Sunday Morning Open Thread: Five Questions
1. Is it time yet to begin wondering where on earth Ian Kinsler's home run power has disappeared off to? Moreover, should we find ourselves caring all that much so long as he's posting a .370-plus on-base percentage?
2. If Tommy Hunter -- who was excellent in his season debut on Saturday afternoon, tossing a complete-game five-hitter -- maintains a steady pace going forward, Derek Holland returns before the end of the month as the Rangers hope he will, and Rich Harden persists in only being good for 4-5 mediocre innings per start, would you seriously consider going ahead and cutting bait with Harden upon Holland's healthy return?
3. How would you grade general manager Jon Daniels and manager Ron Washington on their on-the-job performance at the season's two-month mark? Phrased another way, has either done anything yet to materially alter how you perceived them coming into the season?
4. What do you make of the major league-playing contingent -- including C.J. Wilson, who stated that instant replay was "overrated, as is governmental over-involvement" -- that strongly opposes any further implementation of instant replay? Is this a case of major league players knowing what's best, or the result of stubbornly clinging to baseball tradition?
5. Which amateur draft prospects -- including, but not limited to, Zach Cox, Michael Choice and Karsten Whitson -- would you most like to see the Rangers select with the 15th-overall pick tomorrow?
[For what it's worth, we're planning to stage a live draft chat tomorrow -- beginning in the 5:00 p.m. CDT hour -- tentatively featuring myself and Jason Parks, possibly Josh Garoon and David Brown, and perhaps another special guest or two. Read along, hold your breath with us as the Rangers make their first-round selections and vent/exult along with us as we strive to make sense of it all. Stay tuned to The Clubhouse for draft rumors, tidbits and thoughts that come down the pipeline over the next 36 hours.]
37 Comments | in Open Thread, The Season
Reader Comments (37)
1. Ankle injury this spring. I'd be surprised if he hit much for power this season.
2. DL Harden, long rehab to figure out why he sucks.
3. Same guys as before. Wash is over-managing at times, but to be fair, he's been pressed into action on occasion by wild and slumping bullpen stalwarts like Francisco and Feliz early on, slumping bottom of the order hitters, and a recent rotation slump that's led to an overused bullpen. Daniels made aggressive moves early at C and 1B. Perhaps too much patience with Borbon, but the options there are less enticing and he may be snapping out of it.
4. Getting the call right should be priority no. 1. The players are the human element, umps should not be a variable.
5. This draft is going to be wild. I think the Rangers will move someone up surprising all of us. I'd love Whitson, but someone like Workman and his cutter seems more likely.
1. It looks like he is starting to swing in a more of an uppercut style, which has led to more pop ups and fly outs, ala last year. the home runs will come, but I would be surprised if he hit more than 20.
2. Unless Harden turns it around quickly, they need to 'uncover' an injury and put him on the DL until he figures out what's wrong with himself.
3. JD has done what he has needed to do. Washington is way too much of a 'by the book' style of a manager for my liking. Not only Washington, but other managers as well...using a relief pitcher for the 7th, a different one for the 8th and then the closer. If the 7th inning guy sets them down in a dominant fashion, send him back out there for the 8th. In the long run it will keep the 'pen fresher.
4. Keep instant replay at it's current level of involvement. The 'human' aspect of the game is what makes it stand apart from the other professional leagues. However, in a case such as the Galaragga incident, Selig should have used his powers to make a 'one=time' decision to overturn the call.
5. I don't care who it is, so long as they are sign-able, and capable of helping the big club in 2-3 years.
1) As long as his BA stays respectable, and his OBP is up there, the rest I can live with ... we know he can hit HR's ... now, can he do the other "little" things to make himself an all-around player.
2) Find a way to stash Harden on the DL, and get him "right" ... we're going to need him down the stretch, and right now, we have other options.
3) More impressed with JD's been able to do, considering the "financial constraints" he's been under ... hate to say it, but I think the team has been successful in spite of Ronnie ... not because of him.
4) Get the calls right ... with the technology that is available now, there's no excuse ... we're not talking about making the distance between bases 95 ft., we're talking about employing one person to monitor calls that are made on the field, in addition to what they already moniter ... get over it, and get it right ... the umpires should be accountable anyway ...
5) I have no idea ... just get us some impact players, at skill positions (3B, OF) as well as a nice haul of pitchers, and I'll be happy ...
Bonus Suggestion: DFA Arias, and get us a better bench player for late innings ... this is one situation I can't support either the FO or Ronnie on ...
1. If a guy is getting on base 37% of the time and he's not THE power hitter on your club - who cares? We all know that getting on base is the answer, not HR's.
2. I would have cut bait with Harden a month ago.
3. Daniels B+, Washington F
4. Call me a neanderthal - I think no instant replay should be involved in baseball. It's a human game, played by humans and should be run by humans. What's next a computer for commissioner?
5. n/a
addendum
3. Daniels, after a rough start to his career as a GM has done very well - so no, my perceptions haven't changed. Washington, on the other hand, has gotten worse (although better in the last 2 weeks.)
I left this on another site:
HAY WASH!! do you get the IDEA??? the players LIKE playing behind HIM.
when Holland comes back, go to a 6 man rotation if you need to... It will help EVERYONE, who knows it might even save your JOB.
1) What I am more concerned about with Kinsler is that his batting average is dropping like a rock dropped from the top of The Ballpark! Looks like he may be falling back into old habits from last year with his uppercuts, trying for home runs?? Ian has everything you want in a young second baseman....but he needs to be consistent in getting base hits, singles, doubles, etc. Home runs will come........I would rather have him hitting a consistent .300+ versus .260 with 30 homers!
2) Daniels has made a terrible mistake in not getting Harden on the DL to figure out what his problems are. We cannot afford a $7M "Ace" who can't get through the 4th or 5th innings......this guy needs to be pitching darn good baseball through 7 and 8 innings!
3) Daniels is doing a good job overall with one glaring exception.....Washington! Wash needs to go and sooner rather than later.....everyone says well the players like him and he is a players manager! What the heck does that mean? He handles the pitching staff worse than anyone I have ever seen....he constantly sits and scribbles in his notebook, forgets to warm up his closer by his own admission! We need someone that the players can respect and play hard for....that they can learn from and more importantly that knows how to manager a ball game! Would love to see Mike Hargrove brought in as the manager. Good head on his shoulders; great baseball instincts; expeirence and success at MLB manager's position; and commands player respect while still capable of being a "player's manager"; plus has ties to the Rangers!
4) Instant replays will slow down a game unbelievably if they can be used for anythiing and everything. In the Galarraga perfect game the four umps should have huddled and discussed what happened.....one or more of the other three had to have seen something or had a doubt.....within a few days a decision was overturned on the field by a crew chief in another game......these things can be done without a replay on everything. One issue that really needs to be overcome is how sensitive some of these umps are.....they have zero tolerance on anything and everything. In Galarraga's case the Commissioner should have intervened. Instant replays on a broad scale have no place in baseball.
5) As to the draft can't really give any opinion on it.......would hope we look at some impact players to fill gaps we have at catching for one.....don't believe that Salty will ever be the guy we all thought he would be......Teagarden is not MLB quality....Ramirez is coming along....Treanor good backup.....don't know what is out there in the draft at that position but would like to see us focus on catching for one.
1. Not concerned. So long as he continues to square the ball up the HR's will come. Maybe not 30 but the tradeoff is a more consistent hitter.
2. If Harden continues to show he can't bring length to his game, fine, the bullpen can always use hi-impact stuff in short bursts.
3. Daniels -B., the situational mess caused in late innings strategy by the Arias/Blanco combo is inexcusable. Wahington -C., this team wins when the players perform to their talent which they don't always do. This team loses when the players play below their talent and creativity and game strategy is required, that's about the manager. But they do play hard for him, it's been said.
4. Agree completely with the analogy. Replay will NOT answer every question.
5. Whitson, Vitek, O'Conner in that order if not already taken. I believe any of them are signable.
1. As long as he keeps getting on base, I am not concerned He is not a 3 hole hitter, but he adds to the chances of getting a RBI from the 4 - 6 holes by geeting on.
2. Harden has had too many chances. He needs to go on the DL to figure out what his problem is or be DFA if he can't.
3. No real change from start of the season for either Jon Daniels or Ron Washington. I support them both. If the C and 1B spots don't come around by trade deadline and move move to fill those gaps is made, I will lower my evalauation of the GM. I think Washington is a good manager -- maybe the best since Johnny Oates.
4. Baseball doesn't need replay. It is a game played by humans and arbitrated by humans. The blown calls are part of the game and its lore. Leave it alone.
5. No idea.
3. C for Daniels; D for Washington. Daniels has put together an ill-fitting roster - 2 middle infielder backups that rarely play, until recently just one lefty in the pen, no right-handed OF to spell Borbon, the abominable catching situation, just to name a few. Worst of all though is his managerial hire and his stubbornness in refusing to make a change. As for Washington, he's always been regarded as a sub-par strategist, but he's taken this area to new heights this season. He's conceivably cost the team as many as 6 wins already. Then there are the illogical batting orders and his bullpen utilization. Awful all around.
1- I prefer the higher obp., thank you very much
2- Ship Harden out, no place in the bullpen for a high pitch count pitcher who walks so many batters.
3- Daniels A-, Washington B-
4- Don't care
5- Love to have Choice, but wouldn't mind more upside high school pitchers...just sign whoever they draft!
1) The power is there. Kinsler is hitting the ball with authority right now. I'm not really worried. Since he missed a month the most I was expecting was somewhere around 20 anyway.
2) There is actually a problem there, I don't think we are going to demote Harden anytime soon, even if he is still sucking hard. Holland needs to be in the rotation, and if Hunter keeps pitching anywhere near what he did yesterday he needs to be there also.
3) Daniels I think did an excelent job this off season with basically zero budget. Harden hasn't worked out, but you can't fault the idea or execution of the idea. Now to the current roster construction, the Arias problem is baffling. I just don't get why we are keeping him. We can't be that worried about losing a replacement level 2b. I'm not sure we have any better in house options for RH bench bat, but at least we could bring in an OF like Boggs to give the bench a little more versatility.
Washington is what he is. A questionable tactical manager who the players apparently really like. He isn't the worst manager in the majors, nor is he the best. He's probably somewhere around average.
4) I really still don't like the idea of expanding replay in baseball too much. I just have a problem imagining a situation in which it doesn't slow down the game a good deal and become too intrusive. Sometime or another its going to expand, but I just don't think its going to happen that much now.
5) About the draft I don't know enough about the various players to speak intelligently so I'll keep it general. I hope we continue to do what we have been doing, even with the unprotected pick, pick a guy who has above slot talent but might be a sign-ability problem. I'd rather lose the pick taking a shot at a home run then get a Kelly Dransfeldt.
1. Well, his wOBA right now is .323, about 40 points below his career average. His approach at the plate this year has been awesome, no doubt about that, but it's still not making up for the fact that he's offering absolutely nothing power-wise right now. David Eckstein actually has a higher ISO this year (93 to Ian's 89).
Whether it's because of his ankle, an overcompensation on his part not to hit the ball in the air this year or a combination of both, he's just not the same hitter until he recovers that power stroke - and who knows when that will be.
2. I'd DL him for awhile when Holland comes back if he hasn't shown any improvement, but it's still way too soon to cut bait with him. Harden's still the type of guy who could be a real impact player during a stretch run/postseason play, and for that reason the club needs to make every effort to get him right and pitching up to his potential.
3. It seems like Ron stepped up the implementation and saturation of his outdated philosophies among the players and started over-managing this season. I realize this is Ron Washington trying to do a better job, but unfortunately all Ron's extra trying has done is hurt the team. I'm not too impressed with the coaching staff behind him either, as neither Mike Maddux nor Jackie Moore seems to be doing anything to help steer him toward the right track.
I think the coaching staff as a whole kind of sucks right now, and is part of the reason the entire team seems to be demonstrating an extremely low baseball IQ on the field this season.
As for JD, well... he (and Nolan, where the coaching is concerned) is the one who put this coaching staff together, and he's the one behind this insane Joaquin Arias/25 man roster circus act - so I'd have to say I'm rather disappointed with him this year as well. I still think he's the correct guy to be managing this team's operations going forward, but I wish he'd do a little better job of grabbing the bull by the horns in the present-tense.
4. I don't look for major league players to know what's best when it comes to issues like this period. They're the ones playing the game, yeah - which is exactly why I don't think they're the ones to be asking when it comes to evaluating what goes on on the field. Bottom line is the "human element" is far to prone to bias and fallibility to be relied upon when better options are becoming available. There's no excuse for not upgrading the accuracy and integrity of the way ballgames are officiated. Especially not when ballgames are currently being run by pompous jackasses in padding who seem more worried about maintaining their stranglehold of control over the diamond than they are about actually calling games in the most accurate way possible.
5. I don't really think I have a preferred pick in the draft this year, mainly because I have no idea who the Rangers might actually take. Only thing that would truly make my day would be if Grandal somehow falls to us. Of the other poular names... not so sure I'm a huge Choice fan. Workman or Whitson would be cool though, and I kinda like Cox.
1. I think most fans would like to see last yr's power with this yr's OBP, but when you have hot hitters at 4 and 5, Ian just needs to get on base right now.
2. When you begin your question with an 'If', and it pertains to the health of a pitcher, I don't know how you can suggest a course of action, unless you use the word 'hope' in there somewhere. Yes, I hope Holland can come back and become the #1 or #2 guy a championship rotation needs. Harden and Feldman need to step it up right now, or they aren't going to be used much down the stretch. Who would have thought the offense, with all its holes, could carry this team through such a rough patch by the starting staff? Are the starters sitting at something close to 6.00 ERA over the last 30 days? Unbelievable that the team is still in first and has actually been over .500 during that time.
3. JD has provided the manager some superb talent on a shoe-string budget. If he isn't the league GM of the yr when this team wins a pennant, then awards are stupid. I'd like Wash to keep improving his use of the bullpen, but he has so many shortcomings...the running game is pathetically out of control, the overuse of the sacrifice, the wasted extra utility player on the roster when you need a RHB who can play in the outfield. I think Cruz's injury would be causing a lot more losses if not for the fortunate schedule full of RH starters they've been facing the past week. I give Wash a C-minus.
4. I agree with the players. PLEASE don't slow down the game unnecessarily. I'm afraid every single close call will be reviewed, which only could possibly work if there is a booth replay umpire whose word will be taken for gospel and applied without delay. When the umpires have to leave the field to look at the tape, that could mean several minutes multiplied by 4 or 5 reviews per game.
5. I don't keep up with the pre-draft reports, but I'm always happy to see the Rangers getting extra picks early, rather than giving them away with free-agent signings. I'm disappointed they won't be able to grab any of the top notch talent that usually scare off most teams because of signability issues -- we learned last yr that the pay-scale once again applies to the Rangers, too.
1) Not concerned. He's growing into this new selective approach. He has his FB% and popup% under control, and I'm willing to bet that his high GB% is just an indication that his timing is just a tick off. Every indication to me suggests his power is still there.
2) I thought he was legitimately injured until I read the fangraph article on his sudden hitability.
Now I think he truly is trying to pitch to contact, and he's aiming the ball too much. I would consider moving him to the pen when Holland comes back, and telling Harden to just let loose for an inning and not worry about pitch to contact. Ray gets moved down to AAA in that scenario.
3) nope. The Arias thing is curious, but I keep thinking their showcasing him for a Lowell trade.
4) Don't know. Don't really care. Although, in the case of Gallaraga, if the umpire comes to the conclusion he missed the call, I would support the idea of an overrule from the commission should the umpire request an overrule.
5) If Whitson is there, it would take a lot of smooth talking to convince me he shouldn't be picked. I'm thinking Wimmers will be the BAP at that point, and I'm happy with that. I hope one of Whitson or Colon is there.
Kinsler should be moved down the lineup. Josh should hit 3rd. Kinsler needs to focus on getting on base, and the power will eventually come back, but I think he was forced into the 3rd slot, and he is not producing like a number three hitter.
I don't really have anything to say to add to what is already here except for the Daniels/Washington question: Nothing is going to be done here until the ownership is resolved and the financial problems are smoothed out. I wouldn't be surprised if Ryan/Greenberg (assuming this works out like we want it to) don't make massive changes when their ownership is confirmed - late in the season or on the offseason.
Oh - and instant replay. If it is put into place it has to be constrained, and umpires need to stop acting like children and accept that they can be wrong. Sometimes I'm not sure if pitchers or umpires are the bigger prima donnas in baseball.
1. Kinsler is needed more for OBP than SLG.
2. Send Harden to the DL; Have Scheppers ready for an overworked CJ Wilson.
3. JD grades an A+ for acquiring impact free agents. The additions of Vlad, Darren Oliver, and Colby Lewis have been critical to the current success of our team. I suspect that JD now understands he needs a manger-in-waiting; that he did not accept Washington's resignation when given the opportunity last year was probably related in part for having no viable in-house option.
4. I love the idea of bringing accountability to umpiring; it is much needed and should extend beyond instant replay. The pacing of the game should not and does not need to be sacrificied to judicious use of over turning botched, high-impact calls.
5. With #15, I hope the Rangers draft a college playr who can reach the 25-man roster in 2 years. If a prep player is selected, I prefer Nick Castellanos.
1 He needs to join overthinkers ananymous. He is trying to re-invent his whole approach so this will take awhile. Should he be Young or stay with Blaylock? He needs to go back and be himself, go back to the basics cause when he first came up, plus his natural maturity would have brought the power and retained the stroke.
2 Harden is NOT injured so he should not be DL'd. I am not sure what to do with 6 quality starters. Is it possible to have a 6 man rotation or is that crazy?
3 Daniels an A and Washington a B...still think our management group is outstanding.
4 Stay with what we have...no more instant replay. There was a way for Gallaraga to get at least a no-hitter. We have all seen questionable official scorer rulings so what if the official scorer, after the fact, called an error on the play? Take the pressure off of Selig and MLB but might cost that guy his job.
5 Not up to speed but stick with pitching.
1. Looks like the same Kinsler we saw most of last year with maybe a few more walks.
2. Harden I think will be OK, you don't get to be a MLB ace without being able to figure out what you are doing wrong at certain points in your career.
3. The same Daniels underrated early in career and overrated now (at least by Ranger fans), wouldn't trade him. Washington still the same guy in over his head, but did like to see him get tossed the other night, although it was pretty staged.
4.No replay! Galarraga got robbed yes but he now has the perfect game that no one will ever forget.
5. If I knew that I'd be workin in the front office.
By end of June
Rangers 45+ wins
Josh has > 16 HR
MY > .333 avg. although no one here admits they were wrong
Murphy >.290 avg
Harden finds himself (then probably goes on DL in July)
For those of you that wanted a Tanner Scheppers sighting soon (myself included), he was put on the DL with a strained hamstring today/yesterday. So he will be out of action for atleast 15 days. If there plan is to stretch him out, going 4 innings a few time, then 5 a few times, and so on, it should be atleast early to late August at the earliest that he would come up.
If there is an emergency need, I would expect McCarthy or some other bad option first.
1. The only thing I would worry about it that he knows he isnt hitting for power, so now he is going to go back to his old habits and hit pop-up after pop-up. Hurdle needs to make sure he stays on him to keep him from going back to his old habits.
2. well, it would probably be the biggest decision of the year to date for management, but I think harden should be sent to the DL for shoulder fatigue or something and give him 2 weeks to work on his mechanics then give him a second chance... to much money invested in im so far to let himgo to waste
3. JD & management = A++ even dating it back to last season when they made the no-trade for halladay plus the FA aquistions have resulted in the best offseason that I can remember the rangers ever having. Wash gets a B-...hes been a little bunt-happy early, but its getting better recently, also I love listening to him talk about how his pitchers "battle" for him and his guys are "warriors out there"
4. Nobody will ever be completely happy with or without replay so I dont feel it is worth arguing, if Bud decides that he wants to expand it then so be it, theres nothing anyone can do about it. I think is should be expanded a little to include tag and force plays at bases and to determine catches and traps in the field and fair or foul balls that are not homers
5.Cox could be a future replacement for MY from what i understand, but i think the best "choice" would be Choice...I highly doubt either will be on the board at 15 though
@Rangers 513 MY > .333 avg. although no one here admits they were wrong
No one said he couldn't hit...
When is the next scouting report going to post? I am having withdrawals.
1. If this is KInsler 2010 need to move him out of #3 and down to #6 perhaps.
2. I'll supply the box for Harden to pack his things in. I wrote him off back in mid May and would have DFA'd him already.
3. C+ for both. No.
4. No... that's just CJ being CJ
5. Could care less until players make it to AA. All the draft projecting is simply marketing by scouts and agents.
@Ranger513... " you don't get to be a MLB ace without being able to figure out what you are doing wrong at certain points in your career."
When was Harden ever an Ace? He was Cubs' #5 last year and lasted only a half an inning longer last year than he has this year (4.9in/st). In 2008 when he split between OAK and CHC he was a half an inning better than 2009. Harden has not been an effective Win generator since 2005. He flat sucks.
@tballl et. al. ... Harden says he isn't injured (he has to say that or he will never get a deal with anyone next year) ... so how does he go to the DL? He needs to get the same treatment as Ponson and Padilla got.
Any thought of putting him in the bullpen are nuts. It takes him 3 innings to get warmed up ... which means his first 2 innings in relief will look just like the first 2 innings of his starts.
1. Chill out. Kinsler hasn't got hot yet.
2. No, we need all the SP depth we can get. Let it play out.
3. First place in AL West. No lower than B+ for Wash. Higher if record was better than AL Central and AL East leaders. Rangers are probably the 6th best team in AL. Far cry from a few years ago and it will only get better. JD has one of the top 3 farm systems. No lower than A. Monday draft looms important. Gotta sign that #15 pick.
4. Technology is great, but it should never be substituted for real humans. Baseball is often a "bang-bang" situation. The umps don't have the benefit of "slow motion" to make the call. If they did, games would often be four hours long. Not willing to make that trade-off.
5. Our #15 pick is not protected. We must sign him or lose the pick. Therefore, I don't see a high school pick because they have the leverage of going to college, like Matt Purke did last year. I also don't see a Boras client that will force well above slot money. The Rangers' bankrupcy situation will prevent any $6M signing this year unless, of course, the sale is consumated before the draft.
1. If his power is gone or atleast depleting he's needs to take a more contact approach. His swing is ugly, like he's been playing in the beer leagues before he got the call.
2. Only get rid of him with something in return. I would not cut bait with him just to free a spot.
3. Grade JD after the break. Wash is C+ at best. Trying to do way too much.
4. Yawn...
5. Somebody we can sign...that's all I care about.
schedule from tomorrow until AS break:
4 vs Sea
3 @ MIL
3 @ FLA
3 @ HOU
3 vs Pitt
3 vs Hou
3 @ LAA
3 vs CHW
3 vs CLE
4 vs BAL
1of these 10 teams has a winning record and that is the Angels. The rest of them are all potential last in their division finishers.
This 32 games stretch will determine whether the Rangers make the playoffs or not. Anything worse than 22-10 is unacceptable. If they are not somewhere in that neighborhood they will not and don't deserve to make the playoffs and Wash might have to go.
Why is everyone so down on Rich Harden? He's got a 3-1 record and an 8-3 record including no decisions with 60 strike outs.
4. Joey - where's that quote from - "overrated, as is governmental over-involvement" - I didn't see it in that blog
@James Mason
Young, at this exact moment in time, is the fourth-worst-hitting third baseman in baseball at .263/.295/.351 (.289 wOBA) through 126 plate appearances. That, in and of itself, is a huge problem, albeit a problem magnified by the failings of the lineup at large to consistently score runs. It's the second-worst start to a season he has ever endured (trumped only by his .215/.236/.346 misstep in April 2007), as well as his overall fourth-worst offensive month since the conclusion of the 2002 season. But it's not enough to throw down historical context; we also need to identify the root cause behind what's going so terribly wrong here, and determine whether it's reversible.
While Young's sub-.300 on-base percentage is to some extent ascribable to his reduced walk rate, this is merely symptomatic of a deeper-rooted problem. Digging a little further reveals three alarming oddities: (a) a line-drive rate of just 18.2 percent, more than a few ticks off his career 24.7 percent mark, and (b) a composite minus-2.9-run showing against fastballs, both of which would appear to be functions of (c) a 33.5 percent swing rate at pitches outside of the strike zone. This is the real problem. This is what we're looking for. Swinging at every third pitch thrown outside of the parameters of the strike zone is not conducive to making good, consistent contact.
"But Joey," you mutter, "aren't some out-of-zone pitches better to swing at than others?" And the answer would be yes, of course (for example, pitches directed just above the strike zone and down the middle of the plate are clobbered 400-plus feet with regularity), but the problem is that Young's increased out-of-zone swing rate is not exclusive to pitches right near the strike zone. Quite the opposite, in fact. According to ESPN.com's Inside Edge scouting service, Young is chasing what it calls "non-competitive" pitches (or pitches not near the strike zone) at a 22 percent rate against a major league average of 18 percent, which is disastrous when your overall out-of-zone chase percentage with two strikes is 46 percent, again well beyond the major league average of 36 percent.
Oh and then there were comments like
The Rangers are stuck and unless MY suffers an injury or is somehow traded (highly unlikely) the problem will persist and only get worse. You can't win championships with a close-boob. And I question his "leadership" as well. That's four strikes against the guy.
I only count three unless your saying he can't hit any more.
@windingmywatch
53-30
3.52 ERA
1.22 Whip
.233 BAA
832 SO in 807.2 innings
Not sure what your definition of an ace is but lets say a very good pitcher.
@Rangers513 - where did I say MY can't hit? If I did say it, it was talking about a slump he was in. Only a blind man would say MY can't hit.
3) How is it that people can rag on a Manger that has his team in 1ST PLACE??? Wash is not the Best manager ever, but to say that this team wins inspite of him and not because of him is stupid. Ever since he became Manager, this teams win total has increased each year. And look at what wash has to work with this year. A 1st basemen who was here that couldnt hit like when he fist came up, and now a green rookie who was drafted two years ago and has less the 500 minor league at bats. A catcher who no one wanted, was relaeased because his former team did not want him, starting and the original two catchers done on the farm because one cant hit and one cant throw. The two so called aces of the staff, Harden and Fieldman, have been below average at best, with Harden being like a bullpen killer only going 5, if that. His best bat has been on the DL, twice, for hammy problems. And his best back-ups are Murphy, Arias and Blanco. So I give Wash a B+ this year. And Daniels an A. The real problem his Tom Hicks and his money, not these guys.
@ jeremey
How can we rag on Wash easy, just watch the games. I watch a lot of baseball, EVERY Ranger game and another 60 or so each year that do not involve the Rangers and Wash is the WORST manager that I have EVER seen. EVER, bar none.
It is almost impossible to be as bad as he has been.
Hey. What's up? I hope I can last here for a while. I always seem to get banned.