The OFFICIAL Texas Rangers thread

[GTBrian23]

At the end of the day you gotta have what the other person wants. Thats twice this off-season we have struck out on trades for good pitchers because of this

[mustang_marc]

Looks like the Rangers tried to go after Garza.

According to Peter Gammons, the Rangers went hard after Matt Garza this week. Club officials made it clear this winter that they were interested in Garza and apparently they tried very hard. Gammons said the Rangers tried to get outfielder Robinson Chirinos from the Cubs and package him in a deal along with pitchers Derek Holland and Frank Francisco, and Minor League outfielder Engel Beltre. But the Rays preferred what they were getting from Chicago because the Cubs were willing to put pitcher Chris Archer in the deal. A source said the Rays were close to doing business with the Rangers, but told the Cubs they could get Garza if they included Archer in the deal.

The Cubs huddled and decided to do the deal. If they had said no, the Rangers would have added Garza to the rotation. The Rays ultimately really wanted Archer.

[GTBrian23]

As far as I know he is still on the market. Not sure we have the cash flow to add him to more than a one year deal. Not with all the money we will have to pay Hamilton, Cruz etc in the near future. Wouldnt mind giving him a 1-2 year deal if he would take it

[0 GT 2]

Where did Pavano end up going?

[bucky]

From what i understand, the Cubs gave up a ton to get Garza. He can now die a slow death in the pitchers wasteland that is Wrigley Field. Pitchers and the Cubs just don't seem to make it.

I am content to head to spring training with what we have. No one out there really excites me and definatly not worth our top prospects. There will be some pitching that will come available before the trade deadline and i expect the Rangers to be players

[mustang_marc]

Looks like Garza is off the market now...

There is a deal in place to send Matt Garza from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Chicago Cubs, pending physicals, sources say. The Cubs' interest in the 27-year-old right-hander has been well-documented.

Outfielder Fernando Perez and a possible third player will also be going to Chicago. In exchange the Rays will get Chris Archer, Hak-Ju Lee, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos and Sam Fuld. Archer and Lee are considered top prospects, but the Cubs managed to hang on to Starlin Castro, Tyler Colvin and Brett Jackson, their very best young players.

Archer, a 22-year-old righty, went 8-2 with a 1.30 ERA in 13 starts at Double A in 2010. Lee, a 20-year-old shortstop from Korea, has batted .299 in two seasons in professional baseball, none higher than Class A, while racking up 57 stolen bases. Guyer is a 24-year-old outfielder who played at Double A in 2010, Chirinos is a 26-year-old who was recently converted to catcher, and Fuld is a 29-year-old outfielder who has played 98 games in the majors in parts of three seasons.

The Cubs now have a very good starting rotation that has great depth. In addition to Garza, the Cubs have Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster and Andrew Cashner as their likely top four with veterans Carlos Silva, Randy Wells and Tom Gorzelany in contention for the No. 5 spot.

Garza will not be a free agent until after the 2013 season but he is eligible for arbitration this year for the first time. The Rays have been looking to lower their payroll from last season and have already lost 2010 AL All-Stars Carl Crawford and Joaquin Benoit to free agency, among others. Carlos Pena, another All-Star last season, already bolted Tampa Bay for the Cubs during last month's winter meetings.

In 2010, Garza pitched a no-hitter against the Tigers, part of a season in which he established career highs in wins (15) and innings pitched (204 2/3). In parts of five major league seasons, Garza has gone 42-44 with a 3.93 ERA and three shutouts.

[SC457A]

No big loss in Ramirez. I was really surprised Salty never made it. I thought he was the stud of that Texiera trade and would lock our catcher spot down for the next 7-10 years

I think Salty's injuries had a lot to do with it. Seems like he rushed back from the surgery he had, never fully recovered. All his down time slowed down his development. Then he got a tad impatient when he was stuck in AAA.

Ramirez is just like Chris Davis. Good AAA player, just can't make it in the show.

[bucky]

No big loss in Ramirez. I was really surprised Salty never made it. I thought he was the stud of that Texiera trade and would lock our catcher spot down for the next 7-10 years

[mustang_marc]

The Rangers lost Max Ramirez tonight. Red Sox claimed him off waivers.

BOSTON -- Thirteen months ago, the Red Sox thought they were about to trade for catching prospect Max Ramirez, only to have it fall through when Mike Lowell -- the player who was supposed to go to the Rangers -- failed his physical.

This time, there were no such technicalities that could get between Boston and Ramirez. On Wednesday, the Red Sox claimed Ramirez off waivers from the Rangers.

As for Ramirez, the Rangers had designated him for assignment on Jan. 3. Ramirez becomes the second former Texas catching prospect to come to Boston within the last year, joining Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

In fact, Saltalamacchia is expected to be the primary catcher for the Red Sox this season, teaming with captain Jason Varitek.

Ramirez will provide the organization with some additional depth behind the plate.

The 26-year-old from Venezuela played 28 games for the Rangers in 2010, hitting .217 with two homers and eight RBIs in 69 at-bats. It was his first stint in the Majors since '08, when he hit .217 with two homers and nine RBIs in 46 at-bats.

Ramirez is a veteran of 563 Minor League games, hitting .298 with 72 homers and 358 RBIs.

[0 GT 2]

Young to be Rangers' DH. The Rangers will not go after Vlad.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110105&content_id=16395876&vkey=news_tex&c_id=tex&partnerId=rss_tex

Young puts Rangers first with move to DH
By T.R. Sullivan / MLB.com | 01/05/11 6:50 PM EST
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ARLINGTON -- Michael Young is not giving up the idea of being a regular defensive player at some point in his career. But he comes back to one reason why he is willing to move to designated hitter in order to make room for free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre.

"I want to play with the Rangers," Young said on Wednesday after the club agreed to terms with Beltre on a six-year, $96 million contract. Beltre, a two-time Gold Glove winner, will be Texas' primary third baseman, a position Young played the past two seasons.

He was the Rangers' third baseman this past season when they went to the World Series for the first time in club history, before losing to the Giants in five games.



Young switching positions again
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1/4/11: MLB Network on where Rangers captain Michael Young will play if the team signs free-agent Adrian Beltre
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"We won last year," Young said. "It's tough to go to the World Series and lose. I want to go back there and win with this team. I love my teammates, there is no secret about that. We have a good thing going in the clubhouse. That plus the fact that I live here, my family is comfortable here and my sons were born here.

"This is where I want to play. This is where I want to make the biggest impact on my career."

The Rangers will accommodate that request. Young said that he has been told he will not be traded.

"That's been made pretty clear," said Young, who has a limited no-trade clause in his contract and can veto any trade after May when he becomes a 10-and-5 player -- one with a decade in the league and five seasons with his current team.

Manager Ron Washington, at a press conference introducing Beltre on Wednesday, said Young will be the Rangers' primary designated hitter. The Rangers will not re-sign Vladimir Guerrero. Washington said Young will also play all infield positions, including first base. That's the only infield position Young hasn't played regularly at the Major League level.

"He'll be my designated hitter and move around the infield on days when I want to give people a day off," Washington said. "We will give him a chance to play first base. Whenever we get a chance to get Michael Young in the lineup, we will."

Washington said Young will not be asked to play the outfield.

"We're fine in the outfield," Washington said.

Young, who made his Major League debut at the end of the 2000 season and started playing regularly in May 2001, has played 416 games at second base, 787 games at shortstop and 293 games at third base. He has never played first base.

The Rangers are expecting rookie Mitch Moreland, a left-handed hitter, to be their primary first baseman, but Young could complement him as a right-handed hitter.

"If I have to get the majority of my at-bats at designated hitter, then that's the way it has to be," Young said. "... I'm a baseball player. I'll move around a lot but I expect to be productive no matter where I will play.

"Obviously getting work at first base will be new but the other positions I've played before and I'll be comfortable with them."

Young was originally selected by the Blue Jays in the fifth round of the 1997 Draft. He was traded to the Rangers in 2000 while he was still in the Minor Leagues and has been with the franchise ever since.

He is the Rangers' all-time leader in at-bats, hits and doubles and will likely pass Rafael Palmeiro for most runs scored and games played this season. He was the club's starting second baseman from 2001-03 before moving to shortstop in '04 and became the starting third baseman in '09 to make room for shortstop Elvis Andrus.

Young made it clear that he still believes he can be a productive defensive player but is willing to do this for the good of the team and play for a World Series championship team.

"I don't take these moves lightly," Young said. "I don't just take it on the chin. I sent out to accomplish certain goals, and if I have to make adjustments, I will. But that doesn't change my goals and what I want to accomplish."

T.R. Sullivan is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Postcards from Elysian Fields and follow him on Twitter @Sullivan_Ranger. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

[Nash B.]

I am not neccesarily against the deal just the parameters of it and that he was a Scott Boras player. If i was going to throw 100 mil at a player i sure hoped it would have been a stud pitcher but those are few and far between.

Now i have no doubt he is a better fielder than Young is at 1st base. My only fear is that with a fat contract, Beltre will regress in a few years and really hamstring the Rangers financially.

I do believe the tandem of Young and Guerroro last year in the field during the WS cost us at least 1 game.

I don't think defense had anything to do with their losses in the World Series but Young dodging A-Rod's hit hurt them in Game 1 of the ALCS.

[Kenny_Stang]

I am not neccesarily against the deal just the parameters of it and that he was a Scott Boras player. If i was going to throw 100 mil at a player i sure hoped it would have been a stud pitcher but those are few and far between.

Now i have no doubt he is a better fielder than Young is at 1st base. My only fear is that with a fat contract, Beltre will regress in a few years and really hamstring the Rangers financially.

I do believe the tandem of Young and Guerroro last year in the field during the WS cost us at least 1 game.

Young/Beltre play 3rd base.

It's official:

http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110105&content_id=16393188&vkey=news_tex&c_id=tex

[bucky]

I am not neccesarily against the deal just the parameters of it and that he was a Scott Boras player. If i was going to throw 100 mil at a player i sure hoped it would have been a stud pitcher but those are few and far between.

Now i have no doubt he is a better fielder than Young is at 1st base. My only fear is that with a fat contract, Beltre will regress in a few years and really hamstring the Rangers financially.

I do believe the tandem of Young and Guerroro last year in the field during the WS cost us at least 1 game.

[BP]

His glove alone will be worth 5+ more wins over Young, not to mention help lower the team ERA. It'll give Elvis a chance to help cover 2nd more, which in turn will help Kinsler cover 1B more.

I also don't know how many double plays Young hit into but it seemed like at least one a game last year. Maybe having Beltre in front of Hamilton and Young batting 5th will help out there, or 6th depending on what Cruz is up to.

[mstng86]

AP Source: Beltre, Texas agree to $96M, 6-yr deal
By STEPHEN HAWKINS, AP Sports Writer
4 hours, 58 minutes ago


A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that All-Star third baseman Adrian Beltre(notes) and the AL champion Texas Rangers have reached a preliminary agreement on a $96 million, six-year contract.

The person spoke late Tuesday night on condition of anonymity because the agreement is pending a physical.

Texas will have the ability to void the final season of the contract under certain conditions.

Beltre became a free agent after turning down a $10 million player option to stay with Boston.

A two-time Gold Glove winner, Beltre hit .321 with 49 doubles, 28 homers and 102 RBIs in 154 games in his only season with the Red Sox. He was an All-Star for the first time in his 13-season career.

AP Sports Writer Ronald Blum contributed to this report.


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