Friday Morning Rangers Notes: Catching Up
Time to empty out a notebook that is notably devoid of references to Alex Rodriguez and Miguel Tejada:
● MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan confirms that Texas will look to hammer out a deal with the initimable Josh Hamilton over the next several weeks, though it remains to be seen whether his unquestionably unique circumstances -- including, but not limited to, his age, career path and medical history -- and pre-arbitration status will act as impediments to advanced negotiations as both player and team attempt to strike a mutually beneficial long-term agreement.
The Rangers have historically expressed a great inclination towards contract extensions of this nature, and for good reason; Ian Kinsler reciprocated the organization's five-year, $22 million vote of confidence with a breakout offensive campaign in 2008 that only affirmed what a tremendous slam dunk his long-term signing was. The perceived (and actual) value of the young, cost-controlled major league asset is steadily on the rise across baseball, and given the current precarious state of the economy on a global scale, there is clearly also a lot to be said for the value of cost certainty right now.
Hamilton represents something of an enigma in this regard, however. Texas wields four more years of club control over the 2008 All-Star slugger, comprising his age-28 through age-31 seasons -- but how strong will the Rangers' motivation be to buy out one or two subsequent free-agent years, given his well-documented background and the inherent risk attached to it? One would suspect that a five-year deal with a sixth-year team option -- structurally similar to the Kinsler pact, albeit not necessarily similar financially -- might be in the cards, but then that idea is predicated on nothing more than thoughtful speculation on my part.
As with the Rangers' abortive signing of Ben Sheets, this is all about reconciling the risk with the potential rewards; unfortunately, that risk is somewhat considerable in Hamilton's case, and conflicting views of Hamilton's worth between his representatives and the organization might well forestall a long-term agreement for the time being. Just how much Hamilton values immediate financial security against the enticing prospect of a tremendously lucrative free-agent contract four years down the line will be instrumental in determining how far these talks progress.
And if, for some reason, the two sides can't find a comfortable middle ground ... well, not even Ian Kinsler -- whose contract extension was fervently discussed in February 2007 but ultimately delayed for another 12 months -- got it the first time around.
● Speaking of Sheets, the 30-year-old right-hander underwent successful surgery on his right elbow on Tuesday and intends to join a contender for the final two months of the regular season, effectively terminating the Rangers' pursuit of his services until at least next winter. According to FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal, the two sides "briefly discussed a restructured deal with less guaranteed money," but talks were quickly severed once Sheets opted for surgery.
● Kevin Goldstein's newly published Top 100 prospects list features right-hander Neftali Feliz at No. 6, first baseman Justin Smoak at No. 22, left-hander Derek Holland at No. 40, right-hander Michael Main at No. 66, outfielder Engel Beltre at No. 68 and shortstop Elvis Andrus at No. 73.
One more day.
Quick Hits: According to manager Ron Washington, Jarrod Saltalamacchia will have the inside track on the starting catcher's job at the outset of spring training ... Southpaw Kason Gabbard successfully threw off a mound for the first time on Thursday after undergoing surgery to remove a bone spur in his left elbow last summer ... Texas officially announced the signings of right-hander Brendan Donnelly and outfielder Andruw Jones to minor league deals on Tuesday ... The Rangers will have five spring training games televised on FSN Southwest, beginning with the club's March 7th Saturday afternoon skirmish against the White Sox.
9 Comments | in The Off-Season
Reader Comments (9)
I hope they lock Hamilton up for a long time despite his age and past history. He's my favortie Ranger since Nolan.
Back when Josh Hamilton was drafted I wished there was some way to get him to the Rangers. Sadly, it took a drop to rock bottom for the Rays to give up on him. He's back though and seems to have his life in order, and finally the Rangers have him. As much risk as there may be involved with him, you have to lock Hamilton up long term. This is a guy who needs to retire as a Ranger when it's all said and done. He may have missed too much time to ever make it into the HOF, but I think he's that caliber of player.
Joey, you've done it again. You tried so hard to use big words and sound so supremely intelligent... but you ended up using a word that doesn't exist: "initimable". Perhaps you meant to say "inimitable".
You're 22 years old, dude. But you try so hard to sound like a 60-year old Harvard professor. Instead, you know what you sound like? A 22-year old kid who wishes he was a 60-year old Harvard professor.
Hamilton's under team control for 4 years, and given his age and risks I'm not sure the cost certainty of a long-term agreement is worth the risk the team takes on. Right now doesn't seem the time to me at all.
If the team doesn't sign him to a long-term deal and he performs well, he'll get rewarded in arb - if not, the team is not locked into what would then be a bad deal. Seems like any deal would have to be pretty team-friendly to make much sense.
Your Dad,
Across the board, while swapping plenty of contrary opinions on this site, we have maintained respect. Please follow the Roman proverb, "Praise in public, admonish in private" (i.e. e-mail if it's personal and necessary. He might appreciate feedback on style, but here doesn't make sense). Lord knows there's more to being true than being right in every detail, but Joey is plenty humble in accepting little corrections, as we all should be. There's no need to come up with guesses as to what motivates his style. If it's not fun for you, then skim for the substance. There are plenty of writers who have no style, which is also fine. But sheesh. Easy.
Cheers
Hear hear! (or is is "here here!")
Actually, that's a bizarre expression. What I mean is - let's be nice to Joey so he keeps writing those good articles. :)
If only we could have bottled and sent him a year's supply of sleep for Christmas! Then he could write a 2am AND a 7am article every day!
By the way, the long winter is over! Wahhooo!
"Sounding supremely intelligent" isn't my purpose so much as properly conveying my points is (which I do feel I accomplished), and I'm genuinely sorry if an unintentional misstrike of the keys negated the entirety of the content. You're absolutely right to call me out on a misspelled word -- which I admittedly missed in my bleary-eyed 4 AM state -- and if that constitutes an irredeemable offense in your eyes, then I am guilty as charged. That said, I have no intention of dramatically altering my writing style or watering down my opinions to appease the outspoken few.
More on topic, here's a random quote from Hamilton:
"Speaking of Sheets, the 30-year-old right-hander underwent successful surgery on his right elbow on Tuesday and intends to join a contender for the final two months of the regular season, effectively terminating the Rangers' pursuit of his services until at least next winter."
Nice vote of confidence.