All-Future Team

A couple weeks ago Peter King wrote an article with his All-Future football team ... ignoring the fact that he's an idiot and a couple of the picks are absolutely crazy I am going to do the same thing only with baseball.

I'll put a few more caveats on myself than King did, the players I choose from will have not played a single out in the majors yet. I'm picking a future team that's really all about the future.

Catcher: Matt Wieters (Orioles) : Krever finally has something to look forward to not named Bedard or Ripken. He's a big switch hitting catcher with power and a rocket arm...what's not to like?

First Base: Yonder Alonso (The U) : You don't know him...but you will. The '08 baseball draft will see several collegiate first basemen taken high but Yonder gains points for his great eye at the plate, ability to hit for high average, good power, solid athleticism, and having the coolest name ever.

Second Base: Jemile Weeks (The U) : Ricky's little brother is just as good a player...maybe better. And yes, that is the right side of the infield from one college.

Shortstop: Chin-lung Hu (Dodgers) : That's our first Asian! The shortstop crop is pretty bereft of talent right now, so I opted for a fabulous defensive player who's bat has really come alive this year. Hu is hitting over .360 in AAA with lots of doubles. I thought about going with Reid Brignac, but he's really struggling...Jed Lowrie is a better hitter than Hu but prolly isn't good enough defensively to stay at short...I almost put Elivs Andrus here but I can't lie to myself like that (he could end up being the best though says the optimistic Ranger fan in me.)

Third Base: Pedro Alvarez (Vanderbelt) : The early favorite to go #1 overall next year, making it back to back Commodores. Pedro has a chance to be a very, very, VERY special player with a lightning quick stroke and good eye at the dish. He's just beginning his junior year at Vandy now, but don't be surprised if he's at the top of everyone's top prospect lists by 09.

Left Field: Matt LaPorta (Brewers) : As all loyal readers of this blog know, I love me some Matt LaPorta. He may only hope to be adequate in left but his bat may be the best in this group.

Center Field: Jay Bruce (Reds) : The recent promotions of Justin Upton and Cameron Maybin have thinned out the ranks of top center fielders in the minors and thus made me reach a bit for this pick. Bruce may be best suited in right but will find his way into the Reds everyday lineup very soon where he'll be one of the best all around hitters in baseball.

Right Field: Kosuke Fukudome (Chunichi Dragons) : The next great Japanese import. He'll be the biggest Japanese cross over to America since Ninja Warrior...or Dice-K, whatever. He should be a cross between Hideki Matsui at the plate and Ichiro in the field. (that's a good thing.) Fukudome, who's achieved demi-God like status in Japan, will be a pure free agent this offseason so no one will have to pay $75 million just to talk to him, but he should get $15+ per year for a team looking for a good hitter with a great eye, solid power, good speed, and one of the top 5 outfield arms in baseball.

Starting Pitcher: Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers) : That makes the Dodgers the second team with two players on this list...with the University of Miami being the other. Kershaw is bar-none the best pitching prospect in baseball...anyone who says otherwise is not worth listening to. The fact that this Highland Park product will get to throw half of his innings in the friendly confines of Chavez Ravine will make his numbers look even better...He could have a shelf full of Cy Youngs by the time his Career is over.

Closer: Casey Weathers (Rockies) : A lot of the great closers (Rivera, Hoffman, Gagne) started their minor league careers as starters, I wanted to discount the throngs of young starters who's future may ultimately lay in the pen and instead focus on players that have been in the role of closer for a while. Casey Weathers is by far the best of the group, and the best relief pitcher prospect around. The former Georgia Tech two way star focused solely on pitching last season, to much success. Weathers will be throwing 100mph humidor soaked balls past hitters maybe as soon as next season.

There you have it, the best of the best of the really young and unproven.

Been Busy

Hey there loyal reader...(s)?

We've been pretty busy this past weekend (like Lincoln hitting a light tower and ripping a whole in a guys glove playing softball) and will remain as such for a little while, but that's no reason not to provide you some infotainment (which shockingly is a real word.)

Jon Heyman offered up a few pearls of wisdom in his SI mailbag.

"It looks like you went through all the playoff-contending teams, and chose a "good" player from each. Let me ask you: If [Miguel] Cabrera were on a playoff-contender this season, would there be any doubt who the MVP was?-- Carolyn, Boca Raton, Fla.

Actually, you're right. That's exactly what I did, and how I came up with Prince Fielder as my NL MVP leader. His "good'' year is actually more than good, and the Brewers are right in the thick of the playoff race. While I understand your sentiments, I am more interested in "wins created'' than runs created. And the day I consider VORP is the day I get out of the business. The idea of the MVP is to honor the player who has had the biggest positive impact on the pennant races. I have been a big champion for [Hanley] Ramirez, but I would not consider him a true candidate to win the MVP award."

Couple notes Mr Heyman, the MVP is was not designed "to honor the player who has had the biggest positive impact on the pennant races." There are "wins created" metrics that you can look at and they are a great way to judge which player has been the most valuable.

Just FYI Hanley Ramirez is currently hitting .332/.389/.561 with 41 steals, VORP 70.8 with 6.6 WARP 1

Miggy Cabrera .321/.400/.590 with 30 HRs, VORP 62.2 and 8.1 WARP 1

Prince Fielder .281/.376/.604 39 HRs, VORP 49.8 with 5.1 WARP 1

**Hanley Ramirez has the highest VORP because he plays shortstop and gets bonus points for it (there aren't very many SS who can hit like he can) but he gets points taken off of WARP because it calculates defense as well (and he doesn't play SS very well...but he is very young and athletic so there's reason to believe he can get better)

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When this story first showed up on ESPN.com the title read, "American Gay wins 100 meters" to which I wondered aloud if Carl Lewis had made a comeback.

Side note, In searching for the previous story I found that when you search for the word "gay" at ESPN.com the first thing to pop up is a link for the Nashville Predators...I guess the reason that national sports mediums don't pay attention to hockey is because they're homophobic?

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Off Topic: Man I know You Me and Dupree was bad but come on dude!

and last but not least who says you can't have brains AND beauty?

Just thought you needed to know

Click here! Oh yeah, that's for real.

Fun With Box Scores

Rangers vs Orioles Wednesday August 22 Game 1 Box Score So many crazy crazy thing happened in this game...very fun to watch. Great crowd reactions from the Baltimore faithful, cheering after any out. My two favorite things about this game: Wes Littleton gets a save! Proof that the "save" should be completely abolished from the record books. Josh Lewin described Rob Bell's forearms as "covered in the clammy sweat of abject failure." --- my new favorite phrase of all time. Great first game for manager Dave Trembley

Friday Night Lights

Fall in Texas. Chilly 95 degree days. School in session. The aroma of Fletcher's Corn Dogs. And of course, high school football.

Here in the great state of Texas, football is God. In the words of an imortal Texas legend, "Football's so important in Texas. On the West Coast, it's a social. On the East Coast, it's a culture. In Texas, it's a religion." Brownie points for whoever can name who said that.

7-time state champ Southlake Carroll enters the season on a 48 game winning streak and as the nations "mythical" number one team. They exemplify everyhting that is football in Texas. Hard work, dedication, a loyal fan base, and the wonder as to how all those great athletes live in district.

Lincoln: Don't forget the ability to puke and rally.

JJ: Just like Varsity Blues.

Southlake will have to overcome the loss of head football coach and Mean Green savior, Todd Dodge, as well as the fact that their logo looks like it was drawn by a 3rd grader.

I must say it also is a time that makes the chicks like crazy horny. And no it is not trashy to do it under the bleachers, thank you very much Officer Wilson.

Lincoln: Texas high school football is nature's most powerful aphrodisiac

Other highlights over the years include the 1994 game between John Tyler and Plano East. It rivals "The Play" between Stanford and Cal. As well as this add... all good liquor adds should have high school students in them and vague date rape references.

Anyway we're off to the liquor store then to watch 16 year olds knock the ever living out of each other.

...I bet I could throw a football over them mountains.

Vick Pleas

I was in the middle of writing another piece when I heard the ESPN Breaking News sound in the backgroung. Michael Vick has plead guilty. At least now KC can't say, "hey, just wait until the trail is over. He hasn't been found guilty of anything" There goes that benefit of the doubt. I hope he never, NEVER plays in the NFL again... and I doubt he will.

TINSTAAPP

Just got done reading Newberg's write up about the Borbon signing one thing stuck out at me. Jamey obviously took a shot at those who think the Rangers should have ponied up and drafted Ric Porcello in last June's amateur draft: "If no 2007 option is used on Borbon, which is the likely outcome, he will therefore have options in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, and will need to be in the big leagues for good in 2012. Shouldn't be prohibitive. Borbon will turn 26 during spring training 2012. Stated another way: giving a big league contract to a 21-year-old college position player is dramatically different from giving a big league contract to an 18-year-old high school pitcher. If Borbon still needs farm time when he's 26, he won't be worth protecting any longer anyway." Completely disregarding the fact that Borbon isn't worth protecting now, I wanted to take a look at the idea that a high school pitcher won't be ready in 5 years. This is really simple to answer: Yes! A high school pitcher CAN be ready to contribute meaningful innings to a contenting club when he's 23. Fancisco Liriano at 22 was the best pitcher in the AL last year, Philip Hughes is 21 now and almost no-hit the Rangers, Justin Verlander was 23 last season and won 17 games for the pennant winning Tigers, Matt Cain is 22 and not the best young pitcher on his team, Tim Lincecum is 23, Joel Zumaya was one of the most dominate pitchers in baseball last year at 21...if he'd just stay away from Guitar Hero. Cole Hamels and Scott Kazmir are just now 23 and have been good big league pitchers for a couple years. King Felix dominated the league when he was 19. Eric Hurley is just 21...anyone not think he will be able to get big league hitters out in 2 years? Danks is 22 and is the WhiteSox 5 starter. Of course there are thousands of other youngsters who can't whip the horsehide at that level, those guys are the exception...not the rule. But to say that a 22/23 year old pitcher can't help you or that putting him in the big leagues will hinder his development, is erroneous! Erroneous on both counts! I'm a big fan of Earl Weaver's dictum, the best place for a young pitcher is in long relief. Even if Porcello or Beavan or any other pitcher might not be ready to take the ball every fifth day and throw 200+ innings when they're 22/23 they can still help you in some capacity...if they're good enough. That's what it comes down to, talent! Porcello has it in droves, Borbon...eh, not so much. For Borbon to be a legit center fielder/leadoff hitter he's going to have to LEARN plate discipline. Not many people can do that. Jose Reyes appears to have, but name me 10 others. It's very, very rare for a player to completely change his philosophy in the box. Much rarer than a guy as talented as Porcello making it. Joe Sheehan once said, "I pretty much believe that you can throw all pitchers into a bin until they're 21 years old or in Triple-A. (If a pitcher is at Triple-A at 20, that's a warning sign as well.) It's not a performance analysis thing, because even great numbers from teenagers aren't going to sway me. It's just a concession to what we know about physics and physiology, and how the two intersect at the corner of Jobe and Andrews." I call BS! Mr Sheehan, whom I greatly respect...although less after reading that, is one of the head honchos at BaseballProspectus a site that works for analytical understanding of the game and tries to dispel old-timey notions that have no empirical evidentiary support. Sheehan is taking the easy way out. Rather than looking to WHY some guys fail and some succeed, WHY some guys get injured and some stay healthy. He just looks at the attrition rate, and sullen by his own previous failures decides to quit. Most people, fans, players, managers, scouts, scouting directors, general managers look at the wrong things when trying to forecast the future of a young player. This axiom is even more true in hurlers than in position players. They look for: Velocity - how hard a guy throws his fastball. I had an associate scout for the Rangers tell me that he was only supposed to call his bosses about a high school pitcher if the kid threw 90 mph or harder. Nothing else....just velocity. Size - I had a scout for the Astros tell me that a pitchers frame was more important to him than anything...really odd from a team who's best pitcher is extremely generously listed at 6' 185....and who buy the way dominated the NL at age 23. Stuff - which is very connected with #1, but includes movement of breaking balls. What they should look for: Mechanics - whole books have been written on this subject, so trying to fit in everything in a quick two sentence blurb is futile, but the idea of pitching mechanics is to as efficiently as possible is impart as much forward kinetic energy to the ball from the body of the pitcher. Command - very intertwined with mechanics, if you throw the ball the same way it will land in the same spot. Almost universally guys with good command have good mechanics and guys with good mechanics have good command. Command speaks to the repeatability of the throwing motion. Depth of Repertoire - If you throw 93 not many 16/17 year olds are going to be able to make contact...but pros can. It doesn't matter how hard you throw, really good hitters will hit it hard if that's all you can throw. Being able to throw the ball on both sides of plate, consistently (command) and having multiple pitches that you can throw for strikes at any time in the count and offer the hitter different spin and speed to focus on (depth of repertoire) are the keys to success against the best hitters in the world. Here's Rick's scouting report (scroll down to #27.) He throws 4 pitches and has great mechanics...notice the consistency of his delivery and how he is in perfect fielding position after he lets go of the ball...he's not falling off to one side or off balance because all the energy he created in his delivery is now in the ball and not still trapped inside his body pushing him towards first base or having to be absorbed by the muscles/tendons in his arm. Add to the fact that he throws hard and is big and has great stuff...he's big time. Baseball is flush with more cash than ever before. Free agents are signing 9 figure deals left and right, as such the value of high ceiling/elite level pre-arbitration talent, especially pitching has never been higher...It will cost more to sign a replacement in the free agent market. Would you rather have 4 Rick Porcellos and money left over or 1 Vincente Padilla? Young pitchers are inherently risky, but when you have one that stands a relatively good chance of being something really special you can't let that opportunity slip through your fingers...the Rangers did TWICE!

It's Hard to be a Ranger Fan

This from Newberg wow...it's freaking Borbon!! Once again, he had 6 walks last year. He got a major league deal...that the Rangers refused to give Porcello. Yes there's a big difference between a high school pitcher and a college hitter...but there's a bigger difference between a top 3 talent and a guy who was over drafted in the supplemental round. The Rangers show a willingness to go above slot, and give major league deals...so why don't we have Porcello? Oh yeah! because the Rangers' biggest problem has always been a complete inability to identify/acquire/keep talent. I said before the draft that Texas shouldn't draft him, and now am saying it's a horrible signing. JJ and I were really hoping that the Rangers would get saved from themselves and not sign Borbon...Is Boras that good at his job or are the people working for the Rangers that stupid?

Sports!

Just felt like throwing together an eclectic blog.

First on the docket: Cowboys preseason game!

The standard cliche, preseason games are meaningless, is not entirely true. They're just mostly meaningless. You get to see hot starter on starter action for a quarter and then dudes who are going to flipping burgers next week fighting Mike Vick's dogs for the next 45 glorious football minutes. I did come away with a few impressions that both pleased and intrigued me enough so that I will be looking at them in the next game as well.

1. Romo looked good! -

Yeah he just threw 11 passes against a terrible defense, but still he showed me a lot. One play really showed everything that is awesome about Romo.

Halfway through the 1st quarter Romo had the Cowboys driving down field on the Colts for the second time in the game. TR connected with 2nd year tight end for a 13 yard gain and first down right by the home sideline. While this play may look fairly routine in the box score, it showed everything that makes Romo greatness. Tony took a 5 step drop and looked to hit his primary target, a receiver running a quick slant on the weak side, however the Indy corner played inside coverage...taking away Romo's first read. That's not a huge problem, a large number of plays in the NFL force QB's to look to secondary reads. The problem came in the form of a Colts' defender blitzing off the right side, Romo had pressure on him before he could look at the rest of the field.

BUT! TR had a good enough knowledge of the play (in a completely new system) and the defense that he knew where everyone else would be on the play. Romo threw the ball right past the incoming defender and into the arms of Fasano, who was wide open occupying the hole in the zone left from the blitzing defender.

Tony did a great job of setting his feet, creating a strong base even while knowing he was about to get hit. He had to slightly contort his upper body away from the blitzer in order to get the throw off cleanly but he still had showed great arm strength and accuracy on the pass.

Preseason games aren't completely meaningless, you just have to know where to look. One one play Romo showed an in depth understanding where everyone on the field was, an ability to stand in under pressure, enough flexibility to avoid a sack, great footwork, strong/accurate arm, and the knack for making a big play when most others would not. The 'Boys are in good hands.

----2. Ware spent most of his day on the hunt for Peyton Manning...hurray!

----3. Matt Moore looked pretty decent in the second half...I wonder if Bartel will get more PT in the next game?

----4. Dallas beat the defending Super Bowl champs...that makes them the best team now, right?

Next up: Rick Ankiel Alert!

In the past the "Rick Ankiel Alert" was used to announce the presence of a pitcher who couldn't find the plate, the alert was used as a warning to players in the dugout fans in the upper deck...you know, anyone who's in the way of getting hit by a throw.

Yesterday the 1999 Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year went deep for the 3rd time in his career, but this time it was as a right fielder not a pitcher. Cool story, hard not to root for the guy.

Ankiel's power is for real...he had 32 homers in AAA this year, unfortunately it doesn't look like he'll hit for enough average/get on base enough to be a big league regular.

I'm more excited to see if runners will try and take an extra base on him. Who's not looking forward to seeing Alfonso Soriano charging towards home and Ankiel sailing a 95 mph throw from right into the second deck?

Finally: Golf

Yes, golf! Now the SportsBullies like golf as much as anyone but we like it more as a drunken weekend activity...not so much a writing sport.

But, there is one thing that will excited all golf fans, over weight alcoholics, compulsive gamblers, and fans of car crashes.

[NOTE: The SportsBullies are NOT over weight!]

JOHN DALY IN CONTENTION IN A MAJOR. Talk about all-time appointment viewing... Daly and Tiger in the final pairing on Sunday. One can only dream. (one in that sentence refers not just to fans but to tv execs and advertisers)

#1

There's no longer a tie.

Barry just (like 3 mintues ago) hit 756 off a former Ranger great. Way to go Barry.

Really cool ovation, great video tribute by Aaron, awesome Mays was there.

Glad we didn't have to see Selig cattle proded into standing and sticking his hands in his pockets like there's a cheerleader's boobs in there.

Colossal Cowboys Coming-up Look-at (Offense)

We really like alliteration but couldn't think of another C word for preview.

Today we look at the sports jabberwocky know as the Cowboys offense. We start naturally, with the most important position on offense, QB.

QB

Tony Romo, or TR as we call him, is apparently better than Brady Quinn, as evidence from the Cowboys passing on him. Positives this year include more than 0 starts under his belt (11), he is cagey, his ability to plow Carrie Underwood (don't underestimate this ability.)

JJ: He doesn't have to hold for extra points or field goals anymore!
Lincoln: Too soon, too soon.

Back-up Brad "the Marlboro Man" Johnson enters his 15th NFL season and 5th stop. Very good back-up that can continue to mentor the not-so-young Romo, and if the situation calls for a self-pass for a TD well you have your man.

The battle for third-string QB is heating up between Richard Bartel and Matt Moore. We here at Sports Bullies believe Bartel gets the nod, as evidence from Moore's lack of a Bio on dallascowboys.com. The kid from Grapevine High School and Tarleton State University, the fighting Texans or Texann's if you are a girl, would be a nice fill-in in the event that Romo, Johnson, Stanback, and Jason Garrett all go down.

RB

Julius "the space cowboy" Jones - Let's see, 2006 was a milestone year for Jones, as he finally rushed for 1,000 yards. He only had 3 TD's though due to, the fantasy football savior, Marion Barber. More improvement can be expected behind a vastly bigger and improved line, as well as a more can-do attitude...i.e. No more Tuna

Marion Barber III - What's not to love? Quick bursts, a powerful running style, and even more importantly, some very powerful hair. He did resemble this guy in the backfield against the Colts... so that worries us.

Tyson Thompson - The pride of Irving, Texas returns from injury and instantly adds great speed to the running game. He also helps out well with special teams but that's another topic.

FB

Oliver Hoyte - known for his big hits and his swift physical demeanor.

Lincoln: That's what I'm known for!

Lousaka Polite - a member of the G.T. program in high school and the first 3 year captain in Pitt football history.

JJ: Take that Tony Dorsett and Dan Marino.

Lincoln: And Antonio Bryant

WR

JJ: The deepest position on the team.
Lincoln: Isn't that reverse cow-girl?
JJ: Wow...please note that that link is not for our young or sensitive readers!

TO and Terry Glenn aren't exactly spring chickens, but they still can form one of the league's more lethal duos when healthy.

Owens is coming off of a particularly great year, in which he lead the league in TD receptions, dropped passes, and suicide attempts. Hopefully the surgery on his ring finger corrects the first problem, and staying away from this women helps with the second.

Terry Glenn is really fast...when he has the use of his legs. If he can stay healthy he is the deep threat the Cowboys need.

Others that plan contribute this year include Patrick Clayton, Sam Hurd, Miles Austin, Isaiah Stanback and Jamaica Rector. (If he is half as good as his Godfather Puerto Rico Jones, the Cowboys are set.)

TE

The Cowboys are very deep here too. Witten, Fasano, Curtis. All three figure to have huge years in the offense Jason Garrett is running. Witten is coming off a great all around season last year and looks to build on it. Expect him to be a primary target off the (kinda) young Romo. Also, more of the 2 TE sets that were featured in the beginning of last season can be expected.

Lincoln: Jason Witten was a contestant on Nickelodeon's GUTS!
KC: Tonight!?!?
Lincoln: How drunk are you?
JJ: I bet he plowed Mo.
Lincoln: Apparently, Great Britain won more medals than the U.S. in Global GUTS.
JJ: Those cheeky bastards.
Lincoln: Everyone payed tons of money to see David Beckham take on the Aggro Crag but he was just used as sub in the 78th minute.

Fasano has amazing hands and seems to have a knack for finding open holes.

KC: Just like your mom!
JJ: ...really? You're better than that man.
KC: That's what she said!

Curtis, who impressed greatly in the Colts game, also has a JJ's mom like ability to find open holes to go along with a strong blocking reputation.

OL

Leonard Davis. What can't be said about a man who saved a horse from the mud? ...No, make that a herd of horses.

Lincoln: I've heard of horses.
KC: Sam Hurd's horses?!?
JJ: (Hanging himself.)

We can honestly say here at Sports Bullies that the O-line is a position of strength. And guess what?... it's not 1994! How cool is that?!? Not only are the starters huge, averaging 6'4, 321, but there is actual depth not named Rob Petitti! Pat McQuistan, Doug Free, Joe Berger, James Marten, Cory Procter, Trey Darilek.

KC: Darilek my balls.
Lincoln: Joe 'Fur' Berger.
JJ: I'm speechless.
Lincoln: What? Backup's need funny nicknames too! I can't yell "warewolf" at D-Ware all game because he's going to be on the field half the time. Backups need to be taunted...it's their only real purpose.

A New Order

Bonds
Aaron
Ruth

That's the new top three, I don't care what you think about Bonds personally you can not deny that he is one of the handful of greatest players ever.

Congrats to the fans in San Diego, it had been feared that if Barry knocked a historic big fly in a field not named Pac Bell the incident would be marred by booing and protesting. The vast majority of the 42,497 sell out crowd on hand gave the moment the respect it deserved. It's a fact, San Diego is the greatest city in the history of the world.

One of the few not cheering after Bonds lined the 2-1 Clay Hensley fastball 382 feet over the right field wall was Allan Selig. Selig put his hands in his pockets as Barry trotted around the bases for the 755th time in his career. In a press release after the game, Selig once again pointed to the innuendo surrounding this era of baseball. At this point I don't even want him at the games anymore, just send a big cardboard cut out that way it'll look more life-like...and less like a dead fish wearing a toupee.

As much as Selig/Aaron don't like Bonds, apparently the fans in San Diego do as do the fans who voted him to start the All-Star game (deservedly so) ... maybe he didn't hear the fans cheering.

It makes no sense for the Commish who wants his lasting legacy to be that he implemented the strict drug testing policy that ends the steroids era (never minding that he was in charge when things escalated quickly) to publicly condemn the games biggest star without a failed drug test. Selig wants to stand stand in defiance of the evil players who rape the integrity of the game buy using illegal steroids to gain inhuman power. The best/only way for him to go about that is to stand behind his testing system, last time I checked Barry has 755 more home runs than failed steroid drug tests.

Bonds is the best player I've ever seen, and even at 42 years old still far and away the most feared hitter in the game.

Here's what BaseballProspectus wrote about Barry: "Insanely great. No longer the best player in baseball on a one-year basis, but only because he plays left field instead of shortstop. In career value, he has passed all left fielders except Williams, Musial and Henderson. He’ll pass Henderson in about two years, Musial in three and Williams in seven. By the time his career ends, he will displace Ted Williams in those “best player ever” discussions between Ruth and Wagner. Believe it or not, Bonds is still underrated."

That was written a decade ago. Bonds should be remembered more fondly than Selig

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(here's what I previously wrote about Selig and steroids.)

Quick Hits

Here's a few things that have struck my fancy...

• ESPN.com's home page has a link that reads "Dukes in trouble again after violating court order" ... let me pick myself up off the floor from shock.
• Baseball America came out with mid-season Best Tools survey, most of them I don't have a problem with. Best Power (AL) A-Rod, Best Pitcher (AL) Santana, Fastest Baserunner (NL) Jose Reyes... for best Strike Zone Judgment (AL) #3 is Placido Polanco! Polanco has a career high of 42 walks in a season! He's a good little player, but how on earth can you say he has great strike zone judgment? His OBP is .385 which is really really good. However it's not overly impressive for a guy hitting .343.
• Will someone tell A-Rod that it's not October, and that it's ok to hit?
• Pedro threw in a rehab start with his fastball sitting 85-88 mph.
• Justin Upton just called up for Arizona. Carlos Quinton = Wally Pipp.
• Adam Jones (Krevor's new fav MLB Player) will make it rain in Seattle...much to the dismay of Jose Guillen.
• Training camps have started, and we will be more football heavy as the season draws near.
• Eric Gagne pitched the 9th for the Sox yesterday...wearing #83. Am I the only one who thinks that looks weird?
• Tex went yard for the Braves again... but Mahay blew the lead.

Thought I'd end this on something very odd and off topic. Will Ferrell on this video "I want to take a pill so this video always plays in my head. I had to combine the words awesome and tiger to describe how great it is: Tigawesomer."

Final Rangers Thoughts

I like what we got back for Tex.

Fairly underwhelmed by the Gagne return, thought I new not to expect the world for a half-year rental who had missed almost the last two years completely. Maybe I'm underrating Gabbard, I'll have to see him pitch a couple times. His biggest problem has been wildness, but this year his BB/9 is a reasonable 3.2. I don't know if that's just a small sample size outlier, if he changed something mechanically that has resulted in better command, or what. At worst he's a young big league ready lefty who keeps the ball on the ground, the Rangers can always use a couple guys like that. Murphy is a solid 4th outfielder, capable of playing center hitting well against righties with some pop.

Back to the kind of a big deal. Teixeira.

I like this trade...for both sides. Salty will be much MUCH more valuable for the next 5.5 years than Tex will be for the next 1.5. If Harrison's arm is healthy, apparently the MRI showed no structural damage, he'll be a solid big league pitcher...better than Kason. The more I look at Elvis Andrus, the more I can see where he could excite you. While I still believe that he's very risky, and likely just to be Arias 2.0, he's an 18 year old doing somewhat decent at high A. While his overall line is a pedestrian .244/.330/.335 he played half of his games at the home field of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (don't you love minor league team names?) which makes Chavez Ravine look like Coors Field. Away from Myrtle Beach he's a .296/.379/.413 that's really REALLY good for anyone, much less an uber toolsy pre-pubescent shortstop.

Neftali Feliz and Beau Jones will far more than likely have to pay for admission if they want to see a game in Arlington. But both of them are young guys with really strong arms, I'm never apposed to bring guys like that in as depth guys... one in a thousand of those guys pan out.

The thing I like least about this trade is HAVING to trade Tex. Maybe his quotes come out crass sometimes...but he's right; we are a big market team playing like a small market team... maybe he is a germaphobe who's afraid to shake hands with fans, maybe he's always been a mercenary. But here's the thing about mercenaries...if you pay them they will stay and fight for you.

Hicks has tried to save face, going public with an offer that he supposedly made to Tex. Even the most stringent Tex haters can see that this is absolutely nothing more than transparent attempt to save face. That they never were going to re-sign him. Shows the respect for the intellegence of the fan base that Hicks has. Very poor form.

Here's an incredibuly underrated story...the Rangers lost a great ball player. Switch hitter with great power and a fabulous eye at the plate who plays legit gold glove defense. Bye Tex, I'll miss you. At least I get to see your games on TBS and in October.

Tex goes deep off Gagne in game 7 to win the World Series...

I'm looking forward to seeing Salty catch...his bat is top 5 for a catcher but top 20 for a firstbaseman! Harrison's arm being healthy, Hurley pitch in Arlington in meaningless September games, see if Cruz's resurgence is just a hot streak or something more, ditto for Marlon Byrd, if McCarthy can keep the ball down, if Gabbard can keep the ball in the strike zone, what Blalock has left when he gets back, ditto for Kinsler

The passing of the trade deadline now means that football season has started!