Post-Game Show: Rangers 6, A’s 4

D-tails
• Boxscore, standings

Three Up
• RHP Tommy Hunter made his fourth quality start in his last five outings, allowing three runs in seven innings. Hunter has pitched at least five innings in all eight of his starts this season.
• 3B Michael Young extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a game-tying homer in the third inning. He then had a run-scoring single in the the fifth to give the Rangers the lead for good.
• INF Esteban German, the third different leadoff man the Rangers tried during the series, scored the eventual go-ahead run and also scored the Rangers fifth run, too.

Three Down
• Rangers struck out nine more times and are on pace for 1,294 this season, which would set the franchise record.
• Not sure if it was lack of effort or worn-down knees, but DH Andruw Jones didn’t run hard to second on a run-scoring ball off the wall in the seventh and was thrown out at second.
• Though Los Angeles lost two out of three games at Chicago, the Rangers could not gain on the AL West leaders during their four-game series in Oakland.

The Depot: Rangers-A’s Live Game Blog, News, Notes And Fresh Fish Flown In Daily

1:27: The home run pool now includes an actual lineup.

1:39: Sturm and his intern, TC, are bored. And brilliant. And I think they want to rumble with me and the trusty Ryan Jones.

1:41: We’re going to roll all our notes into the blog today. Among the items to discuss: The pending callup of an outfielder, almost certainly to replace RHP Doug Mathis on the roster. Since this guy would be used mostly for pinch-hitting duties, the most likely choice might be switch-hitting Brandon Boggs. Manager Ron Washington really had no pinch hitting options to turn to in the ninth if the Rangers had started to mount a rally on Wednesday.  …  As of this moment, the plan is to trim the bullpen to seven pitchers, which is why Mathis would likely be the odd man out. But OF Nelson Cruz couldn’t get through playing catch on his sprained left ankle Thursday morning without pain. The Rangers would like to avoid placing Cruz on the DL, but if they get the feeling it’s going to take him another week to get back, they might reconsider that.

(more…)

My Intern Loves Stats As Much As I Do

Working at America’s Favorite Radio Station, we have the occasion to experience quite a few interns that come and go through our station on their ways to careers of their own. Well, under normal circumstances, I would never reprint one of their essays that they bounce off me. But, TC Fleming is not a normal intern (in my estimation). He is a young, promising sports dork. And as an older sports dork, I should know.

Anyway, he wrote an essay this week that I wanted to share with you. It is all about the strides the Rangers havemade this season in the defensive department. I am not going to lie to you, this might be a bit deeper than some would like to go – given the enormous amount of Bill James-type statistics he uses, but if you enjoy that sort of data analysis, then you very much might enjoy this.

TC the intern looks at why the Rangers are better in 2009. It is all about the gloves:

(more…)

Spending Your Lunch At The Home Run Pool

Come on down. Jump in with your business suit on. Nobody is going to mind.

We will get you the lineups ASAP, but wanted to get you the entry form before you headed out for that double martini lunch today. I mean, after watching the last three nights, you are going to need it, aren’t you?

UPDATED, 1:22 p.m.: Here’s your lineup against RHP Trevor Cahill as the Rangers try to avoid their first-ever four-game sweep in Oakland: 2B Esteban German, 3B Michael Young, LF David Murphy, DH Andruw Jones, RF Josh Hamilton, CF Marlon Byrd, 1B Hank Blalock, C Jarrod Saltalamacchia, SS Omar Vizquel andpitching for the Rangers … RHP Tommy Hunter.

Go.

Eli Manning’s New Deal

I cant believe the news today
Oh, I cant close my eyes and make it go away

- Bono, Sunday Bloody Sunday

Certainly by now, you have joined me in not believing the news today that Eli Manning is indeed a richer man than he already was as the New York Times reports:

The Giants are poised to make quarterback Eli Manning the highest-paid player in the National Football League, agreeing to a six-year contract extension worth $97.5 million, $35 million of it guaranteed, according to a person involved in the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement had been made.

Eli Manning, at training camp in Albany on Monday, will reportedly become the highest-paid player in the N.F.L. The person said Wednesday that the final details should be finished later in the day and that the contract would soon be signed.

(more…)

Cowboys ’08: Week 11 – At Washington

Week #11 of the 2008 season – and Game #10 for the Dallas Cowboys is featured this morning on Part 10 of our 16-day series review of the Cowboys season from last year.

These last few days, you have reviewed many painful moments from 2008, but not today.  This was the week following the bye week, where the Cowboys enjoyed Tony Romo back in the huddle, and there was renewed optimism that the Boys might be able to salvage their season and their spot in the playoffs after they scored their 14-10 win in Washington on a Sunday Night.

Here, from November 16, 2008, here are my post-game notes and observations from a big win in Washington:

(more…)

Road To Arlington: Rangers Farm Report (8/6)

A big night for 2009 second rounder Tommy Mendonca.

(more…)

Post-Game Show: A’s 7, Rangers 5

D-tails
• Boxscore, standings

Three Up
• OF David Murphy had a pair of homers and drove in three RBIs. It was the second multi-homer game of his career. He had one in June last year against Kansas City.
• 3B Michael Young extended his hitting streak to 12 games and reached base twice. Young is hitting .465 during the hitting streak, which is the longest streak of the year by a Ranger.
• RHP Darren O’Day pitched a perfect inning and extended his streak of consecutive batters retired to 18.

Three Down
• RHP Vicente Padilla slipped back to his old habit of trying to send messages after getting hit. He plunked Kurt Suzuki after a first-inning homer by Scott Hairston. Padilla also couldn’t provide a scoreless inning after the Rangers rallied back to take the lead.
• RHP Neftali Feliz met his first touch of trouble, allowing a homer on a straight 97 mph fastball to Adam Kennedy, the same hitter he struck out to start his major league debut.
• The Rangers lost an opportunity to gain on AL West-leading Los Angeles and Wild Card-leading Boston for a second straight night. Tampa Bay’s win over Boston put the Rays in a virtual tie with Texas for second in the Wild Card standings.