Well, I got to see this one (see last night’s commentary) because it was on KXTX. :)
Jeff Zimmerman (am I the only one besides Jeff that thinks “The Zimmenator” is a stupid nickname?) tied a 73 year old record for consecutive wins by a reliever to start a career by going to 9-0. Unfortunately, his scoreless streak was broken at 29 2/3 innings. However, the way he’s pitching this year, it’s hardly noticeable (his ERA is now 0.88 after that run).
However, the story of this game was Pudge. He hit two home runs, driving in 4 of our 5 runs (Raffy had the other) with a solo shot and a three run home run. He also picked off a runner at third – his sixth pure pickoff of the season, the first at third. There’s no doubt that Pudge was the star of this game, it was quite cool to watch him play last night. Pudge also now has 20 home runs for three years in a row, tying a record for catchers. If Pudge gets one more steal between now and the end of the season (I think that’s a safe bet), he’ll be the first catcher in all of MLB history to have 20 steals and 20 home runs in a season. In fact, given there’s about 57 games left or something like that, I think there’s a good shot of Pudge getting to 30/30 providing he stays healthy.
Speaking of Pudge, I used to like Juan better than Pudge, but lately that opinion has changed a lot given the way Juan’s been behaving – I read an article about him verbally abusing Johnny and attacking a water cooler. I also saw the cooler last night (before I read about Juan’s battering of it) with the sign “Please don’t hit me, I’m a nice cooler”. It looked funny on the TV. :)
Burkett pitched OK – he’s definitely our fifth starter, but for him, it was a decent outing – I didn’t think he pitched bad at all, caught a few bad breaks, and was hit, but not lit up. I hope he can keep it going at least at this level for the rest of the season.
Attendance was pathetic for The Ballpark. Was only 24,720. I know it’s Monday, and it’s the Twins, but that seems really low for us!
Roster Transaction
- Jonathan Johnson optioned to AAA Oklahoma.
- Recalled Doug Davis from AAA Oklahoma.
G104: Rangers win big over Royals, 12-5
Figures. The game I wanted to go to because of the raising of the Nolan Ryan flag, and the giveaway of a Ryan flag and the one that is one off from my season ticket game is the one they blow out the Royals. :(
To make matters worse, my lame ass cable company has Fox Sports Southwest out of whack again for the second day, forcing me to miss another Rangers game because of their screwed up setup – this is about 6 this season because of this. I didn’t get to see the game, but I listened to part of it, and I got disgusted because I couldn’t see it that I stopped listening too, and started watching a movie.
I hate my cable company! I live across the street from a TCI building, yet we have some other company – go figure.
Sele turned in his longest outing of the season, going 8 full innings. He gave up 5 runs though, but did go long in the heat, which was nice to see.
G103: Rangers drop another to Royals, 12-8
I was at this game (was one of my season ticket games), and quite honestly, I wish I didn’t have to be. I was so tired from the trip home last night (I never got in until 2AM, and I was supposed to be home around 10PM or so). Tack on the heat, and I wasn’t feeling that good during this game, and it had nothing to do with the team. I was feeling queasy, so I left in the top of the 7th inning – I abhor this kind of behaviour, but I will do it for illness. :(
The game itself wasn’t a whole lot better. It looked good early, with a 5-0 lead after two innings, but that was about it for us, except for a couple more runs late in the game. We had a pitching meltdown, which is rare for us this season, unlike past seasons. :)
Jonathan Johnson pitched several innings in the middle, and appeared to be a sacrificial lamb. He was lit up pretty well, but he stayed out there for three full innings, when he should have rightfully been pulled very quickly. He was sent right back down after this appearance, I doubt we’ll see him again this season before the September callups.
G102: Rangers come home, beat Royals 9-2
I didn’t hear or see anything on this game, because my wife and I were travelling back from Baltimore, and had a horror story travelling (delays in both Baltimore and our layover Chicago). Because of this, I have no commentary of any kind on this game.
G101: Rangers beat O’s 3-1 in series finale
This game my wife and I did not go to. The main reason why we didn’t was because it was a day game, and quite frankly, this was our one big day to explore the Inner Harbor. Besides, I don’t generally like day games in the summer anyway. We had a wonderful time exploring several things in Baltimore – the highlight was definitely the Aquarium there.
We were in the Aquarium when the Ranger game was happening, so we didn’t get to see or hear any of it. I did catch some highlights on SportsCenter on ESPN later in the evening. WOW – what a home run by Royce Clayton (423 feet; into the Rangers bullpen in Baltimore). In fact, all three of our runs were solo home runs (Clayton, Pudge, & Kelly). I had a bad feeling about this game going in, as Mike Morgan doesn’t seem to pitch well in the heat – and it was hot. Add to that the fact that he still had that bruise from being wailed by a batted ball in his last start, and I wasn’t expecting what he gave us (6 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run). Our bullpen gave up donut, and it was a really nice 3-1 win by the Rangers. Would have liked to have seen it, but I had such a wonderful time seeing the sights in Baltimore that day that it really didn’t matter.
G100: Cal just misses #400, Rangers lose 8-6
Our second of two games at Camden Yards. This place is great – my full report on the Orioles’ ballpark is coming soon.
Big difference between this game over the last game was that my wife and I were by ourselves this time – no Ranger fans around, so we had to chill out a bit. Was a bit rainy before the game, but our seats were undercover, so that helped, even though it had more or less stopped raining by the time we had walked over to the hotel. There’s a shot of what my seats looked like in the pictures below.
We lost this game by the same score that we won by last night. I felt Burkett was left in just a tad bit too long, but he didn’t pitch all that bad, either. Cal Ripken missed his 400th home run by about a foot or two – the ball was just foul past the left field foul pole. Damn, I really wanted to see that. :) We did get a couple of Ranger home runs – one by former Oriole Todd Zeile, and another by Ruben Mateo, which was opposite field, not that far away from where I was sitting. That was nice – and the home runs were about the only time my wife and I actively “cheered” the Rangers this game. :)
G99: My wife and I witness Rangers 8-6 win in Baltimore
My wife and I were at this game in Baltimore. We decided to take a vacation together, and we had never seen the Baltimore Inner Harbor, so we decided to plan a trip around when the Rangers were there. I know it’s kinda geeky, but hey, it’s something cool to do for a Rangers fan. :)
What was cool was that where we were sitting there was at least two other groups of Ranger fans. A family of four from Carrolton, and some people behind us who I think were from The Colony. It was quite cool having around 12 Ranger fans there, and we could shout for the Rangers – that was quite cool. What was not cool was the ballpark. It was friggin hot! I had forgotten what humidity outside the state of Texas was like. Yikes! My wife and I also met the author of a baseball book in one of the resturants before the game started. The book is called “Minor Players, Major Dreams”. I’ve ordered it from Amazon, so I hope to have some commentary up on it before too long.
It was cool that we won the game, but to tell you the truth, I was paying more attention to the Ballpark itself – I tend to do that when I’m in a place I’ve never been before. I’ll have my full report on Baltimore’s stadium up shortly.
Todd Zeile named AL Player of the Week
NEW YORK (TICKER) — Todd Zeile of the Texas Rangers, the hottest player on baseball’s hottest team, today was named American League Player of the Week.
Zeile batted .444 (12-for-27) with three home runs, five doubles and 10 RBI over a seven-game span ending Sunday. He had 26 total bases and a .467 on-base percentage for the Rangers, who have won eight straight games, the longest current streak in the majors.
The 33-year-old Zeile is the first Ranger to be honored this season.
Mike Sweeney of Kansas City (.484) and Fred McGriff of Tampa Bay (1.143 slugging percentage) were runners-up for the award. Also considered were Tony Clark of Tigers, Albert Belle and Cal Ripken of Baltimore, Trot Nixon of Boston and Rick Helling of Texas.
Palmeiro, Pudge take late-night tour of Hall
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) — Todd Zeile zeroed in with his camcorder and called over Ivan Rodriguez for a closer look.
They kept staring at the old, beat-up pillow — actually, the catcher’s mitt used by Hank Gowdy on Boston’s 1914 Miracle Braves — and could not believe their eyes.
“You would have to be perfect to catch with that,” said Rodriguez, a seven-time Gold Glove winner.
“I feel like I’m using that sometimes,” said Zeile, shaking his head.
Hours after the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies Sunday, baseball’s present met its past when players from the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals took a late-night stroll through the shrine.
“You people are a part of it,” Hall curator Ted Spencer told the Texas contingent. “This is where all of you would like to end up.”
On Monday, they were to meet in the annual Hall exhibition game two blocks away at cozy Doubleday Field, the birthplace of baseball. Those teams were picked to come to Cooperstown to honor two of the newest inductees, Nolan Ryan of the Rangers and George Brett of the Royals.
But on this night, with the doors closed to the public, a lot of these players looked like little kids.
Two-time MVP Juan Gonzalez and his Texas teammates studied Babe Ruth’s bat and looked at Stan Musial’s locker. They marveled at the short-pants uniform the Chicago White Sox wore in the 1970s and stared at a picture of Eddie Gaedel, the midget who once batted for the St. Louis Browns in 1951.
A couple of Royals coaches pointed at turn-of-the-century, heavy-wire catcher’s masks and laughed.
“That looks like something Hannibal Lecter would wear,” one said.
Rafael Palmeiro stood at the far end of the main gallery, gazing down the long row of bronze plaques.
“It kind of inspires me, to see all of them hanging there,” he said.
At 34, the All-Star Texas first baseman has 2,096. Every eligible player with 3,000 has been elected to the Hall.
“I kind of walk through these halls and think, `maybe.’ It’s like a vision, it’s out there and I can see it,” he said, waving his hand as if casting a spell. “It’s way out there, but it’s within reach.”
Rangers reliever Danny Patterson held no such illusions.
“I can’t imagine being here, I’m in awe,” he said. “The only way I’ll make it is by giving up somebody’s 3,000th hit or something. I thought I might get a chance to do it against Wade Boggs.”
The Rangers played Sunday at Tampa Bay, then flew to Utica, N.Y., about 45 miles from Cooperstown. About 20 Texas players took the bus ride for a 75-minute visit to the Hall, and Ryan was there to greet them.
“I was kind of hungry when we got in, and I thought about going to get something to eat and not coming here at all,” Patterson said.
“It’s more amazing than I ever thought,” he said. “This might be a once-in-a-lifetime trip.”
Kansas City played extra innings at home Sunday and then traveled to Utica. The entire Royals team made the trip to the Hall, arriving shortly before 11 p.m. EDT and leaving after midnight for their Utica hotel.
Texas was to play Tuesday night at Baltimore, and the Royals returned home to play Seattle.
Royals rookie pitcher Tim Byrdak brought his camcorder. He lingered in the new home-run exhibit, hovering over a case showing Roger Maris’ bat and uniform.
“It gives you an appreciation of the game you play,” he said. “It brings back the excitement of playing baseball.”
Royals pitcher Jay Witasick saw the one display that mattered most. In an exhibit on amateur baseball, there’s an MVP trophy of a youth tournament with his name on it.
“I knew it was here, but I forgot to bring my camera,” he said.
He remembered, at least, to stop by the gift shop on the way out. Along with several other Royals and Rangers, he picked up some shirts and hats as souvenirs.
Zeile narrated his own tour as he filmed — “there’s a picture of Babe and his car” — and soaked in the whole experience.
“To most guys, the history of baseball is what happened 15 or 20 years ago, things they can relate to,” he said. “I think players today are more interested than they would be perceived, but you don’t get a lot of chances to delve into it. It’s nice to be here and see the pioneers.”
One day, some of these players might wind up with a spot in Cooperstown.
Palmeiro and Rodriguez posed for a picture in front of Ryan’s plaque.
“It’s special knowing that I caught him,” said Rodriguez, an eight-time All-Star. “I’m trying to play hard, too, to make it here.”
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