Game Report: Canadiens 3, Stars 1

Observations and quotations from Sunday evening’s game at AAC. When the fingerprints of Mike Modano and Marty Turco are found at the scene of the crime, you know the autopsy isn’t going to be pleasant.

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The High-Flying Dutchman: Prospect Derek Holland Making Most of First Major League Spring Training

MESA, Ariz. – At the earliest opportunity, the Rangers very possibly will send prized pitching prospects Derek Holland Neftali Feliz to the minor league camp.

If they do get the early demotion, it won’t be for the usual reasons.

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Game Report: Rangers 7, Cubs 2

OF Marlon Byrd, struggling to find his swing after offseason knee surgery, snapped a 2-for-16 (.125) stretch with a two-out, eighth-inning single that broke a 2-2 tie Sunday afternoon in Mesa, Ariz. Byrd’s single followed a pair of walks by INF Omar Vizquel and OF Greg Golson. Golson hit a grand slam in the ninth to give the Rangers a little more cushion. The Rangers have won five of their last six.

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On Stars Seats, Suds, and Such

Just chatted with Stars president Jeff Cogen regarding details of season-ticket renewals that were recently sent out, which included price reductions in the lower bowl and credits for food and beverage purchases. According to the Sports Business Journal, the Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning are the only NHL teams that have committed to lowering at least some ticket prices for 2009-10.

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Sunday Notes: Rangers Unlikely to Toy With Elvis Andrus

The Rangers publicly committed to Elvis Andrus as their shortstop in January when general manager Jon Daniels asked reigning Gold Glove shortstop Michael Young to move to third base.

Then, two days after that drama died down, the Rangers signed 11-time Gold Glove-winning shortstop Omar Vizquel as a potential backup for Andrus.

That leads to this question: In the interest of cost control, might the club send Andrus to the minors to start the season, use Vizquel as the starting shortstop for a month or so and call up Andrus after he’s lost enough major league service time to not qualify for a full year of service? That could delay his eventual eligibility for salary arbitration and essentially push back his free agency by a year.

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Sean-A-Meter

With apologizes to the Wrigley Field fans and how they tracked beloved Cubs infielder Shawon Dunston, let’s drop in on former beloved Stars pest Sean Avery occasionally now that he’s back from NHL exile and found work again with the New York Rangers. Hey, if the Texas Rangers’ record with Travis Metcalf in the starting lineup is important …

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Farm Futures (3/8/09)

So I’ve decided that this is the daily feature I’m going to roll with for now. Old habits die hard. Under the assumption that some of you aren’t terribly familiar with the young men in the Rangers powerhouse farm system, I’ll pick out one or two minor leaguers who appeared in the previous day’s Rangers’ Cactus League game and give you the 411.

Today, we’ll take a hard look at center fielder Julio Borbon (pictured) who was one of the few minor leaguers to see action in yesterday’s crispy (2 hours, 3 minutes?) 2-1 Rangers win over the Pale Hose.

Borbon didn’t get a hit in his lone at-bat yesterday, but he did account for three outs in just three innings of action and once again wowed onlookers with his coverage of the outfield.

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Multi-Media Alert!

In the fifth inning today, I’ll be sitting in with Eric Nadel and Dave Barnett on the Rangers’ broadcast. You can find it at KRLD-AM 1080. This is a big development. Nadel usually only allows Presidents and Hall of Famers to interlope on his broadcast, though he is willing to have Larry King on tomorrow (that game will be on KRLD-FM 105.3). King is going to be in Surprise to watch the Rangers-Dodgers. There could be some definite Brooklyn Dodgers talk if that radio team takes to the air.