Rangers Gameday: 3/19 Vs. OAK

Thursday, March 19th Game Preview
Oakland Athletics (12-7-1) vs. Texas Rangers (11-9-0)
Edgar Gonzalez (1-1, 4.00 ERA) vs. Kris Benson (1-0, 2.57 ERA)
3:05 p.m. CST in Surprise, Arizona (Surprise Stadium)
TV: - - - | Radio: MLB.com Webcast

Athletics		Rangers
Position	Player	Position	Player
RF	Travis Buck	2B	Omar Vizquel
DH	Mark Ellis	DH	Michael Young
CF	Ryan Sweeney	RF	David Murphy
LF	Matt Holliday	3B	Hank Blalock
C	Kurt Suzuki	CF	Marlon Byrd
1B	Daric Barton	LF	Frank Catalanotto
3B	Bobby Crosby	1B	Chris Davis
2B	Gregorio Petit	C	Jarrod Saltalamacchia
SS	Cliff Pennington	SS	Elvis Andrus

Notes: Left-hander C.J. Wilson (blister, left middle finger) and right-hander Luis Mendoza (blister, right middle finger) each pitched live batting practice this morning ... Left-hander Eddie Guardado (left shoulder soreness) was scheduled to throw a bullpen session today ... Right-handers Frank Francisco and Dustin Nippert are slated to pitch this afternoon.

Comments

[Joey Matschulat]

I prefer March Madness to a Kris Benson start.

[Joey Matschulat]

And apparently David Murphy just made a superb throw from right field to home plate...his THT Kill+ and Hold+ outfield arm ratings were not all that great in right field relative to left field last season (albeit in a limited sample size), although that may be irrelevant if Cruz sticks as we're all hoping he does...

[Jason Parks]

Defensive stats are for geeks. Players play, geeks write.

[red3biggs]

What do you do again Jason?

[Jason Parks]

Red3biggs: "Players play, geeks write" is a bit. Some random poster told me that last season. It's an inside joke that Joey and I occasionally bust out.

[Bev]

Joey, keep up the good work. This site is a personal favorite of mine.

[red3biggs]

Ahh..

Any word on Hank?

[Joey Matschulat]

Random things from Jason's best friend Kevin Goldstein in the top of the sixth inning:

Nathan (Columbus): Neftali Feliz: Is he going to see an MLB roster this year?

Kevin Goldstein: Yes, but I bet Derek Holland gets the first shot from the Triple-A roster.

Ira (North Texas): I have a projected rotation for Hickory, in the Sally league of: Martin Perez, Carlos Pimentel, Neil Ramirez, Wilfredo Boscan, and Richard Bleier. Bleier is the granddaddy of this rotation at 22, the rest are teenagers. How ridiculous is this rotation?

Kevin Goldstein: Utterly ridiculous. What might be more impressive is that the Rangers had the best pitching staff at Low-A last year, and this year they're lined up to repeat that with a whole new group.

jadelman (NY): I'd say there's a __% chance that Neftali Feliz ends up in a bullpen and not a rotation.

Kevin Goldstein: 16.831

Or (Dallas): On behalf of all readers in the Dallas area, I'd like to thank you for doing that interview with Bob and Dan. We are an area sadly deprived of baseball talk; the Cowboys dominate the airwaves even in the heat of summer. With that out of the way, if Chris Davis still qualified as a prospect where would he rank on the list? Above or below the Smoak Monster?

Kevin Goldstein: I had a good time with them on 1310-am the other day, and hopefully we'll do more. Make sure to let them know as well. If forced, I'd probably take Smoak, but that's more because of my love as Smoak as compared to anything against Davis, who I like plenty.

Ben (Dallas): What can you tell me about Justin Smoak that isn't been widely talked about? You hear about his bat and his ability to field, his power and patience at the plate. Tell me something new, if you please, that the everyday fan might no know.

Kevin Goldstein: His favorite food is steak and he has an older brother named David. Thanks old South Carolina media guide!

Joe (San Antonio): Mr. Goldstein, do you know if Wilmer Font is being groomed to start or is he going to be a bullpen guy?

Kevin Goldstein: Guy has 50 pro innings. Right now he just needs innings before you worry about his role.

That second-to-last response reminds me of Richard Bleier's listing in the 2007 Florida Gulf Coast University baseball media guide, in which it noted that he was a fan of milk and Wesley Snipes. So random.

[Joey Matschulat]

From Evan Grant on Hank:

After missing two-plus games because of a sore left quadriceps, Hank Blalock, the Rangers’ intended backup option at third base, made his debut at his old position Thursday.

It has not gone well. Blalock bobbled the first ball hit to him for an error. Moments ago, he went chasing after a foul pop and ended up crashing against the railing in front of the Oakland dugout. His momentum sent him tumbling into the dugout where he appeared to hit head. Blalock got up, but left the game, dabbing at his forehead with a towel. Couldn’t tell if he opened a gash or not.

The Rangers aren’t the only club interested in finding out if Blalock can still play the position. The New York Yankees could be in the market for a replacement for Alex Rodriguez while he recovers from shoulder surgery. The Houston Astros could use somebody to replace Aaron Boone, who underwent open heart surgery this week. Both clubs have had scouts around the Rangers this week.

Of course, neither of those gaffes are really indicative of the condition of his defensive range at the hot corner or his arm at this point...honestly, I'll be absolutely floored if any team trades for Hank as an everyday option at third base before Opening Day, and as I wrote about a week ago, a match with the Yankees seems particularly unlikely...

[Joey Matschulat]

Metcalf has now replaced Blalock at third base...Nippert, meanwhile, is busy showcasing his ability to make even the most boring middle innings of a meaningless mid-March spring training game interesting...

[Joey Matschulat]

K-Law things from today (with a very heavy diet of Strasburg):

Tweed (Chicago, IL): "Especially with Smoak impressing everyone in Arizona. They took the best name, not the best guy." Now KLaw, are you suggesting that the Pirates should have taken Justin Smoak all along and that you knew better than the Pirates' scouts? Or are you just saying that both you and the Pirates were mistaken that in thinking that Pedro Alvarez was better than Justin Smoak? What a difference a year makes eh?

SportsNation Keith Law: I ranked Smoak over Alvarez before the draft, dating back to their freshman summers (Smoak on the Cape and Alvarez on Team USA). I also think that the decision to take Alvarez wasn't entirely the scouting department's. Their team president, Frank Coonelly, is by all accounts heavily involved in baseball ops decisions.

Brian (Omaha): Is Smoak up in 2009?

SportsNation Keith Law: It would be bold and somewhat risky, but why not give him the job now? Chris Davis is just keeping time for Smoak at this point, and Davis has been awful this spring. (Apparently his teammates are razzing him about Smoak creeping up to take his job.) The two arguments against are Smoak's lack of any real professional experience and the way it might destroy Davis' trade value. So that's a long way of saying yes, I think he could come up in 2009 unless he's somehow blocked.

Nick (Cleveland): So your not a big Chris Davis fan? You waited to tell me this now after I drafted him in my fantasy league? Unbefriekinglievable.

SportsNation Keith Law: I think long-term, Smoak > Davis. Davis has big raw power in a good park for LH power hitters. For your purposes, he's good. And I don't seriously think he's going to lose his job this month. It's a lot easier for me to sit here and say "Demote Davis! Play Smoak!" when I'm not running the team. I'm sure the Rangers' guys will give me grief today when I go over there to see Boscan.

Ryan (Pittsburgh): Just curious Keith, but while we're talking pitch speed, did Zumaya ever hit 100 on your gun? You never know with those stadium guns.

SportsNation Keith Law: 98. Verlander topped 97 when I saw him healthy. Got 98 from Wilmer Font last spring, and I think Feliz hit a 98 yesterday. I know it's weird to say, but 98 is common and 100 is really rare.

Brian (Omaha): How far away from being an effective big league starter is Feliz?

SportsNation Keith Law: At least a full year.

That Smoak/Davis answer...man, I just don't know...

[Joey Matschulat]

And some breaking news from Surprise: Nippert has been pulled from the game after a visit from Jamie Reed and Ron Washington with an apparent back problem...back problems can be absolutely debilitating, so if this is anything more than a routine cramp this could imperil his chances of making the Opening Day roster...

[Joey Matschulat]

Update on Nippert: Apparent strained right rhomboid muscle. Brendan Donnelly suffered from a similar problem earlier this spring.

Could end up being nothing, but given that most have already penciled Nippert in as one of the bullpen's starting seven (particularly due to his lack of minor league options), this definitely warrants close observation...

[Joey Matschulat]

And Boggs just smashed an absolute laser beam to straightaway center field for a triple...very loud crack of the bat transmitted through the ballpark microphone on that one...

[Joey Matschulat]

Frankie Frank coming on looking to notch the save...

[Joey Matschulat]

And the Rangers are an out away from nailing down the victory...

[JDolla$]

Regarding Evan's speculation about possible suitors for Hank, I'd believe the rumors about Houston if they had anyone worth trading for in their system. Well, I wouldn't mind having Valverde, but you're not going to get him for Hank, and then who would Houston have to close games?

From this fan's perspective, the only kind of trade Houston can make is the 1 superstar for 4 prospects kind of deal, which they will surely be forced to do if they are floundering by mid-season.

Not sure why NY would give up much of anything to get Hank early in the season, either. So as much as I like Evan, I think his thoughts in this manner are in the same category as the rumor 2 seasons ago that we'd trade Tex to LA for Kershaw.

[Joey Matschulat]

Texas wins it, 7-5...now, on to Texas/Minnesota (which I'm not particularly optimistic about)...

[JDolla$]

If Eddie & CJ are still working their way back from injuries at the start of the season, and we're counting on the likes of Nippert and Donnelly to pitch in the late innings - I think we're going to see a lot of lost leads early in the season.

[Joey Matschulat]

I would say that is a pretty accurate assessment of the situation, JD...the Astros have some interesting B-/C+ level guys, and I don't think the Rangers are strictly opposed to dealing Hank by any means, but I'm not really sure I see a match there (and again, I don't think Blalock is a realistic option at third base, and I think teams are more than cognizant of his bad shoulder -- this debate isn't even really open unless some trade rumors with some basis in reality begin to materialize)...

And yeah, the back of this bullpen could make a lot of games interesting early on in the season...Willie Eyre is reportedly closing in on a bullpen spot, which would place him alongside FX^2/Madrigal/Wilson/Guardado if things work out on the injury front, so that would leave one roster spot for Nippert and one for one of Donnelly/Turnbow...I don't recall actually seeing a scouting report on Donnelly this spring, but Turnbow's control does not inspire any sort of confidence...