Ben Broussard being designated for assignment ends a brief but mistake filled stint here.  He has been a platoon player nearly his whole career.  He has been a poor hitting 1B, a position that usually demands a strong bat.  Unlike the famous song New York, New York; if you can't make it as a hitter in the Ballpark in Arlington, you can't make it anywhere.  The Rangers blew over $3.5MM on this mistake. 

We now have Chris Shelton, who has done nothing since his hot start fro Detroit 2 years ago.  We have the aging, all bat, no glove Catman, who also has virtually no power as well.  Will they make there error complete and call up Gold before he's ready?

Millwood going on the DL is a shock to the suddenly lights out starting pitchers.  I say good.  Let's see what the kids can do.   (Please repeat 1000 times so this can sink in!)

I have not been posting because I have not had much good to say about the Rangers.  After a month of silence, I have to post something.  Here are some things to keep in mind for 2008:

 

1)      1) When evaluating any Ranger personnel move, you have to ask the following question: "Will this make the Rangers better in 2010?"  We all know that the Rangers have no shot this year or next, despite some of you who were drinking the pre-season Kool-Aid and wondering if the Rangers could be this year's Colorado Rockies.  (Don't deny it.  We know who you are!)

2)      2) Players who won't be around for 2010 are merely fodder to obtain additional prospects.  If we can keep Milton Bradley healthy and muzzled, maybe we can get some prospects for him later this summer.

3)      Salty is the Ranger catcher of the future.  The only question is: Do you want him to learn at the major league level or in the minors.  I vote majors.  Which means Gerald Laird may be able to get us some prospects.

4)      4) If the Rangers plan was to trade Tex, could they at least have a viable alternative at first base?  How soon will our minor league first sackers be ready?  If you answered 2010, there's no need to bring in someone else between now and then.  I would have given Botts a longer tryout, but Broussard's days are probably numbered and it is approaching zero.  Chris Shelton was never the answer except for trivia about fast starts in 2006.

5)     5) What can be done to improve the team's middle defense?  Michael Young still doesn't cover much ground at short and Kinsler makes Soriano's defense look passable.  I thought both of these guys were in the Rangers long term plans, but can they afford to have them butchering up the defense?

6) I have no confidence that the Rangers pitching coaches at the minor or major league level can develop young pitching.  The early season success of Edinson Volquez with the Reds underscores my concern.  Here was a guy with electric stuff, who struggled in the Rangers system because of wildness.  The Reds have him for spring training and he looks like the second coming.  Rangers' heads should roll over this.  If the Rangers can't develop young pitching, they might as well give up right now.  People can have all the talent in the world when drafted or acquired, but if don't get much better they will be cannon fodder in the big leagues.   Josh Hamilton is trying to let us forget about Volquez, but good young pitchers the scarcest commodity in baseball.  The Ballpark can make a good hitter from a lot of spare players.

 7)     

 

7) How long will Nolan Ryan be given a free pass by his buddies in the media?  When he was hired, I thought it was a smart think for Hicks, JD & Company. Management can get bashed all day, but people will think twice before taking on the Express mano-a-mano.  He also will help sell tickets from a promotional standpoint.

      8)  Hitting, defense, starting pitching, and bullpen - Which has been the most reliable part of the Rangers game thus far?  I would vote starting pitchers.  Millwood and Padilla have been inconsistent, but more good than bad.   The worst part of the game - defense unquestionably.  While watching the rangers in the field, I am reminded of the Keystone Cops.  For those of you too young to remember them, google it.

9)      9)  General admission home games?  When the Rangers are playing non-contending teams, crowds are going to be very sparse all year.  Look for increasingly aggressive promotions to get fans to the ballpark.  It still irks me that parking is so high ($12???) considering it's for a surface lot with no shade a mile away from the ballpark.  The price of beer also encourages me to stay home where the beer is colder and 1/6^th the cost.  Dollar hot dog nights won't cut it.  Maybe free parking night would entice me.  Given Cleveland's ill fated nickel beer night, that won't be happening anytime soon.

)   10) Should he stay or should he go?  Wash is obviously not in the plans for 2010 because his handling of the current Ranger debacle has been no less than a disaster of Hindenburg proportions.  The question is when to give him the ax?  What message would that send to a new skipper?  Is the guy you really want available?  Who would want to take the helm of this sinking ship right now?  My advice is to stay the course through the bulk of this year, maybe even through next year.  Pull the trigger late in the year so the new manager will have a month or two to get to know the players before the off season hits.  By August 1 have a plan of who the next Ranger manager will be and what sort of team this will be in 2010. We have come full circle.  Decide what the team can look like in 2010 before making any current decision.