How 'Bout Them Rangers

[YosemiteSam]

When Lewis had a man on first and third with no outs and then giving up a double off the wall and have 2nd and 3rd with no outs and the game tied. I was pretty worried about them letting it slip away at that point. The Twins are a good team that is quite resilient and Carl Pavano has been pitching great all year. Tie that in with the offensive struggles the Rangers have been having and Nelly and Ian out. I wasn't sure they were going to hang on and win it.

It was great to see them do it. Winning games like last nights is extremely important when the playoffs arrive. It gives them confidence today that they can bang out a win in a close game against a seasoned veteran playoff team.

Now, is it me or does Carl Pavano look like a throw back 70s / early 80s pitcher with that mustache? Very Dennis Eckersley. :laugh2:

 

[Stautner]

R i s i n g

Inching up - still not winning in convincing fashion, and still not getting the starting pitchers enough run support for the win, but things are looking better. Minnesota is no slouch. It was huge to see Hardin throw so well Monday. With him pitching well the starting rotation is very good from top to bottom.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Inching up - still not winning in convincing fashion, and still not getting the starting pitchers enough run support for the win, but things are looking better. Minnesota is no slouch. It was huge to see Hardin throw so well Monday. With him pitching well the starting rotation is very good from top to bottom.

Harden's game was weird. He didn't give up a hit, but he was definitely having control issues. He had trouble throwing it over the plate, but when it was over the plate, it was hardly ever over the meat of the plate. The times it was, I think the Twins where just straight up taking the pitch. (like when being up 3-0 in the count)

 

[casmith07]

Rangers aren't built for the postseason.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Rangers aren't built for the postseason.

Explain.

What exactly do you consider built for the post season?

Pitching and defense wins in the post season. Pitching and defense the Rangers have. The Rangers are in an offensive slump right now, but they are one of the better hitting teams too.

In the past when the Rangers were only about offense, I would have agreed with you. That isn't the case now.

 

[juck]

Rangers aren't built for the postseason.

yes they are.

 

[juck]

Hambone and Vladdy do it again!!! 4 in a row.

 

[theebs]

Rangers aren't built for the postseason.

uhh what?

great on the bases, good defense, good bullpen a pretty good trio of 1-3 starters to take the mound in a series.

I must have been watching a different team all year. I have always been under the impression playing good defense, having an ace and a good bullpen that can matchup lefty or righty is a good thing.

 

[YosemiteSam]

The Rangers aren't built for not going to the World Series. :

We can sweep tonight! Lets hope Cliff gets some run support tonight, but it will be tough against Liriano.

 

[juck]

uhh what?

great on the bases, good defense, good bullpen a pretty good trio of 1-3 starters to take the mound in a series.

I must have been watching a different team all year. I have always been under the impression playing good defense, having an ace and a good bullpen that can matchup lefty or righty is a good thing.

Casmith is probably a Yank fan lol

 

[YosemiteSam]

Casmith is probably a Yank fan lol

Thats what I was thinking. It seems several of the Stankee fans around here are very hostile towards the Rangers right now. I suppose they are scared. :laugh2:

 

[juck]

Thats what I was thinking. It seems several of the Stankee fans around here are very hostile towards the Rangers right now. I suppose they are scared. :laugh2:

Yes I noticed that. Ever notice a lot of them are kids too? lol

 

[theebs]

I was reading and watching the twins beatwriter on their newspaper site this morning.

He was wondering who are all these guys in the bullpen. He made a comment that the twins pr guy said the rangers bullpen wasnt good and then he turns and says who is this olgando guy and this o'day with his crazy delivery!

The bullpen is pretty nifty here.

 

[YosemiteSam]

I was reading and watching the twins beatwriter on their newspaper site this morning.

He was wondering who are all these guys in the bullpen. He made a comment that the twins pr guy said the rangers bullpen wasnt good and then he turns and says who is this olgando guy and this o'day with his crazy delivery!

The bullpen is pretty nifty here.

Yeah, they suck even though they are one of the best bullpens in the entire league. I love when idiots talk out of their ***. :laugh2:

While the Rangers starting pitching has been awesome, the bullpen has been even better.

 

[Stautner]

Rangers aren't built for the postseason.

I have to chime in like others and ask you to explain. Right now this is just an empty comment. I started to say empty "thought", but for now we have no indication there was any thought put into it.

The team has a top starting rotation, and if Hardin is now healthy and can pitch like he did last game it is strong 1-5.

We have stong set up men in the bullpen and one of the top closers in baseball.

We hit for average and power and have good speed on the bases.

We have speed and strong arms (except when Borbon plays) in the outfield, and a stong defense in the INF as well.

We have star players (Hamilton, Young, Cruz, Lee, Guerrero) that can carry the team at times.

The only thing lacking is a little more playoff experience, but guys like Lee, Molina and Guerrero help with that.

The Rangers aren't built for not going to the World Series. :

We can sweep tonight! Lets hope Cliff gets some run support tonight, but it will be tough against Liriano.

I hope so. Lee's had a few slips, but overall has been truly dominant with Texas, but no run support. It's good to see us getting back to pulling out the tight games.

 

[YosemiteSam]

I hope so. Lee's had a few slips, but overall has been truly dominant with Texas, but no run support. It's good to see us getting back to pulling out the tight games.

I did notice that Lee's ERA is slowly rising. He is at 4.18. Not quite a Rangers ERA from the days of yore, but not horrible either. You expect a little better from Lee though.

 

[Stautner]

I did notice that Lee's ERA is slowly rising. He is at 4.18. Not quite a Rangers ERA from the days of yore, but not horrible either. You expect a little better from Lee though.

That last game hurt, but keep in mind that his season ERA is only 3.09. the 4.18 is just in the American League, and since his time in the AL is limited one poor game affects the ERA more than it otherwise would at this point in the season.

 

[YosemiteSam]

That last game hurt, but keep in mind that his season ERA is only 3.09. the 4.18 is just in the American League, and since his time in the AL is limited one poor game affects the ERA more than it otherwise would at this point in the season.

So did last nights.

His control isn't quite as pin-point as it was. He is throwing stuff over the middle of the plate or just missing the plate all together.

Now, he still has great control compared to a lot of pitchers. Personally, I think this his pitches aren't all that dominate overall. (the 90+ FB is OKAY, his curve ball is nice) What makes him great is the pin-point accuracy. (not walking hitters, and not allowing them to put the sweet part of the bat on the ball) That is where his issues of late have been coming in. His inability to always paint the corners as he has been doing the last couple of years.

I didn't get to see last nights game, but I saw the condensed version of it this morning. Looking at the final stats, he threw about 65% strikes which is decent overall but an abnormally low percentage for him. I saw during the game at one point he was close to 50/50 in strike to pitch count ratio. (something like 71/38, not sure would have to go back and watch the video again) He must have started throwing more strikes later in his appearance. It's obvious he didn't pitch great when he threw 97 pitches and only completed five innings.

 

[Stautner]

So did last nights.

His control isn't quite as pin-point as it was. He is throwing stuff over the middle of the plate or just missing the plate all together.

Now, he still has great control compared to a lot of pitchers. Personally, I think this his pitches aren't all that dominate overall. (the 90+ FB is OKAY, his curve ball is nice) What makes him great is the pin-point accuracy. (not walking hitters, and not allowing them to put the sweet part of the bat on the ball) That is where his issues of late have been coming in. His inability to always paint the corners as he has been doing the last couple of years.

I didn't get to see last nights game, but I saw the condensed version of it this morning. Looking at the final stats, he threw about 65% strikes which is decent overall but an abnormally low percentage for him. I saw during the game at one point he was close to 50/50 in strike to pitch count ratio. (something like 71/38, not sure would have to go back and watch the video again) He must have started throwing more strikes later in his appearance. It's obvious he didn't pitch great when he threw 97 pitches and only completed five innings.

I missed last night's game too, but apparently he did struggle some. I hate to see that twice in a row. One is a fluke, but two in a row makes him seem a little more vulnerable.

I agree with you about the source of his success. Hitting the corners and keeping hitters guessing is his primary talent, and if he is leaving too many pitches over the heart of the plate he isn't going to be as good.

 

[juck]

Cliff better get his mojo back. I have confidence he will.
Vladdy is back.