Ha! Josh Hamilton is awful*

The Twitter deal and all of social media nearly broke itself on Monday night with the news that Los Angeles Angels outfielder Josh Hamilton is simply awful.

In case you missed it, in a 19-inning loss at Oakland on Monday night, Josh went 0-for-8 with three strikeouts. On the good side, he did knock in an RBI to snap a streak of 12 consecutive games Hamilton went without a run batted in.

Right now, Hamilton is batting an impressive .219 with two homers and 8 RBI. At his current rate, he is projected to bat .202 with 13 home runs and 58 RBI this season.

The reality is $25 million a year just doesn't buy what it used to.
The other reality is that you can't expect his garbage first month as an Angel to hold forever. 

Free agents, especially a guy like Josh, need time to get used to their new life and new surroundings before the production takes off.

Part of my obligation as a journalist/columnist/blogger/big mouth/self righteous judge of all things life is to do this: Just prepare that Josh Hamilton's numbers will come around to reflect Josh Hamilton type numbers.

He is a career .300 hitter who averages around 24 home runs and 80-plus RBI per season. Expect that again.

I went back to review a handful of the big-time offseason free agents who changed teams to see how Josh's first month as an Angel compared to others. Here is the earth-shattering information I found:

Alex Rodriguez, Texas Rangers, 2001: .312, 7 HR, 21 RBI. Finished season .318, 52 HR, 135 RBI

Albert Pujols, LA Angels, 2012: .217, 0 HR, 4 RBI. Finished season .285, 30 HR, 105 RBI

Carlos Beltran, NY Mets, 2005. .284, 3 HR, 12 RBI. Finished season .266, 16 HR, 78 RBI

Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees, 2009. .200, 3 HR, 10 RBI. Finished season .292, 39 HR, 122 RBI

Jayson Werth, Washington Nationals, 2011. .221, 4 HR, 7 RBI. Finished season .232, 20 HR, 58 RBI

Jose Reyes, Miami Marlins, 2012. .220, 0 HR, 3 RBI. Finished season .287, 11 HR, 57 RBI

Prince Fielder, Detroit Tigers, 2012. .309, 3 HR, 11 RBI. Finished season .313, 30 HR, 108 RBI

 

What does it mean? Give this some time before saying Josh Hamilton is a bust.

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Video: Galloway & Big Mac debate Josh Hamilton's thoughts

 

 

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This former Texas Rangers should win the Cy Young in New York

Never easy to see a former Texas Ranger go out and kill it for a different team, especially after the original employer spent so much time and money to see it through, but it is really hard not to be happy for R.A. Dickey.

Goes to show you what a good knuckleball can do.

The New York Mets' season has once again been a stinking pile o' cat stuff, but Dickey has been fantastic as a starter. He is likely going to win the NL Cy Young award. His closest competition is going to be Gio Gonzalez of the Nationals and Johnny Cueto of the Reds.

On Thursday against the Pirates, Dickey improved to 20-6.

This season, Dickey has thrown a league-high 227.2 innings and 20-6 with a 2.69 ERA. How he won 20 games on that Mets team is amazing. The Mets are 72-84.

Dickey leads the National Leauge in innings, games started, wins and strikeouts. 

There simply is not a nicer guy in the bigs than R.A. Dickey.

 

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What a shock: Report says Red Sox players want Bobby Valentine out

Hope you weren't one of those who fell for the Bobby Valentine love letters from the many members of the FW/d and national media who expressed their love of this man after the Red Sox hired him.

As a media dork, it's hard not to like former Texas Rangers manager Bobby Valentine. He is affable, decent, approachable, professional, and good copy.

He is also a horrid fit for Boston, Mass.

According to this story by Yahoo baseball writer Jeff Passan, many of the Red Sox players have confronted team ownership about Bobby V and want him out.

The Red Sox are 57-59, and 11.5 games back of first place New York in the AL East. God knows it can't be the players' fault.

When the team hired him back in November I wrote this was a bad decision.

The Red Sox were ripe for a slide, and a guy like Bobby V was not the right fit. He wasn't the right fit for that clubhouse, and certainly not that market. In his defense, there may not be a manager alive right now who could survive that team in its present state. The Red Sox may be a harder job than the Yankees.

He is yet another manager being scapegoated by underachieving players. Bobby V can be charming, but with that charm comes a caustic tongue and a serious sharp wit that can be cutting.

These qualities don't make Bobby V a bad guy or a bad manager. He is a bad fit.

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Las Vegas still likes the Texas Rangers' chances to win the World Series

Despite the recent slump of your Texas Rangers professional baseball club, the good people in Las Vegas still like them. Like them as in win-the-World-Series like them.

After all of the recent moves throughout the league, most notably the Angels' acquiring Zack Greinke, the Rangers are still the team in Vegas.

According to a variety of betting websites, the Rangers still rank very high in terms of odds on favorite to win the World Series.

According to betvega.com, the Rangers are 5 to 1 favorites. The Angels are 15-2 and the Yankees are 19/4.

VegasInsider.com has the Rangers at 5/1, second to the Yankees' at 4-1 and ahead of the Angels, who are 6-1. The site LasVegasSportsBetting.com has the Rangers at 5-1.

Vegas.com has the Rangers currently at 9-1. They opened at 8-1. The Angels are 8-1.

BankrollSports.com has the Rangers as the favorites at 5 to 1.

 

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The Texas Rangers to interleague play returns; does it do it for you any more?

The lead for the Texas Rangers in the AL West is down to four games. They now begin a series in San Francisco against the Giants in a "re-match" of the World Series from two years ago.

This is the first of five consecutive inter-league series for your Rangers.

June 8 - 10: at SF
June 12 - 14: v. Arizona
June 15 - 17: v. Houston
June 18 - 20: at SD
June 22 - 24: Colorado

Do any of these series do anything for you?

Inter-league play was created to inject some interest into the game, and put some extra butts in seats in the hot months. What was first a cute novelty has now become an accepted portion of the schedule. The novelty is gone, and the purists who once complained about this break from tradition are no more.

Your interest level goes up based on the proximity of the opponent - LA v. Ana; SF vs. Oak.; Balt vs. Wash; Chi v. Chi; NY vs. NY; Houston v. Texas; Stl. vs. KC - or if the team has a bonafide star that never visits your town.

The interest level is a series by series, and team by team. 

It's no longer a question of whether it works because it's not going away. 

 

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Video: Galloway & Big Mac ponder the panic button for the Texas Rangers

 

 

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Yu Darvish's 2012 start vs. Fernando Valenzuela's 1981 start

Time to think outside of the sports comparison box, and that means Yu Darvish is not to be compared with another Japanese import. The Big Mac Blog is looking to Mexico for the last time a rookie kicked this much MLB tail this early.

Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is 6-1 with a 2.60 ERA after going 7 2/3 innings and allowing 1 run with 7 Ks against the Oakland A's on Wednesday night in Arlington.

The last time the MLB was this impressed by an import pitcher was a Mexican teenager with the L.A. Dodgers in Fernando Valenzuela. Fernando may have had a weird delivery, and a bit of a gut, but he was a great athlete. He was also pitching in the National League in more of a pitcher's era. 

When he broke into the bigs with the Dodgers in 1980 he did so as a 19-year-old reliever. In his first full year, in 1981, Fernando was a starter and finished 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA with a staggering 11 complete games and eight shutouts. 

As impressive as Yu's start is, Fernando's was brilliant.

Yu Darvish's first eight starts: 
1. 4/9 v. Sea, 5/2 ip, 8 hits, 1 er, 4 BB, 5 K   W, 11-5  (1-0)
2. 4/14 at Min, 5.2 ip, 9 hits, 2 er, 4 BB, 4 K  W, 6-2 (no decision)
3. 4/19 at Det, 6.1 ip, 2 hits, 1 er, 5 BB, 5 K  W 10-3 (2-0)
4. 4/24 v. NYY 8.1 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 2 BB, 10 K  W 2-0 (3-0)
5. 4/30 at Tor, 7 ip, 4 hits, 1 er, 2 BB, 9 K    W 4-1 (4-0)
6. 5/6 at Cle, 6 ip, 5 hits, 3 er, 4 BB, 11 K   L 4-2 (4-1)
7. 5/11 at Angels, 5.1 ip, 3 hits, 3 er, 3 BB, 7 K    W 10-3 (5-1)
8. 5/16 v. A's, 7.2 ip, 4 hits, 1 er, 2 BB, 7 K  W  W 3-1 (6-1)

Fernando Valenzuela's first 8 MLB starts (in 1981)
1. 4/9 v. Astros 9 ip, 5 hits, 0 er, 2 BB, 5 K   W, 2-0 (1-0; shutout)
2. 4/14 at SF Giants 9 ip, 4 hits, 1 er, 2 BB, 10 K  W, 7-1 (2-0; complete game)
3. 4/18 at Padres 9 ip, 5 hits, 0 er, 0 BB, 10 K  W, 2-0 (3-0; shutout) 
4. 4/22 at Astros 9 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 3 BB, 11 K   W, 1-0 (4-0, shutout)
5. 4/27 SF Giants 9 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 4 BB, 7 K  W, 5-0 (5-0, shutout)
6. 5/3 at Expos 9 ip, 5 hits, 1 er, 0 BB, 7 K   W, 6-1 (6-0, complete game)
7. 5/8 at NY Mets 9 ip, 7 hits, 0 er, 5 BB, 11 K   W, 1-0 (7-0, shutout)
8. 5/14 v. Expos W 9 ip, 3 hits, 2 er, 1 BB, 7 K   W, 3-2 (8-0, complete game)

 

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A chat with former Texas Rangers Josh Lewin on his book, Tom Hicks & Game 6

Josh Lewin was hired by the Rangers as their TV play by play man in 2001. He did it for 10 seasons before there was a mutual agreement to part ways. 

Lewin briefly had a sports radio talk show at 105.3 The Fan in Dallas before he returned to the baseball play by play gig, this time with the New York Mets on radio.

He is also the radio voice of the San Diego Chargers.

Lewin recently published a new book, "Ballgame! A decade covering the Texas Rangers from the best seat in the house".

Click here for its Amazon.com page.

He recently joined me to talk about his time with the Rangers, the legacy of former team owner Tom Hicks, and his book.

The Big Mac Blog: When you joined the Rangers people didn't like you, then you left and people missed you. Did you finally feel like you fit in?
Josh Lewin: It had that arc to it, didn't it? When you are the new guy you are upsetting the apple cart. I tell people all the time you have to be yourself. I kept doing what it is I do and thankfully enough people seemed to identify with it after a while which is great. That’s just the industry. Towards the end of my time there when the Rangers made it clear what they deemed to be philosophically correct wasn’t what I thought philosophically correct. I don’t think they were wrong. It was just agree to disagree.

The Big Mac Blog: What is that philosophy?
Josh Lewin: I think (the Rangers) value the game; the game is always the same and less is more and announcers are there to steer and to be more of a talking book mark than something than that would agitate in some way. That is fine. I felt like that when it's 3-3 in the eighth; when it's 10-2 in the third, that's different. That is my MO. I played it like Rusty Greer: I was all out and all over the place. They wanted a long strider

The Big Mac Blog: Regarding your book - When did you think the Rangers were in a place where they were going to be able to compete and not just be another Royals or Pirates?
Josh Lewin: Once it became apparent the value on the Mark Teixeira deal was amazing. They had shifted away from Chan Ho Park but they had begun to fill the farm system not just quantity but quality. When we saw that Neftali Feliz had something, that Elvis Andrus was the real deal and that maybe Matt Harrison was going to be able to do it it became apparent they had something to build on.

The Big Mac Blog: You and I may be in the minority but I've always thought Tom Hicks did some good things for this franchise with the decision to bottom out and take the long road; do you think that decision is erased by the way it ended?
Josh Lewin: I’m disappointed and saddened Tom’s legacy is what it is. I saw a guy who cared to a fault and was very decent who had every good intention every step of the way. The fact that it didn’t work on his watch is a shame. The success he had with the Dallas Stars right away fogged his glasses. He was the one who wanted me in and he agreed, and I’m not saying I’m right, but the games are supposed to have a certain cache. It’s supposed to be fun and exciting and irreverence is OK every once in a while as long as it's done in moderation.

The Big Mac Blog: You weren't with the team but what was your reaction to Game 6 of the 2011 World Series?
Josh Lewin: I was crushed like everybody, and most crushed for my kids.  We were in the living room watching. We were watching that ball going to right field, and hearing the anguish from my kids I am sure it was the same in every bar. I’m a fan, and it was devastating. I'll always be a Rangers fan. 

The Big Mac Blog: How is the new gig treating you?
Josh Lewin: It's great. The Mets were a franchise I grew up having growing up in New York. I had a connection to this team. It's a franchise that is OK with a pop culture reference. I'm really not judgemental or bitter about (leaving Texas) at all. It’s just wisdom. This is who I am and here is they are and step back and ask is this a good fit? It wasn't. I’m a total convert on that concept of fit. Be who you are and surround yourself with people who think that is cool. That's it.

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Boston Red Sox should have seen this coming with Bobby Valentine

Count me among the masses who scratched his head upon learning the Boston Red Sox hired former Texas Rangers manager Bobby Valentine to run the team.

Bobby Valentine. In Boston.

Baseball is baseball everywhere, but some markets are a better fit for certain personalities. Bobby V in Texas is OK. Bobby V in Boston does not feel like a fit.

The Red Sox begin a two-game series against the Texas Rangers in Boston on Tuesday. The season is not two weeks old and Bobby V made some headlines when he called out Kevin Youkalis. 

Now Bobby V had to issue an apology.

Bobby V doesn't do it intentionally or with any malice, but things have a way of coming out of his mouth that sound wrong. Valentine managed the Texas Rangers from 1986 to 1992 when he was fired. He later managed in Japan and the New York Mets, so it's not as if this is a dumb baseball man.

He is bright. He can be charming. He is candid. He is camera-ready, and always good for a quote or a sound bite. It's also about Bobby Valentine. He is a story. That can work in some markets, but in Boston it feels like a match around dry wood.

What Boston needed was not necessarily another Terry Francona, but a baseball guy who understood he was not the story. Francona may not be a baseball genius or see the game the way Bobby V does numbers wise, but Francona was smart enough to be a side character in the Red Sox traveling circus.

Terry Francona survived in Boston for eight seasons. The last time a Red Sox manager lasted that long was Joe Cronin in the 1940s.

Francona lasted because he won - two World Series, five playoffs - and because he managed personalities, and the media. Other than the Yankees, there is no harder gig in baseball than Red Sox manager. How you handle those who cover the team on a daily basis is almost as important in how you manage a starting rotation.

Tito was on the Texas Rangers' staff in 2002 when I covered the team, and he had the ability to roll with things as well as anyone. I vividly recall an '02 spring training game in Florida when a group of rowdy Phillies fans were mocking and ridiculing Tito, who had managed the Phillies in the late '90s. As he walked towards the dugout towards the fans, he waved and shot them a wide, sincere, smile. The fans were immediately happy, and Francona had made friends for life.

Francona had a way of difusing situations easily, whereas Valentine's personality will likely only encourage them. Valentine has a way of creating something where there is nothing. That's OK if you are in Texas. That's dangerous in Boston.

Much of the Red Sox job is about difusing situations, which is why Bobby Valentine in Boston never made any sense. 

 

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