Rangers Offseason Rough Draft

As part of my on going quest to prove that you could do more with some knowledge, half an hour of prep and a committed owner than the Rangers organization can do in a whole year here is my quick and dirty rough draft of what the Rangers' off season plans ought to be. The team I have put together would be at least 10 games better than last year incarnation of baseball that played in Arlington. Fans would come back, this prolly isn't a playoff team but at least they would keep the hearts and minds of Dallas fans -- coming off of parades for the Cowboys and Mavs -- into the month of September. The free agent market seems ripe to over pay mediocre starters and past their prime players for whom defense is a big part of their value. That doesn't mean that there won't be some bargains out there. Ideally you'd like to fill all your holes from within, but the Rangers' currently aren't capable of doing that. So strap on your overalls, put the kids in the pick-up cuz we're going to baseball Sack-N-Save for discount ballplayers. But first, we need to stop by the high-end Asian Market down the street. I've expressed my affinity for Kosuke Fukudome on these virtual pages before and I believe he remains an integral part of the rebuilding process (doesn't that imply you were good to begin with...I guess those late 90's get-swept-by-the-Yankees-in-the-first-round Rangers count.) Fukudome is not without his warts. An elbow problem ended his year in Japan this season and since I wonder about his power making the trip with him across the Pacific the injury only exacerbates those concerns. But there is not a huge need for corner outfielders around the league and teams may spend themselves crazy for Hunter/Jones/Rowand and leave the auction for Kosuke's services less heated. He will very likely want a three year deal with a clause allowing him to become a free agent afterwards -- instead of the usual 6 years of service time needed. Let's say 3 years and 27 mil stands a good shot at getting the deal done. Now back to Thrifty-Mart!!! I propose bringing in several players with Texas ties and one former star to help out with DH/COF/1B. First item on the list will take us to the platoon outfielder isle and the irregularly shaped section. BRING BACK MENCH!!! Mench would surely be open to returning to Texas and while he's a limited player people should focus on what he can do, as opposed to what he can't. His sojourn into the land of Beer and Cheese was less than thrilling but Shrek can do one thing really well...he crushes lefties! Playing him in left field with Franky Cat who gets on base in spades versus righties but struggles mightily against southpaws would give Texas top-notch performance from left field for below market value salary. Kevin gets added bonuses for boosting team chemistry and being a Returning-Fan-Favorite (RFF.) I'm hoping for a Menchalanatto platoon! Now that we've added two corner outfielders let's head down the broken down pitchers isle. Who wants an College Hall-of-Famer, a high school legend and a Cy Young winner?!?!?? Jason Jennings, Kerry Wood and Eric Gagne would all look good in Rangers' blue -- better in Rangers' Red, but that's a different rant. There's an outside chance that someone goes all Adam Eaton about Jennings but I really think he's a premium discount pitcher this year. He had a crazy outlier year and really think he can bounce back. The Baylor alumnus has shown he can produce in a hitter's haven even worse the the Temple. If the Rangers sign Kerry Wood and no one else this winter I'll be happy. I'll buy extra tickets by the home pen and just watch him break the glove of the warm-up catcher. Where else can you find that kind of marketability and upside for the low low cost of only a couple million dollars?? Red Sox fans seem to think that 6 outing reverses a career worth stellar work, but even if Bostonians feel differently, Eric Gagne can still pitch. Aki on the other hand may not and the Rangers need someone with some closing experience. So how about the last closer to win the Cy? He really liked his stay with the Rangers -- seemingly -- and at worst would be a great tutor to CJ and the other young relievers. Swinging back over to the former slugger section of the store -- I always do that, forget what all I need and end up having to back track in the middle of the grocery store -- I suggest picking up their freshest Cliff Floyd. Floyd is still a high OBP lefty with a some pop. He's getting up there in age and isn't near the defensive player he once was but putting Bottsy at first means there's a need for a DH. It's hard to find guys coming off of .370 OBP years that can come this cheap, and fill a need for the team. He can fill in in the outfield every once in a while and I'm sure he's capable of playing first a few times during the year. So you're adding three guys with really good upside to the pitching staff and two COF/DH's who can be effective in stightly restrained roles. ...Still that pesky centerfield conundrum. Since we have spent some money - though everyone minus Fukudome could be had for less than one year of A-Rod's new deal - I think we should try and save some money here. TRADE the flying Juaquin Brothers, Arias and Benoit to Kansas City for Joey Gathright and Brent Fisher. Gathright is a phenomenal defensive player with well above average OBP for a center fielder. Joey should hit something like 282/361/387 next year and be worth 40 runs more than Marlon Byrd with the glove. I think Gathright could benefit from Ron Washington as manager and should still be subbed for David Murphy every once in a while. Gathright and Fukudome by themselves give Texas the best defensive outfield they've EVER had and helps the pitching staff as much as any one free agent signing would. Rotation: Millwood B Mac Jennings Gabbard Padilla Bullpen: Gagne CJ Kerry Wood Kam Loe Wes Littleton Toby Keith Robby Tejeda Lineup: C- Salty 1B- Bottsy 2B- Kinsler SS- MY 3B- Hank "The Hawk" Blalock LF- Cat vs righties and Mench vs lefties CF- Gathright RF- Fukudome Bench: Laird Vazquez Murphy This lineup could score up to 888 runs, but would likely settle in the 865-870 range -- a marked improvement over the 816 from last year. On the pitching side Texas gave up 844 runs last year and while I expect Millwood, B Mac and Padilla to all bounce back to varying degrees defense and a potential Jennings break out are reasons to be more excited. Let's say 820-ish RA with this squad. Injuries are always a concern with any club and maybe slightly more so with this club. BUT this would at least be a .500 team re-energize the team and the community and set up the organization for a surgical strike in the big free agency class next year. If the team gets off to a bad start then just trade the Floyds, Gagnes and Jennings in a repeat of last years pretty successful deadline deals. These low money, short term, high upside free agency buys will either help you win now or win later by moving desirable contracts for prospects.