Questions Remain Unanswered With Regards To Roster Depth

Yesterday, Texas sent several high-ranking officials to meet with Cliff Lee at his home in Arkansas. They apparently threw out several possible contract options, even going so far as to include several "perks" for Lee's family. What that means is pure speculation but if it's anywhere close to what the Dodgers offered Kevin Brown back in '99, "perks" could mean, among other things, the use of a private jet several times a year for Lee's family. Many believe Texas is really pushing the pace with Lee, trying to get a commitment from him one way or another, as they still have several other areas to address.

Should Lee sign with someone other than Texas, the Rangers would certainly turn their attention back to Kansas City's Zack Greinke and/or Tampa's Matt Garza. Greinke will undoubtedly take two top tier prospects plus a couple of second tier players, Garza could well command almost as much as whomever he ends up with will control his rights for 3 more seasons. Were Texas unable to acquire either pitcher, they might look to rely on C.J. Wilson and Colby Lewis to carry the rotation early on while hoping for continued improvement from Tommy Hunter and a return to form for Scott Feldman. This is truly frightening.

Jon Daniels and company have made contact with DH Vlad Guerrero, who continues to push for a 2-year contract. Oakland is rumored to have interest in the slugger after failing to land Lance Berkman however, their failure to sign Berkman was due to their lack of interests in signing him to a multi-year deal. As it stands, Vlad may be looking at another 1-year contract with an option year, similar to what he signed last season with Texas. His inability to play even sparingly in the field (the World Series proved as much) drops his asking price dramatically.

If Texas is unable to sign a Vlad (or someone of comparable talent like Magglio Ordonez or Jim Thome) I would have to think they'd at least consider moving Michael Young to DH and making a run at someone like Adrian Beltre. Another possibility would be to platoon Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz at DH and hope Julio Borbon is ready to finally take over in CF.

Texas also must address their bullpen. While Ogando, O'Day, Francisco, Oliver & Feliz (unless he's moved into the rotation should Texas fail to sign Lee or trade for another stud pitcher) the other two bullpen spots are open to competition. Currently Texas would look to Michael Kirkman, Mark Lowe, Derek Holland, Matt Harrison, Omar Beltre, Clay Rapada & newly acquired Yoshinori Tateyama to battle it out for those spots.

Make no mistake about it, Cliff Lee is the Big Bad Wolf of free agency this season and Texas is rightly doing everything they can to hang on to him. However, the Lee sweepstakes needs to come to an end so the Rangers can move on and throw their full attention towards other areas of importance.

Feliz Impressive In Debut But Texas Falls Late

Believe it or not, this actually got worse after C.J. Wilson's 3-run, 9th inning meltdown which gave Oakland the 3-2 victory.

Following Rajai Davis' 2-run, walkoff triple, Nelson Cruz came up lame in right field and had to be asisted off the field. He apparently sprained his ankle and will probably miss at least the next few games. If it looks no better by then, Cruz make find his way to the 15-day disable list.

"The ball hit off the wall and I was trying to block it," Cruz said. "Then I tried to turn and the foot got stuck in the metal part of the wall. My ankle turned."

Cruz's injury could not come at a worse moment for an offense that has been struggling to find itself since the beginning of the season.

Dustin Nippert, again making a last second spot start, pitched very well for the Rangers, going five innings while striking out five and allowing just one hit. He left with a 1-0 lead.

Rookie sensation Neftali Feliz made his major league debut in the 6th inning, striking out the first four batters he faced, throwing a fastball that topped out at 101 mph. Overall, Feliz pitched two innings of hitless baseball.

"Pretty impressive debut," manager Ron Washington said. "Not so much the strikeouts but the way he filled up the strike zone with strikes."

"When I first got up there, I felt a little nervous," Feliz said. "But once I threw the first pitch, I knew what I was doing and felt comfortable."

The bullpen continued to post shutout inning up till the 9th, when C.J. Wilson came in and imploded, allowing four hits, including the game-winner by Rajai Davis.

"Sometimes you get beat by the long ball, sometimes you get beat by the short ones," Wilson said. "Absolute luck, that's all it is. All of them were lucky hits, dude. They didn't hit any of those balls hard."



Oakland rookie starting pitcher Brett Anderson dominated the Rangers for 7 2/3 innings, striking out 8 while allowing just two runs.

"Brett was great," A's manager Bob Geren said. "There's a lot of home run hitters on that team, and I thought he tied them down well. ... He was pretty pinpoint with his control, really. He commanded both sides of the plate. He had the perfect game plan, and he executed it."

Michael Wuertz picked Anderson up, pitching 1 1/3 innings of scoreless ball, nabbing his 6th victory of the year.

"That was a tough one right there," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "We had them right where we wanted them to be, and we had the right guy in the game."

Rangers Split Final Two Against Mariners

Turns out Tommy Hunter is mortal. After a series of dominant starts, Hunter came back down to earth on Saturday, reminding all of us that despite his hot pitching over the last month, he's still a rookie.

Hunter hit the mound without his best fastball and was knocked around for five runs on seven hits while walking three in five innings. He also hit a batter and threw a wild pitch.

"Tommy just didn't have his location tonight," manager Ron Washington said. "They made him throw some pitches."

"I had a changeup and a curve, but I didn't have a fastball tonight," said Hunter. "I didn't locate my fastball. That's the first thing you do in baseball as a pitcher."

Warner Madrigal offered little in the way of relief, allowing another run on four hits and a walk in just 1 1/3 innings.



Mariners legend Ken Griffey Jr. turned back the clock for the night hammering the Rangers to the tune of 3-for-5 with a single, a double & a 3-run homer, the 622nd of his career. Tommy Hunter became the 400th different pitcher to allow a homerun to Griffey since his debut back in 1989.

Mariners starter Felix Hernandez, much like Tommy Hunter, didn't have his best stuff on the night, but Texas was never able to really take advantage. Despite a big night from Nelson Cruz, who went 3-for-4 while hitting his 25th homer of the season, Texas went just 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position, never putting any real pressure on Hernandez.

"We had Hernandez on the ropes," Washington said. "It might have been different if we got a few hits early. Hernandez didn't have his [best stuff] either."

"That's what I thought after I saw him in the first inning," Cruz said. "He didn't have much control, and we didn't take advantage. We gotta get walks and make things happen."

Hernandez, despite picking up the win, was also very aware he dodged a bullet.

"I don't know how I allowed just two runs," Hernandez said. "That is hard to believe. I am disappointed with my performance today. I don't know, I just felt terrible. I was all over the place."

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On an evening when Texas made several pre-game roster moves (Ian Kinsler and Jason Grilli to the 15-day DL, called up top pitching prospect Neftali Feliz) it was a move made by manager Ron Washington that may have been the biggest of the night. Washington, suddenly short of arms, was forced to roll Scott Feldman out on only 3 days rest. Not only was Feldman pitching on short rest, he was also coming off his worst start of the season in which he was unable to get out of the 3rd inning.

But on Saturday night, Feldman was back to his old self, giving Texas seven innings of work, picking up his 10th win of the year.

"Feldman did a good job bouncing back," manager Ron Washington said. "[His sinker] was working pretty well. He's a ground-ball pitcher. If batters aren't squaring it up, that's how you know he's pitching well.

"He wasn't getting enough ground balls [in his last outing]. If you take the ball 16, 17, 18 times, that happens. He went out there and he gave us an opportunity to get to our two best pitchers."

"I thought Feldman was awfully tough," said Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu. "I have seen this kid and he gets better every year. I think you have to tip your hat. He just didn't throw anything over the center of the plate and kept our hitters off balance."



David Murphy homered in the bottom of the 1st, giving Feldman and early lead to work with. Michael Young added another solo homer in the 6tha dn is now hitting .417 since the All-Star break. Feldman's catcher, Jarrod Saltalamacchia tacked on a 2-run blast in the 7th to cap the scoring and pput Texas up for good.

Texas is now 36-12 this season when they hit multiple homeruns.

The four runs proved to be more than enough for Frank Francisco who, making his first appearance since his latest stint on the DL, dominated the 8th inning, not allowing a baserunner while striking out two batters.

"He looked outstanding," Washington said. "One-two-three inning. He used his pitches. We're happy to have him back."

C.J. Wilson pitched the 9th, also striking out two batters on his way to his 13th save this season.

Texas' Big Game Hunter Nets A Tiger

Forgive the title...I couldn't resist.

Tommy Hunter's second pitch of the game sailed off the bat of Tigers All-Star Curtis Granderson into the right field seats, giving Detroit the early 1-0 lead. From there, Hunter pitched seven innings of shutout baseball, striking out six.

"Good job by Tommy Hunter," manager Ron Washington said. "We knew he could handle the baseball and manipulate it. He's got four pitches."

The biggest moment of the night came in the top of the 5th when, with the bases loaded, Hunter threw a high fastball by Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera, ending the top half of the inning in dramatic fashion.

"I think it was a combination of he pitched very well and we didn't swing too well," said Tigers manager Jim Leyland. "We've done this for months, to be honest with you. We've swung at balls and taken strikes."

"I was trying to throw strikes," Hunter said. "I gotta minimize the damage. It was fun. That was fun, puts a smile on your face. It changed the game."

Hunter's assessment was right on the money as in the bottom of the 5th, Nelson Cruz pulled Texas even with a monster 542-foot solo homerun, the 5th longest homerun ever hit at the Ballpark in Arlington.



The Rangers continued their march to victory in the bottom of the 6th, getting a lead-off double by Elvis Andrus who scored on a single by Michael Young. After a David Murphy walk, Hank Blalock drove both men home with a double down the rightfield line, putitng Texas up 4-1.

Detroit pushed another run across in the top of the 8th but was answered in the bottom of the inning via Michael Young's 14th homerun of the year. For the night, Young had three base hits, the 3rd consecutive game he's accomplished that feat.

In the 9th, C.J. Wilson came on to strike out the side, picking up his 11th save of the season.

Tommy Hunter is now 3-1 with an ERA of 2.00. Offenses are hitting just over .200 against him.

The 5-2 win broke a string of seven straight loses to the Tigers.

"We had many opportunities to win against them in Detroit," Washington said. "Those guys don't quit. I remember four or five games in Detroit we would have won. They snatched them from us. Baseball does that."

The win give Texas a 33-19 record at home, 2nd best in team history and also moves them to 2 games behind the Angels in the AL West.

Rangers Win Series In Kansas City

Game two in Kansas City featured a pitcher still finding his way in his first big league season. Game three featured one who may have finally found himself.

On Saturday, Texas sent rookie Derek Holland to the mound and, much like he's done since coming up from AAA earlier in the year, mixed moments of greatness with a little too much inconsistency.

After going just 4 2/3 innings, allowing 4 earned runs on 7 hits, Holland is now 1-5 with an ERA of 6.42 in nine starts.

"I saw fight," manager Ron Washington said. "But he still has to work on his commanding the baseball better. Derek had trouble trying to hit his spots from the beginning. He got through the first three [innings] but he still had trouble controlling the baseball."

The offense wasn't much better, scoring just 3 runs on 11 hits. Texas' 3 & 4 hitters, Josh Hamilton and Andruw Jones, went a combined 0-for-7 with 6 strikeouts. For the game, Texas struck out 13 times.

"When you strike out that many times, you're not putting much pressure on the defense," Washington said.

In the final game of the series, Dustin Nippert again showed that he may be finally reaching the level long expected of a player with his potential. Nippert, forced into the game after Kevin Millwood had to exit at the end of the 2nd inning with a strained left gluteus muscle, came up big for Texas, pitching 4 2/3 innings of one hit, one run relief, giving the stagnant offense just enough time to put a few runs on the board.



"I just go out there to throw strikes and keep us in the game," Nippert said. "Keep it close and help us win the game. Today I was able to keep the ball down and use all my pitches. I was throwing my changeup a lot and mixing speeds."

With the performance, Nippert picked up his 2nd win in 5 days, despite his offense doing everything in their power to prevent that. Luckily for him, the Royals defense proved slightly more inept that the Rangers hitting.

After being shut out for six innings by Kansas City starter and former Rangers reject Sidney Ponson, Texas finally got a bit of a rally started in the 7th inning as Andruw Jones banged a double of the wall in left field. A single by Nelson Cruz put runners on the corners with nobody out. Royals reliever Ron Mahay was replaced by Jamey Wright who promptly induced a groud ball by Jarrod Saltalamacchia to first baseman Billy Butler who threw out Jones trying to score at home. With runners at first and second, Cruz then stole third, but Wright got a big strike out of Elvis Andrus for the second out of the inning.

That brought Ian Kinsler to the plate, who quickly swung at the first pitch he saw, popping the ball up high into the air on the right side of the infield. Luckily for Texas, Royals second baseman Alberto Callaspo had trouble locating the ball, making a last ditch running stab at it, dropping it on the right field grass. The error allowed Nelson Cruz to score and seemed to suck the life out of the Kansas City players. Michael Young and Marlon Byrd both singled home runs making it 3-0.

"It always takes the emotion out of you when you give up three unearned runs in one inning," Royals manager Trey Hillman said. "That happens regardless of how you're going. But it happens even more so when you've only got a couple hits on the board and you're having a miserable time offensively."

Kansas City put a run on the board in the bottom of the 7th but it was quickly given back as Andruw Jones came up in the top of the 8th and hammered a homerun into the left field seats. Texas would add three more runs in the 8th, closing the Royals out with a 2-1 series win.

"It was a strange game," Young said. "The story of the game was Nip and the sun. We got the sun ball and after that we came alive. Give Ponson credit. He threw a really good game. He had a lot of life on his sinker down in the zone. We caught a big break in the seventh and took it over."

Texas Breaks Out The Brooms, Sweeps Boston Out Of Arlington

Don't look now but your Texas Rangers are starting to play some pretty good baseball.

After struggling against Seattle just prior to the All-Star break, then looking terrible against the Minnesota Twins after the All-Star break, many 'experts' began expounding on the demise of the Rangers.

Then the Boston Red Sox rolled into town.

Playing in front of huge crowds for the last three home games, Texas swept the Sox out of town, taking all three games in a variety of ways.

For game 1, Texas sent their ace, Kevin Millwood to the mound and he didn't disappoint, setting the tone for the entire series. Millwood battled for six innings against the high-powered Boston lineup, allowing just two run. The offense paid him back for his effort, exploding in the bottom of the 6th inning for five runs against former Cy Young Award winner John Smoltz, highlighted by three homeruns off the bats of Michael Young, David Murphy & Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

"Smoltz was throwing a great game," Michael Young said. "For a lot of us, it was the first time seeing him. He still has good life on his fastball and good bite on his breaking ball. He was throwing a great game. We were fortunate we had some guys string together some good at-bats and get a big inning going."



C.J. Wilson also had a big night for Texas, shutting Boston down for the final four outs of the game, striking out two on his way to his 8th save of the season. Wilson's stuff was just flat nasty as he overpowered the vaunted Red Sox lineup.

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In game 2 Texas took on one of the best big game pitchers in baseball, Josh Beckett. And Boston's ace lived up to his press clipping, pitching a complete game and, at one point, retired 14 hitters in a row. Unfortunately for Beckett, Texas may have found themselves a gem in young starter Tommy Hunter.

Hunter was clutch for the Rangers and, after being given an early lead thanks to a 2-run single by Hank Blalock in the bottom of the 1st inning, pitched six innings of one run ball. He also allowed just four hits, keeping Boston off balance the entire night.



"That was great," outfielder Marlon Byrd said. "Beckett was Beckett -- just like he always is. To beat him, you have to have your pitcher go out there and match him, and that's what Tommy did."

Jason Jennings and Darren O'Dat followed Hunter with scoreless innings of their own before giving way to C.J. Wilson who came in and shut the door on Boston, nabbing his 9th save of the year.

"It's a huge win, because they're a great team," Rangers outfielder David Murphy said. "We've played great the last three days, but definitely this series. It just makes a statement that we're here and we're for real. People want to count us out, but we're still playing well. We hit a little skid [losing four straight] and the Angels are playing good. We're not in first place, but we're for real."

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In the final game of the series, Boston sent top prospect Clay Buchholz to the hill while Texas countered with Dustin Nippert. Both starters were late additions as Boston scratched Tim Wakefield due to back issues, while the Rangers were forced to go with Nippert as a replacement for Vicente Padilla. Vicente, along with several other members of the pitching staff have come down with the flu.

Nippert, who has struggled in each of his previous starts, gave the Rangers a gutsy performance, holding Boston to just one run over 5 2/3 innings.

"This shows what character this team has," outfielder Marlon Byrd said. "We went out and played. We didn't care who we were playing -- we just went out and played. The way our pitchers are pitching, if we can play good defense and score a few runs, we're going to win a lot of games."

Not to be outdone, Nippert gave way to Doug Mathis who went the rest of the way, pitching 3 1/3 innings of shutout baseball.

"I just wanted to execute my pitches, make them swing the bats and put the ball in play," Mathis said. "I wasn't worried about going 3 1/3 innings. I was just trying to get guys out, win the ballgame and finish the game."

With Eddie Guardado and Frank Francisco sick and Darrne O'Day and C.J. Wilson unavailable for the game, Mathis' effort was a huge boost to a suddenly short bullpen.

On offense, Texas got a big blast from Ian Kinsler in the 3rd, his 23rd homerun of the season. In the 4th, Texas would find a way to manufacture a few more runs. Nelson Cruz led the inning off with a single followed by another base hit by David Murphy. With both men in socring position, Cruz was able to score on a ground out by catcher Taylor Teagarden. Elvis Andrus then brough Murphy home with a perfectly executed suicide squeeze.



Texas kept constant pressure on Boston's pitchers and defense, stealing six bases, staying very aggressive on the basepaths.

With a 3-1 lead, Texas broke out the gloves, playing great defense behind both Nippert and Mathis. The biggest defensive play of the night was also the funniest as Nelson Cruz and Josh Hamilton both tried to chase down a deep fly ball off the bat of Dustin Pedroia. Cruz got their first and made the catch but ran straight into Josh Hamilton who wrapped him up into a bear hug.

"We're two big boys," Hamilton said. "We were running after the ball, both calling it, and we both couldn't hear each other because of the crowd. At the last second, I looked at him out of the corner of my eye and backed off."

"That was a big play," Washington said. "If that falls, we don't know how it would've ended."

With the sweep, Texas has now taken 5 of 6 against Boston this season and currently sit three games out of first place in the AL West.

Offensive Struggles Continue As Texas Drops Another Game To Minnesota

Texas is off to a sluggish start here in the 2nd half of the season and is on the verge of finding themselves in 3rd place in the AL West.

The Rangers dropped another game to the Minnesota Twins, going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and striking out a ridiculous 10 times.

"I hope this is not the case, but this might be how our offense is this year, and pitching will have to take us to the promised land," outfielder Marlon Byrd said. "Hopefully, our offense will come around, but if not, we'll have to win it with pitching and defense. That's what good teams do in September anyway."

Nelson Cruz accounted for the lone Texas run, hammering his 23rd homer of the season. Cruz added a double and a single but recieved little help from the rest of the offense.



The Rangers have now lost 6 of 7 games, hitting just .192 during that stretch.

"We haven't done as well hitting as we did last year," outfielder Josh Hamilton said. "This would be a good time to pick it up and hit the way we did last year. We'll just see what happens. We just have to keep working hard and hope it comes around soon."

Scott Feldman did what he could to keep the offense close, giving Texas 6 innings, allowing 3 earned runs while striking out five. Feldman continues to give his team quality start after quality start. It's a shame many of his efforts are being wasted due to inconsistency on the part of his offense.

Regardless of the struggles, Texas' manager remains confident.

"We're not going any place," manager Ron Washington said. "We're still in it. We'll come back tomorrow. We know we're better than that. We're not going to drop our heads or make excuses. The name of the game is scoring runs and we're not doing it."

Rangers Leave Their Mark At All-Star Game

The MLB All-Star is far and away the best of all the All-Star games as it is the only game which most closely represents how the game is truly played. With the NFL, NHL and NBA, defense is done away with in the name of ridiculously high levels of scoring. It's very 3-ring circus and comes off as a waste of the viewers time. But with the MLB game, there remains a sense of intrigue. I think this has everything to do with the fact that the players care more about winning as it now now directly affects home field advantage for the World Series.

The American League won yet again and are now 12-0-1 in the last 13 Midseason Classics.

Tampa Bay Rays star outfielder Carl Crawford was voted the games Most Valuable Player thanks in large part to his leaping catch to pull a potentially game-tying homerun back from going over the left field wall.

A couple of Texas Rangers players had good showings as well, with Michael Young and Josh Hamilton each going 1-for-3. Hamilton added a RBI in the first inning of the game.

"It was a good night," Hamilton said. "It was a little more relaxing than last year. I was able to take it in a little more. But you still can't get on a schedule or in a routine. You're still flying by the seat of your pants. But I was glad we got a win."



Texas' third All-Star, Nelson Cruz did not get in the game but made a big impression the previous night, finishing second to Prince Fielder in the Home Run Derby. Cruz hit several tape measure shots, including one that made it to the 4th tier of the left field seats, measuring over 470 feet. Cruz's shot was the first time a player has reached that part of Busch Stadium.

"Everybody was happy in the Dominican," Cruz said. "The media called me the first thing in the morning. The whole country was paying attention to what was going on. They were all proud and happy with the way that I performed."

Texas will now have a few days of rest before starting the 2nd half of the season Friday night against Minnesota.

Rangers Make Mistakes On Way To Series Loss To Mariners

The Texas Rangers stumbled to the All-Star break Sunday afternoon, dropping the final two games of a 4-game set in Seattle. Winning just one of four dropped Texas 1 1/2 games behind the Anaheim Angels in AL West.

On Saturday, Kevin Millwood was rolling right along against the Mariners, allowing just one earned run over six innings of work. But in the 7th, perhaps all the battling finally caught up to Millwood, as a lead-off single followed by a 2-run homer by Seattle catcher Rob Johnson proved too much to overcome for the Texas offense.

His counterpart, Jarrod Washburn, looked great against Texas, going seven innings, allowing just one run.

"[Washburn] really did a phenomenal job against a good lineup," Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu said. "He kept them off-balance. He threw several pitches that were right on the black. He didn't throw many pitches in the middle of the plate tonight. He did a phenomenal job."

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Despite 6th inning homeruns from Hank Blalock and Nelson Cruz which pulled Texas into a 3-3 tie with the Mariners, Texas' bullpen couldn't hold down the Seattle offense.

Four consecutive singles (one of which should have been ruled a throwing error on Elvis Andrus) surrendered by Darren O'Day and C.J. Wilson resulted in two runs in the bottom of the 7th, giving Seattle all they would need to hold the Rangers off, taking 3 of 4 in the series.

But it wasn't the bullpen that was the subject of blame after the game. Texas kept Mariners starter Erik Bedard in trouble for much of his 5 2/3 innings, but could never get that one big hit to blow the game open.

"We had Bedard in trouble all night," Ranger manager Ron Washington said. "We just couldn't punch anything across, and finally in the sixth inning, we finally tied the ballgame up. Then it was, 'Who's going to make the mistake first?' And we made one, and they punched a couple of runs across the board."

Regardless of the tough finish, Washington is still fine with how the first half of the season went.

"We've lost games before and bounced back, and we'll bounce back," he said. "Nobody feels good about coming up here and losing three out of four. We had a chance to even the score today. We didn't get it done. The four days we have are days that are on the schedule and there for a reason. I want them to enjoy it and come back Thursday, come back and get back to business."

Rangers Power Their Way To Win

Coming off a tough loss the previous night to the Mariners, the Rangers broke out the big bats, homering their way to victory.

Down 2-0 after starter Scott Feldman got off to a rough start in the 1st, the offense responded, getting a solo shot from Hank Blalock in the 2nd, a 3-run blast from Michael Young in the 3rd and a big 2-run shot from newly named All-Star Nelson Cruz that proved to be the difference in the game.

"That was the best ball I hit this year," Cruz said. "I crushed it."



Seattle picked up two runs in the bottom of the 8th off Derek Holland but it wasn't enough to keep Feldman from picking up his 8th win of the season.

"You never want to give up two, but I just tried to tell myself if I can keep it there, I know, more times than not, we're going to put up some runs," Feldman said. "I just really focused on keeping them right there, forgetting about that first inning and just pitching my game."

The bottom of the 9th was closed out by Rangers closer Frank Francisco, who was on his game and looked as good as he has since returning from the disabled list.

The win keeps Texas alone in 1st place in the AL West and also moved the team 4 1/2 games ahead of Seattle in the division.

Rangers Jump Out Early, Hang On For Win

Joe Saunders should just skip all future road trip through Arlington. Despite offering nothing the way of consistency for the entire month of June, the Rangers offense jumped all over Saunders last night to the tune of 8 earned runs over 3 2/3 innings. He is now 0-5 with an ERA of 11.62 in 5 career starts in the Ballpark.

Ian Kinsler got the ball rolling early, drilling a lead-off homerun in the bottom of the first, his 19th homer of the year. After a Michael Young walk, Marlon Byrd followed with a 2-run blast.

Rangers starter Scott Feldman allowed three runs in the top of the 2nd, allowing the Angels to tie the game up but Nelson Cruz hit a solo blast to give Texas the lead again in the 3rd. Texas would never trail again.

"We definitely needed to win tonight," Washington said. "Hopefully tonight is the night we can get back to playing Texas Rangers baseball. We did tonight."



Marlon Byrd put a little more distance between the two teams, hitting his 2nd homerun of the night, a 3-run blast, in the bottom of the 5th, putting Texas up 8-3.

"Obviously the way we swung the bats tonight was awesome," David Murphy said. "Hopefully it will create some momentum for us."

Despite his early struggles, Scott Feldman settled down, giving Texas six innings of work, picking up his 6th win of the year. He finished his day retiring 13 of the last 14 batter he faced.

"I didn't do anything different, I was just more aggressive," Feldman said. "It wasn't that I was trying to be too fine, but I followed through more and brought everything more toward the plate."

Despite some struggles at the end of the game from both C.J. Wilson and Frank Francisco (who's fastball was topping out at just 91 mph), Texas hung on for the big win, keeping them within striking distance of the Angels.

The Big Unit & Co. Hold Texas Down In San Fran

Texas' one feared offense has disappeared and, if they are to stay in the race for the AL West crown, they'd better find it soon.

San Francisco scored three runs in the first three innings, jumping out to an quick lead thanks to a solo homerun by Aaron Rowand. Their starter, 300-game winner Randy Johnson, looked confident on the mound, controlling the Rangers hitters early.



Michael Young got Texas back in it with a solo homer in the top of the 4th. They added three more runs in the 6th, chasing Johnson in the process, thanks to an RBI single by Nelson Cruz, followed by a 2-run double by Marlon Byrd.

However, Texas was only 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position (one of those hits in infield single that didn't score a run) and, after starter and San Fran native Scott Feldman gave the lead back in the bottom of the 6th, were never able to recover.

Ron Washington knows missed opportunities like early lead-off hits by Ian Kinsler (double in the 1st) and Hank Blalock (triple in the 2nd) have to result in runs if Texas is to truly be considered a serious threat in the AL.

"The two we needed most were the ones we didn't get in the first and second inning," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "Those were the ones that came back to haunt us."

With the loss, the Rangers lead in the West is now down to 1/2 game over the Angels.

"We can't worry about the Angels," outfielder Marlon Byrd said. "They're going to win games, it's as simple as that. If we win, we'll be fine. If we don't and they get on a streak, they'll catch us. That's where we're at. We just need to take care of our business."

Pudge Sets A Record, Vizquel Ties A Record, Rangers Win In Extra Innings

History was made Wednesday night as Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez caught his 2,227th game, setting a new record which was previously held by Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk.



When Rodriguez stepped to the plate for his first at-bat, he recieved a standing ovation from the more than 32,000 fans in attendance.

"It was awesome," Rodriguez said. "What happened today out there was unbelievable. A standing ovation my first time up, it was awesome. I got some goose bumps when that happened. The video that they did in the third inning was unbelievable. I want to say thanks to the Rangers organization for what they did here for me and the Houston Astros also about these days. It was nice. It was an unbelievable moment."

Omar Vizquel also made a move on history, picking up his 2,677th career base hit, tying fellow countryman and Hall of Fameer Luis Aparicio for the most hits ever by a player from Venezuela.



"I never thought I'd be involved in a situation like that," Vizquel said. "So many good players have come from our country."

While the game seemed secondary to all the added intrigue, it still managed to deliver a few fireworks of its own. Both teams went back and forth for the entire game, niether ever able to fully gain any sort of advantage.

There were five total lead changes in the game, the last coming in the bottom of the 10th as David Murphy went opposite field for an RBI single to give Texas the 5-4 victory.

"It just felt great," Murphy said. "I really do believe that the walk-off is the best moment in baseball. The team gets to celebrate on the field, it brings everybody together and gives you a little momentum going into tomorrow."

Matt Harrison, just back from the DL pitched well enough, giving Texas five innings, allowing three runs.

"My arm felt really good," Harrison said. "It was frustrating falling behind a lot of hitters, but I made pitches when I had to. Overall I felt pretty good, but I wish I could have gone out there at least another inning.

C.J. Wilson pitched very effectively, giving Texas two shutout innings. Since his early season struggles, Wilson has been much more consistent on the mound.

While Texas' offense remains a bit of an inconsistent mystery, they did manufacture some runs, stealing three bases on the night, all of which resulted in runs coming across the plate.

Manager Ron Washington seemed proud of the sustained effort given by his team.

"We kept battling and finding ways," Washington said. "When it was all over, these guys found a way to pull it off."

Both Nelson Cruz and Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit solo homeruns for Texas.

Texas Ends Road Trip With Series Win In Boston

In a week where he found himself placed on waivers, Vicente Padilla mustered up some real guts, giving Texas a huge effort in their 6-3 win over Boston Sunday afternoon.

Padilla went seven innings, allowing only two runs, earning his fourth victory of the year.

"It's part of the game," Padilla said about being placed on waivers. "Baseball is a business, and that's the way it's supposed to be. I just have to keep working, and if I don't pitch for this team, I'll have a chance to throw for another one."



Nelson Cruz had a big day at the plate, finishing a single shy of hitting for the cycle. He finished the day 3-for-4 with a double, triple, and a homerun, his 17th of the year.

Michael Young hit his eighth homer of the year in the first inning to get Texas an early lead. David Murphy also had a big day, picking up two RBI on three base hits.

"I'm very happy with the way our guys recovered [from Saturday's 8-1 defeat]," said manager Ron Washington. "After every loss we've had, they've always recovered. That just shows how much character we have."

Darren O'Day shut Boston down in the eighth leaving C.J. Wilson to close the game out in the ninth inning, picking up his fifth save of the year.

But Ron Washington seemed to be most impressed with how his embattled starter came out and competed.

"It all centered around Padilla going out there and pitching well," Washington said. "He did a great job keeping those guys off balance throughout the game. Not many people can do that to those guys. They usually find a way to make pitchers work and get them out of the game.

"But today, he gave us exactly what we needed."

Padilla Struggles In First Start Back From DL, Rangers Drop Game 1 To The Yanks

It has been said by many a baseball 'insider' that Texas' current roadtrip through New York and Boston is their first true test to determine if they're truly a playoff contender. If that's true, Texas may still be a year away.

Vicente Padilla, returning from a stint on the DL for a sore shoulder struggled with his command from the beginning, allowing seven earned runs in only 3 2/3 innings.

Padilla also set off some fireworks by drilling former Ranger Mark Teixeira twice, the second eliciting a tirade of vulgarities from Teixeira, who needed manager Joe Girardi to come from the dugout to calm him down.



Derek Holland did no better, surrendering a homerun to the resurgent Hideki Matsui, surrendering two earned runs in 1 1/3 innings.

Tack on a three-run blast by Jorge Posada off Warner Madrigal in the sixth inning and you've got yourself a route to the tune of 12-3.

Texas' lone offensive output came off the bat of Nelson Cruz, who hit his 15th homer of the season, a 3-run shot in the top of the third.

Yankees starter A.J. Burnett pitched seven strong innings, picking up his second win of the year against Texas, his fourth overall.

- Just hours before the game, Josh Hamilton was placed on the 15-day disabled list for a sore groin. This is his second trip to the DL this season and it's looking more and more likely like this could end up being a lost year for Hamilton.

- Yankees short stop Derek Jeter went 3-for-4 and scored the 1,500th run of his career.

Texas Pounds Oakland, Takes Game 3 In Rout

Texas may find themselves wishing the month of May would never end.

Playing before a crowd in excess of 42,000 fans, Texas put on show, drilling Oakland for the third time in two days.

"A refreshing victory," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "We're having fun and it's easy to have fun when you're doing the things we're doing. We're pitching pretty good, catching the ball pretty good and doing enough to put runs on the board. Tonight we broke out a little bit."

With the win, Texas now moves to 20-8 for the month of May, besting last years mark of 19-10. They have won 14 of 19 games and find themselves atop the American League West.

"It all starts with pitching and defense," said third baseman Michael Young. "I know that sounds like a broken record around here, but that's why we're having so much fun."

Brandon McCarthy provided much of the quality pitching tonight, going six innings, allowing only one run, picking up his team-leading 5th victory of the season.

But the real stars of the night were on the offensive side of the ball, hammering Oakland pitching for fourteen runs on seventeen hits. Ian Kinsler led the charge with a four-RBI night but was backed up by nice offensive outings by several other Rangers, most notably Michael Young and Elvis Andrus, each of whom turned in 3-for-5, 2 RBI performances.



Nelson Cruz added a 445-foot blast in the bottom of the 5th inning, his 7th homerun in eleven games.

"Our approach has been a little off, so we've made it a point to have better at bats," said Michael Young.

Ian Kinsler echoed Young's thoughts adding, "If you're generating walks, you're having good at-bats and not swinging at bad pitches. That's what we need all up and down the lineup, just tough at-bats. Swing at strikes and take balls. If we can be consistent in that, our offense will be much better."

The Rangers are 13-2 against the AL West this season.

"I've always said that you want to play well within your division," Washington said. "If you win a lot within your division, the opportunity to be successful is much greater. We're winning in our division and we hope it continues."

It appears as though the fans are starting to believe in the success as well as Texas has enjoyed eight straight home crowds of 30,000 or more, the longest streak since 2005.

Rangers Sweep Doubleheader Against A's, 10 Games Over .500 For First Time Since 2005

Coming off a disappointing series loss against the New York Yankees, the Rangers looked to get back on track against the last-place Oakland A's.

In game 1 of the doubleheader, Texas sent Tommy Hunter to the mound. Hunter was a last minute call-up from Oklahoma City, needed to make a spot start. Hunter did the job, going 5 1/3 innings and holding the A's down long enough for his offense to come through.

"Tommy got us through five, gave us a chance to win," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He looked more under control. For the most part, he got it done."

With Texas down 3-2 in the bottom of the 7th, Marlon Byrd came through with a game-tying solo homerun. Andruw Jones and Nelson Cruz put the Rangers ahead for good with 2-run and solo blasts respectively. The lead proved to be more than enough for Frank Francisco, who has been absolutely dominant all season, giving Texas a 6-3 win in the opener.

In the second game of the doubleheader, Texas sent Scott Feldman to the mound. Feldman has been very consistent since stepping into the starting five, giving the back end of the rotation some real stability. Despite some control issues on Friday, Feldman got the job done once again, going six innings while allowing only two earned runs.



"There wasn't a single inning he worked that was easy," Washington said. "He worked pretty hard to get to the sixth."

Texas scored four runs in the 1st inning thanks to RBI doubles by Josh Hamilton and Hank Blalock, and a 2-out, 2-run single by backup catcher Taylor Teagarden.

Oakland was never able to put together any offense, managing only five base hits over the course of nine innings.

Jason Jennings picked up his fourth hold of the season, pitching two innings of shutout ball. C.J. Wilson closed the game out with a 1-2-3 9th inning, picking up hiw fourth save of the year.

Ron Washington was thrilled with the effort.

"Two very efficient ballgames," said Washington. "We had great defense, clutch hitting. That's a lot of fun.

Nelson Cruz Homers Texas To Win In Houston

Looks like Nelson Cruz has found his stroke.

After drilling the game-winning homerun Friday night, Cruz came back and hit two more on Saturday, pacing Texas to the 6-3 victory.

"My swing is there," Cruz said. "I don't worry about home runs, they'll come. I just worry about being consistent and getting my knocks. It doesn't matter where I hit, I've got to do my job."



Hank Blalock added a solo homerun giving Scott Feldman, who went a season high 6 2/3 innings, more than enough to work with as he picked up his third win of the year.

"He was good," Astros catcher Ivan Rodriguez said. "He was pitching great. He wasn't missing his spots -- good breaking ball, good fastball, good sinker. I was having a good at-bat in the second at-bat, fouled off some tough pitches and he ended up striking me out. "

"I feel like I'm going out there with more and more confidence and throwing all my pitches effectively," Feldman said. "My confidence in all my pitches is getting better and it makes it a lot easier to pitch when you're ahead in the count."

Both Michael Young (who had sprained his ankle in yesterday's game) and Ian Kinler sat out the game. Their replacements, Hank Blalock and Omar Vizquel, went a combined 5 for 9 with a run scored and one RBI.

C.J. Wilson closed the game out, picking of his 3rd save of the year.

Swept In Detroit

The next time Texas sees a trip to Detroit on the schedule, they might wanna seriously consider just staying home.

After dropping the final game of the three-game series, the Rangers have now lost 11 games in a row in Detroit.

The Tigers' Miguel Cabrera had an RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning, putting Detroit up 4-3. Texas wasn't able to overcome the deficit, dropping their third game in a row after having previously won seven straight.

Kevin Millwood pitched a complete game but walked four and allowed four earned runs, three via homeruns in both the 1st and 3rd innings.

"It's not like we're getting blown out every game," Texas starter Kevin Millwood said. "We're playing good baseball. We're just coming out on the short end. It's a good thing we don't have to come back here."



David Murphy and Nelson Cruz supplied all the offense for Texas getting little help from any other member of the lineup.

Feldman Solid As Rangers Take Over 1st Place In The AL West

Kris Benson may well have come off the disabled list but Scott Feldman is doing everything in his power to keep Benson's spot in the starting rotation.

Yesterday in Oakland, Feldman pitched a gem of a game, throwing six solid innings, allowing only two earned runs on 89 pitches. Since some struggles early in the season, Feldman is keeping the ball down, working quickly, and getting ground balls. He is now 2-0 with a 3.24 ERA in three starts and opponents are hitting .186 off him as a starter. They hit .355 off him as a reliever.

"He was really pounding the ball inside, especially to lefties," Athletics outfielder Travis Buck said. "He threw a lot of cutters, and when it's 91-93 and he's throwing it for strikes, that's a tough pitch to hit. And he did a nice job by showing his curveball and change early in the game, so it wasn't like you could just sit on one pitch. It was just tough to square balls up."

Feldman then gave way to rookie Derek Holland who pitched two scoreless innings, getting the first hold of his young career.

The 9th inning belonged to Frank Francisco who picked up his ninth save of the season, yops in the American League.



Texas got it's offense going thanks to a solo homerun in the 1st by rookie short stop Elvis Andrus. In the top of the 4th, Marlon Byrd singled into right field, followed by a line drive double by the scorching Nelson Cruz. David Murphy pushed Byrd across with a sacrifice fly. Chris Davis then plated Cruz with an RBI single to center.

Despite surrending two runs in the bottom of the inning, Feldman and Co. made the three runs stand up. Manager Ron Washington seems pleased with the progress the pitching staff has made since the beginning of the season.

"I hope it continues," Washington said. "We're getting better. We're progressing. Those guys are taking the ball and they're taking a lot of pride in what they're doing. The tone is set with starting pitching. We're playing great defense and we're getting timely hitting. The guys in the clubhouse deserve a lot of credit, especially the pitchers."

Texas now has a season high five game winning streak and, save for the first few games of this season, find themselves in first place of the AL West for the first time since June 14th, 2006. Veteran Michael Young wants everyone to keep things in perspective.

"First place is nice, but it means more to me that we're playing good baseball," said Young, who extended his current hitting streak to 10 games on Wednesday. "We're pitching extremely well and we're playing good defense. Those are two things we were really bearing down on in Spring Training. We knew our offense could score runs in bunches."