Results tagged ‘ Weekly Mail Bag ’
Weekly Mailbag #1
Here is the first installment of my weekly mailbag. Some questions are from e-mail, some from the live chat we had about a week and a half ago. I will be setting up another chat sometime next week, I will let you know the date and time by Sunday evening. This will be a weekly thing also.
From Ryan:
Q: So why has the team decided to not move Chris Davis to 3B and have Hank play 1B this season. It seems this same issue may come up when Smoak is ready
A: This does bring up a good point. JD has said time and time again this offseason that he is trying to “limit the number of moves” the team makes defensively. I think what you are seeing here is a short term solution to a long term problem, that problem being Michael Youngs contract. I think that Smoak will be ready in 2010, probably by Opening Day. I think after this season you see Michael Young’s contract offloaded (with the Rangers taking a decent chunk of it) and Chris Davis sliding over to third. Davis would be a solid 3B and put up the power numbers you want out of a corner infielder. Smoak has a great glove, but is pretty much nailed down at first. I think before the 2010 season the Rangers move Davis to 3B, Smoak to 1B.
From Josh:
Q: Adam, how much confidence do the Rangers still have in McCarthy?
A: I think will give him one last chance. McCarthy, to his defense, has added 25 pounds to his lanky from this offsesaon, jumping from 195 to 220 over the past few months. I am really hoping that the additional mass helps with his fragility, and I think the Rangers feel the same way. He will have his shot to make the rotation out of camp this year, and with Hurley being out for the season he has a good chance of doing it, but I think if he comes out here this season and gets hurt again, he will not be wearing a Rangers uniform this time next year.
From Murphy:
Q: any word on bringing on a real mentor for andrus (like omar vizquel)? or is the plan really to go into opening day with the kid?
A: Done. Everyone here knows they signed Vizquel earlier this week, so I’m going to address the issue of Andrus being the Opening Day shortstop. I think he definitely is at this point. You cannot create a media frenzy like they did a couple weeks ago then back of the plan. They will keep Andrus there until he really becomes problematic defensively or offensively (hopefully neither happens), then they will bring in Vizquel.
From Josh:
Q: Adam, how do the Rangers plan on splitting up the Salty and Teagarden playing time? To me, Salty seems to play better when he gets a lot of PT.
A: I think what we will see is Salty starting out and being given a solid chance to prove he is starting catcher worthy. This isn’t for the long term, however, as I believe the team thinks TT is the future. This is more for his trade value. He had a big offseason this year in winter ball and I’m sure the Rangers broadcasted those numbers to several clubs in an attempt to get some return for Salty and make way for Teagarden to take over full time with MaxRam backing him up, but so far no one has taken the bait. I think if Salty starts hot we see him traded at the all-star break to a team that needs a hitting catcher.
From Mike:
Q: So is there still a good chance that Ben Sheets ends up in a Rangers uniform?
A: Yes. I think with th
e injury to Hurley we see the Rangers go out and get him. I was a big proponent of not getting Sheets because he would take up a roster spot for the young guys, the main one being Hurley, but this isn’t the case anymore. With Hurley out, and Padilla and Millwood probably not coming back next year, we need to go out and get a solid #1 guy for our rotation. He isn’t expensive, and if he can stay halfway healthy he would be worth the investment. He’s got a good amount of Major League experience, and would be a good player for the young guys to work with. I think we see a Sheets signing in the next two weeks.
e injury to Hurley we see the Rangers go out and get him. I was a big proponent of not getting Sheets because he would take up a roster spot for the young guys, the main one being Hurley, but this isn’t the case anymore. With Hurley out, and Padilla and Millwood probably not coming back next year, we need to go out and get a solid #1 guy for our rotation. He isn’t expensive, and if he can stay halfway healthy he would be worth the investment. He’s got a good amount of Major League experience, and would be a good player for the young guys to work with. I think we see a Sheets signing in the next two weeks.
From Amy:
Q:Why are the Rangers so stuck on getting Bucholz from Boston? He was TERRIBLE last year. He has struggled mightly since his no hitter. If I remember correctly pitchers usually get better when they leave Arlington, not when they get here.
A: Clay Bucholz has great stuff. He is young, he is major league ready. They think he would make a good #2 on this team next year, and they think Mike Maddux will be able to harness his stuff. If Bucholz could get on track in a Rangers uniform, the combination of him, Holland, and Feliz and #1, #2, and #3 (or with Sheets, 2, 3, and 4) is pretty threatening. Those are 3 really promising young pitchers.
From Reagan:
Will Hurley be in the rotation to start or in AAA?
He will be making his debut in the training room this year.
Keep sending me in questions. I am going to do one of these a week. Probably Wednesday mornings. Send questions to abstellar@gmail.com
Weekly Mail Bag
I will be doing a mailbag once a week
(probably on Wednesday Mornings). If you will send me
questions you have about everything Rangers related (or
unrelated for that matter) I will answer 5-10 of them per
week. Just leave any questions you have in the comments
section of this post and I will get to
them.
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