Texas Rangers

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.

Week Two of the season proved to be less than a happy week as a Rangers fan. It started out pretty well but quickly spiraled downhill and ended with a big thud.

Game Recaps

Apr. 12 @ Cleveland Indians W, 4-2

Rich Harden proved to be far more effective than in his first start as a Ranger, going six innings and allowing only two runs on five hits. 

The Texas Rangers have always been prominent on one side of the baseball equation—hitting. This was the team, after all, that signed A-Rod and drafted Mark Teixiera (who are now playing for tonight's opponent, the high-budget Yankees).

The baseball season isn't yet two weeks old, but there has been a flurry of activity already in bullpens across the country.

In the past three days, four closers have been either demoted or placed on the disabled list, prompting four new pitchers to become must-adds for fantasy baseball players everywhere.

The coveted saves category can make-or-break a fantasy baseball season and if you were paying attention this week, you just might have begun your rise to the top of the fantasy baseball mountain.

Here's the situation as it stands now for four teams:

It’s bad enough when a player heads to the disabled list, but it’s got to be 10 times worse for that player when his team and his manager rip him a new one for it.

Texas Rangers catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia was placed on the 15-day DL yesterday because of upper back stiffness.

Being hurt is nothing new for Saltalamacchia. Saltalamacchia was hurt twice during spring training, once for pain related to scar tissue near his September operation and later with spasms in the rhomboid muscle on the left side of his back.

I love baseball.

I love everything about it.  For as long as I can remember, baseball has been the one thing that I have consistently adored. 

I am a big sports fan in general, but nothing gets my blood pumping like a good baseball game.

Today’s Rangers-Blue Jays game was just such a contest.

The beginning of the game was extremely disheartening for Rangers fans. Going in with such high expectations, it was really hard to see Scott Feldman give up two home runs early, and the offense be completely absent.

That familiar smell is in the air. The smell of freshly cut grass, water soaking the once hard packed dirt that sat dormant for the past few months, the brand new bats being taken out of the bags and being stacked for each individual player, and the anticipation of a new season to come.

In just a few short hours, players from both the Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays will make their way to the Ballpark at Arlington and begin a six-month marathon to the World Series.

Opening Day is upon us.

The game tonight is really just a TV opportunity, and while it is a good one, the real fun gets started tomorrow.

This is without a doubt one of my favorite days of the year.  I won’t be attending any games, though I will definitely be watching, but there is just something about the start of baseball season that makes me happy.

Part of it has to be the signaling of the start of spring with sunny days, wildflowers, and the impending warm summer, but part of it is my love of baseball. 

The season hasn’t started yet and the Rangers have already been rocked by disaster—revelations of manager Ron Washington’s cocaine use (on ONE occasion) have placed the organization under a level of scrutiny (and criticism) that will almost certainly have an effect on the ballclub.

Pitching has routinely been a problem in Arlington, and it will continue to be an issue for at least one more season. Last year was successful, especially by Texas standards, but the team will be hard pressed to match the achievement in 2010.

For quite some time now the Rangers' infield has been the core of the organization.  Going back to the twilight of Rafael Palmeiro and Ivan Rodriguez all the way up to Michael Young and Ian Kinsler, with a little Mark Teixeira thrown in the middle.

This year’s infield could well prove to be the best yet.

The obvious place to start is with the heart and soul of this team:

Michael Young

There are not many players in the entire league that have been more durable and reliable than Michael Young over the last decade or so.