Series Thread: 4 game series in Baltimore for Hamilton and the Rangers

[DT LUNA]

Jones doing the Beltre two step

 

[saddles]

Harrison has allowed 7 baserunners and 3 runs in 3 innings with 3 strikeouts. 57 pitches with 35 of them being strikes. Not a good outing at all so far.

 

[Nightcrawler]

Meanwhile..... The royals are ahead of the Astros 3-0 in the top of the 4th. Hope they hold on, the Rangers deserve a break.

 

[romeo212000]

Harrison has allowed 7 baserunners and 3 runs in 3 innings with 3 strikeouts. 57 pitches with 35 of them being strikes. Not a good outing at all so far.

Meaning his stuff isn't fooling anybody. I really hope they don't bring him into the rotation.

 

[DT LUNA]

Ya'll can wake up now

 

[WastinSomeTime]

Meaning his stuff isn't fooling anybody. I really hope they don't bring him into the rotation.

Agree.It would not be a pretty sight.

 

[Nightcrawler]

Royals.. The team with the best record in the AL on the verge of getting swept in Houston. Fuck!

 

[saddles]

Harrison finished up with giving up 3 runs in 6 innings. 7 hits, 4 walks, and 6 strikeouts. 103 pitches and 62 of them were strikes. No word on his velocity.

 

[darrylgann]

Harrison finished up with giving up 3 runs in 6 innings. 7 hits, 4 walks, and 6 strikeouts. 103 pitches and 62 of them were strikes. No word on his velocity.

Next couple of days should be interesting for he and the Rangers. Decisions have to be made.

 

[Windingmywatch]

Next couple of days should be interesting for he and the Rangers. Decisions have to be made.

I think TEX made their decision weeks ago when JD began promoting the 6-man rotation concept. Or what we see with Matt on the same schedule as Nick ... that Matt makes the start and Nick is set up to be a co-starter to step in perhaps after one time through the batting order.

TEX has too much invested in Matt to have to face the conflict of not activating him when he's medically cleared and completed his rehab assignment.

 

[saddles]

Next couple of days should be interesting for he and the Rangers. Decisions have to be made.

I think he will agree to stay at Round Rock for a few more starts.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

I think TEX made their decision weeks ago when JD began promoting the 6-man rotation concept. Or what we see with Matt on the same schedule as Nick ... that Matt makes the start and Nick is set up to be a co-starter to step in perhaps after one time through the batting order.

TEX has too much invested in Matt to have to face the conflict of not activating him when he's medically cleared and completed his rehab assignment.

I see what you are saying and I know many teams do this but I really hope we do not become more concerned about how much we have invested in a player compared to what is best for the team. Just seems Harrison has a few things to still work on including command and velocity.

I am also not sure about the 6 man rotation. This could cause problems for some of our current starters who have always been acclimated to pitching every 5th day.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

Grant: Another struggle against left-hander shows what Rangers are missing | Dallas Morning News

Think we can all agree we miss DeShields. This article explains the struggles against left handers w/o him.

It was the 11th time the Rangers have faced a left-handed starter since losing DeShields; they have scored two or fewer runs against the starter in nine of those. Lefty starters have a 2.45 ERA since their DeShields went down.

 

[donaldson79]

This from SI's Chris Corcoran:

Texas Rangers
Status: Third place in AL West, five games out; 1 1/2 games out of wild-card spot
Biggest Need: Relief pitching

Yes, the Rangers should be buyers. They’re in the thick of the wild-card race and have so many talented bats that they’re struggling to find playing time for them all. They also, despite the loss of Yu Darvish, have a surprisingly stable rotation that could add Matt Harrison, Martin Perez and/or Derek Holland in the coming month. Their biggest weakness, then, is their relief pitching. Indeed, Texas has posted the third-worst bullpen ERA in the majors this year (4.33). Shawn Tolleson is doing fine work as the closer, but rookie Keone Kela is being worked to death due to first-year manager Jeff Banister’s dearth of viable alternatives.

The Rangers don’t just need a lefty or a second set-up man. They need to rebuild their bullpen on the fly, much like the Angels did last season when they addedHuston Street, Jason Grilli, Joe Thatcher and Vinnie Pestano. If they do that, they should remain in the wild-card mix right down to the wire.

 

[PhantomWarrior]

Grant: Another struggle against left-hander shows what Rangers are missing | Dallas Morning News

Think we can all agree we miss DeShields. This article explains the struggles against left handers w/o him.

It was the 11th time the Rangers have faced a left-handed starter since losing DeShields; they have scored two or fewer runs against the starter in nine of those. Lefty starters have a 2.45 ERA since their DeShields went down.

Who in our farm system is a corner OF RH bat?

 

[romeo212000]

Who in our farm system is a corner OF RH bat?

Nobody that would even remotely ready to be called up. Rua is your best bet, but he's not taking Hamilton or Choo's spot. That's what makes DDJ so valuable. He's a RH bat who can play CF.

 

[PDay8810]

TEX has too much invested in Matt to have to face the conflict of not activating him when he's medically cleared and completed his rehab assignment.

I'm not sure it's the investment as much as the respect to Harrison for attempting this comeback after TWO surgeries. The money's gone and that's the business side of baseball, but people within the organization are blown away by Matt's commitment to return. Most don't, they take that money and start life after baseball. I think the rangers will give Matt his shot when he feels he's ready. I would hope common sense prevails and that time is dictated by the velocity of his fastball.

I really think this team owes it to Matt...least in their eyes. The investment part is kinda secondary

 

[Bmurph]

Rangers To Sign Leodys Taveras
By Jeff Todd [July 2, 2015 at 8:48am CDT]
The Rangers have reached a deal with highly-regarded Dominican outfielder Leodys Taveras, Ben Badler of Baseball America reports. He is the cousin of former big leaguer Willy Taveras.

BA had the highest grade on Taveras among international prospect evaluators, ranking him third overall on the basis of his strong overall skillset. Indeed, Badler writes that the youngster could ultimately possess five average or better tools when all is said and done. He is a switch hitter with a nice stroke and good strength given his frame. While he’ll need to work to improve his instincts to stick in center, says Badler, he has the speed and arm strength to develop into a good defender.

Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs largely concurred with that assessment, placing Taveras seventh on his board. MLB.com took a somewhat dimmer view, rating him 18th, due to the fact that Taveras could use some polishing at the plate.

Taveras will earn a $2.1MM bonus, Badler tweets. That is a good deal less than the $3MM expected for Taveras, according to Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs, and could leave some additional space for the Rangers, who have just over $4.5MM in total pool allocation.

SHARERETWEETSEND VIA EMAIL

 

[jta4437]

Rangers To Sign Leodys Taveras
By Jeff Todd [July 2, 2015 at 8:48am CDT]
The Rangers have reached a deal with highly-regarded Dominican outfielder Leodys Taveras, Ben Badler of Baseball America reports. He is the cousin of former big leaguer Willy Taveras.

BA had the highest grade on Taveras among international prospect evaluators, ranking him third overall on the basis of his strong overall skillset. Indeed, Badler writes that the youngster could ultimately possess five average or better tools when all is said and done. He is a switch hitter with a nice stroke and good strength given his frame. While he’ll need to work to improve his instincts to stick in center, says Badler, he has the speed and arm strength to develop into a good defender.

Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs largely concurred with that assessment, placing Taveras seventh on his board. MLB.com took a somewhat dimmer view, rating him 18th, due to the fact that Taveras could use some polishing at the plate.

Taveras will earn a $2.1MM bonus, Badler tweets. That is a good deal less than the $3MM expected for Taveras, according to Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs, and could leave some additional space for the Rangers, who have just over $4.5MM in total pool allocation.

SHARERETWEETSEND VIA EMAIL

Would've been nice of them to mention his age, but he's 16 in case anyone was wondering

Also signed Miguel Aparicio

Texas also allegedly has a deal with Dominican RF Jonathan Sierra for $1.2 million, a loose, projectable and prototypical 6’3, 205-pounder that flashes solid average arm strength and above average raw power potential from the left side. I’m also told the Rangers have a deal with 5’10, 150-middle infielder Dominican middle infielder Cristian Inoa, an average runner with instincts and some feel to hit, for $340,000.”

 

[saddles]

Who in our farm system is a corner OF RH bat?

By sometime next year Ryan Cordell could be knocking on the door, but more likely very late next year or 2017.