The Consummate Captain

October 29, 2011.  The day that will live in Rangers infamy FOREVER.  FOR.EV. ER.  Actually…October 27^th was the even worse day.  Thanks Nelly Cruz!  Jackass. 

There are no words.  NONE.

Losing the World Series in 2010 sucked, don’t get me wrong.  But that was no contest.  San Francisco kicked our asses.  It hurt.  But, I felt overmatched from the start.  (Yeah…I’m still on the team) 2011…that was our year.  It really was.  So close…so damn close…

Still cryin...

Sigh…

So why am I ripping off this scab?  (That still is NOT healed)

I’m reliving this because Leo and I have been talking about our now RETIRED captain.  (Like nonstop.  Not kidding.  We might need to take some time off.  Bereavement days.) 

I told him that Michael Young retiring makes me legitimately sad.  Like October 27/29, 2011 sad.  That is the best way to describe this. 

Newberg always calls this “sports sad”…but I think I’m legitimately sad.  Like if something in my own personal life was ruined.  I might need a MY support group.  This might even be worse than I felt on those fateful October 2011 days. 

Yes, you're right...he's kind of a prick.

 How could that be?  How could it possibly be worse? 

Well…I guess…it’s that…the Rangers will have plenty more chances for a World Series…not that they’re easy to come by…but there are chances.  This is it for Michael Brian Young, the consummate captain of your Texas Rangers and one of the BEST sports figures DFW has ever known.  And that, my friends, is high praise in this sports-crazy town. 

The thing is…there is a lot you can say about his game. The dude is a hitting machine.  And I’m saying IS because I think he could still get out there and rake.  Maybe not his usual 200-hit self at this point, but he could hit .280.  He could.  Damn it.  (And could the Rangers not use another bat?  Stupid Jon Daniels.)

I kinda hate the guy on the left right now.

And say what you will about his defense…and I know a lot of people have A LOT to say on this particular subject.  But, what do you expect when you move a guy from his natural position (that he played his whole life) to TWO other positions.  And he never even got enough time to even come close to mastering 3^rd.  The guy was there for a minute in the grand scheme, and all of a sudden that makes him the proverbial defensive liability.  Bump that.  The guy is good at baseball.

See  he caught that didn't he?  DIDN'T HE?!

The other thing to consider in all this from the fan perspective is that…the Texas Rangers have had A LOT of bad seasons.  They have.  Lots of bonehead organizational moves.

Exhibit A:

Not that he wasn’t talented, but that team needed pitching.  THANKS TOM HICKS!

In MY’s 12 full seasons with the Rangers, we had a total of 5 winning seasons.  FIVE.  And four of those were his last four seasons with the team.  Think about that.  He played here for EIGHT YEARS with only one winning season.  He was the one bright spot for me and most Rangers fans. 

In that time, he had over 200 hits in a season six times, he won a gold glove (2008, SS), he led the league in hits twice, he won a batting title (2005), and he went to seven All-Star Games (MVP, 2008). 

What a sad state of affairs that was...until 2009.  Sheesh

The truth though is, this is only half of the story.  Maybe even less than half.  The bigger deal is/was MY’s attitude, leadership, and character.  THAT is what made him the guy we are all hoping every sports “hero” can be.  Not many of these guys live up personally to being the hero that our kids aspire to be.  Sure, they’re good at sports…but a lot of times, they suck at life. 

Am I right?

 When I was talking about this yesterday, someone said, “You have no idea!  He could be a real a-hole!”  And that is completely true.  BUT, that’s true of any public figure.  We don’t know them.  The difference is…the majority of these guys do a great deal to prove us right in thinking they’re a-holes.  So why not champion a guy that does everything in his power to at least come off to us as a good guy?  Because there are plenty of guys that COULD be a-holes and ARE a-holes publicly. 

And I think in this particular instance...there’s been plenty to back up the “good guy” theory.  From former teammates, coaches, reporters…  errrrbody…

 

And you know like I know, people come out of the wood work to say something negative, even just for shock value, if they have any ammo whatsoever. 

I’m sad y’all.  Really sad.  We have about FIFTEEN MINUTES before MY formally retires at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.  And that’s really the only bright spot in the end of this story…that he’s retiring as one of us…in our park. 

Thank you, Michael Young. 

That's quite the Ranger career.

P.S.  I polled a bunch of people about their favorite baseball movies yesterday and the day before.  And!  I’m done.  The post is complete.  Just needed to post it.  But Michael Young trumps all.  Stay tuned for that post in the next couple of days. 

And because we have to end with pleasant MY thoughts:

ok...one more...

A New Year, a Prince, and lots more to 'Choo' on...

Happy New Year, Rangers fans!


Well, it's been almost 4 months since we've waxed poetic/intellectual about America's pastime (is it still actually?) and specifically your Texas Rangers. I apologize for not having the will to give you a 'post'mortem (get it? haha), but plenty has happened since that last month of the season and luckily 162+ is here to catch you up *and* gear you up for the upcoming 2014 campaign...

Well after a strong showing in the final week of the 2013 season the Rangers were able to force a tie breaker with the Tampa Bay Rays in game 163 for the right to be the second Wild Card team. Unfortunately we lost that game 5-2 behind another lackluster, anemic, and erratic offensive showing (more on that later). The youngster Martin Perez had to grow up quick under the big lights and this time he didn't quite rise to the occasion. Not to fear. His future is bright. He'll brush the dirt off his shoulders...

Side note on those aforementioned Tampa Bay Rays. If I were a fan of that suddenly highly competitive franchise which, incidentally, has experienced its own 'Ranger-like' rise to prominence in the last 6 years or so...I would actually have a healthy distaste for the Texas Rangers. After losing the World Series in 2008 the Rays were eliminated by the Cinderella Rangers of 2010 in the ALDS and once again in the ALDS in 2011. 

So, there had to have been some measure of a satisfaction/revenge element to their elimination of the Rangers in 2013. It's an oddly familiar feeling actually. Lest we forget how the 90's Yankees manhandled the 90's Rangers year after year...

Worthless.

Speaking of those Cinderella Rangers of 2010...allow me to juxtapose that legendary (at least to us haha) squad with the current Rangers. Now, by no means am I suggesting that the 2014 Rangers are a finished product. Any fan of this team during the Jon Daniels era knows his work is never done. He's constantly trying to figure out how to make our team better. In a way you can almost call any Rangers team in his tenure a 'work in progress'.

W.W.J.D.D.

You might be asking yourself, then, how much can really change in a mere 4 short years? Lets examine...



If we arbitrarily choose game 3 of the 2010 World Series (the only game we won in the series, mind you) you'll find this lineup...

Elvis was your, then, lead-off hitter. He's a current filthy rich cornerstone of our franchise. No complaints there...

As you may have heard, Josh Hamilton left via free agency in 2012 to purported greener pastures (yawn). Jeff Francoeur was mainly a defensive sub and occasional clutch hitter for the 2010 Rangers. Mitch Moreland appears to have lost his job at 1B (more on that later) and perhaps his status as a Ranger period, despite having every chance in the world to earn and keep the job.


Fan favorite Bengie Molina eventually retired in 2011.

I will search the internet endlessly for every iteration of this moment! Haha...

Fan favorite #2 Vladimir Guerrero has bounced in and out of the league since his 1 great year in Texas.

It is still odd looking back that he became a Ranger...

The 3 remaining players of this lineup won't be a part of the team in 2014, an almost unfathomable thought in 2010. We had to say goodbye to this guy in 2012....

:/

Then this guy in 2013 (leaving females all over the DFW area distraught haha)...

It's just wrong...so wrong. Haha...

Which meant I had to say goodbye to these...

Aww boooo

Now I won't sit here and tell you that I saw the greater good right away with those 2 moves. I won't tell you I wasn't a little upset either...

Haha but in all seriousness...Micheal Young, Ian Kinsler, along with Nelson Cruz (Josh as well, I suppose) were about as close to irreplaceable as you could get.

So how does one go about replacing such crucial pieces? On a pennant winning team no less!? The Rangers recognized 3rd base as a weakness (not MY's natural position after all!) and went on to upgrade at the position via free agency in 2011. They settled on a little player you might know...

MY, the face of the franchise, the captain, the lifelong Ranger was then traded in 2012. That's not a move that was popular, but it was a move that was necessary. Although I believe he could have contributed in the years that followed and I would, of course, welcome him back with open arms...I'm beginning to see what Jon Daniels saw. Like Neo understanding the Matrix finally...

The 2013 Rangers made the biggest splash of the offseason with a blockbuster trade of Ian Kinsler to Detroit for Prince Fielder. Blind fan syndrome aside, on the surface you could see that the writing was on the wall for Ian. There were suddenly one too many great athletes in the infield with the arrival of the switch hitting electric youngster, Jurickson Profar. To say that the 20 year old has a crazy upside would be putting it lightly. Ian was not your prototypical lead-off hitter by any means though we treated him as such. He was getting up there in age and you're hard pressed to get an entire healthy season out of him at this point. In the final analysis he really did lift right out...

Nelson Cruz, meanwhile, after the BioGenesis scandal served his 50 game suspension at the end of the 2013 season. The Rangers were a shaky 29-21 in his absence. He returned for game 163, but was not much of a factor. The consensus after Nelly was to become a free agent in 2013 was that he would not return and would command big money after the dominoes began to fall in free agency. The Yankees, of course, would set the market rate with their signings of Jacoby Ellsbury and Carlos Beltran, the former being an outrageous 7 year 153 million dollar deal. Now given Nelson Cruz's injury history and well documented streakiness at the plate I couldn't justify giving him that much money for that many years. Only time will tell if a team is willing to take a chance on him with a deal similar to Ellsbury's, which I'm assuming is what he's demanding.



The Rangers eventually settled on Shin-Soo Choo for 7 years and 130 million. High risk/high reward deal if I've ever seen one. Now, I haven't looked at the numbers (for once), but he always struck me as a Ranger killer. His signing all but closed the door on the return of Nelson Cruz. Least of all being that Choo will wear Nelly's #17 going forward. That about says it all...

They're both clearly trying to ignore the obvious...

So all of that being said, you might NOW be asking yourself...what does all this mean? Lets begin by reiterating a point that was made ad nauseam on this very blog before the 2013 season: the eventual much maligned 2013 Rangers offense. It was something we could all see coming. They just never quite replaced the bats of Josh, MY, Nap, and eventually Nelly for those final 50 games. The acquisition of Alex Rios did end up being fruitful and I'm actually pretty excited to see what he'll bring to the table for the 2014 Rangers, but by and large the additions of Lance Berkman and AJP were largely busts (like we predicted they would be). The Rangers were a middle of the pack team in the American League in major categories like runs scored, slugging percentage and the almighty RBI and HR categories. A Ron Washington led team should have the makeup of discipline at the plate and they showed this by being near the bottom of the league in strikeouts yet defied it by also being near the bottom in bases on balls. A Ron Washington led team should also get on base and steal bases once they do (evidenced by their 149 SBs in 2013).

Enter Choo as your new leadoff hitter with his .424 OBP and 20 stolen bases. He should theoretically set the table just fine for Elvis and company at the top of the lineup. His 21 HRs won't hurt either. This move firmly ushers in our new look outfield of Rios, Leo, and Choo. Not to mention one of the more underrated acquisitions in the person of outfielder Michael Choice, a hometown guy, via trade from Oakland. Keep an eye on him, Rangers fans. He's a young buck and will replace an all around good guy in Craig Gentry...

Can't say we won't miss ole Kitten Face*. Haha...

*Further reading about the Kitten Face phenomenon can be found here by way of a bewildered Oakland market haha...

http://fieldofteams.csnbayarea.com/2013/12/03/new-as-player-craig-gentry-has-a-very-strange-nickname/


The Prince will look for a fresh start after a mediocre season (by his standards) from him in 2013 and settle into the 3 hole, giving Beltre protection at cleanup. I don't know about you, but I've since had glorious visions of Prince taking full advantage of the short porch in right therein adding that much needed power we lacked in 2013. Here's a player that hit 50 HRs in 2007 and although he's hit 40+ only once since then; with speed in front and power behind him he'll see PLENTY of pitches to hit. What simply cannot be overstated about Fielder is the fact that he's missed ONE game of playing time since 2009. That level of durability will be a welcome sight in Arlington.

Boom! Outta here...

It also finally shores up 1st base for the Rangers which is a position they've tried almost everyone you can think of to figure out in recent history. From MY and Napoli to Mitch Mo and Justin Smoak, it should really prove to be the most stable the position will be since the departure of Mark Teixeira, but of course without his trade there would be no Elvis, Matty, or Feliz. Quid pro quo...


So, having ignored the pitching for this entire post which for the first time, I believe, in my history as a Rangers fan is a <gasp> minimal concern. After all, we're talking about a staff that had a top 5 ERA and BAA AND were 6th in wins in the American League. Not to mention a now perennial Cy Young candidate it appears...

Show me a bullpen that can lose their closer and his 40+ saves and not be phased while you're at it!

Nathan was/is scary for a variety of reasons...

So, all I really need to say is that all this sound and fury signifying SOMETHING should have you Rangers fans excited for the upcoming season. Very, very excited...

It's safe to say optimism is high for 2014 compared to 2013 given the pieces we've added and the pieces we have yet to add before the season or even during the season for that matter! We're talking about a 91-win team that was maybe one or two bats from being a serious contender, by the way!!



So crack a beer...

Tell the Angels/A's/M's/'Stros to...

...and dance yourself a jig of glee because Spring Training is right around the corner!

33 days to go...

Is it really September already? Yes it is!!

Well, it's been 3 long months since you've heard from me, Rangers fans. I don't have a fun post for you all this time because shit just got real! It's September Baseball...so I feel I need to warn you that this may get stat intensive. Haha...





39 days ago the Rangers were down 6 games in the AL West and things were looking pretty bleak. Luckily the great forward thinking baseball minds here at 162+ had taken a look at the schedule in the month of August and noticed only ONE team (those hated As) with a record above .500.





Now not only did they eliminate that deficit thanks in large part to a 20-7 record in said month of August, but they actually kept the A's at bay while maintaining a lead in the West that topped out at 3.


The Rangers finished the month by losing a winnable series at home against the Twins while only scoring 6 runs over the weekend; their only win coming on a walk off hit from Leonys Martin (whose transition into the lead off spot has really helped him and this Rangers offense blossom, by the way).

My boy Leo. I called it!

A weekend that began, mind you, with the Rangers up 3 games in West setting up a 3 game set in Oakland while the Rangers' lead in the West was down to a slim 1 game lead.


Which brings us to today...well, the Rangers lost 2 out of 3 to Oakland with only the first game having any measure of drama to it. The latter 2 games were more or less decided by the later innings. If you told me before the series that the only game we'd win was Martin Perez with Holland, Perez, and Darvish on the mound, AND the Rangers would lose Darvish's start 11-4, I probably wouldn't have believed you. Not that I don't have supreme confidence in Perez, he's been outstanding of late. He's won his last 6 starts and is 9-3 this season, not to mention his recent American League Rookie of the Month for August honors. The numbers don't lie. He finished the month 5-0 with a 3.06 ERA, 11 BB, & 26 SO in 35.1 innings pitched in 5 starts.

You really just couldn't have expected Holland and Darvish to be less than stellar in an albeit early, but important September series. The bullpen (Robbie Ross) didn't do Yu (get it? haha) any favors today, while Nick Tepesh looked pretty good in his return from the DL on Monday afternoon. What was noticeable today (and will probably prove to be nothing) was Darvish showing some measure of frustration on the mound; walking away from AJP (which I would no matter what he was saying actually haha) and Mike Maddux. It wasn't quite a CJ Wilson moment, but he still needed to buckle down there and get it together.







Again, also supreme confidence in Holland and Darvish. Our pitching (2nd in the AL) is what has made this team great in 2013 thanks in large part to Holland and Darvish. I don't need to tell you that Darvish is leading the world in strikeouts and has a top 5 ERA. It IS worth noting, however, that the Rangers are a sub .500 team in day games. It was peculiar to have 2 days games in this set, even if one of those days was labor day. Anyway, I digress. So, all of that being said...here's how we stand today...

Well, Ranger fans I've actually come here to praise the Rangers not to bury them. If I told you the before the season started that the Rangers would be deadlocked atop the West on September 4th would you take it? Would you? Given what all the baseball pundits and experts "claimed" we had lost in the offseason? I keep saying I don't need to remind you about the collapse of 2012, but I suppose that I now have to. Lets travel back to this date in 2012: The Rangers had a comfortable lead in the West with a record of 80-55 (80-62 in 2011 and 75-60 in 2010 for some perspective), while the A's were sitting at a 76-59 mark. The only record that mattered over the final month of the season was on the final day...the Rangers surrendered the West finishing 93-69 while the A's finished 94-68. Soooo, Math majors...that means the Rangers went 13-14 down the stretch and the A's went 19-9...COLLAPSE.

Once again...not without a little help.

What's interesting about the 2012 Texas Rangers is that despite winning the 4th most games in Rangers history (93) they were actually a mediocre 27-30 against the AL West. This included an 8-11 record against Oakland including a 2-5 mark after September. Contrast that with this year's Rangers and their 45-18 (!) record against the West and 9-6 mark against Oakland and you start to realize how truly dominant this team could have been last year if they had just handled business against their own division. Again...COLLAPSE.

Now most baseball experts like to talk about the lowly Astros and the 19 games the Rangers and A's get to play against them and the competitive advantage it supposedly gives us. The Rangers are 14-2 and the A's are 12-3 against them if you were wondering.

Well then I'd have to say to them how about we talk about the Mighty Angels for a second then? Weren't they supposed to be the no doubt AL representative in the World Series this year?


http://espn.go.com/mlb/preview13/story/_/page/13expertpicks/espn-expert-team-predictions-2013-baseball-season


In case you didn't want to count, that's 31 "experts" that picked the Halos to win the West and 3 that actually had them winning the flippin World Series!!! Now that we're all in agreement that baseball 'experts' are idiots and the Angels suck, we can look at the A's 9-4 record and the Rangers' 10-2 record against them as proof positive.

Yeah, yall have a losing record against Houston, guys. Good job!

So who do the Rangers and A's play this weekend, you ask? Wouldn't you know it. The A's host the Astros for 4 and the Rangers are at Anaheim for 3. From there the A's have 6 games left against the Halos while the Rangers have 7 games left against the Halos (4) and Astros (3)...all 7 being the final games and homestand of the Rangers' season. The other 6 games left for the Rangers are against 2 difficult opponents (Pirates and Rays), while the A's have a cakewalk with 6 against the Twins.



This makes next weekend's 3 games in Arlington against Oakland kind of a big deal.




So while you're watching ESPN this month and they keep telling you that the Rangers are gonna collapse and the A's are unstoppable and Johnny Manziel is the devil...

...you'll know better. You'll instantly tell ESPN...








Haha. More importantly you know that you've been reading 162+ all year and you know the #'s and recent history and you know this team has no quit in them...


139 down 23 to go...

I Told You So...

Do you guys remember a couple months ago when everybody was in huge state of panic about our Texas Rangers?  Yeah, me either...

Kidding...of course I remember.  I wrote this, didn't I?  Thank goodness for the quality baseball minds here at 162+ who told you guys to pull yourselves together...the season is long...we'll be okay..NOBODY FREAK OUT, etc.  You remember it now, right?

And at that point, which was July 8th, our Texas Rangers were 14 games OVER and in 2nd place in the West by only HALF A GAME.  Tsk, tsk, spoiled fans (including me...I was in a mini-panic..but don't tell anyone).

Well now I am here to do what any self-respecting baseball blogger would do: say I TOLD YOU SO. Haha.  Okay...not exactly "I told you so".  But let's just reinforce the "Nobody Freak Out" blog post by looking at this:

Now that's a good lookin' ball club as of 8/27/13.

So what do we have here?  We are looking at TWENTY ONE games over .500 and a 2.5 game lead over the Oakland Athletics my friends.  And that is sounding pretty good to me.

And while we have still have had plenty of injuries and re-injuries (can guys quit getting hurt rehabbing?  I'm looking at you Matty & Colby), we have also had some guys get healthy. Joakim Soria was finally ready to go in early July.  Martin Perez has come roaring back from the DL with some pretty stellar games.  And Jeff Baker managed to fight back from an extremely vigorous high-five.

That DL stint due to high-five actually did happen, btw.  That's why the guys do this after hits now.

Of course, we obviously can't talk about this team and how they might finish the season without mentioning who we've lost.  But, so far, we seem to have overcome those obstacles.  First on the Man Down list:  Nelson Cruz.  MLB suspended Nelly for 50 games on August 5th as you probably know.  50 games means he's done for the season.  However, he is eligible to come back for the playoffs.  The rumor is he's playing ball in the Dominican trying to stay fresh until then.  We'll see.

Not the best defensive outfielder that ever was, but we'll definitely miss his boomstick.

Alexi Ogando managed to land himself back on the DL after a brief return to the rotation (shoulder inflammation).  But, based on the starts he had in that return, we ain't missin' much.  Old Man Berkman also managed to injure himself...AGAIN.  Of course, this is what most of us expected of the 37-year old DH.  I mean...he's on the DL with a hip problem.  Literally.  I'm not even making that up.  And because he wasn't producing much either before his latest injury, he's in the same boat with Ogando; not even sure we want them to come back. Young Nick Tepesch has also found himself on the on the DL.  But I'm not even sure he's hurt.  I think that's Wash finding a way to not have to start him again.  But, as I've said before, he did as much as we could have expected him to do in the position the team threw him in.  So, we'll see you again, kid!  (FYI, they are calling it 'elbow inflammation')

The team has also added a couple of new faces too though, before and after the trade deadline.  

Dat's right...

Ready for your intros?  

One strikeout...ah, ah, ah...

At least 75% of Rangers fans think Matt Garza looks like The Count.  I am one of them.  Since joining the team at the end of July, Garza has had bouts of pitching brilliance, Twitter ignorance, and a few bad starts as well.  As of now, his Rangers ERA sits at 4.44; not so hot.  But only time will tell how this acquisition will pan out.  Here's to hoping he starts pitching like hid did in his first two starts as a Ranger again soon.

Lucky for me, nobody reads your little TIME magazine.  Or whatever it's called.

So...it has come to my attention that Alex Rios is really, really ridiculously good looking. Unfortunately, he thinks so too.  So all I can think of is the movie Zoolander.  Derek Zoolander..."A Model Idiot".  Anyway, Our male model is hitting .279 as a Texas Ranger.  And some of those hits have been of the clutch variety. I've never been a huge fan of this guy, I always thought he was overrated (I'm still not convinced otherwise). But he's playing well for us thus far, and we really needed offense prior to his arrival. As with Garza, I guess we'll have to wait and see how this one pans out.

Utility guys don't get funny pictures or even nicknames really.  Poor guy.

Adam Rosales was picked up, DFA'd, picked up again, and now he's actually on the team. Alright! He adds a nice glove on the bench and isn't expected to do too much other than that. But, he's a new Ranger nonetheless.

So none of these guys seem like team saviors, do they?  Well..they're not.  They're not big bat Mike Stanton like I was hoping for.  And they're not big ace Cliff Lee of a couple years ago.  The truth is, there wasn't too much on the trading block this year to choose from, even for JD, Jedi that he is.  But as we've already read, this team didn't really need a savior per se.  They just needed to patch some holes here and there.  So, I'm still hopeful for a lengthy playoff run, even if not a full on world championship.  Why, you ask?  Two very good reasons:

1.  Harry Caray:

He's such a clown, but he's been dealin'.

2.  And The International Man of Mystery:

What a ridiculous photo this is.  And an organized team photo no less!

Well, that's all for now.  Feeling pretty confident in this team.  But we're in the midst of the dog days of summer and September will prove to be very important, just like last year.  Sorry if I brought on any Josh Hamilton flashbacks.

Dutch is throwing on the West Coast tonight.  Stupid 9PM start.  

131 down, 31 to go.