2024 Texas Rangers

FWHORN said:
Driving my daughter to volleyball practice I got to listen to the tenth inning and run the full gambit of emotions as the Rangers give up two two-out runs in the top of the inning and then quickly have two outs in the bottom of the tenth to leave me despondent about the blown lead and another likely series loss. But then a single by Adolis, a hard-earned walk by Wyatt followed by the walk-off home run by Josh all come back to back to back, and dang it if the Rangers didn't just win a freaking series against somebody other than the White Sox!

Yankees are in town for three starting tomorrow with Leiter getting his fifth start as a Ranger.
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Didn't Leiter start a game in Yankee Stadium only to be pulled in the bottom of the 2nd?
 
ViperHorn said:
Didn't Leiter start a game in Yankee Stadium only to be pulled in the bottom of the 2nd?
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He has started at Detroit, Oakland, and CWS. You are thinking of the home start against Cleveland where he got knocked out in the second inning. That said I think he is in for a rough night against that Yankee lineup but frankly I want the Rangers to run him out there and really see what he can do. He has undeniably had a fantastic year at Round Rock and needs to get his feet more than just damp this September at the major league level. Run him out for 5-6 starts and let him sink or swim. I am really excited too about Kumar Rocker and if what he has done translates up then next spring might be Rocker watch to make the big club much like this past one was Wyatt watch.
 
Agree, FWHORN. It's time for Leiter to take the test - can he become a reliable pitcher in the Show? Now is the right time for the test. If he stands up well, we have a slot penciled in for 2025.
 
Leiter made it through the Yankee lineup twice going five innings and giving up just two runs but the third time through was his downfall as he couldn't get an out in the sixth and ended up departing with five runs tallied against him, a deficit the Rangers couldn't overcome. It was his longest major league start and he had no walks which was his Achilles heel in other starts. Sucks to lose but this is what we want to see from Leiter longer starts, little to no free base runners, and solid pitching. Yes, he lost but he ticked all three boxes last night against a stout Yankee lineup.
 
FWHORN said:
this is what we want to see from Leiter longer starts, little to no free base runners, and solid pitching. Yes, he lost but he ticked all three boxes last night against a stout Yankee lineup.
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I like your summary, FWHORN. The Yankees can hit - among the best in MLB. And Leiter did pretty well under the circumstances. Let's see how he does in his next start.
 
For a young pitcher, the second regular start is usually the bottom. How they come back after that start will define their season and start a trend for their future.

If Leiter can consistently give the Rangers 5 good innings at this point in his career, he will have made a step up.

(PS One of his issues might be daddy in one ear and the team in the other.)
 
Rangers walk it off for the third time in four games as Wyatt Langford hits a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth and the Rangers beat the Yankees 7-4. I had all but given up when the Rangers stranded two runners in scoring position in the 8th but showing fight this week we haven't seen much of all year the Rangers hung in there and got it done again on a walk off. Heaney had five scoreless in yet another no-decision and continues to be the most hard-luck 4-13 pitcher in the game. Eovaldi is on the mound today for the rubber match as the Rangers have a chance to win a third straight series.

In other news, the Rangers are shutting down Gray and Mahle for the year. It is not surprising news as Gray has had lingering issues for a while and Mahle is still coming back from Tommy John and has had some minor setbacks that Texas doesn't want to take any chances on this late in the year. So they shut both down and make sure they can be ready from day one of the spring next year.

That leaves Eovaldi, Heaney, and Bradford and two open slots at starter for the last 23 games. Leiter will take one and perhaps it's a bullpen game every fifth day and/or deGrom for a few starts, maybe even as soon as this weekend as there is some talk he might skip his fourth rehab start in Frisco and just do a 2-3 inning start for the Rangers. There is also chatter Scherzer might be back for a few games too and why the heck not he may be injury prone but the guy is a fighter and he brought that certain something to the clubhouse last postseason that we all will be forever grateful for. Rangers wouldn't mind selling some extra tickets for fans to see those two Hall of Famers a couple of times down the stretch.
 
Homestand is off to a good start. Beating the Yankees 2 of 3 would be terrific. In an earlier post I asked for a 7-3 homestand. A W today against NY would give them a 4-2 record so far on the homestand - and 3 of 4 against the struggling Angels seems attainable. That would give the Rangers a 7-3 homestand. Still a long way to go for a .500 season - but it's a start.
 
News tonight on radio pregame that Seager is headed to IL and isn’t expected to play again this season. Injury filled year claims yet another starter.
 
Rangers doing well tonight - bottom of 6th, leading 7-2. Runners 2nd & 3rd, 1 out. Eovaldi has given up 2 runs on 3 hits through 6 innings. And just scored another run on a Wild Pitch. Now 8-2.
 
Reminiscing...

Favorite Ranger Teams:

1. 2023 World Series Champions!!

2. 1974 Rangers - Mgr. Billy Martin (that srappy team hooked me on MLB and especially the Rangers).

3. 1986 Rangers- Bobby Valentine:

So many studs:

Reuben Sierra
Odibe McDowell
Toby Harrah
Steve "Booo-chelle"
Pete Incavilia
Larry Parrish
 
T9th

Rangers pen squanders 10-2 lead giving up a slam with 2 outs and bases loaded.

10-6

2 Yanks on base. Bochy goes to Yates to close door - hard!!!
 
^Exactly what we were hoping for on the homestand. Now the struggling Angels come to Arlington for four games. Winning 3 of those would give the Rangers a 7-3 homestand - a sweep would make it 8-2.
 
That top of the ninth is a stark reminder that there are no garbage extra runs when you are putting a team away. The Rangers are still very thin after their front-line holders and closer and these last 22 games will see a lot of work for folks like Festa, Pennington, Anderson, etc. who have a penchant for melting down.

This upcoming Angels series' starters are Bradford, unknown, Leiter, and Heaney. With no Dunning, Gray, or Mahle the unknown is probably Urena or maybe Gerabito.

Texas sits six games under .500 but has won three straight series and are on the outer edge of maybe getting to near or at .500 by season's end. As frustrating as many parts of this season have been get to 80 or more wins and the Rangers will have set themselves up for a bounce-back year in 2025 and they still get to look at a banner every night that will forever read Texas Rangers 2023 World Series Champions.
 
Rangers get a three run shot from Adolis in the first and nothing more but Bradford, LeClerc, Robertson, and Yates make that stand up and Texas takes the opener 3-1 and is now riding a three game win streak. 68-73 on the year and inching toward .500.
 
Good Guys get a 3-1 win over lowly LA.

Bradford had a good outing!

2 of 3 from Yanks.

Rangers have won 8 of last 10.... dayum y'all, we could have used this streak more in early August.

Oh well.... building for 2025!!
 
With all of the injuries and the pitching issues, the fact that could reach .500 this season is some type of victory.

However CY still doesn't have a new contract.
 
ViperHorn said:
However CY still doesn't have a new contract.
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I would say this is baffling to me, but when I really ponder it, I keep coming back to Ray Davis still doesn't know what the Ballys money will be for next year, which puts literally every move into a grey area. Maybe both he and CY recognize that the unknown must be resolved first. The problem, of course, is that every time we think it's going to be resolved, another delay happens. At some point, the Rangers will have to sign a GM and make moves to hold on to Eovaldi and Yates and some other pieces to make 2025 a true bounceback competitive year do it may take a leap of faith on Davis' part.
 
Nice 3-1 W last night. Not much offense - all from the Garcia HR. But an absolutely stellar pitching performance from Bradford and the bullpen. I'm beginning to believe the Rangers need to keep Yates.
The Angels continue to struggle. I'm thinking that 3 of these 4 is realistic - and a sweep is possible. Getting to .500 for the season is still a steep climb, but it's looking better now.
FWHORN said:
it may take a leap of faith on Davis' part.
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Davis has already proved (a) that he will spend as needed to build a competitive team and (b) he trusts CY to handle the GM's job. I can understand the concern about TV revenue, and we can only assume (at least for the moment) that CY is in continual communication with the ownership. Somehow I can't imagine that ownership would slay the goose that's laying the golden eggs - sure wish Jerry Jones would learn from that, since he killed off Jimmy Johnson when the Cowboys were winning.
 
Added bonus for tonight as Elvis Andrus who will always be the Robin to Beltre’s Batman is retiring as a Ranger. Second most games played all time as Ranger (to Michael Young) and is in the top five of just about every all time Ranger record (hits, runs, etc.). Andrus will throw out first pitch and isn’t it great that Washington is there too as Angels manager.
 
Well, so much for the potential sweep. Offense falls flat tonight as Angels win 5-1. Need to win tomorrow and Sunday - that would be 7-3 on the 10-game homestand, bringing a .500 season into play. Still an uphill battle.
 
FWHORN said:
I would say this is baffling to me, but when I really ponder it, I keep coming back to Ray Davis still doesn't know what the Ballys money will be for next year, which puts literally every move into a grey area. Maybe both he and CY recognize that the unknown must be resolved first. The problem, of course, is that every time we think it's going to be resolved, another delay happens. At some point, the Rangers will have to sign a GM and make moves to hold on to Eovaldi and Yates and some other pieces to make 2025 a true bounceback competitive year do it may take a leap of faith on Davis' part.
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Both the Stars and Mavericks have found TV homes away from Bally. CY made enough money for Davis last season to be one of the highest-paid GMs in the business regardless of any regional TV money.

If Davius lets CY walk, it will surpass Cuban blowing up a Championship team as the stupidest move by a sports executive.
 
In the afterglow of the big win in Ann Arbor, the Rangers got another win at home last night and Leiter went five-plus innings. He again was pulled without getting an out in the sixth after walking the first batter that inning. He is still earning about that third time through an MLB lineup but there was a lot to be excited about and he has 3-4 more starts to keep swimming in the deep end in games that matter. Leiter's line was 5 IP, 3 earned runs, 2 Hits, 2 Walks, and 6 K's. His third earned run was as much on Chafin as him as Chafin inherited him at first and promptly wild-pitched him around the bases and home. The Rangers offense got hot late though and bailed them all out.

Rangers are 6-3 on this homestand and look to win a fourth straight series today. 80 wins is still possible.

In rehab news, deGrom threw four scoreless up in Frisco Saturday on only 49 pitches and his next appearance should be for the Rangers late this coming week in Seattle.

Scherzer also had a rehab start for Round Rock and threw four innings of hitless ball too. Something you don't hear about every day he broke up his own perfect game in the fourth with an intentional walk because apparently he wanted to work on something to a righty. Scherzer also could be back by the time the Rangers land in Seattle next weekend.
 
PLUS: Rocker keeps rolling along.
Quadruple Minus: Still no contract for CY (the question becomes why is he evidently on double secret probation)?
 
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