SB Nation Dallas: All Posts by Christopher Fittzhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48887/dallas-fave.png2011-05-26T21:35:37-05:00https://dallas.sbnation.com/authors/christopher-fittz/rss2011-05-26T21:35:37-05:002011-05-26T21:35:37-05:00Why Letting Rhadigan Go Was The Right Move
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<p>The John Rhadigan hiring and now firing saga has been an usual story of how the nice guy finishes last when he is put in a position to fail.</p> <p>Today the Rangers announced that they would be replacing John Rhadigan as team play-by-play announcer with Dave Barnett for the remainder of the season. Rhadigan will now host the pre and post-game shows on FOX Sports Southwest essentially reclaiming a role he had spent the last 15 years in. While it might seem celebratory to broach this subject as someone who was critical of Rhadigan's work as an announcer, it is worth delving into to discuss why it had to be done and why it was OK for us, the fans, to let our voice be heard.</p>
<p>Let's face it, it's tough watching a situation unfold where it is clear that it just isn't going to work. It's even worse when you're on the side that is often made to feel completely powerless but are the eyes and ears the move is intended to reach. And that is where we, as fans, were placed this season as we watched the <a href="https://www.lonestarball.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Texas Rangers</a> telecasts with newly hired play-by-play voice John Rhadigan. We, those of us who up make the market share or buy the MLB.tv/Extra Innings packages, were totally at the mercy of a hire that seemed suspect from the start. </p>
<p>But make no mistake. This isn't about bashing John Rhadigan. There really isn't a reason to rehash why it had become clear that the broadcast just wasn't good. We know why. We lived it as Rangers fans every day. And by all accounts, even in personal instances, Rhadigan is a good person, hard worker, and just a quality individual. He's the kind of person you root for to get these once in a lifetime jobs. But by all accounts willing to admit it, Rhadigan simply wasn't doing the job and clearly wasn't the right man for the job to begin with. </p>
<p>This is the Texas Rangers' fault. The day the Rangers would play perhaps the biggest game in the then history of the franchise, on Oct. 12, 2010, the Rangers announced that they would not be renewing the contract of their long-time play-by-play announcer Josh Lewin in favor of a change of direction. In our circle of the world, a Rangers fandom with an Internet presence, this was met with a feeling that the air had been let out of the balloon while we were trying to enjoy our favorite season of Rangers baseball ever. Many of us, myself included, considered Josh Lewin to be one of the best in the business and an absolute joy to listen to. He made the games entertaining and always seemed to nail the biggest moments with memorable calls as few and far between as they came for him in the near decade he worked for the Rangers. But Lewin wasn't universally beloved. In fact, the word "polarizing" was probably most used to describe him upon news of his dismissal.</p>
<p>Regardless, three things became apparent on that day: The Rangers would be looking for a new voice, which even for the people who didn't care for Lewin, a sense of "The Devil you know" was probably apparent. The Rangers' new voice would have contextually--but not literally, Josh Lewin is a very tiny man--large shoes to fill. And the Rangers have the worst timing ever when it comes to announcing things. And so, the search was on.</p>
<p>After contacting various professional play-by-play baseball announcers such as Scott Franzske of the <a href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Phillies</a> and Brian Anderson of the <strike><a href="https://www.draysbay.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Rays</a></strike> Brewers, only to be turned down, the Rangers, almost inexplicably, landed on Rhadigan. Either the Rangers underestimated the market of available broadcasters or ran out of time after the extended season to find someone with big league experience. At some point in the search, it seemed to become about who was a familiar, unoffensive voice and that would have certainly qualified Rhadigan.</p>
<p>Rhadigan had spent the last decade or so as a lead anchor on the Rangers pre and post game shows on FOX Sports Southwest. Additionally, he was the face of FSSW's Rangers Insider show and traveled on the road with the club each year to do in-game reports. Before that, Rhadigan was talking about the Rangers and Cowboys on Dallas' NBC affiliate KXAS-TV. The point is, Rangers fans wouldn't be wondering who this guy was. Rangers fans knew John Rhadigan. Rangers fans liked John Rhadigan. The media liked and respected John Rhadigan. The problem was, he had never called a single game of baseball in his life and now he was supposed to do that all summer, seamlessly, after a nationally renowned play-by-play guy was deposed, for the American League Champions. John Rhadigan was set up to fail.</p>
<p>And that's what happened. John Rhadigan predictably failed at even doing a solid job of calling Rangers games. As it all unfolded, all we were told by the local media was, "Give him time." At first that phrase was supposed to mean, "He's going to be different than Lewin. Don't judge Rhadigan based on Lewin. Let him grow into a different, but just as good voice." But slowly it evolved into, "Well, what did you expect? He's never done this before. But give him more than a couple of weeks. He'll improve." And yet, that was the very basis for our complaints. John Rhadigan had never done anything like calling the plays of a live sporting event before, and yet, the only criticism found by anyone in the media that could voice our concerns, at either the Rangers or Rhadigan himself, was to throw his newness back in our face just because he's such a well-liked guy. And, perhaps worse, whenever we challenged that protect-our-own mentality by the media, we were just told we were griping because Rhadigan wasn't Lewin.</p>
<p>Of course, as time went by, even that defense was used less and less as it became apparent that Rhadigan wasn't getting better. So instead we were brushed aside and things like "he's doing fine" or "he'll improve" were said by people in the media who had clearly only watched a few games. Had more people defending the right to defend Rhadigan's on-the-job training watched more games they might have realized how poorly prepared he appeared at understanding the rules of the game in addition to how ill-prepared he was at vocalizing the plays we were seeing.</p>
<p>I understand rooting for the good guy. And I also understand waiting out a transition. But what I don't understand, and didn't at the time, was why the fans of the American League Champions were given the options of hoping a guy could do a job he had never done before, waiting for it to get better above criticizing the current level of production, or just not watching the telecasts if we didn't like what we heard. It seems as though Rhadigan's firing was being portrayed on local DFW radio as comparable to as if the Rangers had sent <span>Elvis Andrus</span> back down to the minors if he had struggled a couple of months into his rookie season. But that is both ludicrous and manipulative. Perhaps that would hold water if Rhadigan were 20 years old and had called minor league baseball games for four years until he finally got his shot with the Rangers.</p>
<p>In the end, this move wasn't made because of you or I. This move was made because the people that make money off of the telecast were worried they wouldn't make as much money with the status quo at such a poor level of quality. And yet, to feel like we should have held off on voicing our opinion, on something we clearly care a lot about, until some media-determined date of proper time given to learn on the job, while the evidence was spoken directly to us every night, seems a particularly bitter pill to swallow given the outcome.</p>
<p>I wish John Rhadigan the best and I am sorry that all of this happened so publicly for him. And a part of me feels bad that I was as vocal about it as I was. Because getting what I wanted meant something bad would happen to a nice guy living his dream. But that is on the Rangers for ignoring this as a possibility and on the media for being unwilling to voice the criticism of the people actually watching the games. But Rhadigan still is the same amiable guy that no one had an issue with before this season began. He's still the good guy. He's still the nice guy. He's still the guy the local media rooted for. He's still a good studio and sideline guy. And he will continue to be that same guy. He just never was a play-by-play guy. And we never should have been expected to accept him as one when it became clear that he couldn't handle the job. And, mostly, the tragedy here, is he never should have been asked to try to be one.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/2011/5/26/2192458/why-letting-rhadigan-go-was-the-right-moveChristopher Fittz2011-04-14T17:54:05-05:002011-04-14T17:54:05-05:00What The Rangers Learned In Detroit
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<p>The Rangers dropped their first series on the season to the Detroit Tigers after losing the final two games on walk-off 9th inning hits. </p> <p>One thing we learned for certain is day games at Comerica park makes for rather tortuous baseball. With each game of the series set for noon, there was a feeling of deja vu accompanying each contest. Wake up, turn on the game, watch foreboding baseball from America's most depressing city in a ballpark that thrives at discouraging the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a>' success. And afterward all you had was an entire day left to stew knowing it would be hours of AL West combatant comebacks and less impressive divisional standings.</p>
<p>It started well enough. The Rangers scratched out a couple of runs off of <span>Justin Verlander</span> thanks to some well placed doubles over the head of Magglio Ordonez. For once, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.blessyouboys.com/">Tigers</a> couldn't muster a rally in their park against a Rangers pitcher as <span>Alexi Ogando</span> one-upped his six inning shutout debut as a starter by throwing seven shutout innings. Ogando left the game with a fluid-under-callous (Is it so hard to say "blister," Rangers?) issue but also left with a start to his season that looks like this: 2-0, 0.00 ERA in 13 innings with 8 strikeouts and four walks.</p>
<p>It wasn't until after <span>Darren Oliver</span> got through the 8th unscathed that we would even see anything to give us something to complain about. In the 9th, up 2-0, after a <span>Ryan Raburn</span> double, Ron Washington elected to have closer <span>Neftali Feliz</span> walk the trying run to face <span>Victor Martinez</span> as the go-ahead run. Of course, that potential tying run he walked was <span>Miguel Cabrera</span>. It was not a by-the-book call. The rule is, you never put the potential tying man on. And although you don't want Miguel Cabrera to beat you--because he can, that's what he does professionally for a living--you also have to consider that with a man on, the worst Cabrera could do is tie the game, Martinez could win it. So once again the Rangers were at the mercy of "The Gut," and even though it worked out, and would work out a majority of the time regardless as to what Washington would have called there, it still was a move that could have cost the Rangers the only win they got out of this series.</p>
<p>The Gut is something you have to learn to live with if you're a Rangers fan. Ron Washington isn't going anywhere. Nor should he, really. But he is going to make questionable strategic decisions in-game if he feels his belief is better than what the numbers say. It might drive people who trust the sample size of decades worth of numbers more than some wacky baseball-lifer's intuition crazy, but it is who Ron Washington is. As long as the Rangers continue to win, and as long as he expertly keeps the clubhouse happy, it's hard to get too upset when The Gut runs the show.</p>
<p>Of course, if you believe in baseball karma, The Gut got a tummy ache from its just deserts when the Tigers won the second game of the series on a Miguel Cabrera walk-off single in the 9th. </p>
<p>The wasn't the worst thing that happened in that game, however. Losses are going to happen. Losses for the Rangers in a day game in Detroit is practically guaranteed to happen. The worst thing to happen happened in the first inning when <span>Josh Hamilton</span> roped a triple to the right-center gap, slid head first though <span>Brandon Inge</span> who was, for some reason, blocking the bag like a catcher at home, to drive in Michael Young. It seems like it was a good thing because it meant the Rangers had a lead and the ball was shooting off the bat a little better than it was in a lifeless game one. But, no, a Josh Hamilton triple led to a Josh Hamilton broken arm when Hamilton listened to the whispering of third base coach Dave Anderson telling him that no one was covering home on a foul popup off of the bat of <span>Adrian Beltre</span> on the next play. Hamilton tried to beat Victor Martinez, who had moved off the plate to try to catch the popup, home in a foot race that Martinez had the angle on. And though a tough play for the catcher, Hamilton was out on a close play and then out of the game. Now Hamilton is out for 6-8 weeks and the Rangers are missing the American League MVP.</p>
<p>It's hard to blame Dave Anderson as Hamilton seemed to do initially. Anderson and Hamilton know full well the style of baseball the Rangers play on the bases is one that is more pretty well known as more aggressive than most teams. If the Rangers have the opportunity to take an extra base or steal a run, they try to do that, even if they aren't always successful. It's one of the things the team was most praised for in the playoffs last season and it was something they were still doing early this season. So while it might seem silly in retrospect to try a 50-50 play for a run in the first inning with a guy who is notoriously injury prone, that's who the Rangers are and it is hard to fault Anderson for giving Hamilton the green light there. </p>
<p>It's hard to blame Josh Hamilton for being frustrated, also. Here's a guy who was coming off an MVP season on a team that was at the time 9-1. He's unquestionably the Rangers best player. To have a major injury happen on a play where he didn't want to go but listened to the coach tell him he could try and sneak a run out of a weird play has to pretty demoralizing for a guy who hears about how brittle he is practically in every interview. That said, it's good that both he and Anderson have patched things up. No one wants to hear about Josh Hamilton throwing a coach under the bus. Ultimately, it's on Josh Hamilton to bear the burden of being injury prone and it's on us to bear the burden of rooting for a team whose best player likely won't be in there all of the time.</p>
<p>I don't even want to write about that last game. Here's a list of why:</p>
<p> </p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Detroit</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Comerica</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Bullpen Day</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span>Dave Bush</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><span>Mark Lowe</span>'s fastball control</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Brandon Inge</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Brandon Inge</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Brandon Inge</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Brandon Inge</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Brandon Inge</span></li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>So what did the Rangers learn in Detroit?</p>
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<p>We're just lucky everyone made it out alive.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/texas-rangers/2011/4/14/2111697/what-the-rangers-learned-in-detroitChristopher Fittz2011-04-07T19:10:03-05:002011-04-07T19:10:03-05:00What The Rangers Learned Against Seattle
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<p>Six games to begin the season and six wins. The Rangers have begun the 2011 season with a perfect homestand. While the Mariners played the Rangers close in all three games, the Rangers are firing on all cylinders. </p> <p>The Rangers are getting AL best hitting from their deep lineup. The Rangers have a rotation where every member has a win by the sixth game of the season. And yet, while the offense and starting pitching was good again, perhaps the best part of this series with Seattle was the defense and bullpen.</p>
<p>The Rangers pen went eight innings over the course of the three game series and allowed three runs on seven hits while striking out four Mariners. But most importantly, they came into games with leads of two runs, three runs, and one run and they made those leads hold up each occasion. On Tuesday night, after Alexi Ogando debuted as a starter with six shutout innings, the bullpen bent a little but didn't break after Mark Lowe allowed three soft singles and a run before Darren Oliver came in allowed a single, and run charged to Lowe, before getting two big outs and a 1-2-3 8th to pave the way for a 1-2-3 9th for Neftali Feliz.</p>
<p>The Rangers have 13 pitchers on their 25 man roster and haven't had to utilize that depth too much so far. In fact, the last guy in the pen, Dave Bush, hasn't pitched as of yet. However, the reason the Rangers have that depth is because of concerns with the youth of the rotation and the middle-late innings in the bullpen. And although the terrific starts by the likes of Matt Harrison and Ogando have been great, they overshadow the work the bullpen has done so far to keep this team undefeated. </p>
<p>A big reason the staff has been good so far is, of course, the Rangers defense. In fact, a reason the bullpen didn't break in that game on Tuesday was because of the speed and range of centerfielder Julio Borbon. With two outs and the bases loaded in a 3-2 game, Oliver got Milton Bradley to pop up to shallow center. However, the ball was deceiving because of the powerful swing Bradley put on it and because of the early season wind causing balls to be a bit unpredictable. Initially it appeared that Borbon got a poor read on the ball, however he was able to close on it and make a game-saving catch to salvage the streak. While it is possible that with a better read another outfielder on the team could have caught that ball, there's no one else on the team that comes close to the closing speed and range that Borbon has. That's why he's out there. </p>
<p>Also, when Adrian Beltre came up in rumors as a potential player the Rangers might go after, there was some consternation that the Rangers were spending too much on a position it already had filled. And while Beltre hasn't earned his entire contract in these first two series, If you watched him in this series, you can see why the Rangers turned to him when they lost out on Cliff Lee as a method of improving defense to improve the pitching staff. Beltre is a you-have-to-see-him-to-believe kind of player on the field. While his defensive stats and reputation as a fielder are also great, there's something about defense that needs to be seen to enjoyed. If you look at a player's UZR you can't see a diving stop the same way you can look at a player's home run total and imagine them flying out of the yard. And seeing him now, though he isn't getting the results with the bat so far, he's an unbelievable fielder. For example:</p>
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<p>I can hyperbolize with the best of 'em but I'll just quote Rangers radio announcer Dave Barnett when he said, after watching this play, that it was like "shades of Brooks Robinson." If you're a third baseman, there's no higher praise. Those of us dreaming of what a Beltre/Andrus left side of the infield would look like all winter have woken up from our slumber happy in knowing that it looks spectacular and will help this team as immensely as we had hoped.</p>
<p>Things that had happened since Elvis Andrus had hit a home run before hitting one off of Erik Bedard in the first inning on Monday night:</p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Marlon Byrd was a Ranger and became a Chicago Cub</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Ivan Rodriguez was a Ranger again before becoming a Washington National</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Hank Blalock was a Ranger before becoming a Tampa Bay Ray and then out of the Majors :(</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Chris Davis was a Ranger again then he was a Red Hawk then he was a Ranger then he was a Red Hawk then he was a Ranger then he was a Red Hawk and then he was an Express</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">C.J. Wilson was still an "erratic" 8th inning guy</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Colby Lewis was in Japan</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Cliff Lee was a couple of months removed from being in Cleveland before being traded to Philadelphia where they lost the World Series. He then got traded to Seattle, got traded to the Texas Rangers, lost in the World Series, again, and then signed with Philadelphia</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Michael Young was nearing the end of his first season at third base</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Ron Washington had just 60 days previously tried cocaine for the first and last time in his life</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">Elvis Andrus would ride an elephant into our hearts</span></li>
</ul>
<div>So what did the Rangers learn against the Mariners?</div>
<div><br></div>
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<p>The Rangers never remain silent for too long.</p>
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https://dallas.sbnation.com/2011/4/7/2097320/what-the-rangers-learned-against-seattleChristopher Fittz2011-04-04T08:00:51-05:002011-04-04T08:00:51-05:00What The Rangers Learned Against Boston
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<p>It seems almost irrational to be this excited about only three games but it's safe to say that a statement was made to the rest of the American League about just where the William Harridge Trophy resides and what any contender will have to battle if they have a desire to claim it.</p> <p>Come on, Boston. Are you even trying?</p>
<p>After spending much of the off season listening to the predicted impending doom of the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Texas Rangers</a> because of an unhappy team leader, unsigned playoff ace, and an unsatisfying conclusion to the closer conundrum, it is satisfying to witness what happens when everything goes right. Perhaps the rumors of the mediocrity of the American League Champions were, at least, slightly exaggerated.</p>
<p>The Rangers swept the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.overthemonster.com/">Boston Red Sox</a> while outscoring them 26 to 11. The Rangers outhit the Red Sox 34 to 20. The Rangers out dong'd the Red Sox 11 to 3. <span>Ian Kinsler</span> himself had as many home runs as the Red Sox team. Nelson Cruz had as many home runs as the Red Sox team. The Rangers pitchers allowed as many walks as the Red Sox (10 to 10) but struck out twice as many: 24 to Boston's 12. In every way, the Rangers beat the Red Sox and they did so in such a convincing fashion that it's hard to not let your mind wander to hyperbolic thoughts.</p>
<p>It's almost silly to write that. It was only three games. If you sample just three consecutive games randomly during a season you're sure to see comparable instances of domination such as this. But what a three games! And the fact that it begins the year, against such a formidable opponent, just leads a mind to wander to places rational thinking shouldn't venture.</p>
<p>And yet, what if? What if this is the Rangers? Not the God-would-scoff home run rate and world-consuming offensive juggernaut, but what if this is a great team where we might have thought this was merely a good team before this season began? Also, while celebrating future success based on only three games isn't particularly wise, it is fun to have this year begin 3-0 against the team that came to town with the intentions of letting the Rangers know they would be back in October for the crown only to have them kiss the rings. </p>
<p>Of course, it didn't begin with this narrative. Instead, on the first batted ball of the season, <span>Julio Borbon</span> ran into Nelson Cruz as Cruz camped under the ball in right field causing a first-play two-base error. Spring Training was filled with near daily concerns about Borbon's defense in center and about his mental fortitude. And then, just before Opening Day, the drums in the local media really began to beat for <span>Josh Hamilton</span> to return to playing center while allowing <span>David Murphy</span> to start in left. So, given all of the hand-wringing and teeth-gnashing, there probably wasn't a more appropriate way for the season to begin. While it was no laughing matter, it was hard to not see the humor in the situation.</p>
<p>Perhaps the other big gripe from we fans in the early going was Ron Washington's lineup maneuvering. Be it Elvis in the 2-hole, Nelson Cruz hitting behind <span>Michael Young</span>, or concerns that <span>Mike Napoli</span> wouldn't start against a tough lefty on Opening Day, we found ways to complain about everything. For what it's worth, Ron Washington appeared to deftly utilize his lineup and short bench extremely well in this series (With the exception of his continued insistence on trying to send messages to Nelson Cruz. Just stop it, Ron. He's your third best player.). Of course, it's easy to look good when everyone on the team is hitting out of their minds.</p>
<p>The Rangers newest acquisitions this off season at catcher, third, and first base have begun the season hitting a combined .333 with 8 runs scored, 10 RBI, and 4 home runs.</p>
<p>And yet, the best news of the weekend was probably the fact that <span>Matt Harrison</span> pitched as the Rangers #3 starter while having the results of a #1 starter and the stuff of an ace. If this is the devilish work of book learning that we have been led to believe, then I hope the Rangers signed <span>Derek Holland</span> up for a library card because I have my suspicions as to whether or not he's ever stepped foot into his local library.</p>
<p><span>Elvis Andrus</span> had 18 extra base hits all season in 2010. Elvis Andrus already has 3 extra base hits in his first two games of this season.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/689812/ike5k0.gif"><img alt="Ike5k0_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/689812/ike5k0_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>So what did the Rangers learn against the Boston Red Sox? It's good to be the king.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/texas-rangers/2011/4/4/2089729/what-the-rangers-learned-against-bostonChristopher Fittz2011-02-07T18:07:53-06:002011-02-07T18:07:53-06:00A Blasphemer's Look At Michael Young
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<p>Perhaps the sentimentality gives way to cynicism but I can't quite sympathize with some recent comments I've read from Rangers fans about how their ability to remain a fan of the team is conditional upon whether or not Michael Young remains a Ranger. I seek only to understand the incomprehensible. Is that too much to ask?</p> <p>I am going to write this as delicately as I can because this is subject that a baseball fan of the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Texas Rangers</a> must be gentle when broaching.<br><br>I guess I am starting to wonder just why <span>Michael Young</span> is so beloved to the point of blind adoration.<br><br>In the wake of the latest round of rumors concerning the future of Michael Young with the Texas Rangers, including reports that he wants out from Arlington so he can continue to play in the field instead of being the Rangers primary DH this season and beyond, I have stumbled upon many dissenting comments on various comment sections of reports around the Internet from Rangers fans about the team's treatment of its longest tenured player and even some remarks to the fact that if Michael Young is traded, so will the allegiance of the fan be traded as well.<br><br>So, here it comes. Perhaps someone can enlighten me on just why it is that Michael Young is so revered that his absence is more important to a fan of the team than the team itself.<br><br>I respect Michael Young and have a lot of great memories of him as a Texas Ranger. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a slam Micheal Young piece. I know now that a part of me will deeply feel an ending has come to a particular duration of my sports fan existence when Michael Young is no longer a part of the Rangers. I was at The Coliseum in Oakland when the Rangers clinched the 2010 A.L. West title and watched each member of the team shake Michael Young's hand. I will never forget that. I get that aspect.<br><br>I was sad when <span>Joaquin Benoit</span> was unceremoniously dumped. I was sad when news broke that <span>Frank Francisco</span> had been traded even though I agreed with the move from a baseball standpoint. I was even a little blue when the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.camdenchat.com/">Orioles</a> made their announcement that they had completed a deal for <span>Vladimir Guerrero</span> and he was around as long as Clint Hurdle. Michael Young has been around practically forever in baseball lifespans.<br><br>I get it. Being a sports fan is being a fan of laundry and all that. But the cold harsh reality of rooting for laundry means the memories of your favorite moments begin to fade with each wash. But somehow Michael Young seems to make the whites whiter and the brights brighter in the minds of Rangers fans.<br><br>Michael Young is not now nor has he ever really been an upper-echelon baseball player. He has been a very good baseball player. And for this franchise, perhaps that is enough. But his best years came when the team had one of its worst eras. His legacy is one of a guy who played for the same team for a long time in a time when that is rare with his most heralded attribute often being the one that is least quantifiable, leadership and intangibles. <br><br>So, why? Is it that we project ourselves onto Michael Young and that is why we like him? And by we I mean the baseball fan. Do we like him because we hope for a hardworking success story with a long-term affiliation where respect is the currency and hold onto it when it comes at last?<br><br>Is Michael Young possibly not being a Ranger anymore like finding out your father--whom would come home from another hard day, plop down on his worn-in easy chair with a groan, and put on the ball game--is getting laid off from his job after training his replacement? Is it the supposed indignity that cuts at us?<br><br>I definitely can understand the dissention if the opinion is that moving Young makes the team worse for an important 2011 season. I happen to believe that the premise is debatable and if moving Young allows the team to free up money to extend the contention window while not suffering a large amount of production loss in the present, it is a move that has to be considered. And yet, somehow, when looking at it from a dollars and cents, plus future value to the team perspective, it seems to strip away the emotions we have attached to the player. That somehow the player has earned more latitude than the betterment of the team.<br><br>Another aspect in this saga to consider is any potential deal now would be nothing less than mutual. If Michael Young has made it clear to the front office that he no longer wants to be a Texas Ranger, as has been reported by local and national media sources, how does that change the opinion? I am not going to bash Michael Young for wanting to enjoy the job he does to what he feels is the fullest. But then I am not going to bash the team either for obliging the guy when the alternative is a lose-lose for both parties.<br><br>Please forgive the heresy, but I cannot even fathom considering not being a fan of the Texas Rangers anymore because Michael Young is not a member of the team.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/texas-rangers/2011/2/7/1981006/a-blasphemers-look-at-michael-youngChristopher Fittz2011-01-01T20:13:56-06:002011-01-01T20:13:56-06:00Surreality: In Memoriam
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<p>2010 had its final page closed as we open the book on 2011. What does that mean for you, the Texas Rangers fan? It is a time to reflect one last time before turning those eyes fully toward the future.</p> <p>Do you sometimes catch yourself in a moment of realization, even now, that indeed your 2010 Texas Rangers were in the World Series? You watched it happen. Some of you were even at the games when they happened. But unless you take a stark account, it's almost like it couldn't be. Is it still foreign but fresh? Maybe for some of you it has faded now that the calendar no longer reads the same year as the one in which the miraculous happened. By definition, you, as a sports fan, need more miracles to consume. Now, now, now.</p>
<p>Pause. Stop right here. Take a breath with me and hold it for a moment. The pages of an epic can turn too quickly if you let them.</p>
<p>Remember the first time you heard of the name <span>Neftali Feliz</span>. Was it in a Newberg Report (<i>7/30/07: "Dave Sessions and Jim Reeves of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram are reporting that the two pitchers coming back in the deal will be Neftali [not "Nestali"] Feliz"</i>)? Was it in the minor details of a press release about the Rangers acquiring a raw arm from Atlanta's advanced rookie league team in Danville, nearly an afterthought, nearer a throw-in? Did you catch wind of him from a glowing note from Kevin Goldstein? What do you remember first? It is important that you remember. You watched as he turned from lottery ticket into life-changing winnings as each ball shot out of the hopper. From Appalachian League hopeful to ALCS Dragon Slayer.</p>
<p>Remember when <span>Edinson Volquez</span> was Neftali Feliz? Remember how Edinson Volquez became American League MVP <span>Josh Hamilton</span>? It's important that you remember because if you don't, the threads start to fray and then the meaning begins to give way.</p>
<p>Maybe the second name you poured over when you heard of that same trade that brought the Rangers Neftali Feliz was <span>Elvis Andrus</span>. You likely thought of the potential of <span>Jarrod Saltalamacchia</span> first, as the headliner, but then you began to acquire more information on the second guy, the young Myrtle Beach shortstop. Somewhere along the way you fell in love with a light-hitting middle infielder. Somewhere between thinking it was pretty cool that the Rangers had gained someone named Elvis and this, you were smitten for life:</p>
<p><a href="http://i.min.us/ibn4gc.gif"></a></p>
<p> <a href="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/624365/ibn4gc.gif"><img alt="Ibn4gc_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/624365/ibn4gc_medium.gif" height="130" width="228"></a><br id="1293928738490">Maybe you laugh a little when you suddenly remember that Saltalamacchia hit the game winning single on opening day.</p>
<p>Maybe you laugh a little when you wonder if <span>Michael Young</span> ever thinks of <span>Frank Catalanotto</span>.</p>
<p>Maybe you laugh a little when you suddenly remember Darren O'Day in a <span>Kason Gabbard</span> jersey in Toronto. Maybe you smile a little when you think of Darren O'Day coming into a game at a packed Rangers Ballpark.</p>
<p>You probably do smile when you think of Alexi Ogando. How could you not? Remember when he was only a specter on the radar? A mere unceremonious update every offseason of no progress for past transgressions. You could probably do well to never let yourself forget his story. It has to be all by design, right?</p>
<p>I mean, if it isn't by design, how did we get from 1999 <span>Colby Lewis</span> to 2010 Colby Lewis? From great hope to failed prospect to Detroit Tiger to Washington National to Oakland Athletic to Kansas City Royal to Hiroshima Carp to best pitcher for the Texas Rangers in the 2010 postseason on a team that featured the best postseason pitcher in the last 25 years. How did it all align through that decade of failure for both Lewis and the Rangers into such a sweet season of triumph? The gravity of this one person's journey stops me in my tracks. I settle within the inertia. I enjoy my stay.</p>
<p>Maybe you remember the first go-round in 1996 with almost as much revelry. Maybe you make note to remember Oct, 4 1996 when <span>Darren Oliver</span> pitched then the best game in Rangers postseason history. And now, 14 years and seven teams later, you can't help but wonder what it was like to run to the mound from the bullpen in the same stadium knowing you are going to your first World Series as a member of the same team it all began with. If you could, you would be Darren Oliver in that moment for all of your moments.</p>
<p>Or maybe you would be C.J. Wilson's moment of running to the mound from the bullpen that was your home for the previous four seasons while knowing that the next time you are on a baseball pitcher's mound, you do so in the World Series as a starting pitcher. You run out to that dog-pile and you've already won the game.</p>
<p>What do you think it was like to be <span>Vladimir Guerrero</span> and suddenly have that body of a 25 year old again as you fly higher onto the pile as anyone else?</p>
<p>What do you think it was like to be Nelson Cruz watching <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="../../mlb/players/638/vladimir-guerrero">Vladimir Guerrero</a> fly higher onto the pile as anyone else as you both go to the World Series together, for the first time?</p>
<p>What do you think it was like to be Mitch Moreland and suddenly realize you're in an ALCS Champions celebration and a 25-year-old-again-body-having Vladimir Guerrero is using you for his ascension? What were your first thoughts when you read of <span>Mitch Moreland</span>'s skill set? Were you like me? Did you think of <span>Mike Lamb</span> or <span>Travis Metcalf</span> (God rest his soul)? Did you bury him somewhere on your mental depth chart? We watched and waited for Matt Brown, <span>Chris Davis</span>, Justin Smoak, Ryan Garko and Chris Davis again to step forward before Mitch Moreland was allowed to be more than fodder. Now, when you think back, you'll see a path that went from possible <span>Jason Grabowski</span> to perhaps lone hitting World Series hero.</p>
<p>Did you maybe ever think, during your July 2008 celebration, that through the act of divine intervention that made the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.crawfishboxes.com/">Houston Astros</a> break the cardinal sin of the MLB draft in drafting for need when they selected a catcher in <span>Jason Castro</span><span class="sbn-auto-link">,</span> leaving the Rangers with a polished product in <span>Justin Smoak</span>, that he would someday be used as the only piece possible to acquire the man who would pitch the Rangers to the ALCS and then in that series pitch one of the best games in postseason history? You start to question if it were really so crazy that it all happened. It starts to seem something like destiny. See how fast it goes when you forget to remember the details?</p>
<p>Remember then too that Nolan Ryan went from Texas Ranger legitimizer over 20 years ago to owner of the league champions. Remember when he was a spring training consultant trying to reach Chan Ho Park? Remember someday that Chuck Greenberg didn't take long in fulfilling a promise of stopping this franchise from hitting the snooze bar perpetually. Tom Grieve saw successes unimaginable for an employer he has spent his entire adult life with. Eric Nadel called a Texas Rangers World Series game. We have that. We will always have that.</p>
<p>It cracks me up whenever I think that Ron Washington is going to manage the 2011 All-Star Game. I'm glad now that he wasn't fired when I thought maybe he ought to have been in several different Aprils. I will not forget those sentiments. Accept gladly that Tom Vandergriff saw the Rangers in the World Series before he passed.<br> <br> It's no longer 2010 as of today. Our Rangers have fully entered defense-of-American-League-Crown mode. But stop. Bask mode doesn't have to end just yet for you and me. Erase present thoughts of <span>Cliff Lee</span>, <span>Zack Greinke</span>, <span>Adam Dunn</span>, or <span>Victor Martinez</span> from your mind if only for this moment and think only about this: We get to do it all over again. And this time we ride in style.<br> <br> We get to buckle in once again for another season of memories and moments. There will be more heartbreak before it's all over. There will be more indescribable moments of soul-lifting joy, as well. We are cumulatively and as a community, as fans, the hearts and souls of the 2010 American League Champion <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Texas Rangers</a>. And we will be so in 2011 and beyond. It is appropriately time to exhale. As we push our replenished, redefined present to a now more distinguished, more colorful past with real history and elucidation, we are left with an uncertain future but one invigorated by events still radiating within the inspiration for our love of this great game.<br> <br> So pause now and then. Don't forget 2010. Never let it go. But remember, soon, 162 and then some wait for us. That smile on your face is the same as my own and it is one to remember.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/texas-rangers/2011/1/1/1907959/surreality-in-memoriamChristopher Fittz2010-10-24T19:45:07-05:002010-10-24T19:45:07-05:00The Texas Rangers Win The American League Pennant
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<p>The Rangers have secured their place in the minds of every baseball fan and in the hearts of Rangers fans everywhere.</p> <p>A story in gifs.</p>
<h5>Beware slow PC users, there be gifs below.</h5>
<p>Game 6 of the ALCS started off as practically every important game this postseason has started, with <span>Elvis Andrus</span> making his presence felt. He led off the Rangers 1st inning with a double and scored the first run of the game. This allowed <span>Colby Lewis</span> to just do work. Throw strikes and the defense would make plays. Elvis made sure of it.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/574954/elvissnag.gif"><img alt="Elvissnag_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/574954/elvissnag_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>Colby pitched to the minimum without allowing a hit until a lead off double by <span>Alex Rodriguez</span> in the 5th inning. After A-Rod advanced to third, the Yankees would score their only run on a disputed play in which the ball clearly hit <span>Nick Swisher</span> before bouncing away from <span>Bengie Molina</span> as he dove the other way to block the ball.</p>
<p>Tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the 5th, the Rangers would have perhaps their most meaningful, and memorable, inning in franchise history. <span>Mitch Moreland</span> led off the inning with a single to shallow right. He advanced to second on a hit-and-run ground out on a ball Elvis slapped to second and after a ground out to <span>Phil Hughes</span> by <span>Michael Young</span>, <span>Josh Hamilton</span> walked up to the plate. It might as well have been <span>Barry Bonds</span> because the Yankees were not going to pitch to him. In a similar situation in the 3rd, the Yankees walked Josh Hamilton intentionally, and <span>Vladimir Guerrero</span> meekly popped out to second base. It was perhaps the only thing <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="../../mlb/players/638/vladimir-guerrero">Vladimir Guerrero</a> has done meekly in his life. This had become a theme for the series. It was clear the Yankees were not going to let Josh Hamilton beat them, especially not with a righty on the mound. It was time to get mad, Vlad.</p>
<p>Josh Hamilton said he could see it in his eyes. Nelson Cruz said he told him, "Don't let them do this to you." Phil Hughes had gotten away with it once before. He had gotten away with a wild pitch on a previous IBB attempt. But he had gotten away with disrespecting Vladimir Guerrero for the last time. On a 0-1 count, Vlad got mad. He drilled a curve ball up in the zone on a line to center. Time stopped. I'll never forget the sight of that ball flying over the head of <span>Curtis Granderson</span>. All I remember besides that ball bouncing off the centerfield wall was screaming, "TWO TWO TWO TWO!" just willing Josh Hamilton to come around himself to make the game a two run affair.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575020/windmillwash.gif"><img alt="Windmillwash_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575020/windmillwash_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>I was not unlike Ron Washington.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/574999/vladclaw.gif"><img alt="Vladclaw_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/574999/vladclaw_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>Vlad did the claw so emphatically that you could tell that his relief was our relief. His release was our release. If we were finally going to see the Rangers in the World Series, the world was finally going to see Vlad Guerrero in the World Series.</p>
<p>And then he passed the torch. It was time for Nelson Cruz to put one a little bit farther into the night. Burned once again by intentional walks, Joe Girardi took Hughes out of the game. Instead of going to Kerry Woods or <span>Joba Chamberlain</span> from an all-hands-on-deck pen, Girardi went with <span>David Robertson</span> whom had turned a 2-0 game in Game 3 into a massacre by allowing 5 runs on 5 hits in a third of an inning. It was questionable at the time, and with hindsight to our advantage, a move that Girardi is going to have to spend all winter answering for. Still with two outs, Vlad at second, Robertson threw five straight curve balls to Nelson Cruz. Nellie had them timed, as he fouled off the last two, so he had forced Robertson to throw him a fastball. Sometimes you probably know you're about to make a mistake before you do it. I have to believe David Robertson understands that.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575029/alcsboomstick.gif"><img alt="Alcsboomstick_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575029/alcsboomstick_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>The Boomstick.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575035/cruzfireworks.gif"><img alt="Cruzfireworks_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575035/cruzfireworks_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>The killshot.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575044/nelliecruz.gif"><img alt="Nelliecruz_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575044/nelliecruz_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>The moment.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575047/vladbump.gif"><img alt="Vladbump_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575047/vladbump_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>The torch.</p>
<p>The Rangers had never had an inning like this. This was special. We were all witnesses to history. We were all witnesses to the inning that put the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Texas Rangers</a> into the World Series. We were all witnesses to the moment the Rangers ended the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.pinstripealley.com/">New York Yankees</a>. Not just their World Series hopes. Not just their repeat dreams. Not just their reign as American League Champions. But perhaps their dynasty. The Yankees will be back. They'll win again. But perhaps it won't be again with the core four of Jeter, Posada, Pettitte, and Rivera. It was conceived in 1996 in Arlington. Let it die in 2010 in Arlington. The Rangers tacked on a run in the 7th. It too came after the Yankees had walked Josh Hamilton. They also intentionally walked Nelson Cruz. When the Yankees weren't just plain laying down, the were quivering in the corner.</p>
<p>Colby Lewis never let the Yankees consider anything other than defeat. Colby Lewis never let the Rangers consider anything other than victory. He pitched 8 innings, allowed one phantom run, 3 hits, and struck out 7. Including the final three batters he faced. His finally opponent was <span>Derek Jeter</span>. He struck him out on what Eric Nadel would call, "a feeble hack." Colby Lewis walked off the mound to 51K+ standing and chanting his name. Colby Lewis. THAT Colby Lewis. The one from some of the worst Texas Rangers teams we've ever watched. If you ever feel the need to describe just why baseball is amazing to someone that doesn't get it, if you ever feel like they might be worthy of this great game, tell them the story of Colby Lewis. Tell them the story of Colby Lewis and watch them become a fan for life.</p>
<p>And then came the 9th. There's something you're going to have to get used to, Rangers fans. No longer can we say, "Well, it's the Rangers..." to mean impending failure. In the 9th inning we could say that. And we did. We watched our team with three outs to go with our ghosts. The Yankees have their ghosts. They're friendly ghosts. They're a bunch of Caspers in pinstripes. The Rangers have ghosts, also. They're Lenny Randle waiting to sucker punch us in the kisser. Until that final pitch, for us, the other shoe had always dropped. 6-1 could have been 30-1 and felt like 2-1 until Bengie Molina was in <span>Neftali Feliz</span>'s arms.</p>
<p>Feliz started the 9th with a 3-1 count on Curtis Granderson and those 39 years in Arlington, TX of abject failure perked up. The funny thing is, though, Neftali Feliz didn't give two shits about your 39 years. What ghosts? What failure? Neftali Feliz is Ernie Hudson. He busts ghosts and I hope he has a bigger role in the sequel. Curtis Granderson struck out. <span>Robinson Cano</span> came up next. You might recognize him as Juan Gonzalez circa October 1996. Until Game 6, when he became Juan Gonzalez circa October 1999. Robinson Cano grounded out to first, curiously, loafing it to first.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575110/unamas.gif"><img alt="Unamas_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575110/unamas_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>And then, one more.</p>
<p>I said before the ALCS started that of course it was going to be the Yankees. It just couldn't have happened any other way. And so, when I assessed the situation as the Rangers were a final out away from winning the American League Pennant, of course it was going to be Alex Rodriguez. I don't hate A-Rod like a lot of Rangers fans do. I think he was an amazing player when he was here--arguably the best in baseball--but it was pretty clear that it was a relationship that was just never going to work. I don't hate any of my exes, either. Maybe that's just me. But, of course it was going to be A-Rod. So the joke goes, A-Rod was always destined to put the Rangers into the World Series. He knew it himself. "I'm sure it made it a little sweeter for them,'' Rodriguez said of his final out.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575134/dragonball.gif"><img alt="Dragonball_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575134/dragonball_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>That out, on a "dragon of a curve," he would say. It might be the most beautiful pitch I've ever seen. It was unhittable. It was knee-buckling. It was Pennant winning.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575146/celebration.gif"><img alt="Celebration_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575146/celebration_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>And thus, celebration.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575152/holyshit.gif"><img alt="Holyshit_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575152/holyshit_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>Holy Shit!</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575161/dogpile.gif"><img alt="Dogpile_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575161/dogpile_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>I never before wanted so much to see a bunch of men on top of an on-all-fours <span>Frank Francisco</span> like I did on Friday night.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575170/confetti.gif"><img alt="Confetti_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575170/confetti_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>LSB's oc said it best, "It's snowing in October!"</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575176/boom-2.gif"><img alt="Boom-2_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575176/boom-2_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>This actually happened.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575185/worldseriesbound.gif"><img alt="Worldseriesbound_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575185/worldseriesbound_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>Josh Hamilton said he cried before the final out was even made. If Josh Hamilton cried, it's OK that you and I cried.</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575197/helloworldseries.gif"><img alt="Helloworldseries_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/575197/helloworldseries_medium.gif"></a></p>
<p>What more is there to say? The Rangers are going to the World Series!</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/texas-rangers/2010/10/24/1771904/the-texas-rangers-win-the-american-league-pennantChristopher Fittz2010-09-26T14:55:44-05:002010-09-26T14:55:44-05:00The Final Out
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<p>I was lucky enough to be in the MLB city that the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a> happened to be in when they clinched the 2010 American League West Division Championship. Naturally, I went to the game to watch it happen. After the jump you will find a video I shot of the final out. It is jumpy, a little nauseating, and sometimes focuses on weird things like the top of an usher's head, but I think it captures the insane emotion of the situation.<br><br> <a href="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/553150/2rpfdwg.png"><img alt="2rpfdwg_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/553150/2rpfdwg_medium.png" height="155" width="278"></a></p>
<p>Enjoy.</p>
<p><iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/15287971?color=ff0051" frameborder="0" height="225" width="400"></iframe> <br id="1285530774128"></p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/texas-rangers/2010/9/26/1713284/the-final-outChristopher Fittz2010-09-17T14:11:26-05:002010-09-17T14:11:26-05:00Myrtle Beach To Serve As Rangers High A Affiliate
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<p>In addition to the news of the <a href="http://dallas.sbnation.com/2010/9/16/1693345/rangers-affiliation-round-rock-official" target="new">Round Rock Express becoming the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers</a>, the Rangers have announced today that they will<a href="http://www.wmbfnews.com/Global/story.asp?S=13173287" target="new"> affiliate with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans</a> to be their High A minor league team.</p>↵<p>As part of the deal, the Rangers have agreed to play an exhibition game in Myrtle Beach on Tuesday, March 29 against an opponent to be determined.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/2010/9/17/1695027/myrtle-beach-to-serve-as-rangersChristopher Fittz2010-09-17T13:59:24-05:002010-09-17T13:59:24-05:00What We Learned Against Detroit
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<p>The Rangers finished off their non-AL West schedule for 2010 with an impressive seven game winning streak. Including a two-game sweep of the Tigers and 5-0 homestand.</p> <p>So here we are. After all of that panic a week and a half ago the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a> finished off their series in Toronto with a split, swept the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.pinstripealley.com/">New York Yankees</a>, and now did the same to the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.blessyouboys.com/">Tigers</a> albeit in a short two games series. The Rangers now have 17 games left, a 10 game lead in the AL West, and the Magic Number is down to 8. The Rangers are going to win the American League West. I'd wager what is important now, and what was important against this Detroit Tigers, is getting the team back to June 2010 form for October 2010. That means getting Josh Hamilton back on the field and seeing if Frank Francisco can ramp up enough in these final weeks to perform at a level that makes it wise to include him on the postseason 25 man roster.</p>
<p>Against the Tigers, the Rangers scored 22 runs in the two games, 11 per. Frankly, after that offensive explosion, not much else went right for the Rangers. In game one, Derek Holland didn't make it into the 5th inning even though his stuff was excellent. Unlike previous starts where his stuff wasn't as good and teams were punishing him with home runs, Holland's stuff was really good he just couldn't locate at all. He ended up walking two batters and hitting two batters in his 4 innings of work. The Rangers also committed two errors and were sloppy in the field otherwise early in the game partially due to unusually high winds and partially due to allowing unusually high winds to make them make bad decisions.</p>
<p>Dustin Nippert pitched 4.1 innings in that first game of the series. He came in with the game still in questions (tied at four) and then didn't allow a run in his entire stint. This was significant because the Tigers were the team that put him on the disabled list back in July after taking a ball of the head on a come-backer in Detroit and also because he is Dustin Nippert. He isn't very good. He won't make the playoff roster. But it was very nice to see a yeoman's performance akin to what Matt Harrison did to the Tigers that very same night Nippert was struck in Detroit. Long Relief is a thankless job but sometimes it is needed far more than we know. Nippert's work kept Darren O'day out of a meaningless game. It kept Darren Oliver from pitching another inning that he can save for October. Dustin Nippert might not be very good but his efforts on Tuesday night are appreciated.</p>
<p>Now that Derek Holland needed efforts from Dustin Nippert to win a game he started, do you think this solidifies in the Rangers mind that Tommy Hunter is their #4 starter in the playoffs if they need one? I still hope they go with Holland because I think he has a better chance to win a playoff baseball game for the Rangers, but I get the feeling Derek had a steep uphill climb to surpass Tommy Hunter and he probably just rolled back down the hill.</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure David Murphy found a mysterious oriental skull that allowed him to transforms himself into Josh Hamilton, and vice versa while Josh Hamilton's body heals.</p>
<p>Consider this Texas Rangers fans: With all the likelihood in the world, the next team you head to the Ballpark in Arlington, your Texas Rangers will be the 2010 American League West Division Champions.</p>
<p>So what did we learn against Detroit?</p>
<p><a href="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/546224/notakutie.gif"> </a><a href="http://cdn0.sbnation.com/imported_assets/546227/notakutie.gif"><img alt="Notakutie_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn1.sbnation.com/imported_assets/546227/notakutie_medium.gif" height="196" width="283"></a></p>
<p>Save the tears for clinch day.<a href="http://i777.photobucket.com/albums/yy57/apoplecticfittz/TexasRangergifs/Notakutie.gif"></a></p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/2010/9/17/1694929/what-we-learned-against-detroitChristopher Fittz