Grigori

Wells .360/.467/.720 Hamilton .160/.276/.200 Just sayin'.

Had Pierzynski framed that pitch like Jeff Mathis we wouldn't be having this conversation. Everyone would agree it was a strike.

Kevin, I have to agree with you. Ball/strike calls can be totally automated. The ump could even be equipped with an earpiece to hear the computer tell him what to say. He can be there for the difficult calls, like dropped balls and tips and things, but for basic ball/strike calls there is no reason not to use technology.

No, CarlG always offerred intelligent insight into the game of baseball. He was not a troll. Lot's of fans here really appreciated his comments, even if he was a Ranger fan.

Josh Hamilton would have swung at that pitch twice.

I don't think you guys realize what it takes to become a major-league umpire. Did you sleep in a Holiday Inn last night, or what? Maddon would have been thrown out of the game if it wasn't already over. I still think he should be suspended or something. Now eveyone wants to take cheap shots at Nathan who did nothing wrong.

Well, don't forget that bad call to Trumbo for ball four when it was clearly a strike the other night that made Nathan have to nail down yet another four-out inning to get the save.

Right on, AJ. They don't measure whether it's a strike based on what happens to the ball after it passes the plate. Nathan just combined a lot of power with the spin to make it break late. I think it nicked the corner before it broke down and away. That's all it takes, but these would-be umpires here would rather let their passions color their judgement. LOL.

It looked like a strike to me. You amateur umpires need to realize that you're badmouthing a guy with years of umpiring experience, one of the top umpires in the game. Fat chance anyone here will ever be a major-league umpire. Now, I admit I'm a Ranger fan, but please, can y'all be objective? LOL. It's not right to be taking away Nathan's moment of glory like this

Sure... we can dish it out as long as Hamilton continues mocking Rangers fans. Here is how you handle the situation Hamilton was in: "I know better than to get myself down," he said. "And my message to the fans is, they have a reason to boo." "They have the right. They pay a lot of money to come and watch me play, and I'm not performing the way I know how to perform. But I also understand I can't force it. I'm trying my best." That was Albert Pujols last May when he was striking out a lot, disappointing Angels fans and getting booed. Notice he did not blame Angels fans or criticize them. Josh took it upon himself to say DFW is not a baseball town because they booed him. He also complained about how he was treated by the Rangers front office, I guess because they would not pay him what he wanted? That's quite a contrast. Pujols was contrite, said he's trying his best, He didn't take it out on Angels fans. Hamilton continues to mock Rangers fans by pretending to pass a football and all of that, even though he got the $125 million he wanted. Looks like a lot of sour grapes on his part. We like the defense and speed of Martin/Gentry in CF. They and Berkman replace Young and Hamilton in the batting order. That's pretty much a wash, mainly because of how poor Young was last year, so we really didn't need him and would be happy for him and his new contract if he just kept his mouth shut and played baseball. I'm sure both Angels and Rangers fans alike would rather he zip it and play than continue to act like a spoiled, arrogant child and bring embarassment to himself and his his new uniform. He and CJ both need to get over the fact the Rangers are here to win games for the long term, and do not exist merely to massage their egos and pay them ridiculous sums of money. If they want to show what they are worth they can show it on the field, not by attacking Rangers fans or the owners and management of the Rangers. Bring it.

Yeah, but he was a .259 hitter with 86 strikeouts after the ASB, looking about like he does now for the Angels. 175 strikeouts for 2013 is a conservative estimate based on that pace. You'd think someone who fell off the table like that with the way his season ended would be a little bit more humble and contrite. But, that would not draw attention to the Drama Queen. So he disses Ranger fans, the Ranger front-office and the city, blaming others for his slip-shod performance, another characteristic of alcoholics.

Right on, Nick. He can't hit a baseball anymore so the only way he can get the attention he craves is to rile up Rangers fans. He's pretty much marked himself as a drama queen with his incendiary remarks. He was even out there on the field the other day pretending to throw a pass into the stands to anger the fans. It'll die down and all that will be left for him is 175 strikeouts this season because that has been the pace he's been on since the middle of last year. Like you said, he could have handled the booing last year differently. Like he could have said he understood it because it wasn't like his best play and he'd try to get better. That's what good sports say about booing. Instead he used the opportunity to anger fans and draw attention to himself. LIke many alcoholics he's a drama queen who does not think about others.

Arlington and Ft. Worth, baseball. Dallas, football. That's always how it was. Dallas is catching on, though, with all the winning.

Don't look now, but Vernon Wells has more home runs than Trout, Trumbo, Hamilton and Pujols combined already.

Yeah, Wells has an HR, too. Pujols and Hamilton haven't hit one, yet.

Optimism runs high. LOL.

Yes, after the 2014 season he would have been a free agent. I think if he's developed the power tool more, like Trammel did at around age 25, he can get more than $15 million per year at age 31 and will opt out. But, if he does not he may choose to stay after losing a step. Maybe then the Rangers could switch Profar from 2B to SS? That's way off in the future, so no telling who would be the better SS or where they will be then, but Profar will be only 26 then.

Andrus can opt out after the fourth year of the contract, which will make it $71 million over the next six years, two under his current contract and four more of the new extension. Also, he has a vesting option for a ninth year. So, if at age 31 he thinks he can make more than $15 million the next four years, he'll be an Angel or Yankee or something.

Hubs, that wasn't directed at you or anyone, though I did think it odd that anyone (not you) would think the Angels rotation ranks in the top three of anything. The Rangers are top three. Bank on it. Tepesch is a stop-gap until Colby Lewis is ready. Or, if Tepesch sticks, he'll be available to replace anyone who falters. Don't forget that Holland lost 20 pounds suddenly in the middle of the season last year because of a stomache virus and even missed some starts. He's 100% now and was strong in the WBC, so look at 2011 numbers, not 2012. Reports are he's made huge improvements with his changeup in Spring Training. Anytime you have Derek Holland and Colby Lewis in your numbers four and five spots you got a pretty darned good pitching rotation. Or, even three and four with Ogando as your number five. Either way, that is on tough rotation. The Angels will have to hit a ton and win a lot of games 12-10 or 10-9. That sorta thing. Look around... the AL West is becoming a pitching haven, too. We all know about the A's young pitching, but like you say the Mariners are overlooked. They have Ramirez and three really good prospects in the minors, too, should anything go awry with their starting five. Think the Angels can swing the bats good enough against AL West pitching? We shall see.

From the looks of that Angels pitching they need to work on their cap-tipping drills before the season starts. Here's a legit ranking of the pitching this year: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/2013-positional-power-rankings-starting-pitchers-1-15/ See where the Angels fit in?

But, but who is going to be the Angels team leader now?

I thought Vernon Wells was going to be the team leader. I think I read that in an LA Times article somewhere.

No one said anything about it but you.

With Pujols declining OPS, the deteriorating speed of Weaver's fastball and Hamilton's sinking IQ, it's only a matter of time before the Angels wind up in fourth place.

Got me all fired up. America is going to make a big comeback in four of five years. I can feel it.