Texas Rangers Notes: C.J. Wilson, Torrealba, Soria, Wood

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C.J. Wilson sets a career high


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The Texas Rangers are reeling, losing seven of their last nine games including getting swept by the New York Yankees over the last three games.

One bright spot from that series was starter C.J. Wilson who set a career high with 129 pitches through eight solid innings of work. Wilson gave up just two runs on seven hits and struck out 10. He is showing why the Rangers believed him when he said he could take the role of the staff 'ace' when Cliff Lee departed for Philadelphia.

Through 15 starts, Wilson sports a 7-3 record with a 3.03 ERA.

Torrealba calls out the New York Yankees

Rangers catcher Yorvit Torrealba apparently had a problem with Yankee hitters Andruw Jones and Mark Teixeira, accusing both of stealing signs.


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Torrealba got into it with Jones during the fifth inning on Wednesday night and apparently said something to Teixeira during his at bat one night earlier. Both took exception to Torrealba's accusation, naturally, and even Jones said it was a little bit of sour grapes on Torrealba's part.

While stealing signs isn't illegal it is something teams take exception to if it's being done. There have been plenty of games where you'll hear a comment from a catcher or see a verbal altercation over this kind of issue.

Hitters should be good enough to figure a pitcher out without the "tipping" help of a runner on second base

Texas Rangers searching for help

The Rangers need help in their bullpen and they need it soon. Even general manager Jon Daniels recently admitted as much. "It's something that we're open to, but it's easier said than done," Daniels told T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. "There are not a lot of clubs eager to move quality arms right now. We've got to be able to address it right now."


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Asked about their combined 4.52 bullpen ERA Daniels said, "it hasn't been as effective as we need it to be. We haven't hit our stride yet. It would help if a couple of guys come back healthy, but we need to be more consistent. The bottom line is it needs to be better."

One name Sullivan talked about in his column on Thursday is Kansas City Royals' reliever, Joakim Soria. Earlier in the season he would have been an expensive reliever to acquire. However, thanks to his recent struggles, including a string of three blown saves in four appearances, he may not have quite the price tag at this point.

However, he has not given up a run in his last six appearances (8 IP) so that price may be going up.

A few other names mentioned by Sullivan were Chicago Cubs' reliever Kerry Wood, San Diego Padres' closer Heath Bell, Washington Nationals' relievers Todd Coffey and Tyler Clippard, and Baltimore Orioles' relievers Koji Uehara, Jim Johnson and Kevin Gregg.

Could Joakim Soria be a Good Fit for the Texas Rangers?

The Texas Rangers have a need in their bullpen and if you listen to some of the sports talk radio around the Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex, you know there has been questions as to whether a move needs to be made sooner rather than later.

A few names I've talked about before were Kansas City Royals' reliever Joakim Soria, Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, and San Diego Padres' closer Heath Bell.

We know any of these three guys are going to have high price tags as far as what each team will want in return. If you read the blog I did on the possibility of landing Heath Bell, you saw names out of the Rangers' minor league system. Guys like Engel Beltre, Jurickson Profar, Michael Kirkman, and "a David Murphy type player."

While most might say it's too high a price to pay to bring in a proven reliever to help out their bullpen, these are three guys who can make an immediate impact on a team who can make it back to the World Series if they make the right moves.

So knowing what we know about Bell, some wonder if the cost would be same to land Soria.

I talked to one American League beat writer who told me the Royals could very well ask for two major league ready players, guys they can have under their control for the foreseeable future, as well as two minor league pitching prospects.

That being said, they also told me the Royals system is so stacked with top prospects that they don't have the kind of needs the Rangers may be able to fill.


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Heath Bell Could be a Permanent Fix to the Texas Rangers' Bullpen

 The Texas Rangers are struggling and it's not just with the rotation, the bullpen has had their problems as well and not just since outfielder Josh Hamilton went down with an injury.

You will hear a lot of the sports talk radio shows talking about how to fix this team and how to "right the ship." We can talk about trades and we can talk about the return of Tommy Hunter and Neftali Feliz. While those two players are great to have back, the Rangers are still waiting for some sort of good news from Brandon Webb who does not look any closer to joining the team.

So how does this team patch up the holes in what seems like a sinking ship? There are a few names we can talk about and some may be a little more far fetched than others.

Let's start with Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon. It's not the first time the young reliever's name has come up in trade rumors and it wouldn't be the first time the Red Sox would explore trading him. They aren't off to the kind of start they were hoping for and if their struggles continue maybe they might actually look more seriously at dealing Papelbon for the right return of young minor leaguers.

Another name that could be explored is Kansas City Royals' reliever Joakim Soria. The 27-year old was the only bright spot for the Royals last year, closing out 43 or his 46 save chances last season and finishing the season with a 1.78 ERA in 2010. He was a big name on the rumor sheets not only at the deadline last year but also during this past off season. The Royals weren't able to get a deal done but that doesn't mean they won't be approached again in July.

But if you want a name who can come in and bring the confidence this bullpen needs, look no further than San Diego Padres' closer Heath Bell.

For those of you who love the game of baseball, you know all about this guy. The guy that sprints in from the bullpen and the guy who gets fired up every time he closes out a game. His fiery attitude and closer's mentality is exactly the kind of guy the Texas Rangers need and they need it sooner rather than later.

I talked to two different sources about the possibility of the Rangers going after Bell and what the Padres might ask for in return.

My first assumption was that the Rangers would need to include Michael Young, Chris Davis, and/or star minor league pitcher Tanner Scheppers. But when I talked to these two sources, neither of them brought up any of the three aforementioned names.

So what would the Rangers need to give up to land the Padres' closer? How about outfielder Engle Beltre,left hander Michael Kirkman, shortstop Jurickson Profar, and as one source told me "a David Murphy type player." A four-for-one deal to bring in a guy the Rangers desperately need.

Here is the problem as it stands in early May. Another source close to the Padres told me San Diego would not trade Bell this early in the season no matter how badly the team is struggling right now.

While they might be right because we do not see a lot of trades this early in the season, the Padres aren't going anywhere fast and they know they have little to no chance of retaining Bell for the long term. If general manager Jed Hoyer knows he can get three young minor leaguers and one other player who could possibly have some big league experience already, do you think he pulls the trigger on that deal?

Bringing in another closer to the team does bring up one problem. Does Feliz remain the team's closer or does that allow the Rangers to transition him to the starting rotation? Something which was talked about during spring training. I wasn't a fan of that move when it was being discussed and there is a part of me that still isn't in favor of it.

However, with the rotation struggling like it is, the Rangers may need to bring this idea back to the forefront once more. It's not going to be a popular decision and as of right now it's not a decision that is going to be given any thought at all. Just don't count out the fact it might be brought into the conversation prior to the trade deadline in July.

The American League West is not the strongest division in baseball and there isn't one team among it who can run away with it this early in the season. It is what has allowed this team to struggle and not already be more than 10 games back of the Los Angeles Angels.

But if they do not do something soon to put the pieces back together and bring back the swagger this team had after winning the American League Championship over the New York Yankees, it could spell disaster for a team who is expected to have the same kind of success as they did in 2010.

Manager Ron Washington, general manager Jon Daniels, and owner Nolan Ryan have to be looking at their options. When they do, the name Heath Bell will come up more times than one. There's no panic in Arlington just yet but they can't wait too long to decide the best course of action.


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When Cliff Lee Signed With the Phillies, the Ranger Fans Got Their Feelings Hurt

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All baseball fans wanted to talk about from the moment the off season started was "where will Cliff Lee sign." That was the topic of conversation around just about every water cooler, television station, and radio microphone in the Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex.

They were almost certain they were going to bring the left-hander back and they were sure he was going to be wearing a Texas jersey for at least the next six to seven years of his career.

They were wrong.

Last night, news broke that Lee had not only scored the Rangers, but he also passed on the New York Yankees to sign with the team he played for in 2009, the Philadelphia Phillies. He did so and took less money in the process.

As I woke up this morning and checked Twitter, I was surprised at what I saw. Ranger fans were acting like they had been stabbed in the back and comparisons to LeBron James were being made. That's when I shook my head and wondered how things could get this bad?

The only comparison that can be made is going to a team that's already stacked with talent. After that, the comparisons stop.

Why are you fans so up in arms anyway? Did Lee tell the Rangers he was going to re-sign with them? Not from what I've heard. Not only that, but Lee called Rangers' general manager Jon Daniels personally to let him know of his decision. He didn't go to that extent for the Yankees.

So why are you upset again?

Lee got you past the Rays and Yankees to get to the World Series. He did what you brought him in to do and, above all that, you really didn't give away much to get him. If anything, you got him for a much cheaper price than the going rate.

The Texas Rangers wanted him, badly. They were hoping they could bring him back to be their ace and the leader of their clubhouse. It's not a team that can't contend in the AL West especially since the Angels, A's, and Mariners really haven't done anything to improve themselves from last season.

Major League Baseball's off season isn't done and pitchers and catchers don't report for another two months so there are some changes still to be made. But, as of this moment, the Rangers are still the team to beat.

From here, the Rangers will look in to acquiring Kansas City's Zack Greinke or Tampa Bay's Matt Garza, however, they can't just throw caution to the wind and do whatever it takes to acquire either player. The team still needs to be smart because they are still building to win not only in 2011 but far beyond that.

Cliff Lee isn't coming back to Texas and no amount of crying and whining about it is going to change anything. It's best to get over it and move on because there are still moves to be made and players to acquire.

This Rangers' ball club is not done by a longshot. Don't jump off the bandwagon just yet.

Cliff Lee: Michael Young's Fate Rests on Where Lee Ends Up

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For most of the last four days, Texas Ranger fans have been hanging on every word spoke on local radio and every tweet coming from just about every national writer there is.

They want Cliff Lee back though there are some fans who don't want to overpay to get that done.

As of this morning, the New York Yankees had upped their offer from six to seven years, something the team said they weren't going to do. But, after free agent outfielder Carl Crawford signed with the Boston Red Sox early this morning, the Yankees became desperate to land at least one big time free agent, so they did what we all knew they were going to do.

Now, it's in the hands of Rangers' team president Nolan Ryan to see if Lee is really serious about coming back to Texas or if he's only in this for the money.

Everyone believes the Yankees are the front-runner and for good reason. Their seven-year, $160 million offer is a good one and one that will make the Rangers shake in their boots.

But, there are those of us around the Dallas/Ft Worth area that believe the Rangers need to move on and let Lee either sign the contract offered him by the Rangers or go where the money is and head to the Bronx. The Rangers can't afford to give him seven years and it would be a horrible decision for the team to give him just that.

Newy Scruggs from 105.3 FM The Fan in Dallas talked about that exact thing this morning on his radio show. He also believes the Rangers should move on to other players and try to land Kansas City Royals' pitcher, Zack Greinke. He also had Jamey Newberg of the Newberg Report on the air this morning who talked about what Greinke brings to the table. From what I heard, I agree with both of them.

Though we can talk about Cliff Lee for the next few days until he makes a decision, there is one other big name that's floating around the area is third baseman and longtime Ranger, Michael Young.

Rumors surfaced a few days ago that the Rangers were talking to the Colorado Rockies about dealing him but what was coming back wasn't immediately known. Bryan Dolgin, who covers the Rangers, quoted Nolan Ryan as saying the team was not going to trade Michael Young but Ryan added that they would listen on any player.

On the flip side of Dolgin's report, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports tweeted yesterday that the Rangers were gauging interest in Young and were even offering to pay some of his remaining salary to get a deal done.

The feeling around the media here in the Dallas area is the Rangers will not trade the face of their franchise until they know what will happen with Cliff Lee. Until they receive an answer from the free agent left-hander, there won't be a deal in place with any team.

From everything that's been said, it seems to me the only reason the Rangers would move Young is to clear needed salary to sign Lee if an agreement can be made.

As of right now, the Rangers met with Lee and his agent in Arkansas earlier today but there's been no indication that an offer has been made to him.

Because of the hold up and because the team hasn't gotten an answer from him, they've already lost out on Carl Crawford and they risk losing out on Greinke if they continue the pursuit of Lee.

They need to move on and they need to start making moves to better their team. They can not get into a bidding war with a team that is really acting on nothing more than desperation. Seven years is too much to give a player that is already north of thirty years of age.

They can still get into talks with the Royals for Greinke, they can still either re-sign Vladimir Guerrero who's looking for a two-year deal or you can look at another free agent in former Minnesota Twin, Jim Thome who I believe could be a tremendous person to have behind guys like Young and Josh Hamilton in the lineup.

It's expected that Lee will give the Yankees and Rangers an answer before the end of the weekend. However, if I'm Nolan Ryan and general manager Jon Daniels, it's time to tell the free agent pitcher that they are done with the chase and are ready to move on to other players.

Sure "it's time" but that slogan means the end of a chase they shouldn't even be in at this point.