Category Archives: Texas Rangers

Raining in St. Louis? Fiddley Diddley Dee.

Posted on October 26, 2011 | Leave a comment

I thought you might enjoy this little filler video while the rains come down in St. Louis,  postponing tonight’s game.  This one’s courtesy of Sooze over at Babes Love Baseball.  I especially got a little chuckle out of her last comment.   Oh to be young again with so much energy …..

“In case you somehow missed this video of an absolutely adorable member of the Rangers Ballpark grounds crew randomly busting a move between the sixth and seventh innings of Game 4… please do enjoy.  Ian Kinsler was not impressed, but we totally are.  (Call me when you turn 18!)

Update: We were just informed that this guy is 28. He just became like a billion times more attractive.”

As only Sooze can say it!

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Game 5. Rangers Texas 2-Stepping all the way to Missouri!

Posted on October 25, 2011 | Leave a comment

The Texas Rangers are flying high all the way back to Missouri, and without an airplane, so I’m told.   They beat the Cardinals 4-2  and are one game away from winning it all!

Here are some excerpts from a  pretty good ditty on the game  in case you haven’t seen one of the hundreds out there.  This one’s from the Huffington Post ;

“ARLINGTON,Texas— Mike Napoli was dialed in, no matter who he was going to face.

A charmed season for Napoli and the Texas Rangers got even better Monday night, thanks to a most unlikely twist – a bullpen telephone mix-up.

After a dropped ball and a dropped call, of sorts, loaded the bases in the eighth inning, Napoli delivered a tie breaking two-run double that beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4-2 and gave Texas a 3-2 edge in the World Series. Continue reading →

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Game 4. Mr. Holland’s Opus ….. Derek that is.

Posted on October 24, 2011 | Leave a comment

Texas Rangers Derek Holland

If revenge were anywhere in Derek Holland’s vocabulary I’d say he sure got his tonight!  I’m remembering Game 2 of the 2010 World Series.  Young Holland was brought in during the eighth inning where he proceeded to allow three walks and three runs before they took him out.  I felt bad for the kid and said so in my blog, ” Day 2. Texas Cain-Saw Massacre” .  Well there’s no feeling sorry for him tonight.  He’s quite the hero and rightly so!  Here’s Craig Calcaterra”s take on it from his Hardball blog:

“Craig Calcaterra  Oct 23, 2011, 11:25 PM EDT

We have a Classic on Our Hands!

2011 World Series Game 4 - Texas Rangers v St Louis Cardinals

“When do you know that a classic World Series is afoot? We certainly know it when it’s over. But at what point as it’s happening can one safely say that, yes, we’re seeing something special? The kind of series that only comes along once or twice a decade? Something memorable? Continue reading →

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Posted in A1 Baseball, General, St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers

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Game 3. Prince Albert at Home on the Range!

Posted on October 23, 2011 | Leave a comment

Albert Pujols "The Dude"!

Please bear with me as I’m in a major battle with the awful yucky flu and even though I’m able to watch the games,  surrounded by mounds of tissues and left-over tea bags, I don’t have my wits about me enough to write.  Also, I was so focused on Prince Albert I’m sure my blog would have been more about  gushing and oohhing over him and not really being very  objective.    Hardball Talk to the rescue!   Here’s a great little clip from “Drew Silva” that gives us another slant on the complicated Mr. Pujols and pretty much says it all:

“Drew Silva  Oct 23, 2011, 12:53 AM EDT   Reuters

Albert Pujols rounding bases during one of three home runs!

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols drew heavy amounts of criticism for leaving the Busch Stadium clubhouse before talking to the media following Thursday’s Game 2 loss. A few national baseball writers even questioned his leadership, given that younger players like Jason Motte, Jon Jay and Allen Craig were left to handle all of the heat.

Let’s go ahead and toss that narrative aside. It never really made much sense in the first place.

Pujols put together one of the greatest single-game performances in World Series history during Saturday night’s 16-7 Game 3 trouncing of the Rangers, finishing 5-for-6 with three home runs, six RBI and four runs scored. He tallied 14 total bases, breaking a longstanding Fall Classic record and vaulting himself into the elite rung of postseason performers.

Babe Ruth. Reggie Jackson. Albert Pujols.

Those are the only three men in the history of baseball to launch three home runs in a World Series game.

Leadership — true leadership — is something that has to be built and then cultivated through consistent, physical examples. It’s never been established through words alone, nor has it ever been betrayed by a single, rare mistake. What Pujols did Thursday night in St.  Louis was wrong.  Answering questions is part of being a professional. But to suggest that the other players in the Cardinals’ dugout somehow lost faith or respect in baseball’s greatest right-handed slugger was a stretch from the start. A failed assumption.

Pujols left no doubt on Saturday night in Arlington,Texas, with those scribes who questioned him looking on in awe. He answered the call and then some. And now his Cardinals hold an improbable 2-1 lead in the seven-game Fall Classic. Have we mentioned, already, that this series has the feel of an instant classic?”

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Game 2. Texas Rangers Pluck Some Feathers Tonight!

Posted on October 20, 2011 | Leave a comment

Texas Rangers celebrate Game 2 win over Cardinals

The Texas Rangers are leaving town with the Cardinals singing the blues …. St. Louis Blues that is after staging  a ninth inning rally that  won the game for them.  Final score:  Rangers 3 – Cardinals 2.   Well for sure I can’t use the 2010 Game 2 as a blog opener this year.  Last year the Giants shut out the Rangers 9-0 in Game 2.   Entirely different game this year.   For one thing I just couldn’t get enough of the Elvis & Ian dynamic. Elvis Andrus and Ian Kinsler may be the best all-around double-play combo in the game.   At least tonight they were.   Pretty impressive stuff coming from the Texas Rangers.  I have to admit we have ourselves a real World Series folks.

Elvin Andrus & Ian Kinsler Double Play Magic!

Highlight of this game?  In the 5th inning all eyes were on the Texas Rangers as Elvis Andrus  flipped the ball off the tip of his fingers to Ian Kinsler, forcing out Jaime Garcia on his way to 2nd, on a hit by the Card’s Rafael Furcal.  This is one of those plays that needs to be seen on a video and was the highlight of the game for me.   There were several antics like this during the game, but the Rangers waited until the ninth inning to score adding to the anticipation this world series is going to seven!   I love this stuff!

Since we’re leaving St. Louis and heading to Arlington, Texas for Saturday’s game, I wanted to share this picture with you.  For some reason I never really associated the Budweiser Clydesdales  with St. Louis.  But here they are in grand fashion posing for ooh’s and aah’s.

The Budweiser Clydesdales enjoying the game!

Next Game Saturday, October 22, at Ranger Stadium.  Game time 5:05pm.
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Game 1. Texas Can’t Hold ‘Em!

Posted on October 20, 2011 | Leave a comment

“Who would have thought it?  Cardinals 3, Rangers 2.   I had almost as much fun watching the sports pundits after the game as I did watching the game itself.  Well, almost.”

What better quote than using the exact opener I used on last year’s Game 1 blog replacing, of course, the Giants with Cardinals.    I watched the media before the game throughout the day and the odds were 80% in favor of Texas “going all the way”.  And, of course they may, but at least the odds are right now, today, just a little in favor of the St. Louis Cardinals.  Winners of Game one go on to win it all  in 60% of the World Series played to date.

One of the memorable quotes from the game, “It’s a five letter word S- T- R- I- K- E ” as only Tim McCarver could utter at the end of the 6th inning.

For those who like to know about the key moments, here are two, courtesy of NPR’s Tom Goldman’s report for Morning Edition:

Chris Carpenter on a "Defensive" slide into 1st Base.

“— The coolest play came in the first inning. Cards pitcher Chris Carpenter covered the bag at first base, and had to dive to the ground to get the ball tossed his way by first baseman Albert Pujols. “Carpenter dove for the ball and as his long frame hit the ground he tagged the base with his glove hand, at the same time pulling his pitching hand away to protect it from the batter’s oncoming cleats,” Tom says. “How cool to see a pitcher getting dirty.”

The play, Tom added, “served notice that the game, perhaps the Series, is going to be a diving for every out, clawing for every run affair.”

Allen Craig's "off the bench" hit to score the winning run.

— The biggest play came in the sixth inning when Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa sent pinch hitter Allen Craig to the plate in place of Carpenter. Craig’s hit to right field was dropped by Ranger outfielder Nelson Cruz. That drove in the winning run. LaRussa’s savvy use of his bench and bullpen came through again.”

Game 2 – Tonight at Busch Stadium, St. Louis at 5:05 pm televised on Fox.

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Texas Rangers Cruz to the Pennant Sans Lee!

Posted on October 15, 2011 | 2 comments

Texas Rangers ~ 2011 ALCS Champions

Congratulations to the American League Pennant winner, the Texas Rangers and their MVP Nelson Cruz!

The Texas Rangers, 2010 American League Champions, have done it again, this time on Cruz control! The Detroit Tigers fell like dominoes tonight, one after another, until there was nothing left.   The Rangers scored twelve runs tonight showing no mercy, stealing a base with a 9 run lead, grabbing high fly balls off the back wall like fly swatters and bowling the Tigers over like Tony was standing around hovering over a bowl of frosted flakes.   Triumphant if you were a Rangers fan; not so much for the Tigers.   For the second year in a row the Texas Rangers plowed through the New York Yankees to get to this point and I think it’s about time to admit this team’s for real!

Nelson Cruz, 2011 ALCS MVP

MVP for the ALCS was Nelson Cruz who homered six times and had 13 RBIs, a Major League record for the series.   Cruz was an easy choice for series MVP.  He went 8 for 22 (.364), with every hit going for extra bases and his two non-homers were doubles. Consider these feats by the 2011 ALCS  MVP:

  • He hit the first game-ending grand slam in postseason history.
  • He became the first player with extra-inning homers in two games of one series.
  •  He became the franchise’s career postseason home run king.

Cliff Lee ~ 2010 World Series Press Conference

And one more thing……I just have to say this … they did it this time without Cliff Lee.   Remember Lee?  He’s the one who left the Texas Rangers after last year’s World Series play to find a team who could win the World Series.  He by-passed the Yankees and settled in with the Phillies for the 2011 season.   The Texas Rangers begged him to stay but to no avail and now the Texas Rangers are going to the World Series and Cliff Lee is not.  C’est La Vie.

Detroit Manager Jim Leyland & Miguel Cabrera

Note:  Did anyone else notice the little swat on the bum Detroit Manager Jim Leyland gave Miguel Cabrera as he dejectedly walked back from the strike-out pounding he’d just received from pitcher Olexi Ogando?  I’m pretty sure Leyland knew he was witnessing the demise of the Tigers in the series at that point.  It was an endearing moment, just a manager and one of his kids hanging on ’til that very last out in the game.

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Predicting the Division Winners …… Oops!

Posted on September 29, 2011 | 2 comments

And we're off to the races again!

Last March I wrote a blog entitled “2011 Postseason Predictions” and I’m here to say with all my opinions and wisdom in the world of baseball , I was able to correctly predict two teams, one from the National League and one from the American League.    That’s 25% folks, I say as I’m looking for those wet noodles and a carton of eggs to slather around my face.

I mean, who knew?  The only two teams that I predicted to win that actually won were the Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Phillies.  The Phillies, of course, were a no-brainer, but I was very proud to stick my neck out in prediction of the Tigers.  So be it.

If you were lucky enough to catch one or both of the games last night you were in for a real treat!   Whatta thrill!  Down to the wire!  Reminds me of last year’s Giants – Padres game, the 162nd game, 9th inning and last out.   I still get goosebumps remembering the thrill of it all.

In case you’ve been in a coma these past 24 hours or otherwise indisposed, here’s the 2011 Division Winners:

American League 

  • New York Yankees, East
  • Detroit, Central
  • Texas, West
  • Tampa Bay, Wild Card
National League
  • Philadelphia, East
  • Milwaukee, Central
  • Arizona, West
  • St Louis, Wild Card
So here we are six months later in post season.   Predictions?  I think I’ll wait a bit and get back to you on that……it’s hard to write with a bunch of egg on my face. 
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Posted in A1 Baseball, General, Arizona Diamondbacks, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers

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Update: 2011 MLB Payrolls & Individual Salaries.

Posted on August 27, 2011 | 2 comments

Courtesy TTF Baseball

Here’s the 2011 update to our 2010 Major League Baseball listing published November 22, 2010.  This comes to us compliments of USA Today.  If you’ll click the individual teams, you can access the individual players salaries.  It will be interesting to note the annual salaries of the teams that make the playoffs;  in other words, did they get what they paid for?

 TEAM                          TOTAL P/R             AVG SALARY       MEDIAN

New York Yankees

$ 202,689,028

$ 6,756,300

$ 2,100,000
Philadelphia Phillies

$ 172,976,379

$ 5,765,879

$ 2,625,000
Boston Red Sox

$ 161,762,475

$ 5,991,202

$ 5,500,000
Los Angeles Angels

$ 138,543,166

$ 4,469,134

$ 2,000,000
Chicago White Sox

$ 127,789,000

$ 4,732,925

$ 2,750,000
Chicago Cubs

$ 125,047,329

$ 5,001,893

$ 1,600,000
New York Mets

$ 118,847,309

$ 4,401,752

$ 900,000
San Francisco Giants

$ 118,198,333

$ 4,377,716

$ 2,200,000
Minnesota Twins

$ 112,737,000

$ 4,509,480

$ 3,000,000
Detroit Tigers

$ 105,700,231

$ 3,914,823

$ 1,300,000
St. Louis Cardinals

$ 105,433,572

$ 3,904,947

$ 1,000,000
Los Angeles Dodgers

$ 104,188,999

$ 3,472,966

$ 2,142,838
Texas Rangers

$ 92,299,264

$ 3,182,733

$ 1,251,000
Colorado Rockies

$ 88,148,071

$ 3,390,310

$ 2,318,750
Atlanta Braves

$ 87,002,692

$ 3,346,257

$ 1,275,000
Seattle Mariners

$ 86,524,600

$ 2,884,153

$ 825,000
Milwaukee Brewers

$ 85,497,333

$ 2,849,911

$ 1,050,000
Baltimore Orioles

$ 85,304,038

$ 3,280,924

$ 1,425,000
Cincinnati Reds

$ 75,947,134

$ 2,531,571

$ 825,000
Houston Astros

$ 70,694,000

$ 2,437,724

$ 467,000
Oakland Athletics

$ 66,536,500

$ 2,376,303

$ 1,400,000
Washington Nationals

$ 63,856,928

$ 2,201,963

$ 1,050,000
Toronto Blue Jays

$ 62,567,800

$ 2,018,316

$ 1,200,000
Florida Marlins

$ 56,944,000

$ 2,190,153

$ 545,000
Arizona Diamondbacks

$ 53,639,833

$ 1,986,660

$ 1,000,000
Cleveland Indians

$ 49,190,566

$ 1,639,685

$ 484,200
San Diego Padres

$ 45,869,140

$ 1,479,649

$ 468,800
Pittsburgh Pirates

$ 45,047,000

$ 1,553,344

$ 450,000
Tampa Bay Rays

$ 41,053,571

$ 1,578,983

$ 907,750
Kansas City Royals

$ 36,126,000

$ 1,338,000

$ 850,000
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Garlic Fries and Baseball: The Book

Posted on August 12, 2011 | 6 comments

Update:  Now available at Amazon as Book and Kindle.

Finally it’s here!  My book’s been in the works since February and  it’s being published today.  It’s available for sale here first, and will be available on Amazon.com early next week and in Kindle form  soon thereafter.

The book’s a compilation of some of my favorite blogs, some in expanded form, with a few little ditties added in and formatted in such a way you’ll hardly recognize it!  I have to admit ~ writing a book is a great experience, but it’s much easier writing a blog!

Let me know what you think but please be kind.   This is my debut you know ♥   Ronni

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Posted in A1 Baseball, General, A2 Ballparks, A3 Ballpark Food, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals

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MLB Standings vs MLB Payrolls …. How do they measure?

Posted on May 17, 2011 | 4 comments

Okay, so we’re maybe 25% through the 2011 Major League Baseball Season.  How is your team doing?  How is your team doing in relation to their total payroll?  In other words, are they getting what they paid for?

Here’s an interesting article published by Hayes & Taylor recently.  I’m always amazed at the amount of work some of these guys put into their daily blogs;  I mean who has time for this stuff?   In any event, this is a great chart and one of the better blogs and I wanted to share it with you.

“The Cleveland Indians are in first place in the AL Central. They have the fifth lowest payroll in all of baseball. Which got me thinking, how do the other teams in the MLB rank in the standings relative to their payroll. It turns out that the Indians aren’t even the best example right now.

The Tampa Bay Rays have the second lowest payroll in the majors. The are currently in first place in the power packed AL East. Ahead of the number one payroll in baseball the Yankees, the number three payroll in Boston and numbers 19 and 24 in Baltimore and Toronto. The Royals, Marlins and A’s are all over .500, and are all in the bottom ten payrolls in the league. Not to mention all are very alive in the playoff races.

If the season ended today, four of the eight playoff teams would come from the bottom eleven in payroll (Rays, Indians, Marlins, Reds). On the other side, only three would be coming from the top eight in payroll (Angels, Phillies and Giants).

What does this all mean? Talent wins in baseball and not always how much you pay for that talent. If money was how you win, the Yankees would win every year, but they don’t. That makes me very happy. I love to see underdogs win. I love the fact that some of the lower payroll teams won’t be trading away all of their talent this season to teams who will pay whatever it takes. Baseball is stronger than ever right now.

Click here to link to a chart that shows  where all 30 teams in major league baseball rank in payroll and where they are currently in the standings. Is your team over or under achieving?”

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Posted in A1 Baseball, General, Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals

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Top Baseball Players of Past 59 Years!

Posted on December 14, 2010 | Leave a comment

“2010 Baseball Players Mathematical Study, written by Don Davis, Department of Mathematics, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA., and printed here with his permission.”

(GFBB Note:  I found this  information fascinating and posted the 2009 study last August.  This is the 2010 updated version with a few variations.  You can view the entire study here:  http://www.lehigh.edu/~dmd1/baseball.html    It explains the  criteria used and the history behind the study as well as a wealth of other information related to it.  You can contact Dr. Davis directly for more information regarding the list@ dmd1@lehigh.edu )

Pos’n First team Second team Third team Fourth team Fifth team
P,1 Roger Clemens, 266.0 Tom Seaver, 181.1 Bob Gibson, 140.4 Juan Marichal, 107.9 Phil Niekro, 84.9
P,2 Randy Johnson, 202.1 Warren Spahn, 167.5 Sandy Koufax, 137.8 Gaylord Perry, 102.8 Johan Santana, 84.6
P,3 Greg Maddux, 197.5 Bob Feller, 157.6 Robin Roberts, 136.5 Fergie Jenkins, 87.2 Roy Halladay, 84.1
P,4 Pedro Martinez, 187.5 Steve Carlton, 143.5 Jim Palmer, 133.2 Curt Schilling, 85.1 Nolan Ryan, 83.7
C Johnny Bench, 112.9 Yogi Berra, 94.9 Gary Carter, 77.3 Mike Piazza, 76.6 Ivan Rodriguez, 72.7
1B Albert Pujols, 158.9 Jeff Bagwell, 99.9 Eddie Murray, 91.6 Willie McCovey, 88.4 Harmon Killebrew, 80.8
2B Joe Morgan, 140.6 Rod Carew, 100.5 Ryne Sandberg, 94.8 Jackie Robinson, 93.8 Roberto Alomar, 81.1
3B Mike Schmidt, 184.1 George Brett, 120.9 Eddie Mathews, 112.2 Wade Boggs, 110.5 Brooks Robinson, 105.1
SS Alex Rodriguez, 151.9 Cal Ripken, 121.6 Ernie Banks, 97.6 Robin Yount, 88.2 Derek Jeter, 83.4
OF,1 Barry Bonds, 270.7 Stan Musial, 208.6 Frank Robinson, 141.2 Al Kaline, 119.2 Reggie Jackson, 111.5
OF,2 Willie Mays, 243.2 Mickey Mantle, 208.3 Rickey Henderson, 138.4 Ken Griffey, 117.1 Pete Rose, 99.4
OF,3 Ted Williams, 219.8 Hank Aaron, 201.3 Carl Yazstremski, 131.8 Roberto Clemente, 112.1 Tony Gwynn, 97.1
DH Frank Thomas, 101.0 Paul Molitor, 58.8 Edgar Martinez, 53.4

 

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