will make up part of a story. Then the pointer will point at someone else and that person will continue the story. They let me be part of it and it was really fun.
1:00 pm: I went back to the Newberg table and got Eric Hurley’s autograph. I then went back to the booths and met Mike Ogulnick, who does Rangers sports for KRLD. He was really friendly and I enjoyed meeting him.
2:00 pm: I watched part of another Improv then stayed for the Jeff Cogen Q&A session. I asked when they were going to update the bricks outside the ballpark that have all of the player information (stats and awards) from each year of the Rangers. The last year they updated it was 1997. Jeff agreed that they needed to update it and said that he would take care of it. I also learned that the Rangers and away team are going to switch batting practice times when the Rangers are at home, so the visitors will bat first and the Rangers second. They’re doing this so that more fans can watch the Rangers take batting practice.
3:00 pm: I went back to the Newberg table and got Thomas Diamond’s autograph. Then I got CJ Wilson’s autograph and he said that I could interview him sometime soon for a blog entry. And the last thing I did before we left was get Rich Hand’s and Larry Hardy’s autographs.
It was a great day as always at the Fan Fest. I particularly enjoyed the Q&A sessions, the Improvs, and talking to people like Jamey, Eleanor, Roger, and T.R. during the day.
Come back next week for an interview with CJ Wilson (if it’s done).
Sunday, January 21, 2007
AL West Off-Season Analysis
This week I will analyze every team in the AL West’s off-season, rank their off-seasons and give my projected 2007 standings for the AL West at this point.
Angels:
Players gained:
Chris Resop
Phil Seibel
Shea Hillenbrand
Gary Matthews Jr.
Justin Speier
Players lost:
Adam Kennedy
Curtis Pride
J.C. Romero
Tim Salmon
Recap:
The Angels haven’t done much this off-season. After losing Adam Kennedy, their 2nd base position won’t be very good, but they have a better outfield. They will be about the same this year as last year.
Athletics:
Players gained:
Donnie Murphy
Alan Embree
J.J. Furmaniak
Mike Piazza
Scott Dunn
Players lost:
D’Angelo Jimenez
Steve Karsay
Randy Keisler
Jay Payton
Matt Roney
Scott Sauerbeck
Frank Thomas
Barry Zito
Recap:
The A’s have had an awful off-season. They haven’t gained much but have lost a lot. When you lose your #1 pitcher and your best hitter, you’re not going to be anywhere near as good. The Indians lost their #1 pitcher (Kevin Millwood) and fell apart. But with losing both your #1 pitcher and your best hitter, along with one of your best fielders, you’re not going to be anywhere close to what you were before.
Mariners:
Players gained:
Sean Burroughs
Chris Reistma
J.J. Putz
Jose Vidro
Miguel Batista
Horacio Ramirez
Sean White
Jose Guillen
Players lost:
Gil Meche
Carl Everett
Matt Lawton
Recap:
The Mariners have gotten a lot of great players and have barely lost anyone.
Rangers:
Players gained:
Frank Catalanotto
Eric Gagne
Kenny Lofton
Vicente Padilla
Chris Stewart
Guillermo Quiroz
Brandon McCarthy
Marlon Byrd
Players lost:
John Danks
Nick Masset
Rod Barajas
Mark DeRosa
Carlos Lee
Gary Matthews Jr.
Kip Wells
Recap:
The Rangers have lost a lot but gained a lot. They have probably gained a little more than they lost but it’s about even.
Off-season rankings:
1. Mariners
2. Rangers
3. Angels
4. A’s
Projected standings:
1. Angels
2. Rangers
3. A’s
4. Mariners
Sosa Signing
I think this was a good signing. It’s not much money. It’s not a big risk. If he doesn’t play well in Spring Training that’s okay. If he does, he makes the team and helps. There’s not much reasoning against signing him, in my opinion, when it’s for such little money.
Come back next week for a recap of the Fan Fest
Angels:
Players gained:
Chris Resop
Phil Seibel
Shea Hillenbrand
Gary Matthews Jr.
Justin Speier
Players lost:
Adam Kennedy
Curtis Pride
J.C. Romero
Tim Salmon
Recap:
The Angels haven’t done much this off-season. After losing Adam Kennedy, their 2nd base position won’t be very good, but they have a better outfield. They will be about the same this year as last year.
Athletics:
Players gained:
Donnie Murphy
Alan Embree
J.J. Furmaniak
Mike Piazza
Scott Dunn
Players lost:
D’Angelo Jimenez
Steve Karsay
Randy Keisler
Jay Payton
Matt Roney
Scott Sauerbeck
Frank Thomas
Barry Zito
Recap:
The A’s have had an awful off-season. They haven’t gained much but have lost a lot. When you lose your #1 pitcher and your best hitter, you’re not going to be anywhere near as good. The Indians lost their #1 pitcher (Kevin Millwood) and fell apart. But with losing both your #1 pitcher and your best hitter, along with one of your best fielders, you’re not going to be anywhere close to what you were before.
Mariners:
Players gained:
Sean Burroughs
Chris Reistma
J.J. Putz
Jose Vidro
Miguel Batista
Horacio Ramirez
Sean White
Jose Guillen
Players lost:
Gil Meche
Carl Everett
Matt Lawton
Recap:
The Mariners have gotten a lot of great players and have barely lost anyone.
Rangers:
Players gained:
Frank Catalanotto
Eric Gagne
Kenny Lofton
Vicente Padilla
Chris Stewart
Guillermo Quiroz
Brandon McCarthy
Marlon Byrd
Players lost:
John Danks
Nick Masset
Rod Barajas
Mark DeRosa
Carlos Lee
Gary Matthews Jr.
Kip Wells
Recap:
The Rangers have lost a lot but gained a lot. They have probably gained a little more than they lost but it’s about even.
Off-season rankings:
1. Mariners
2. Rangers
3. Angels
4. A’s
Projected standings:
1. Angels
2. Rangers
3. A’s
4. Mariners
Sosa Signing
I think this was a good signing. It’s not much money. It’s not a big risk. If he doesn’t play well in Spring Training that’s okay. If he does, he makes the team and helps. There’s not much reasoning against signing him, in my opinion, when it’s for such little money.
Come back next week for a recap of the Fan Fest
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Stewart Acquired
This week the Rangers traded minor league right-handed pitcher Johnny Lujan to the Chicago White Sox for catcher Chris Stewart. In order to make room for Stewart on their roster, the Rangers designated Drew Meyer for assignment.
Johnny Lujan:
Johnny performed great in college and in the minors until last year when he had a 1-4 with a 5.74 ERA in 38 appearances with the Blaze. Before last year he was a good prospect and dominated the league with a very low BAA. Last year his BAA was .281. In this three-year minor league career, he is 7-9 with a 3.68 ERA in 83 appearances, including 6 starts.
He was a 12th round draft pick out of New Mexico College even though he had an ERA just above 1.60. He struggled before and after his minor injury last year. Last year he also became much more home run prone. He had been a ground ball pitcher but was a fly ball pitcher last year. So if he stayed here and pitched in the majors he probably wouldn’t do very well unless he recovered his previous form.
Chris Stewart:
Chris went through the Chicago system surprisingly fast. His batting is okay (.252 average in 5 minor league seasons) but his fielding is outstanding. Last year, he threw out 52 percent of base runners and threw out Grady Sizemore 2 out of 2 times. He went hitless in the majors last year (8 at-bats after a September call up) but hit well in the minors (.265 in 272 AAA at-bats).
Chris will compete for the back up job in Spring Training but being the only one with options he is the least likely to get the job. He is a very good catching prospect even if he doesn’t make the team this year. But being behind Gerald Laird he will probably be a back-up catcher for the time he’s in Texas.
Trade Evaluation:
Lujan has a very good potential but chances are he won’t reach his potential, while Stewart has a lower potential and has already reached it. Stewart will be a back-up catcher in the majors or a starting catcher in the minors for the time he’s in Texas. Lujan probably wouldn’t pitch well here (since this is a home run stadium and he has become a fly ball pitcher) while Stewart will probably bat well here (because it’s a hitters’ ballpark). I think this is a good trade for both teams because Chicago already has both Pierzynski and Toby Hall locked up for two years.
Drew Meyer is not that great of a prospect. He hasn’t gotten much better in the minors over what he was in college. His potential seems to be as a utility player in the majors, at most. He has really struggled hitting above the AA level but is a great fielder. Hopefully Meyer will make it through waivers and the Rangers will keep him.
Grade: A
Come back next week for an analyzation of every team in the AL West’s off-season so far.
Johnny Lujan:
Johnny performed great in college and in the minors until last year when he had a 1-4 with a 5.74 ERA in 38 appearances with the Blaze. Before last year he was a good prospect and dominated the league with a very low BAA. Last year his BAA was .281. In this three-year minor league career, he is 7-9 with a 3.68 ERA in 83 appearances, including 6 starts.
He was a 12th round draft pick out of New Mexico College even though he had an ERA just above 1.60. He struggled before and after his minor injury last year. Last year he also became much more home run prone. He had been a ground ball pitcher but was a fly ball pitcher last year. So if he stayed here and pitched in the majors he probably wouldn’t do very well unless he recovered his previous form.
Chris Stewart:
Chris went through the Chicago system surprisingly fast. His batting is okay (.252 average in 5 minor league seasons) but his fielding is outstanding. Last year, he threw out 52 percent of base runners and threw out Grady Sizemore 2 out of 2 times. He went hitless in the majors last year (8 at-bats after a September call up) but hit well in the minors (.265 in 272 AAA at-bats).
Chris will compete for the back up job in Spring Training but being the only one with options he is the least likely to get the job. He is a very good catching prospect even if he doesn’t make the team this year. But being behind Gerald Laird he will probably be a back-up catcher for the time he’s in Texas.
Trade Evaluation:
Lujan has a very good potential but chances are he won’t reach his potential, while Stewart has a lower potential and has already reached it. Stewart will be a back-up catcher in the majors or a starting catcher in the minors for the time he’s in Texas. Lujan probably wouldn’t pitch well here (since this is a home run stadium and he has become a fly ball pitcher) while Stewart will probably bat well here (because it’s a hitters’ ballpark). I think this is a good trade for both teams because Chicago already has both Pierzynski and Toby Hall locked up for two years.
Drew Meyer is not that great of a prospect. He hasn’t gotten much better in the minors over what he was in college. His potential seems to be as a utility player in the majors, at most. He has really struggled hitting above the AA level but is a great fielder. Hopefully Meyer will make it through waivers and the Rangers will keep him.
Grade: A
Come back next week for an analyzation of every team in the AL West’s off-season so far.
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Tom Grieve Interview
This week I interviewed Texas Rangers broadcaster Tom Grieve. The results of the interview are below.
1. Which job has been your favorite – being a player, GM, or broadcaster?
Tom said that it was definitely being a player. It wasn’t really a job to him. He’s loved everything else but nothing is close to being a player. It was his dream since he was a kid and he made lifelong friends as a player. He’s also enjoyed everything else and considers himself lucky that he’s never had anything that he would really consider to be a job.
2. What is your best memory of being a player?
Tom’s best memory as a player is his first major league game versus the Yankees at Yankee Stadium after he got called up with the Senators. He grew up as a Yankees fan, reading their box scores every morning. He saw his first major league game at Yankee Stadium. Tom grounded out to shortstop in his first major league at-bat.
3. What is your best memory of being a GM?
The Winter Meetings in 1989. Tom made trades for Rafael Palmeiro to play first base and Julio Franco to play second base and signed Nolan Ryan.
4. What is your best memory of being a broadcaster?
Tom said that it’s hard to pick out one thing that stands out as an analyst. The play-by-play guy makes the calls and tends to have more memorable moments. Nothing really stands out but if he had to pick one game, it would be David Dellucci’s big hit against the A’s in late 2004. Also, working with Mark Holtz in 1996 in Tom’s first full season as a broadcaster. He learned a lot from Mark and enjoyed being involved with and interviewing the team when they clinched their first playoff appearance.
5. What was the key to your big year in 1976, when you led the team in so many categories (home runs, slugging percentage, and total bases)?
This was Tom’s second year of getting to play every day. He started playing every day in late 1975. 1976 was the only full season where he played daily and he felt like that gave him the chance to get comfortable and find his rhythm as a player. Also, he was older and more mature by this point.
6. What is your opinion of the Rangers off-season so far and what do they still need to do to win the division?
Tom feels that Jon Daniels has done well and worked hard. The starting pitching rotation hasn’t been better in years. They have four starters already in Millwood, Padilla, McCarthy, and Tejeda. They also have a strong bullpen. The team has had lots of emphasis on scouting, minor league development, and Latin America, which will pay dividends. The main thing they need to do is sort out the outfield in the spring.
7. What changed in order for you to become such a big power hitter in ’74-’76?
He never looked at himself as a power hitter but says that it was harder to hit home runs back then. Hitters now are much bigger and stronger, plus coaching and hitting instructors have made hitters more technically sound. Tom says that the main reason he hit for more power those years was the opportunity to play more often.
8. What have been your favorite and least favorite ballparks you played in or broadcasted from and why?
As a player, his favorite was Fenway Park. Tom is from Massachusetts, so he had a lot of family there. Plus he loved the history and tradition at the park. He also loved playing in Yankee Stadium because he grew up a Yankees fan.
As a broadcaster, he likes Seattle and Anaheim because you don’t have to worry about the weather and the booths are comfortable.
9. What is the biggest difference between Jon Daniels and John Hart?
One obvious difference is that Hart was an older, veteran GM, while Daniels is much younger and less experienced. Also, Hart was a minor league player and Daniels never played professional ball. Daniels has been much more available to fans and the media. He returns calls and answers e-mail. Hart hurt himself by not being available to the fans and media. He also was very sensitive to criticism. His approach to the media and fans hurt him, and Daniels has learned from Hart’s mistakes.
10. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
The Yankees because all of his friends were Red Sox fans and Tom wanted to be different. His favorite players were Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford, and Billy Martin. He could hear all of the games on the radio. His mom also became a Yankees fan. She’s still a Yankees fan but Tom isn’t anymore.
11. What are the three most fun things about your job?
He gets to enjoy all of the good things about baseball without any of the bad stuff. He gets to travel, know the players, and be around baseball, but doesn’t have to be involved in the hard GM duties, like hiring and firing people and giving performance reviews. Also, the offseason is a vacation now. As a GM, he had no time off all year. He felt pressure all year because of the responsibility he had to the team and fans.
12. What are the three toughest things about your job?
Tom doesn’t think there’s anything hard about his job. If he had to pick things, it would be the travel, sleeping in hotels, and doing interviews (because he says he’s not a professional). Broadcasting is easy and natural for him.
13. What is a typical day like in your job?
On the road, he wakes up early, eats breakfast, works out, and hits golf balls or goes golfing. In the afternoon, he goes somewhere by himself for lunch and then relaxes and prepares for the game. He hangs out in the hotel and takes the team bus to the park. At the park, he spends time on the field and in the box preparing. He has a bite to eat and then does the game. He goes back with the TV crew to the hotel, watches TV and goes to bed.
At home, it’s not much different, except after the game, he’ll watch the end of West Coast games on DirectTV before going to bed.
Tom said that he’s kind of boring because he likes having routines.
14. What was it like to play for Ted Williams?
Ted was a very difficult manager to play for. He didn’t like being a manager and was just waiting for his time as manager to be over. He thought he could make people into .300 hitters and was frustrated that he couldn’t. He didn’t spend much time at the park and wasn’t very patient with players. He was a brilliant guy and interesting to talk to. Tom liked him but thought he was a difficult guy to play for.
Come back next week for recaps of every team’s offseason in the AL West so far.
1. Which job has been your favorite – being a player, GM, or broadcaster?
Tom said that it was definitely being a player. It wasn’t really a job to him. He’s loved everything else but nothing is close to being a player. It was his dream since he was a kid and he made lifelong friends as a player. He’s also enjoyed everything else and considers himself lucky that he’s never had anything that he would really consider to be a job.
2. What is your best memory of being a player?
Tom’s best memory as a player is his first major league game versus the Yankees at Yankee Stadium after he got called up with the Senators. He grew up as a Yankees fan, reading their box scores every morning. He saw his first major league game at Yankee Stadium. Tom grounded out to shortstop in his first major league at-bat.
3. What is your best memory of being a GM?
The Winter Meetings in 1989. Tom made trades for Rafael Palmeiro to play first base and Julio Franco to play second base and signed Nolan Ryan.
4. What is your best memory of being a broadcaster?
Tom said that it’s hard to pick out one thing that stands out as an analyst. The play-by-play guy makes the calls and tends to have more memorable moments. Nothing really stands out but if he had to pick one game, it would be David Dellucci’s big hit against the A’s in late 2004. Also, working with Mark Holtz in 1996 in Tom’s first full season as a broadcaster. He learned a lot from Mark and enjoyed being involved with and interviewing the team when they clinched their first playoff appearance.
5. What was the key to your big year in 1976, when you led the team in so many categories (home runs, slugging percentage, and total bases)?
This was Tom’s second year of getting to play every day. He started playing every day in late 1975. 1976 was the only full season where he played daily and he felt like that gave him the chance to get comfortable and find his rhythm as a player. Also, he was older and more mature by this point.
6. What is your opinion of the Rangers off-season so far and what do they still need to do to win the division?
Tom feels that Jon Daniels has done well and worked hard. The starting pitching rotation hasn’t been better in years. They have four starters already in Millwood, Padilla, McCarthy, and Tejeda. They also have a strong bullpen. The team has had lots of emphasis on scouting, minor league development, and Latin America, which will pay dividends. The main thing they need to do is sort out the outfield in the spring.
7. What changed in order for you to become such a big power hitter in ’74-’76?
He never looked at himself as a power hitter but says that it was harder to hit home runs back then. Hitters now are much bigger and stronger, plus coaching and hitting instructors have made hitters more technically sound. Tom says that the main reason he hit for more power those years was the opportunity to play more often.
8. What have been your favorite and least favorite ballparks you played in or broadcasted from and why?
As a player, his favorite was Fenway Park. Tom is from Massachusetts, so he had a lot of family there. Plus he loved the history and tradition at the park. He also loved playing in Yankee Stadium because he grew up a Yankees fan.
As a broadcaster, he likes Seattle and Anaheim because you don’t have to worry about the weather and the booths are comfortable.
9. What is the biggest difference between Jon Daniels and John Hart?
One obvious difference is that Hart was an older, veteran GM, while Daniels is much younger and less experienced. Also, Hart was a minor league player and Daniels never played professional ball. Daniels has been much more available to fans and the media. He returns calls and answers e-mail. Hart hurt himself by not being available to the fans and media. He also was very sensitive to criticism. His approach to the media and fans hurt him, and Daniels has learned from Hart’s mistakes.
10. What was your favorite team growing up and why?
The Yankees because all of his friends were Red Sox fans and Tom wanted to be different. His favorite players were Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford, and Billy Martin. He could hear all of the games on the radio. His mom also became a Yankees fan. She’s still a Yankees fan but Tom isn’t anymore.
11. What are the three most fun things about your job?
He gets to enjoy all of the good things about baseball without any of the bad stuff. He gets to travel, know the players, and be around baseball, but doesn’t have to be involved in the hard GM duties, like hiring and firing people and giving performance reviews. Also, the offseason is a vacation now. As a GM, he had no time off all year. He felt pressure all year because of the responsibility he had to the team and fans.
12. What are the three toughest things about your job?
Tom doesn’t think there’s anything hard about his job. If he had to pick things, it would be the travel, sleeping in hotels, and doing interviews (because he says he’s not a professional). Broadcasting is easy and natural for him.
13. What is a typical day like in your job?
On the road, he wakes up early, eats breakfast, works out, and hits golf balls or goes golfing. In the afternoon, he goes somewhere by himself for lunch and then relaxes and prepares for the game. He hangs out in the hotel and takes the team bus to the park. At the park, he spends time on the field and in the box preparing. He has a bite to eat and then does the game. He goes back with the TV crew to the hotel, watches TV and goes to bed.
At home, it’s not much different, except after the game, he’ll watch the end of West Coast games on DirectTV before going to bed.
Tom said that he’s kind of boring because he likes having routines.
14. What was it like to play for Ted Williams?
Ted was a very difficult manager to play for. He didn’t like being a manager and was just waiting for his time as manager to be over. He thought he could make people into .300 hitters and was frustrated that he couldn’t. He didn’t spend much time at the park and wasn’t very patient with players. He was a brilliant guy and interesting to talk to. Tom liked him but thought he was a difficult guy to play for.
Come back next week for recaps of every team’s offseason in the AL West so far.
Saturday, December 30, 2006
McCarthy Acquired and Danks Traded
Texas acquired right-hander Brandon McCarthy from the Chicago White Sox in a five-player deal last Saturday in which the Rangers traded John Danks, Nick Masset and Jacob Rasner to Chicago for Brandon McCarthy and outfielder David Paisano.
The Rangers traded:
Danks: Last year John split the season in AA and AAA where he went 9-9 with a 4.34 ERA. His career minor league record is 21-30 and his career era is 4.20. He averaged 0.4 walks per inning last year and is 21 years old. It is possible he will make the White Sox starting rotation sometime this year.
Masset: Nick has done OK in his minor league career (career ERA of 4.53 over 6 seasons), with a strong 2006 after a rough 2005. He made his major league debut last year, with a 4.15 ERA in 8 appearances, and might make the White Sox bullpen out of spring training next year.
Rasner: Jacob has only played for two years and is 7-21 with a 6.14 era. He’s probably just one of those throw-in guys.
The Rangers received:
McCarthy: McCarthy had the tenth most innings pitched by a relief pitcher in the AL last year. He is 7-9 with a 4.39 ERA in his career (parts of two seasons). The White Sox planned to have him start in 2007 and he will be part of the Rangers’ starting rotation.
Paisano: David Paisano is only 19 and has never played in the US. He has only played in the Venezuelan Summer league. Last year he did great when batting with two outs and also did great at the end of the season after struggling at the beginning. For more of his stats go to:
http://www.minorleaguesplits.com/pl/445/445270.html
Trade evaluation:
You won’t be able to tell if this trade is good or bad for sure for a few more years. It definitely makes the Rangers stronger for 2007. Right now, the stats of Danks aren’t too promising that he’ll be great, but he seems like a guy with great stuff that can make adjustments at different levels. He might be a good major league pitcher and possibly even great. The Rangers weren’t going to get anything out of Danks this year but they will with McCarthy. McCarthy is very home-run prone and is going to a hitters’ ballpark but is also a huge prospect. We can’t tell if Paisano is going to be good or not since he’s never played in the US. Masset probably will be a decent-to-solid bullpen guy and Rasner was just thrown in there. This is a good trade for the 2007 Rangers but whether it’s a good long-term trade depends on whether Danks and McCarthy reach their potential in the major leagues.
Grade: B
Come back next week for an interview with Rangers broadcaster and former player and GM Tom Grieve.
The Rangers traded:
Danks: Last year John split the season in AA and AAA where he went 9-9 with a 4.34 ERA. His career minor league record is 21-30 and his career era is 4.20. He averaged 0.4 walks per inning last year and is 21 years old. It is possible he will make the White Sox starting rotation sometime this year.
Masset: Nick has done OK in his minor league career (career ERA of 4.53 over 6 seasons), with a strong 2006 after a rough 2005. He made his major league debut last year, with a 4.15 ERA in 8 appearances, and might make the White Sox bullpen out of spring training next year.
Rasner: Jacob has only played for two years and is 7-21 with a 6.14 era. He’s probably just one of those throw-in guys.
The Rangers received:
McCarthy: McCarthy had the tenth most innings pitched by a relief pitcher in the AL last year. He is 7-9 with a 4.39 ERA in his career (parts of two seasons). The White Sox planned to have him start in 2007 and he will be part of the Rangers’ starting rotation.
Paisano: David Paisano is only 19 and has never played in the US. He has only played in the Venezuelan Summer league. Last year he did great when batting with two outs and also did great at the end of the season after struggling at the beginning. For more of his stats go to:
http://www.minorleaguesplits.com/pl/445/445270.html
Trade evaluation:
You won’t be able to tell if this trade is good or bad for sure for a few more years. It definitely makes the Rangers stronger for 2007. Right now, the stats of Danks aren’t too promising that he’ll be great, but he seems like a guy with great stuff that can make adjustments at different levels. He might be a good major league pitcher and possibly even great. The Rangers weren’t going to get anything out of Danks this year but they will with McCarthy. McCarthy is very home-run prone and is going to a hitters’ ballpark but is also a huge prospect. We can’t tell if Paisano is going to be good or not since he’s never played in the US. Masset probably will be a decent-to-solid bullpen guy and Rasner was just thrown in there. This is a good trade for the 2007 Rangers but whether it’s a good long-term trade depends on whether Danks and McCarthy reach their potential in the major leagues.
Grade: B
Come back next week for an interview with Rangers broadcaster and former player and GM Tom Grieve.
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Newberg Bound Edition Release Party
This week, I will describe what happened at the Newberg Bound Edition release party on December 13th.
It was held at the Tin Star in downtown Dallas, and the 2007 Newberg Report Bound Edition was sold for the first time at the event. Eleanor Czajka was in charge of selling the books and was very friendly like always.
This year’s Bound Edition is great. The cover is the best one yet in my opinion and was done by Marty Yawnick. The inside was designed by Devin Pike and has the usual good stuff, including:
- The Newberg awards, where Jamey ranks the top players in the Rangers minor league system for 2006. Jamey does really nice write-ups on the background of each player.
- The Newberg reports from the past year.
- The stats for every player at every level of the Rangers organization.
- Write-ups on rules for major league rosters, like the Rule 5 Draft.
- Forewords by CJ Wilson, Nick Masset’s mom, and Michael Schlact’s dad.
The food at the event was great. I had the kids’ chicken nuggets and they were great. The fries were awesome. My dad had the bacon cheeseburger taco and really liked it. Tin Star is run by Barry Newberg, Jamey’s brother, and he runs the place well.
The players that were there were John Danks, Kameron Loe, Taylor Teagarden, CJ Wilson, and Ian Kinsler. The first thing they did was sign autographs. They signed for about two hours.
After that, they did a Q&A session. Some of the questions and answers are below.
Q: To Ian: Who is the toughest pitcher you’ve faced in the big leagues?
A: Johan Santana, Mike Mussina, and Jose Contreras.
Q: To all: What are the best and worst minor league parks you’ve played in?
A: Best – Round Rock and Frisco
Worst – Savannah, Little Rock, and Clinton
Q: To John: How do you feel about the change in the Rule 5 Draft rules.
A: He said he didn’t like it because it will push back his being added to the 40-man roster.
Q: To Kameron, Ian and CJ: What is the most surprising thing about life as a ballplayer?
A: CJ said how much you’re focused when you’re out there. Ian said how much you’re catered to. Kameron said how aware you are that you’re in the major leagues.
Q: To all: What was the chemistry like last year on the Rangers?
A: There wasn’t much chemistry on the team last year and the main part of the chemistry that was there was Mark DeRosa.
After the Q&A session, players stood around talking with the fans.
It was a really great event. In addition to the players, a bunch of people from the Rangers and local media were there, including Jeff Cogen, Jeff Evans, Evan Grant, Kat O’Brien, and Danny Fine. You can see pictures at Eleanor's website at http://www.dickiethon.com/eczajka/be_2007_party.htm.
Come back next week for a probable interview with Rangers broadcaster, former GM, and former player Tom Grieve.
It was held at the Tin Star in downtown Dallas, and the 2007 Newberg Report Bound Edition was sold for the first time at the event. Eleanor Czajka was in charge of selling the books and was very friendly like always.
This year’s Bound Edition is great. The cover is the best one yet in my opinion and was done by Marty Yawnick. The inside was designed by Devin Pike and has the usual good stuff, including:
- The Newberg awards, where Jamey ranks the top players in the Rangers minor league system for 2006. Jamey does really nice write-ups on the background of each player.
- The Newberg reports from the past year.
- The stats for every player at every level of the Rangers organization.
- Write-ups on rules for major league rosters, like the Rule 5 Draft.
- Forewords by CJ Wilson, Nick Masset’s mom, and Michael Schlact’s dad.
The food at the event was great. I had the kids’ chicken nuggets and they were great. The fries were awesome. My dad had the bacon cheeseburger taco and really liked it. Tin Star is run by Barry Newberg, Jamey’s brother, and he runs the place well.
The players that were there were John Danks, Kameron Loe, Taylor Teagarden, CJ Wilson, and Ian Kinsler. The first thing they did was sign autographs. They signed for about two hours.
After that, they did a Q&A session. Some of the questions and answers are below.
Q: To Ian: Who is the toughest pitcher you’ve faced in the big leagues?
A: Johan Santana, Mike Mussina, and Jose Contreras.
Q: To all: What are the best and worst minor league parks you’ve played in?
A: Best – Round Rock and Frisco
Worst – Savannah, Little Rock, and Clinton
Q: To John: How do you feel about the change in the Rule 5 Draft rules.
A: He said he didn’t like it because it will push back his being added to the 40-man roster.
Q: To Kameron, Ian and CJ: What is the most surprising thing about life as a ballplayer?
A: CJ said how much you’re focused when you’re out there. Ian said how much you’re catered to. Kameron said how aware you are that you’re in the major leagues.
Q: To all: What was the chemistry like last year on the Rangers?
A: There wasn’t much chemistry on the team last year and the main part of the chemistry that was there was Mark DeRosa.
After the Q&A session, players stood around talking with the fans.
It was a really great event. In addition to the players, a bunch of people from the Rangers and local media were there, including Jeff Cogen, Jeff Evans, Evan Grant, Kat O’Brien, and Danny Fine. You can see pictures at Eleanor's website at http://www.dickiethon.com/eczajka/be_2007_party.htm.
Come back next week for a probable interview with Rangers broadcaster, former GM, and former player Tom Grieve.
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