Sunday, July 25, 2010

Boot Feldman

Chris Davis and Taylor Teagarden could not hit. They got sent to the minors. Salty had the yips and could not hit. Sent to the minors. Rich Harden could not throw strikes. Phantom injury to the disabled list. Matt Harrison could not throw strikes. Sent to the minors, and now the bullpen.

I bring this up because Scott Feldman has not thrown strikes, and when he does, the ball goes a long way. He is 5-9 with a 5.46 ERA. He has given up 154 hits in 119 innings.

Why is he getting a pass? It is almost comical listening to the broadcast and hearing them start after start saying, "Hopefully Scott turns it around this start." With Derek Holland getting close to a return, the Texas Rangers have a big decision to make. Do they send Feldman to the minors, or the bullpen? They have been adamant that the top 25 players in the organization are going to be at the big league level. They obviously want the top 12 pitchers here, and right now, Feldman is not one of the top 12.

Eventually, Holland and Tanner Scheppers will be up, and they have to decide who goes down. Feldman has a future with this team given his contract, but management has shown with Harden that contracts do not give you a spot on the team.

This team is special. They are winning with pitching, and Feldman is not contributing to that at all. With Cliff Lee, Colby Lewis, CJ Wilson and Tommy Hunter pitching so well, you would like for the 5th starter to be reliable.

I am all for Holland to take his spot, but I don't make those decisions.

Rangers' management has been very consistent. I you don't perform, you don't have a spot. Feldman, I would start looking for an apartment in Oklahoma City or Frisco.

As always, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at john@bigbadsportsdaddy.com or call or text the bbsd phone at 469-212-3167.

Peace Out,
John Conner

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Cuban buying Rangers

I am on the fence as to whether or not I actually want Mark Cuban to buy the Texas Rangers. I really hope that Cuban just decides to back Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan.

We shall see.

Cuban is a hands on owner, but at the same time, he seems to let Donnie Nelson do the basketball side of the Dallas Mavericks. Would Cuban be able to stay out of the way? I am not sure and at the same time, I don't know that I care.

I am seriously getting to the point where I just want this whole thing to be over. Tom Hicks dragged this out, and now the lenders and courts are doing the same thing.

I think Cuban could stay out of the way, and I think he would do whatever it took to be competitive financially. There is no cap in baseball, and I think Cuban would spend. My biggest problem with Cuban would be, will he bring a baseball man in here to run the day to day operations, like a say...Nolan Ryan.

We are witnessing one of the greatest baseball seasons down here, and all the talk is about the ownership. This needs to get done, and quickly.

My ultimate goal, would be to get Nolan, Chuck and Mark on the same page and move from there. It is no coincidence that this team has been successful under Ryan and Jon Daniels. It needs to keep moving in that same direction, whether it is owned by Cuban or me.

Just get it done...NOW!!!

I would love to hear from you, so either email me at john@bigbadsportsdaddy.com or call or text the bbsd phone at 469-212-3167.

Peace, John Conner

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Kudos to Jon Daniels

I know it has been written about, talked about and such, but I really don't think Jon Daniels and his crew are getting as much credit as they should. This is the first move they have made in a long while that suggests they are going for it all...NOW.

I have been on the JD fire bandwagon for some time for trading Adrian Gonzalez and John Danks. I have slowly gotten closer to getting off the fire bandwagon after the Mark Texiera trade and the low buy-high reward signings he has made the last couple of off seasons.

Signing Vladamir Guerrero and Colby Lewis were genius. Sure, the Rich Harden signing looks bad, but 1 out of 5 is not bad.

But what he has done the last couple of weeks, without any money, is down right amazing. Getting San Fransisco to pay for Bengie Molina to play here was awesome. He is the type of catcher this pitching staff needs, and he is an upgrade offensively. Then, the Cliff Lee trade was flat out amazing. I will miss Justin Smoak and still thinks he will be a stud in the majors for a long time, but Lee is arguably one of the top 5 pitchers in baseball. And to be honest, I don't think Daniels is through. I still think he will add a right handed hitting first baseball, whether it is Ty Wiggington or Xavier Nady.

I guess I am just in awe right now that the Ranger staff said 3 years ago that 2010 was the year they go for it, and they are. The minor leagues are still stacked with Derek Holland, Tanner Scheppers, Martin Perez, Mitch Moreland and so on and on.

And did I mention that Daniels is doing this with NO MONEY? He is being creative, but most importantly, he is putting a winning ball club out on the field.

A week ago, I was ok going to war with Colby Lewis, CJ Wilson and then whomever. But now, I am ecstatic to go with Cliff Lee, Colby Lewis and CJ Wilson in a playoff series.

It is getting to where now I am looking a playoff match-ups. I haven't done that in 10 years, and whether you want to or not, most of the credit should go to Jon Daniels.

I would love to hear from you. Send me a message at john@bigbadsportsdaddy.com.

Peace

Sunday, July 4, 2010

The End of an Icon

Mike Modano has been told that he is no longer welcome as a player, but would be welcomed back if he wants to go into management. There is only one problem: Modano can still play.

He is not the 50 goal scorer he was in the early 90s, but he is the perfect 3rd line center. He plays solid defense, and he can score.

I get it. The Dallas Stars are trying to get younger and are working on a budget. My main question is, how do you market this team? They are gonna stink, and they need to rebuild, and are on a budget(thanks again Tom Hicks). But Mike Modano has been the face on the franchise, and sold hockey in this football town. Now, with the exception of the Cowboys, The Stars fans are the most loyal.

But if Modano thinks he can still play, then why not let him play here. How awkward was it so see Tony Dorsett in a Bronco's uniform, or even Emmitt Smith in a Cardinal's uniform. I will not like the site of Modano wearing a Red Wing's sweater, or a Capital's sweater.

To put his impact into perspective, if you made a Mount Rushmore of Dallas Sports, who would be on it. Emmitt, Troy, Roger, Dirk and Mike. If you ask 99% of sports' fans in the DFW area to name a Dallas Star, the first name out of their mouth is Mike Modano.

I think the Stars are doing a major injustice the the greatest American born player in NHL history. You could easily market Mike and the young guys. And who better to mentor the young guys than Mike. He could teach them about loyalty, respect, and how to score. The sure fire first ballot Hall of Famer deserves the right to decide when he is done playing and the Dallas Stars should show him the same respect by letting him continue his career here. It was just 3 years ago when Modano took a pay cut so the Stars could sign players. He has done everything the team has ever asked, and you are telling him, " Thanks, but go away."

I think eventually Modano will come back and work in the Stars' front office, but under a new owner, and if he keeps making these crappy decisions, a new GM. Joe, I like you, but this was a bad move on your part.

Mike, I think I speak for every Stars' fan when I say thank you very much for everything you did for this franchise. You played the game the right way, and it was a honor to call you our guy. Good Luck.

As always, if you like it or don't, let me here from you, john@bigbadsportsdaddy.com

Peace out.