Frank Francisco

Mike Napoli was a member of the Blue Jays just long enough for most of the team's writers and fans to get familiar with his capabilities and salary situation and come to a conclusion as to where he would fit in with the club. Napoli seemed to fit as the team's primary DH, which caused a chain effect with the rest of the position players.

First reported by Ken Rosenthal, the Toronto Blue Jays traded the recently-acquired Mike Napoli to the Texas Rangers in exchange for reliever Frank Francisco and cash considerations.

Napoli was acquired just a few days ago in the blockbuster that saw long-tenured Blue Jay Vernon Wells shipped to the Los Angeles Angels. Juan Rivera was also sent to the Jays in that swap.

So Alex Anthopoulos has found a manager in John Farrell.

Now he has to continue upgrading his team through trades and free agency.

The first thing to note is that it is highly unlikely Anthopoulos signs a Type A free agent. This is because his first-round pick is not protected, and that is what he would have to give up to sign them.

So Manny Ramirez is out of the question.

The second thing is that Anthopoulos has stated he is willing to go after Type A free agents if the price is right. I understand this, but it is highly unlikely that will happen.

The Rangers seem to have the AL West all but locked up. They have by far the largest lead in any division in baseball, yet some things just don't seem right at the moment.

With Ian Kinsler and Joaquin Arias on the disabled list, the Rangers are a little thin at second base. Ron Washington seemed to think that we may need a bit more help in that area so Christian Guzman was introduced as a Ranger.

What I’m Reading

• The Rangers are sticking with Neftali Feliz, Frank Francisco, and their two-closer system for the time being. Good. Because these situations alway pan out favorably.

The Rangers are in an absolute free fall, the Texas sky is falling and somewhere in the Dallas/Ft Worth Metroplex, Chicken Little is running around screaming about it.

Well, ok, it's not really that bad just yet but Chicken Little may as well be Ranger fans because they certainly believe the sky is falling down on top of The Ballpark at Arlington.

They want Ron Washington fired as quickly as possible, the bullpen needs a drastic makeover and no I'm not talking about hair and nails, and the team needs to stop this slide their on after losing six of their last seven.

There are already some c

Ignorance and poor decision-making, not cocaine, will be the downfall of Ron Washington as manager of the Texas Rangers. After yet another heartbreaking 7-6 loss in a game the Rangers should have won against the Boston Red Sox, it is hard not to find fault in Washington's style of game management.

Anytime a team goes from leading 6-2 to losing the game by a run, fingers begin to be pointed. Five runs and a degrading loss later, fingers should be pointed at the manager.

The 2010 season is just about to enter its third full week, and we've seen plenty of surprises already.

Several players have unexpectedly emerged as seemingly-reliable fantasy options, while other normally productive players are off to slow starts. 

Here's a rundown of who's hot and who's not as we begin the second half of April.

Risers

The bullpen may be the biggest group of unsung heroes in recent years for the Rangers.

They haven’t had any big flashy names, but for the most part they have kept games close, and have been able to close them out when given the chance.

When considering the 2010 bullpen for the Rangers it is easiest to start with the givens.