Wednesday Afternoon Rangers Notes: "Nothing's Happening ..."
A few things that have been floating around out there in the last 24 hours:
- As of Tuesday evening, the Rangers were said to be "making progress" on Jim Thome, although no deal is believed to be imminent, and Twins general manager Bill Smith has been quoted as saying that he still hopes Minnesota is able to sign Thome (Jon Heyman, SI.com)
- According to one local report, the Rangers' reluctance to include first baseman Mitch Moreland -- whom the Rays coveted -- in their offer for right-hander Matt Garza was one of the main reasons why the trade did not materialize (Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News)
- The Rangers have engaged in internal discussions about long-term contract extensions for several of their arbitration-eligible players, including Josh Hamilton and C.J. Wilson, and have the intention of signing general manager Jon Daniels to an extension, but have had these plans delayed by a "busy off-season agenda (T.R. Sullivan, MLB.com)
Analysis, Hot Stove Season, The Off-Season
Reader Comments (11)
Good.
Good.
And good.
That all sounds good to me.
Told you they like Moreland as their 1B. He is very good.
Guess they won't be trading Moreland for Heath Bell.
It still feels like a trade would have to happen should they sign Thome.
Moreland is our future 1B.
Let's get Davis some playing time to get his value up and trade his ass.
I still don't think these rumors are true. The Rangers always keep quiet on their negotiations. Thome's camp is probably trying to keep the Twins offer heading upward.
The Rays like Moreland because he did pretty well in the ALDS, didn't he?
Perhaps the most important contract extension EVER in Ranger's history would be JDs... I say give him a 10 yr deal worth $50M and don't let him even THINK about leaving. Buy him a house, a new car, a bulldozer, a snow mobile, a vacation home, whatever it takes... get it done.
After you lock up JD, sign Wash to a 5 yr deal too...
Stability is what this team needs... and it's typically a sign of future success.
Texas has surplus of decent relievers. I'm sure that JD is working on some kind of trade for the 25th man, using B-level prospects and one or a couple of these extra relievers as bait. I wouldn't be surprised to see something like Davis & Franky or Lowe in exchange for a 1B / OF type who's major league ready.
@wwjdd ... define "surplus" ... as in "surplus of decent relievers". How many is in a surplus?
In my mind you NEVER as in AT PENALTY OF DEATH ... trade pitchers let alone "decent" pitchers for a "ML-ready 1b/OF type". NEVER.
They have 3 guys they don't really need - or they will have to stash in AAA for emergency, if Feliz and Ogando are doing the 8th and 9th, and O'Day, Franky, Oliver, and Rhodes are the other setups: Lowe, the Japanese guy, and Strop. It's also possible that Castillo or Scheppers (and other guys like Gutierrez are a possibility) moves up to Arlington to serve in the bullpen, so there's more room to make there. So that's definitely a surplus.
I do agree with your premise, usually. But considering the last few years, I'd honestly be okay with Texas trading Franky for a young 1b/OF player who had potential, and who could produce at a modest level in the bigs now. I really would.