What Is Your Ranger Line-up

Censored by Laurie · August 19, 2009

With the return of Ian Kinsler and Josh Hamilton, the expected return of Nelson Cruz, the signing of Pudge the emergence of Julio Borbon, and the hopefully fixed Chris Davis call up when the rosters expand, the Rangers suddenly have 12-13 position players fighting for 9 spots in the line-up. If you were Ron Washington...how would you piece together your line-up card for the stretch run? Well...if I were a Otis Nixon head afflicted black man, mine would look like this:

vs. Right Handed Pitchers -

1. Julio Borbon, LF - let him go until he starts playing like a rookie, but not in center...the defense definently needs to improve.

2. Michael Young, 3B - all he does is hit.

3. Josh Hamilton, RF - he's raised his average nearly 50 points in a month...I think he may be back.

4. Ian Kinsler, 2B - I'd give him a shot at clean-up...leads the team in RBIs (69) from the lead-off spot

5. Marlon Byrd, CF - he's nothing spectacular, but he just continues to produce.

6. Nelson Cruz, DH - I thought of a left/right platoon with Murphey here, but Cruz is actually hitting much better against righties.

7. Hank Blaylock, 1B - who else?

8. Taylor Teagarden, C - Not sure how long he can hold off Pudge.

9. Elvis Andrus, SS - This kid is going to be special.

vs. Left Handed Pitchers -

1. Michael Young, 3B - Only b/c I think having a guy hit either lead-off or clean-up would be ridiculous.

2. Marlon Byrd, LF

3. Josh Hamilton, CF

4. Ian Kinsler, 2B

5. Nelson Cruz, RF

6. Andrew Jones, DH - still has a good OBP...I think the tailing numbers are the result of too many ABs

7. Hank Blaylock, 1B - sigh...

8. Ivan Rodriguez, C - This guy is not finished (.251, 8HR in 93 games) and I wonder how long you can roll out a sub .200 player with a future HOFer behind him

9. Elvis Andrus, SS

I think Murphey is showing that he's a fourth outfielder...and a very nice one, but over the past 30 days he's hitting just .235 and with Cruz hitting righties as well as he has I think you have to have him in the line-up b/c of the power.

And a note...I am not a Ranger's "fan" per se...but I am a loyal P1 so I am still tuned in to Ranger discussion and wish the best for the organization. Nothing would make me happier than the next 10 years to see a Texas v. Boston ALCS every year. The Sox need to make some very difficult roster decisions this off-season, and I ALMOST think it'd be best if they missed the playoffs...making an overhaul much easier.

Either way, it should be a fun month and a half.

Quoner · August 19, 2009

I like the list - but a couple of additions/changes.

Blalock is painful to watch. He can occasionally get a hit against a bad fast ball pitcher, but any playoff-caliber starter can get him out by just setting him up to go low and away. He is sub .200 since the break and last night drew his first walk since the freaking all star game. Even with a sub .200 average, Teabag (which has quickly become a cliche nickname), has almost the same OBP. Meanwhile, Chris Davis is back to himself in AAA and has proven even at his worse he can do exactly what Blalock is doing. Playing Blalock more is not going to get us any bump in pick compensation when leaves this summer, so unless we are showcasing him for a waiver claim, I don't get it at this point.

I think Mr. Tea (still sucks as a nickname) will bump his average by playing more. I think his rhythm has just never been allowed to develop. When he played full time last September he had a heck of a month and I think he's capable of hitting .250 for the month. Plus, he does a good job of seeing pitches and letting Andrus and Borbon see what's coming next -- not to mention how well he handles the younger guys on the staff.

I also love the idea of hitting Kinsler fourth - but I think Cruz 4 and him 6 works well too.

Censored by Laurie · August 19, 2009

I like the list - but a couple of additions/changes.
Blalock is painful to watch. He can occasionally get a hit against a bad fast ball pitcher, but any playoff-caliber starter can get him out by just setting him up to go low and away. He is sub .200 since the break and last night drew his first walk since the freaking all star game. Even with a sub .200 average, Teabag (which has quickly become a cliche nickname), has almost the same OBP. Meanwhile, Chris Davis is back to himself in AAA and has proven even at his worse he can do exactly what Blalock is doing. Playing Blalock more is not going to get us any bump in pick compensation when leaves this summer, so unless we are showcasing him for a waiver claim, I don't get it at this point.
I think Mr. Tea (still sucks as a nickname) will bump his average by playing more. I think his rhythm has just never been allowed to develop. When he played full time last September he had a heck of a month and I think he's capable of hitting .250 for the month. Plus, he does a good job of seeing pitches and letting Andrus and Borbon see what's coming next -- not to mention how well he handles the younger guys on the staff.
I also love the idea of hitting Kinsler fourth - but I think Cruz 4 and him 6 works well too.

Problem with that is who else do you play at first right now? There is no room for Davis on the 25 unless you fake an injury with someone, so you're going to have to get by with Hank for the next 2 weeks.

I hope you're right about Teagarden.

Quoner · August 19, 2009

Problem with that is who else do you play at first right now? There is no room for Davis on the 25 unless you fake an injury with someone, so you're going to have to get by with Hank for the next 2 weeks.
I hope you're right about Teagarden.

Yeah - I know Murphy and Jones took some practice at first, but I doubt we see anything like that until we see a waiver claim. I think we're about to see a rash of fake pitching injuries to turn over the dead arms in the bullpen like Eddie and Jennings, but things are trickier with so many OFs to juggle.

Shuke-D · August 19, 2009

I don't follow baseball, but I do have some "outside the box" suggestions for free agent pickups any Ranger list should consider:

Walker, Texas Ranger

The Alpha and the Omega; the Uber and the Alles. No explanation needed.

Red Power Ranger

A consistent team Leader. He already has the team colors as well, so no new uniform needed.

Cornell's Ranger Robot

The undisputed 'walk' leader. Not as sexy as home-runs, but he gets around the bases with no problem.

Night Ranger

If nothing else, they proven that you can still rock in America, and deserve a look from some team.

The Lone Ranger

A little controversial. Was originally hailed as a leader in integration, though later was accused of merely co-opting ethnic minorities' contributions for PR purposes alone while not challenging the power structure.

The Nasal Ranger

No idea why this is on the list.

Aragorn, Ranger of Eriador and member of The Company of the Ring

Perhaps overated. Though, he is the undisputed upset king, always managing to lead his overmatched team from being down in the 9th to victory.