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Texas Rangers State Of The Union For 2017: Jon Daniels Must Counter To Houston/Seattle’s Early Moves

The Texas Rangers won an American League best 95 games last season – to win their 2nd AL west Division. and to make the playoffs for the 5th time since 2010. The winter has not gotten off to a good start, as they have watched the Astros and Mariners all add depth to their teams – while Texas has lost players from their own year end roster. The team has to get involved right now to change the course of this offseason. The time to win is now with Yu Darvish and Jonathon Lucroy in walk contract years – while their ALL – Star Veterans like Cole Hamels and Adrian Beltre become another year older.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer/Part Owner)
Follow @stokes_Hunter21 @mlbreports
The Rangers have been one of the better teams in the MLB since the 2010 season. Back to Back AL Pennants, and now back to back AL West Division wins have seen them reach the playoff 5 times out of the last 7 campaigns.
For those who like pitching – the franchise has 2 number one aces for at least one more year in Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels.
Simply put, the development of all of their Draft Picks, domestically or international, coupled with the management’s keen eye for talent, have the club still in the conversation for another few years.
Here is the thing though….The Astros and Mariners have been the two busiest clubs in acquiring talent thus far in the winter. Both of these teams have closed or narrowed the gap on Texas already,
Houston has signed Free Agents Josh Reddick and Carlos Beltran – with also dealing for Brian McCann. This will not affect their 2017 squad as both didn’t require anybody from the Major League Roster to get it done.
Seattle has not made as big of a splash like Houston, but has shored up some depth, and have nicely added Jean Segura (who was an ALL – Star and top 15 NL MVP in 2016 – without losing anything of note.)
Texas has signed Andrew Cashner and lost Beltran for sure…yikes.. Read the rest of this entry
Who Owns October In MLB Playoffs 2015? (#WOO) Tallies Updated For October 12, 2015
Time to figure out who owns October!
Each winning team for every post season game gets a pitcher and a hitter who earn a full WOO (Who Owns October.)
And at my discretion, I award a 1/2 WOO’S to a worthy player on the losing team.
At the end of the post season, we will see who had the highest WOO total as a pitcher and a hitter.
A complete description of the rules can be found HERE.
From October 12th. AL & NL Division Series:
Receiving 1 WOO’s
Jake Arrieta did not have his best stuff. But his 9 strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings was enough to earn the 8-6 Cubs victory over St. Louis.
Travis d’Arnaud broke open a close game with a 2 run homer, finishing the game with three hits, three runs scored and three RBI as the Mets demolished the Dodgers 13-7.
Wade Davis threw a 6 out save, squelching any hope for a Houston comeback and sealing the 9-6 victory for the Royals.
R. A. Dickey allowed 5 hits, 1 run and no walks over 4 2/3 innings. He was taken out before he was eligible for the win, but was pitching just fine in Toronto’s 8-4 win against the Rangers.
Matt Harvey may not have looked like an ace, but he pitched well enough to win. He struck out 7 in 5 innings, allowing 3 runs, 2 earned and got the 13-7 decision for the Mets over the Dodgers.
Eric Hosmer went 2 for 5 with a homer and 3 RBI and helped the Royals dizzying comeback against Houston, 9-6.
Kevin Pillar collected 3 hits including a homer, driving in 3 to help the Blue Jays stay alive in the series, 8-4 against Texas.
Jorge Soler reached base 4 times, including a homer, driving in 2 and leading the Cubs in an unexpected slug fest win, 8-6 over St. Louis.
Receiving 1/2 WOO’s
Current ‘WOO’ Totals MLB 2015:
Hitters ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Delino DeShields – Rangers 2, Jorge Soler – Cubs 2, Colby Rasmus – Astros 1 1/2, Jose Altuve – Astros 1, Chris Carter – Astros 1, Travis d’Arnaud – Mets 1, Dexter Fowler – Cubs 1, Eric Hosmer – Royals 1, Salvador Perez – Royals 1, Kevin Pillar – Blue Jays 1, Stephen Piscotty – Cardinals 1, Troy Tulowitzki – Blue Jays 1, Justin Turner – Dodgers 1, David Wright – Mets 1, Lorenzo Cain – Royals 1/2, Francisco Cervelli – Pirates 1/2, Yoenis Cespedes – Mets 1/2, Carlos Correa – Astros 1/2, Edwin Encarnacion – Blue Jays 1/2, Adrian Gonzalez – Dodgers 1/2, Didi Gregorius – Yankees 1/2, Jason Heyward – Cardinals 1/2, Howie Kendrick – Dodgers 1/2, Kendrys Morales – Royals 1/2, Rougned Odor – Rangers 1/2, Ben Revere – Blue Jays 1/2, Kyle Schwarber – Cubs 1/2, Kolten Wong – Cardinals 1/2,
Pitchers ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Jake Arrieta – Cubs 2, Wade Davis – Royals 2, Dallas Keuchel – Astros 2, Jake Arrieta – Cubs 1, Jacob deGrom – Mets 1, R. A. Dickey – Blue Jays 1, Jake Diekman – Rangers 1, Marco Estrada – Blue Jays 1, Zack Greinke – Dodgers 1, Cole Hamels – Rangers 1, Matt Harvey – Mets 1, John Lackey – Cardinals 1, Collin McHugh – Astros 1, Travis Wood – Cubs 1, Clayton Kershaw – Dodgers 1/2, Jon Lester – Cubs 1/2, Lance McCullers – Astros 1/2, Marcus Stroman – Blue Jays 1/2, Noah Syndergaard – Mets 1/2, Chris Young – Royals 1/2,
Who Owns October In MLB Playoffs 2015? (#WOO) Tallies Updated For October 11, 2015
The Blue Jays win will ensure one more day where 4 games are played. Meanwhile I don’t think Houston has loved Dallas this much EVER!
Time to figure out who owns October!
Each winning team for every post season game gets a pitcher and a hitter who earn a full WOO (Who Owns October.)
And at my discretion, I award a 1/2 WOO’S to a worthy player on the losing team.
At the end of the post season, we will see who had the highest WOO total as a pitcher and a hitter.
A complete description of the rules can be found HERE.
From October 10th. NL Division Series Game 2:
Receiving 1 WOO’s
Chris Carter collected 3 hits including a double and a homer to lead Houston’s attack as they beat the Royals 4-2.
Marco Estrada went into the 7th and finished with 6 1/3 innings, allowing 5 hits 1 runs and no walks and earned a season saving victory for the Blue Jays over Texas, 5-1.
Dallas Keuchel pitched 7 strong innings, striking out 7 and allowing 5 hits, including a solo homer for his only earned run, and was credit with the Astros 4-2 win over the Royals.
Troy Tulowitzki reached base 3 times, broke open the game with a 3 run homer and drove in 4 of the Blue Jays 5 runs as they won in Texas 5-1.
Receiving 1/2 WOO’s
Lorenzo Cain homered and walked but his Royals fell to the Astros, 4-2.
Rougned Odor drove in the Rangers only run and helped turn 3 double plays in the field in the Blue Jays 5-1 victory.
Current ‘WOO’ Totals MLB 2015:
Hitters ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Delino DeShields – Rangers 2, Colby Rasmus – Astros 1 1/2, Jose Altuve – Astros 1, Chris Carter – Astros 1, Marco Estrada – Blue Jays 1, Dexter Fowler – Cubs 1, Salvador Perez – Royals 1, Stephen Piscotty – Cardinals 1, Jorge Soler – Cubs 1, Troy Tulowitzki – Blue Jays 1, Justin Turner – Dodgers 1, David Wright – Mets 1, Lorenzo Cain – Royals 1/2, Francisco Cervelli – Pirates 1/2, Yoenis Cespedes – Mets 1, Edwin Encarnacion – Blue Jays 1/2, Didi Gregorius – Yankees 1/2, Howie Kendrick – Dodgers 1/2, Kendrys Morales – Royals 1/2, Rougned Odor – Rangers 1/2, Ben Revere – Blue Jays 1/2, Kyle Schwarber – Cubs 1/2, Kolten Wong – Cardinals 1/2,
Pitchers ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Dallas Keuchel – Astros 2, Jake Arrieta – Cubs 1, Wade Davis – Royals 1, Jacob deGrom – Mets 1, Jake Diekman – Rangers 1, Zack Greinke – Dodgers 1, Cole Hamels – Rangers 1, John Lackey – Cardinals 1, Collin McHugh – Astros 1, Travis Wood – Cubs 1, Clayton Kershaw – Dodgers 1/2, Jon Lester – Cubs 1/2, Marcus Stroman – Blue Jays 1/2, Noah Syndergaard – Mets 1/2, Chris Young – Royals 1/2,
Who Owns October In MLB Playoffs 2015? (#WOO) Tallies Updated For October 10, 2015
I could poke the flames and rattle some cages and say Chase Utley owned October, but even I won’t do THAT!
Time to figure out who owns October!
Each winning team for every post season game gets a pitcher and a hitter who earn a full WOO (Who Owns October.)
And at my discretion, I award a 1/2 WOO’S to a worthy player on the losing team.
At the end of the post season, we will see who had the highest WOO total as a pitcher and a hitter.
A complete description of the rules can be found HERE.
From October 10th. NL Division Series Game 2:
Receiving 1 WOO’s
Zack Greinke pitched 7 strong innings, allowing 5 hits, 2 runs on a pair of solo homers, striking out 8 and walking no Mets batters. He was the beneficiary of some strange calls that helped him earn the 5-2 victory for the Dodgers.
Jorge Soler reached base 4 times with a double, a homer and a pair of RBI to lead the Cubs past the Cardinals, 6-3.
Justin Turner doubled twice, driving in one and scoring another in the bizarre 5-2 come from behind Dodger win over the Mets.
Travis Wood threw 2 1/3 shutout innings, allowing 1 hit and no walks while striking out 2 and earning the decision in relief as the Cubs topped St. Louis, 6-3.
Receiving 1/2 WOO’s
Current ‘WOO’ Totals MLB 2015:
Hitters ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Delino DeShields – Rangers 2, Colby Rasmus – Astros 1 1/2, Jose Altuve – Astros 1, Dexter Fowler – Cubs 1, Salvador Perez – Royals 1, Stephen Piscotty – Cardinals 1, Jorge Soler – Cubs 1, Justin Turner – Dodgers 1, David Wright – Mets 1, Francisco Cervelli – Pirates 1/2, Yoenis Cespedes – Mets 1, Edwin Encarnacion – Blue Jays 1/2, Didi Gregorius – Yankees 1/2, Howie Kendrick – Dodgers 1/2, Kendrys Morales – Royals 1/2, Ben Revere – Blue Jays 1/2, Kyle Schwarber – Cubs 1/2, Kolten Wong – Cardinals 1/2,
Pitchers ‘WOO’ MLB 2014,
Jake Arrieta – Cubs 1, Wade Davis – Royals 1, Jacob deGrom – Mets 1, Jake Diekman – Rangers 1, Zack Greinke – Dodgers 1, Cole Hamels – Rangers 1, Dallas Keuchel – Astros 1, John Lackey – Cardinals 1, Collin McHugh – Astros 1, Travis Wood – Cubs 1, Clayton Kershaw – Dodgers 1/2, Jon Lester – Cubs 1/2, Marcus Stroman – Blue Jays 1/2, Noah Syndergaard – Mets 1/2, Chris Young – Royals 1/2,
Who Owns October In MLB Playoffs 2015? (#WOO) Tallies Updated For October 9, 2015
THIS is more like it! 4 games. All were hotly contested. Some controversy was had in one game. A bone headed managerial decision was in another.
Time to figure out who owns October!
Each winning team for every post season game gets a pitcher and a hitter who earn a full WOO (Who Owns October.)
And at my discretion, I award a 1/2 WOO’S to a worthy player on the losing team.
At the end of the post season, we will see who had the highest WOO total as a pitcher and a hitter.
A complete description of the rules can be found HERE.
From October 8th. AL and NL Division Series:
Receiving 1 WOO’s
Wade Davis slammed the door in the 9th with a key pick off thrown in for good measure as he earned the 5-4 save for Kansas City over Houston.
Jacob deGrom simply dominated the Dodgers with 7 shutout innings, allowing 5 hits and 1 walk while striking out an eye popping 13 batters and pitching the Mets to a dramatic 3-1 Game 1 victory.
Delino DeShields went 3 for 7, doubled, scored in the first and drove in a run in the 14th to help the Rangers win a wild and controversial 14 inning 6-4 game in Toronto.
Cole Hamels pitched a solid game, allowing 2 earned runs and 2 unearned runs over 7 innings, walking none. He got a no decision but the Rangers went on to beat the Blue Jays, 6-4 to 14 innings.
John Lackey dominated the Cubs by pitching into the 8th, finishing with 7 1/3 shutout innings, 2 hits, 1 walk and 5 strikeouts, earning the 4-0 decision for St. Louis.
Salvador Perez homered, singled and walked, driving in 2 runs and helping the Royals come from behind to beat the Astros, 5-4.
Stephen Piscotty doubled and homered, driving in 2 and helped turn a one run game into a 4-0 Cardinals shutout of the Cubs.
Receiving 1/2 WOO’s
Howie Kendrick doubled, singled and scored the Dodgers only run in their 3-1 loss to the Mets.
Clayton Kershaw struck out 11 and gave up just a solo homer going into the 7th. He walked the bases full in the 7th and was pulled after only 6 2/3 innings. The bullpen allowed a pair of his runners to score and got the decision in the Dodgers 3-1 loss to the Mets.
Jon Lester allowed just 1 run to the Cardinals over the first 7 innings. But he gave up a pair of insurance runs in the 8th, finishing with a solid 7 1/3 innings, 9 strikeouts, 1 walk and 3 run performance but took the 4-0 Cubs loss.
Colby Rasmus reached base 3 times, including a homer and a double, driving in a pair. But the Astros would blow their lead and fall to KC, 5-4.
Current ‘WOO’ Totals MLB 2015:
Hitters ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Delino DeShields – Rangers 2, Colby Rasmus – Astros 1 1/2, Jose Altuve – Astros 1, Dexter Fowler – Cubs 1, Salvador Perez – Royals 1, Stephen Piscotty – Cardinals 1, David Wright – Mets 1, Francisco Cervelli – Pirates 1/2, Edwin Encarnacion – Blue Jays 1/2, Didi Gregorius – Yankees 1/2, Howie Kendrick – Dodgers 1/2, Kendrys Morales – Royals 1/2, Ben Revere – Blue Jays 1/2, Kyle Schwarber – Cubs 1/2.
Pitchers ‘WOO’ MLB 2014,
Jake Arrieta – Cubs 1, Wade Davis – Royals 1, Jacob deGrom – Mets 1, Jake Diekman – Rangers 1, Cole Hamels – Rangers 1, Dallas Keuchel – Astros 1, John Lackey – Cardinals 1, Collin McHugh – Astros 1, Clayton Kershaw – Dodgers 1/2, Jon Lester – Cubs 1/2, Marcus Stroman – Blue Jays 1/2, Chris Young – Royals 1/2,
Who Owns October In MLB Playoffs 2015? (#WOO) Tallies Updated For October 8, 2015
4 games in. So far none of them have been exactly classics. The road team has won each game by taking early leads and not looking back. At least today had scoring on both sides!
Time to figure out who owns October!
Each winning team for every post season game gets a pitcher and a hitter who earn a full WOO (Who Owns October.)
And at my discretion, I award a 1/2 WOO’S to a worthy player on the losing team.
At the end of the post season, we will see who had the highest WOO total as a pitcher and a hitter.
A complete description of the rules can be found HERE.
From October 8th. AL Division Series Game 1:
Receiving 1 WOO’s
Jose Altuve went 3 for 5 with a run scored and an RBI to spark the Astros offense past the defending AL Champion Royals, 5-2.
Delino DeShields drove in the first run of the game and came around to score another, collecting a single and a double and leading the Rangers to a stunning 5-3 series opening win in Toronto.
Jake Diekman pitched a perfect 7th and 8th innings, keeping the strong Blue Jays attack from mounting a rally and set up the Rangers taking the series opener, 5-3.
Collin McHugh pitched 6 strong innings, including sitting through an extended rain delay, allowing 2 runs, 4 hits and 1 walk to earn a victory in Game 1 of the Division Series for the Astros, 5-2 in Kansas City.
Receiving 1/2 WOO’s
Edwin Encarnacion went 2 for 4 with an RBI but the mighty Blue Jays came up short against Texas, 5-3.
Kendrys Morales provided all of the Royals offense with a pair of solo homers in the 5-2 loss to the Astros.
Chris Young came out of the pen after the rain delay to throw 4 innings, striking out 7 and allowing just 1 run on a solo homer. The damage had been done, however, and Houston beat the Royals, 5-2
Current ‘WOO’ Totals MLB 2015:
Hitters ‘WOO’ MLB 2015,
Jose Altuve – Astros 1, Delino DeShields – Rangers 1, Dexter Fowler – Cubs 1, Colby Rasmus – Astros 1, Francisco Cervelli – Pirates 1/2, Edwin Encarnacion – Blue Jays 1/2, Didi Gregorius – Yankees 1/2, Kendrys Morales – Royals 1/2,
Pitchers ‘WOO’ MLB 2014,
Jake Arrieta – Cubs 1, Jake Diekman – Rangers 1, Dallas Keuchel – Astros 1, Collin McHugh – Astros 1, Chris Young – Royals 1/2,
Montreal Expos Drafting Record Part 2: The Pitchers
Wednesday June.27/2012
Note from Chuck Booth: I am attempting to bring the history for each of the 30 MLB Franchises into a 5 part series that will focus on 1. The teams history. 2. The hitters 3. The pitchers. 4. The Team’s Payroll going into in 2013 and 5. (The stadium articles will all be done next summer when I go to all of the parks in under a month again.) To follow all of the updates, be sure to check my author page with a list of all archived articles here.

Drafted in 1985 by the Montreal Expos, Randy Johnson was erratic in his early days. After trading away Mark Langston to acquire the young fireballer, the Mariners worked him into the rotation and he developed into a Hall of Famer.
Chuck Booth (Baseball Writer and @chuckbooth3024 on twitter)- When looking back at some of the pitchers that the Montreal Expos have had in their organization, you don’t have go down the list very far to find Randy Johnson. He is the ‘crown jewel’ of the draft history record for the club. It is unfortunate the ‘The Big Unit’ was traded to the Seattle Mariners with Brian Holman and Gene Harris to the Mariners for rental player Mark Langston and a player to be named later. To be fair to the Montreal Expos, they were in serious contention for the pennant in 1989 and were trying to chase down the Chicago Cubs. Langston was one of the top Left Handed Aces in the Majors and he was available. Johnson was completely wild in the Minor Leagues and the Expos had a lot of veteran pitchers like Dennis Martinez and Bryn Smith that were on the back end of their careers. The time to try and win was now and they could not wait for Johnson to come around. The Expos did not succeed in capturing the pennant and Langston moved onto the California Angels as a free agent while Johnson blossomed into the premier left handed pitcher in his generation. Speaking of Martinez and Smith, they won 100 and 81 games respectively for the club. While they were not drafted by the Expos, they are 2nd and 3rd on the all-time win list.
Along with Smith and Dennis Martinez (who threw a perfect game as an Expo in 1991 and note: Bill Stoneman also threw two no-hitters for the franchise), you have to factor in the career of Pedro Martinez as an Expo for guys that were great pitchers during their prime. Pedro was acquired prior to the 1994 season from the Dodgers in exchange for the Expos departed ALL-Star second baseman Delino DeShields. Martinez went 11-5 in the strike shortened year and formed an impressive 1-2 ace combination with Ken Hill. Pedro went onto a 55-33 record and a 3.06 ERA for his 4 year Expos career. Pedro’s best year with the club was 1997 where he was the NL CY Young with a 17-8 record and a 1.90 ERA. Martinez finished the year with 305 strikeouts and a ridiculous 13 complete games. Pedro ended up signing with the Boston Red Sox before the 1998 season and he ultimately won a World Series with the Beantowners in 2004. In his post game celebration, Martinez mentioned the Expos franchise and their fans. Pedro shared his triumph as a testament to them. It was talent like this that Expos could never afford to resign and would lose outright- or have to trade for prospects based on their economic viability. I will get more into this in Part 3 of the Article Series on Friday.
For Part 1 of the Article Series, The Hitters: click here
For Part 3 of the Article Series, The Demise: click here
For Part 4 of the Article Series, The Washington Nationals Franchise 2005-2012: click here
For Part 5 of the Article Series, The Nats Best 25 Man Roster 2005-2012 click here
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