Sammy Sosa may have hit his first home run in a year and a half last Saturday night, but so far the hot bat he had in spring training looks like it was left in Arizona.
On a night when the Texas Rangers offense finally came to life with 15 hits in an 8-4 victory over the Devil Rays, Sosa went 0-for-5 and left five men on base. So far on this young season his average is sitting at .167 with six strikeouts in 24 at bats.
I don't doubt that Sosa is going to get the eleven more home runs he needs to reach 600 in his career, but I'm not sure what else he's going to be able to offer the Rangers.
From what I've seen of Slammin' Sammy so far, he looks a lot like the Sosa we saw in his last seasons with the Cubs, and his year spent in Baltimore. Every once in a while he's going to connect for the long ball, but other than that he's going to have a lot more swings and misses and double plays.
Whether it's the fact that he's 39-years old now, or that he's no longer juiced up, his bat speed has dwindled considerably. Sosa can't get around on an inside fastball right now to save his life. If a pitcher makes a mistake, he'll hit it, but he can't get the job done on his own anymore.
Regardless, he'll probably finish out the season with Texas, reach his 600 home runs, and be let go after the season. He'll then retire and hope that all those home runs will be enough to help him avoid the Mark McGwire treatment and get him into the Hall of Fame. It's the only reason he's playing this season anyway.
If he does get into the Hall of Fame, it's a good thing he's suddenly remembered how to speak English, or else it would be an odd speech at his induction ceremony.
Upon examining the photos above, there's no question that there's a white coloring on Franky's hat. Whether or not the coloring is from a substance that K-Rod is using to doctor the ball is debatable, but from those pictures, there's no question that there's something there.
In support of Francisco, as anyone who's watched Major League could tell you, Eddie Harris used "Crisco, Vagasil, to gain an extra two-three inch drop" on his curveball. The point is that in Zumsteg's investigation, the pitch velocity does not vary between times Franky reaches for the hat, and times he does not. If Franky were really doctoring the ball, you would expect to see a drop in velocity the instances he reaches for his cap, because he is presumably using it to get an extra drop and slickness to his slider. Applying this logic would debunk the suggestion that Franky is cheating and doctoring the ball. That would then beg the question, what the heck is that white stuff on his hat? UPDATE:Francisco Rodriguez Says "It's Rosin"
It's safe to say that a lot of teams struggle with Vladimir Guerrero, but the Rangers probably lose a lot of sleep at night thinking about The Impaler. Guerrero had an off night on Monday, going only 1-for-3 with an RBI and a walk, but he made up for it Tuesday night.
Guerrero went 4-for-4 with a home run, 3 RBI, and an intentional walk as the Angels beat the Rangers 8-3 for their second straight against the Rangers to start the season. Tuesday night's performance improved Vlad's career number against the Rangers to .442 with 21 homers, 49 RBI, and 49 runs in 56 games. So if Guerrero played a full 162 games against Texas, he'd finish the season with 61 home runs, and 142 RBI and runs.
Decent, I guess.
There were also some extracurricular affairs going on in this game. Vladdy was the recipient of three fastballs very high and tight from Vicente Padilla. It's not exactly the first time that the Rangers, and Padilla in particular, have treated Guerrero in such a fashion as the teams had a bench clearing brawl last season.
It's pretty obvious that the Rangers' tactics against Guerrero are ineffective, and maybe it's time they tried something new. Like say, killing him in his sleep? Hitting him over the head with a baseball bat during batting practice? They have to do something, because they still have to face Vlad and the Angels 17 more times this season, including Wednesday afternoon in the series finale.
"He's cheating," the baseball whisperers say, "on the fastball."
This, in scoutspeak, means that Sosa has been so slow with the bat this spring that he has to start swinging early to catch up with a good fastball. He's guessing what's coming, in effect. The bad part of cheating is that he's then vulnerable to breaking balls, other off-speed pitches (he ends up swinging too soon) or stuff low and away (he can't reach it because he's committed to getting in front of the pitch).
See? Not as bad as you thought.
Still, this is probably not a good sign for Sosa's long-term prospects this season. If he's even more vulnerable to curveballs and change-ups than he was in his vintage days, it probably won't take too long for capable pitchers to pick up on that. If they can get Sosa into the third or fourth pitch of the count, and fool him with off-speed stuff, well, Sammy's heroic "return" will be short lived.
Then again, it's likely Sosa will pick up his bat speed and make the adjustments necessary to hit at a high rate again. And Orioles fans will all collectively punch themselves in the head.
to the fans of Southern California and the City of Los Angeles, It was a privilege and an honor...Thank you for your support,
Eric Gagne
Hey Gagne, try this on for size -- too little too late. Read my words loud and clear: YOU ARE A HYPOCRITE AND A THIEF. You're thanking the same fans who helped pay your $18 million salary the past two seasons while you sat on your happy rump, recovering from multiple injuries, all-the-while contributing a highly valuable 15.1 INNINGS to the team.
And how did you repay those fans and the organization that paid you and supported you through those two years of injury? By jumping ship to the Texas Rangers over two million more guaranteed dollars. Listen Gagne, you already had a chance to thank the fans of Southern California and Los Angeles -- you could have signed a reasonable contract that the Dodgers offered you. Instead, you had no remorse and misgivings about STEALING $18 million from the organization over two seasons, and you selfishly signed a slightly larger one-year deal.
What's next Scott Boras, a commercial on FSN Prime Ticket by J.D. Drew?
Thanks to Orel Hershiser for taking time out of his day to post the picture and story on the fantastic site, Sons of Steve Garvey. Thank goodness he still reads a physical newspaper, I couldn't even tell you the last time I had ink smudges on my fingers.
While Eric Gagne being on the disabled list isn't exactly anything new to those who've followed his career, there is something a bit different about it this time around.
The Rangers said Gagne hasn't had any health setbacks. The 2003 NL Cy Young Award winner has pitched only 15 1-3 innings over the past two seasons.
"I feel pretty good, but I think this is going to help the team," Gagne said after throwing 15 pitches in a minor league game Thursday. "We are here to have a successful season and make the playoffs."
Gagne will be pitching with with the Rangers minor league clubs until he's allowed to return to the ballclub on April 13th to start a series against the Mariners. Akinori Otsuka, who had 32 saves for Texas last season, will fill in for Gagne while he's gone.
The once untouchable Gagne has been all too touchable since he first had to have elbow surgery in June '05, and had a 15.00 ERA this spring, including the home run hit on the very first pitch he threw. No matter, the Rangers remain optimistic because this is the first time he's actually been healthy in a while, and the team feels that with the extra time to get his arm ready pitching in the minors, Gagne will be able to pitch like the Gagne of old.
Congratulations Jamey, now that you've been selected to be the Rangers fifth starter, you've earned the right to pitch three times in April! Until then you're going to get a chance to pitch twice more in an exhibition against San Francisco, and then a trip down memory lane as you pitch for the Rangers minor league affiliate, the Roughriders.
You lucky devil.
The odd thing about this entire decision, as I mentioned previously, is that the best pitcher the Rangers had this spring "lost." Kameron Loe blew batters away all spring with a 0.92 ERA, and will be used in long relief and possibly as a setup man out of the bullpen.
"Kameron Loe deserves to be on this team," [Manager Ron] Washington said. "He out-pitched everyone on this team. This is in no way a negative reflection on him. One through 12, this sets up the best. Kameron's going to be in a position to help us win a lot of games."
Washington is correct, Loe will be in a position to help the Rangers win a lot of games, and it will probably come sooner than expected. He's the first in line to take over a spot in the rotation should any current Rangers starter falter, and the way Brandon McCarthy, Robinson Tejeda, and Wright pitched this spring I'm going to go ahead and say Loe won't be in the pen too long.
The Rangers are yet to announce who their fifth starter is going to be. The only thing that we know so far is that it's either going to be Kameron Loe (pictured) or Jamey Wright.
If you were to look at the two pitchers numbers so far this spring, the decision would seem obvious. Both Loe and Wright lead the Rangers in innings pitched this spring, but there's about a 5-run difference in their ERA's. Loe has had the best spring of any Rangers hurler with a lovely little 0.92 ERA, while Wright checks in at 5.82.
Loe has earned the spot in the rotation, and he's let it be known he wants it.
"I'll talk about that if it ends up happening, but I'm obviously still hoping to be in the rotation. I think I've done everything I could do. It's out of my hands. This is going to be a big season for me, but the decision is out of my hands."
So what's the hold up? Well, it gets a little complicated for two reasons. One is that if the Rangers don't offer Wright a spot on the roster by Wednesday or offer him his release. The second part of the equation is that the Rangers only plan on using a 5th starter about three times in the month of April.
That means whichever pitcher gets the role of long relief is bound to pitch more innings than the starter. So even if Kameron Loe is sent to the pen, the Rangers would really be saying that they need him more than Wright. It's an odd situation for Loe, but it's probably going to have to be one he learns to live with.
Both the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News would have you believe it. Each paper wrote articles Sunday suggesting that the Giants would pursue Alex Rodriguez after the season should the potential free agent exercise his opt-out clause. Tim Kawakami in the Mercury Newswrites
[Giants executive vice president Larry] Baer didn't in any way shove me from the possibility that the Giants would be a top suitor for a player like A-Rod, who is expected to exercise an opt-out clause and become a free agent after this season. ... That's more than a subliminal message. There's also this: The Giants reportedly inquired about trading for A-Rod last winter and were rebuffed.
In addition, the Giants should have plenty of money available to spend on free agents after the year. The Barry Bonds, Armando Benitez, Pedro Feliz, Omar Vizquel, and Mike Matheny contracts are all due to come off the books, freeing up around $35 million. A-Rod is owed $81 million over the next three years, but the Rangers are picking up about $30 million of that total. It's also worth noting that Yankees GM Brian Cashman has said the Yanks are not interested in talking about a contract extension for A-Rod. With Vizquel's contract expiring, the Giants could conceivably consider moving A-Rod back to shortstop.
Eric Gagne pitched in his first "A" game for the Texas Rangers on Tuesday, and after shaking off the cobwebs he performed well.
Gagne entered the game in the fifth inning and was greeted by a Kevin Frandsen home run as Gagne hung a curveball. He then retired the next three Giants hitters in order to end the inning.
Gagne signed a 1-year $6 million deal with the Rangers after pitching only 15 1/3 innings last season for the Dodgers, and missing a lot of time in 2005 due to elbow and back injuries.
"Everything was good today -- the fastball had life on it. I had good control. Even the curveball and changeup were good," Gagne said. "I'm just trying to see where I am with my body. There is scar tissue in there."
It was also the first time that Gagne has thrown on back to back days this spring, and the fact he hasn't felt any discomfort because of it is a good sign for both Eric and the Rangers. Whether or not Gagne can stay healthy for a full season with Texas is still up for debate, but if he can and he finds the form he had in Los Angeles, it could go a long way in deciding whether or not the Rangers can win the AL West.
Sammy Sosa may have hit his first home run in a year and a half last Saturday night, but so far the hot bat he had in spring training looks like it was left in Arizona.
It's safe to say that a lot of teams struggle with Vladimir Guerrero, but the Rangers probably lose a lot of sleep at night thinking about The Impaler. Guerrero had an off night on Monday, going only 1-for-3 with an RBI and a walk, but he made up for it Tuesday night.
I know, I know: hear the words "Sammy" and "Sosa" and "cheating" in the same sentence, and visions of HGH and andro and steroids and cork and God knows what else are conjured up in your head. I don't blame you ... but 
Check out the picture at right from a 
While Eric Gagne being on the disabled list isn't exactly anything new to those who've followed his career, there is something a bit different about it 
And the winner of the Texas Rangers #5 Raffle is........
The Rangers are yet to announce who their fifth starter is going to be. The only thing that we know so far is that it's either going to be Kameron Loe (pictured) or Jamey Wright.
Both the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News would have you believe it. Each paper wrote articles Sunday suggesting that the Giants would pursue Alex Rodriguez after the season should the potential free agent exercise his opt-out clause. Tim Kawakami in the Mercury News 
