robhea67
New Member
mike young has been very good at first this year. cj will stay in tx. pay him the money have we ever had a pitcher back to back 16 win seasons in the tx heat. cj is an athlete it takes that kind of conditioning to pitch here?
so replace a starter with 16 wins and only 2 years as a starter with a kid who hasn't faced ML hitters. Do you expect him to cover CJ's 16 wins? and he becomes the # 5 pitcher on the roster so who takes over as the #1? Ogando who ran out of gas 2/3rds of the way thru the season, Holland, who can throw a gem like last night and then give up 5 runs in the 1st inning the next, Harrison, who is barely more capable than Ogando or the homerun king, Colby Lewis.
the Rangers have to commit totally to resigning CJ or go after a top flight free agent starter to fill his spot. and then if you are set on bringing up 1 of the kids then the most logical pitcher to let walk is Colby.
Hamilton actually delivered the game-winning hit last night. Nap gets all the glory, but Josh came through with the biggest hit. He scorched 2 balls last night (the double and line out to CF). I think he's figuring out how to produce despite the injury. He's had some big hits this postseason, despite the injury. We might not be here without the 2-run single in game 4 of the ALDS. The beauty of the Rangers team is that they're deep and talented, which means one single guy won't make the difference every time (doesn't have to), but we rely on multiple guys - each to step up when others are unable. The dynamic of the line-up would be totally different without Josh Hamilton and even Michael Young (for all his postseason troubles). Injuries are a part of the game. If we don't sign Hamilton because of injuries, we should let Cruz go too (that would stupid). You don't let premium talent go, especially when premium talent meshes well with the rest of the team chemistry-wise.
I think we have to keep this whole team intact moving forward at least for 2 more years. Guys that will be replaceable in about 2 years would be Andrus (only because of Profar), MY (because there should be cheaper DH options), Torrealba (should be able to behind another solid back-up C), and CF since it's reserved for Martin. I love Murph, but he's probably gone for a much deserved starting spot somewhere else at some point.
I said ... "I'd try to resign CJ ... but if TEX doesn't it isn't like there aren't SP prospects in the pipeline to replace him."
I guess you could take from what I wrote that a prospect would move up to the #1 spot ... but that's not what I meant. In reality getting as many wins from the same 5-man rotation in 2012 would be a miracle so it wouldn't be just CJ's 16 that might have to be covered.
My first option to replace CJ as a SP if he doesn't return is Feldman before we get to the prospects. TEX will work to resign CJ ... but given his post season performance to date ... he looks more like the "closer" or "setup man" CJ lately than he does the SP CJ needs to be.
So before we apply all your labels to the other 4 guys in the rotation ... TEX needs to figure out whether CJ is able to win the big ones himself ... and what label he is most representative of.
Sabathia isn't leaving NYY ... nobody else can afford him. Doesn't mean that they don't go after CJ too ... but doubt CJ wants to be #2 in NYY or #3 in LAA either ... when he was #1 with the AL Champion Texas Rangers.
why shouldn't we expect the same number or more? CJ, Holland, Alexi and Harrison are all capable of improving their records next year and depending on if we keep Colby or sign a free agent to replace him we could see improvement there too. we won 96 games and there is no reason why we shouldn't expect or achieve 96+ wins next year
I think it's a no-brainer that we pick up Colby's option after he's had another strong post season. This is assuming he'll be healthy after the offseason. And no doubt about it Ogando/Holland/Harrison should be better next season. I mentioned this already but I expect Holland to be the #1 next season (at some point), unless we sign CC (that would be awesome!). If CJ leaves, I'd be okay if we can sign a guy like Buehrle from CWS.
Really Scotty?
If TEX can't resign CJ ... how in the world would they even enter the conversation to sign CC? And then Buehrle or Oswalt? Wow ... now there are a couple of steps back down.
You think a 35-yo Oswalt has 10 wins in him next year ... let alone 16? You looking for a #5 via FA?
If 9 wins in a #5 spot is all you are looking for as one of the three arms to replace CJ ... then I'd rather use the spot for a Neil Ramirez or Martin Perez or Michael Kirkman or even Mark Hamburger to go after.
TEX doesn't need to waste time any more on guys like Rich Harden ... or Roy Oswalt.
I think we should go after Shields more than CC, CJ, or Yu.
how much are you willing to give up? Tampa will want at least 2 of our young minor league starters like Hamburger and something more.
If we don't get CJ, I like the idea of going after Shields. Hell, I like the idea of going after him even if we do. But the point is we need to resign the same quality pitcher as CJ, whether that be CJ himself or not.
Here's the thing. Everyone is bitching about CJ's postseason record, and rightfully so. I think we have a right to expect more of him. But, now a bunch of idiots are making knee-jerk reactions and saying let him walk. Here's the problem, you have to have someone who can step in and replace his regular season production. CJ has a very high likelyhood of replicating his production, and I expect improvement as this is only his second year as a starter.
I think Holland will be fine next year, as will Harrison. Ogando and Lewis are question marks. Ogando was unstoppable when no one knew anything about him. Then they caught on. If he learns to really pitch and develop at least one if not two secondary pitches he should be nails next season. However, no one really knows how next season will go for him. Lewis is nearing the end of his career. Will he be serviceable? I think so, but we could easily see him start trending downward. People want to compare CJ's "ace" status to Halladay, Verlander, Lee etc. His numbers we ver respectable in comparison, but for Christ's sake people. You are talking about a 2nd year starter with super low mileage on his arm in his early 30's. I really have a feeling if we let him walk we will be sorry. Should we pay him 22-25 mil a year on a 5-7 year deal? No, but I think the club would be smart to give him 15-19 mil a year with some extra incentives and options. Otherwise, you have to go after CC, Shields, or Buehrle and risk getting into a bidding war over someone who has not proven they can pitch at RBIA like CJ can.
I thought he could opt out of his contract? I dunno, I'm not the contract guru that some of yall are.
I totally Agree. CJ has had a bad post season. But He has Two Good Seasons in a row as a starter. He would be very difficult to replace. CJ pitches 220 Innings and had a 2.94 ERA with a 16-7 Record. The real problem is that Wilson is a good pitcher. Just not a Ace. You like CJ in your Rotation but maybe as a Number 3 Starter. CJ was in a role He just isn't meant for. What I hear is that the Rangers aren't going to go past 75 Million on a 5 year Contract. Weaver got 85 Million 5 Year Deal from the Angels. Don't feel CJ is a Ace like Weaver is. Rangers will make a competetive offer to CJ but if the Yankees come around and give CJ 20 Million Plus, forget it. If Wilson walks the Rangers will need to be in the market for a good starting pitcher.