Should The Rangers Try To Win The World Series This Year?

There are some people who think that the Rangers should trade for pitching and others who think that they should trade for another bat.  What do you think?  Should the Rangers trade for a bat?  Or should they trade for pitching?  If you think they should trade for pitching help, would you trade for another starter like Zach Greinke or for a relief pitcher who could backup Ogando and Feliz in the bullpen on days that neither of them are available?

If you think they should trade for a bat, do you think that they should pick up a DH or try to upgrade at another position?  What about Carlos Lee Quentin? Would you like to see Carlos Lee Quentin in a Rangers uniform again? Who would you trade for him? If you don't give up Mike Olt, what else do you think the Astros Padres would take? We'll have to see what they do here.

What about catcher?

Speaking of which, what about Mike Napoli? Do you think that he will breakout in the second half or do you think he will stay in a slump like he has been in for almost the entire season?  Is there another player who you think will break out more than Napoli or do you think he is the top breakout candidate on the roster for the second half?  What about Michael Young?  Do you think that Michael Young will hit .340 / .400 / .600 over the second half to bring his season slash line up to his career averages?  Or do you think that his primary value will continue to be his leadership?  We'll see what the second half holds with respect to these two players.

But what about the first half?  Who was the biggest surpise of the first half? My controversial choice would be Robbie Ross. Who do you think was a bigger breakout star of the first half? Do you think that Craig Gentry deserves serious consideration or do you  think that he does not because he isn't an everyday starter? Do you think that Mitch Moreland's injury disqualifies him from "biggest breakout" from the first half or is that unfair to hold that against him?  Again, I think it was Robbie Ross, but that's just me. What do you think?  Was there a bigger breakout star for the Rangers through the first half?

There are reports that the Rangers are just focused on returning to the World Series and not on home field advantage which neither the Rangers nor any AL club will have this year by virtue of losing the All Star Game.   Do you think that the Rangers should be focused on home field advantage or should they just remain focused on getting to the World Series?  Or do you think that this isn't the year that they should try to win the World Series?

Normally, I wouldn't cover an issue regarding minor leaguers I've never really heard of in a post about the World Series, but there seems to be a lot of discussion about Jairo Beras. MLB has ruled that the Rangers can have Beras and Beras can have his $4.5 million, but he has to sit out for a year.  Do you think MLB got it right?  Should they let him play now or is his punishment fitting for his crimes against baseball?  Is what he did worse than steroids?  Did you know that a minor leaguer who gets caught taking steroids gets a 50 game suspension?  A year is more than 50 games. Is it fair to Beras?  To the Rangers?  Or do other teams have grounds to be really upset with the Rangers?

Jon Daniels says that the Rangers are going to stretch Neftali Feliz out as a starter again. Do you think that he should replace someone in the rotation or should he be in the bullpen like he was when he was AL Rookie of the Year?  Just because the Rangers are stretching out Feliz as a starter during his rehab, that doesn't mean that he can't go back to the bullpen. What do you think that the Rangers are going to do with Feliz?  If you were Jon Danels, what would  you do with him? We'll see what the Rangers do with Feliz as the second half unfolds. A lot will depend on injuries.

Speaking of injuries, do you think that the Rangers have weathered the storm with respect to injuries in the first half or do you think that there will be more injuries to come in the second half?  

Joey gave out letter grades for Rangers pitchers today. Who else has ever given out mid-season grades to baseball players? Who's grade is too high or too low? Do you think Joey should grade the position players too? Should Josh Hamilton get an A+++? Does Michael Young deserve extra credit for his leadership? We'll have to see if Joey gets around to grading the position players later today.