Game Thread: April 1,2,3 Rangers Take on Houston's Hinchmen

[DT LUNA]

Good game and good discussion tonight. May be a good season too.

 

[romeo212000]

What the hell is going on?

 

[Nightcrawler]

I would just extend him now on the cheap, rather than get a couple lower level P prospects or whatever they would take. I think to trade him and try to re-sign him would cost too much $

I agree......especially with our rumored plan of signing arenado blowing up in our faces. We don’t have anything close in the minors who can come up and play the position at a major league level in my opinion.

I’d give cabrera a 3 year deal and be done with it. He seems to be a good fit for the team. It would also give the minors more time to develop someone and give the front office more time to find our 3rd baseman of the future some other way.

 

[Nightcrawler]

I hope the midget stays cold tomorrow and as long as possible too. We all know that little shit will probably hit over .300 again by the end of the year.

 

[Bmurph]

I hope the midget stays cold tomorrow and as long as possible too. We all know that little shit will probably hit over .300 again by the end of the year.

The garden gnome will get his hits and hit over .300, hopefully he just doesn't do it against the Rangers

 

[Bmurph]

Don't count this team out to mix it up. If these retread arms can do their job and this crap bullpen can step up, its likely they can make some noise and at least make it interesting

 

[Nightcrawler]

Don't count this team out to mix it up. If these retread arms can do their job and this crap bullpen can step up, its likely they can make some noise and at least make it interesting

Lineup has looked surprisingly good except for the peacock game.

 

[Kelleyman]

Only a few games into this season so far but this team on paper has no business winnng but they have found a way... Provo g true they are never out of it so far.

And as Ranger fans we dream what the young arms will bring us at the midseason break

 

[Nightcrawler]

Only a few games into this season so far but this team on paper has no business winnng but they have found a way... Provo g true they are never out of it so far.

And as Ranger fans we dream what the young arms will bring us at the midseason break

It’s an interesting dynamic for sure.

It seems like since we’ve been rebuilding, the guys we’ve either wanted to unload or have traded already ( Darvish, Hamels) were never really “in demand”. We haven’t been able to force teams to get into bidding wars for our players.

I’m starting to realize that what sucks about a rebuild is not only are you not winning or competitive, but the guys that we do take a chance on and they flourish here will probably be the guys other teams want.

I like what I’ve seen from Cabrera and pence so far. If their good play continues, I wouldn’t be jumping up and down to see them traded away this summer.

 

[fordman84]

I agree......especially with our rumored plan of signing arenado blowing up in our faces. We don’t have anything close in the minors who can come up and play the position at a major league level in my opinion.

I’d give cabrera a 3 year deal and be done with it. He seems to be a good fit for the team. It would also give the minors more time to develop someone and give the front office more time to find our 3rd baseman of the future some other way.

Agree on the AC extension now. Unless of course we want to spend $20M per year on a 30 year old Rendon, he's the best 3B on the market this next offseason I think.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

Agree on the AC extension now. Unless of course we want to spend $20M per year on a 30 year old Rendon, he's the best 3B on the market this next offseason I think.

AC has grown on me in a really short time. I like his overall make-up. I think it would be good to extend him at a reasonable price.

 

[saddles]

HIGH-A DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS (Kinston, NC)
Carolina League
Grainger Stadium (1949)
Park Factor: 0.97
Park-Adjusted Average Scoring: 4.1 runs per game
Home-Grown Players: 23

Rotation (maybe):
A.J. Alexy (#20 MLB, #22 BA, #23 Fangraphs)
Reid Anderson
Jason Bahr
Noah Bremer
Tyler Phillips (#14 MLB, #20 BA, #17 Fangraphs)
Tyler Thomas

Everybody rates Phillips slightly higher than Alexy, but if Alexy builds on his 2018 second-half trend of better control with no loss of strikeouts, their positions will reverse. Alexy’s stuff rates better, while Phillips has superior control.

Anderson isn’t too far behind, sporting a respectable fastball, hard curve, and a change that flashes okay. He's also a strong relief candidate. Trade acquisitions Bahr (for Austin Jackson’s contract) and Thomas (for Jesse Chavez) appeared briefly for Down East late last year.

Relievers:
Josh Advocate
Joe Barlow
Emmanuel Clase (#27 BA, #21 Fangraphs)
Alex Eubanks
Demarcus Evans (#24 MLB, #17 BA, #28 Fangraphs)
Peter Fairbanks
Kaleb Fontenot
Mike Matuella
Sal Mendez
Francisco Villegas

My favorite bullpen. From mid-May on, Demarcus Evans held opponents to a .139/.213/.209 line and fanned an absurd 51% of his opponents. Evans can deal upper 90s if he really reaches back, but mainly he delivers a 93-96 fastball with high spin than batters can’t line up. He also offers a mean curve.

Clase closed for Spokane last year and is skipping low-A. The 21-year-old doesn’t need to reach back to hit 98-99, and he can cut it, too. Texas acquired him from San Diego for catcher Brett Nicholas (who is now with the Rockies along with Chi Chi Gonzalez).

Unfortunately, Mike Matuella’s 2018 season rolled straight downhill after an impressive Spring Training. The stuff remains, but as a starter he couldn’t command it at all much of the time. Conversion to relief helped, but he spent the last two months on the shelf.

Peter Fairbanks is returning from Tommy John surgery and was dealing in the upper 90s in Surprise, well above what I’d seen before the injury.

In my 12 years on the job, Evans has the highest single-season strikeout rate of any Ranger. In second: Joe Barlow, who doesn’t throw as hard but adds a nice curve.

Catchers:
Clayton Middleton
Melvin Novoa
Yohel Pozo

Novoa hit his way from Hickory to Down East in a month flat, after which he struggled badly for the first time in his career. Pozo is here for eht first time after a decent season at Hickory. Both have shown strong contact ability, especially for catchers.

Infielders:
Diosbel Arias (#19 MLB, #29 BA)
Ryan Dorow
Yonny Hernandez
Tyreque Reed (#23 BA)
Anderson Tejeda (#4 MLB, #5 BA, #4 Fangraphs)

Tejeda improved his stock greatly last year and might have received an aggressive assignment to Frisco in April if not for taking up switch-hitting, which hopefully will boost his weak production against lefties.

Reed probably would have led the system in homers in 2018 if he hadn’t been held back a month. He’s the standout in a system that doesn’t show much corner power right now.

The Cuban Arias set a Spokane record (as a Texas affiliate) with a .451 OBP and batted .366. The lighter-hitting Yonny Hernandez can’t quite match Arias’s on-base prowess but is a threat for 60 walks and 40 stolen bases.

Dorow is older (23) but has enough positional flexibility that he’s not wholly dependent on his bat to advance.

Outfielders:
Eric Jenkins
Yanio Perez
Leody Taveras (#6 MLB, #3 BA, #2 Fangraphs)
Bubba Thompson (#5 MLB, #9 BA, #3 Fangraphs)

Texas escaped a CF time-share last year by keeping J.P. Martinez in Spokane, but this year it couldn’t be avoided, as Thompson earned a promotion from Hickory while Taveras needs more time. The latter is still the youngest on the team despite repeating the level. Either is suitable for right when not in the middle. To my mind, the #1 goal for the system is getting the AA/AAA rotation prospects to Arlington. #2 is getting Thompson, Taveras, Tejeda and J.P. Martinez to Frisco with their prospect statuses intact. I don’t mean they all need to reach AA this season, but I’m hoping at least three of the four will graduate to there by next April.

Youngest: Taveras (20 years / 8 months), Thompson (20 / 10), Hernandez (20 / 11), Tejeda (20 / 11), Alexy (20 / 11)

 

[saddles]

How much do you guys think it will take to sign Cabrera? He just completed a 3 year deal for $24.5 million deal. I would imagine it will take more than that both in AAV and in length since this will be his last big deal, most likely.

I would think, him being willing to sign here for a one year deal means he is biding his time for.a year to sign a big contract next offseason.

He may want 5 years and $60 million. He might settle for 4 for $45 million.

He has lots of versatility so he definitely isn't locked into 3B. I thought he was a great signing this offseason. I doubt he extends without checking out free agency unless we bowl him over, and we don't do that very often any more. He is definitely someone worth looking into this coming offseason.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

How much do you guys think it will take to sign Cabrera? He just completed a 3 year deal for $24.5 million deal. I would imagine it will take more than that both in AAV and in length since this will be his last big deal, most likely.

I would think, him being willing to sign here for a one year deal means he is biding his time for.a year to sign a big contract next offseason.

He may want 5 years and $60 million. He might settle for 4 for $45 million.

He has lots of versatility so he definitely isn't locked into 3B. I thought he was a great signing this offseason. I doubt he extends without checking out free agency unless we bowl him over, and we don't do that very often any more. He is definitely someone worth looking into this coming offseason.

He is 33 so I am not sure if I would go over 4 years. For me 3 would be ideal but not sure he would take that or not. If it comes out 10-11 mill a year I would be okay with that considering today's market. He really is not hindering any other young player at the moment in our youth movement.

 

[saddles]

He is 33 so I am not sure if I would go over 4 years. For me 3 would be ideal but not sure he would take that or not. If it comes out 10-11 mill a year I would be okay with that considering today's market. He really is not hindering any other young player at the moment in our youth movement.

Well, unless Woodward is right about Davidson. I am kind of skeptical myself, but Woodward seems to think Davidson is not far from being an elite hitter.

 

[saddles]

 

[Nightcrawler]

I like how much he seems to enjoy shoveling dirt on banny’s grave.

I mean we all get it. The guy wasn’t a great coach.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

Well, unless Woodward is right about Davidson. I am kind of skeptical myself, but Woodward seems to think Davidson is not far from being an elite hitter.

Not sure about Davidson either. He has some pop but his average in the 2 full years he played is in the 220's. I am not trying to jump on Woodward but Woodward also gave praise to Eli White. And while Davidson is less expensive sometimes it is worth having a little upgrade in a rather non competitive position in regards to the Rangers as we continue to work with the young guys.

 

[Nightcrawler]

Not sure about Davidson either. He has some pop but his average in the 2 full years he played is in the 220's. I am not trying to jump on Woodward but Woodward also gave praise to Eli White. And while Davidson is less expensive sometimes it is worth having a little upgrade in a rather non competitive position in regards to the Rangers as we continue to work with the young guys.

If Davidson was the goods, he’d be up here. It’s not about what he’s done, what he could do today, it’s about what he can do several years from now.

 

[saddles]

If Davidson was the goods, he’d be up here. It’s not about what he’s done, what he could do today, it’s about what he can do several years from now.

From what I read he just needs some consistent AB with his new swing. One writer compared his situation to Nelson Cruz's the year he spent about 4 months tearing it up in AAA after he made an adjustment. If that is the case and Woodward is right Davidson could be ready sometime late this year.

We should see soon enough. By the end of June we should see if the extraordinary and rare praise that Woodward heaped on him has any merit.