Darvish did what?

Ok, I know Thursday is normally a game-used or autograph card day. Problem is, I don't have any game-used or autograph cards of Yu Darvish, something I must remedy soon. Anyway, Yu's 2013 Allen and Ginter card, number 74, will be filling in today.

Darvish had a rough night last night on the mound against the Reds. He pitched just six innings, allowing five runs. Only three of those five runs were earned but Yu battled his control as he walked five and hit a batter while striking out five. That's not normal Darvish.

Darvish taking his cuts at the plate is not normal Darvish either but the game was in Cincinnati and so National League rules were in place. It is generally accepted that the American League pitchers come off poorly on offense as compared to the National League hurlers. Last night was the exception as Yu hammered a solo shot in the fifth inning. Ian Desmond followed up with a long ball of his own to go back-to-back with Darvish.

Unfortunately, Yu's control struggles and some defensive miscues by Texas assured that his home run would not be the difference maker in the game. While the Rangers bullpen put up three scoreless innings in relief, the offense was not dependent on Darvish and Desmond alone. Nomar Mazara started off the scoring for the night with a three run bomb in the second inning.

By the time the eighth inning rolled around the score stood at 5-5. Desmond started off the Rangers rally by getting hit by a pitch. He stole second to advance into scoring position. Adrian Beltre, hero of so many games, came through again for the Rangers with a double that scored Desmond to give Texas a 6-5 lead that they held on to for the rest of the game.

While Darvish's pitching struggles are frustrating, they are not overly alarming. Yu is still on the road back from his Tommy John Surgery and bumps are to be expected. Very good to see the offense arrive early and pick Darvish up. Too often the guys have struggled to score runs with Yu on the mound. Tonight the team kicks off a tough four game set at home against the Cleveland Indians. Cole Hamels takes the mound against the Tribe, who are one win behind the Rangers for the best record in the American League.

Staying positive.

Another Rangers loss last night. An overworked bullpen coughed up the lead as Texas lost the series to Oakland.

In an effort to keep focused on the positive I am posting this 2008 Allen and Ginter game-used card of Michael Young today. As a note on the card, it is in excellent condition. What appears to be a crease on the right side is a scanner anomaly. Young is slated to be enshrined in the Texas Rangers Hall of Fame before the Saturday game. Many congratulations to Michael Young on this recognition of his fine career.

Hopefully by Saturday I will have a Rangers win to write about.

15 over!

Well, once again I have no unposted cards of the players who most deserve to be featured from yesterday's game. That means Mitch Moreland, shown here on 2015 Allen and Ginter card 326, gets the nod. Mitch made some noise yesterday and contributed so it's not a reach to have him up here.

Yesterday afternoon was the rubber match of a three game series in Seattle. With the Mariners mounting the most current challenge to Texas in the American League West, the series carried weight. Cole Hamels took the mound for the Rangers still looking for his 2,000th strikeout.

Cole got some offensive support in the fourth inning as the Rangers put three on the board. Two of those runs came via a Moreland longball. Another three spot in the sixth accounted for the rest of the Rangers scoring for the day. Of note, Elvis Andrus, who has struggled in day games this year, went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, two RBI, and a stolen base. Ian Desmond also got in on the action as he went 2-for-five with a pair of RBI as well.

Hamels ended up going a strong seven innings while giving up just one earned run. He also struck out five to reach the 2,000 level. Hamels left the game with a 6-1 Rangers lead. Unfortunately the bullpen stumbled, as they have been want to do this season, and the Mariners managed to push three runs across before the end of the game. In the bottom of the ninth with two outs Robinson Cano hammered what appeared to be a RBI double into the right field corner. Fortunately for the Rangers, Cano assumed he had second easily. Nomar Mazara had other plans. He played the ball off the wall, turned, and fired an unbelievable 220 foot laser to Andrus. Elvis slapped the tag on a surprised Cano to end the game. Seattle fans left the park in stunned silence. Rangers manager Jeff Banister later said that Mazara should have been credited with the save.

Great to see the guys leave Seattle with the series win. The victory also puts them 15 games over .500 for the first time this season and creates some breathing room in the AL West. They now have the best record in the American League and are tied for second best in baseball. Of course, they are slated to begin a four game set in Oakland tonight and the A's have always been a tough nut at home.

Recent arrivals.

Well, it had been awhile since I received any random packages but that has been recently ended with the arrival of three awesome packages from three great guys. Time to give credit where credit is due.

Several weeks ago BwvJones over at Golden Rainbow Cards sent me an email. He let me know he had some 2015 Topps Rangers that would fill holes in my team set. Just send him my address and he would drop the cards in the mail. Well, Jones was as good as his word. All six cards he sent me hit holes. I would have posted one of them but, since I am walking through the Topps team sets on Tuesdays, you'll just have to wait a few years for them. Thanks a bunch Jones, I'll try to get a few spare moments and see if I can hit any of your wantlist.

Meanwhile, Mark the Royals fan sent me a message telling me he picked up an item he thought I would like. He didn't tell me he was sending it and it unexpectedly arrived in my mailbox. Not much really, just a Yu Darvish bobblehead. The blue version of the K counter. WOW! It looks great next to the red version I already had. Gotta love those kind of surprises. Thanks Mark, I'll see what I can dig up by way of Royals to send your way.

Yesterday a nice bubble mailer arrived from the famous Night Owl of Night Owl Cards. It was packed with a nice assortment of Rangers cards and a 1984 Fun Foods pin of Frank Tanana. Most of the cards hit holes in my wantlist, including the 2013 Allen and Ginter A.J. Pierzynski shown at the top of this post. Also included were two copies of 2006 Topps card 312. One shows pitcher John Koronka in a Rangers uniform. The second, included for "full effect" shows him in a Cubs uniform. Nice touch. Owl mentioned his supply of Rangers is running low. No worries, the bottom of the stack was great and I only have a few more Dodgers left anyway. Thanks Mr. Owl!

Cycling to victory.

Well, the last couple of days have been great ones for Rangers fans. After all, a win a day keeps the blues away.

Texas saw the Giants off on Sunday with a 2-1 win. Pitching was the story as Martin Perez turned in his best start since returning from the Disabled List. Perez went 8.1 innings and gave up just one run while allowing only two hits. The bullpen fooled around and loaded the bases in the ninth but got a double play to end the game. Josh Hamilton provided the margin of victory with a two run home run to give Perez all the support he needed.

As beautifully pitched as Sunday's game was, yesterday's was not. Rangers starter Colby Lewis battled through six innings but didn't have it as he gave up seven runs. Four of those were thanks to a grand slam. That was better than Houston starter Lance McCullers who gave up six earned runs in just a third of an inning of work and left for Triple A after the game. There were other pitchers involved but that gives you an idea of how things went.

On the other side of the ball, both teams had pretty big days. Shin-Soo Choo had a home run for Texas. He, Prince Fielder, Mitch Moreland, and Roughned Odor all had two RBI. The spotlight was reserved for Adrian Beltre though. Beltre, shown here on card 23 of the 2013 Allen and Ginter set, had a phenomenal night at the plate. He went 4-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored to lead the Rangers charge. Adrian got a triple in the first to start his night. His second at bat resulted in a double. Next came a single and, in the fifth inning he hammered a home right to left field. It was the third cycle of Beltre's career, the second in his time with Texas. Coupled with Choo's cycle a couple of weeks ago, it was the second of the year for the Rangers.

Thanks to some late-inning zeros put up by the Rangers revamped bullpen, and the offensive onslaught led by Beltre, the Rangers welcomed the Astros to Arlington with a 12-9 win. Nice way to open the series.

Are they or aren't they?

The Rangers are currently riding a three game win streak and knocked off the Angels last night in Anaheim. That helps Texas keep the best road record in baseball. Can't say I was upset to see the guys ride into the Big A and beat the Halos.

Josh Hamilton led the offensive charge in his first return to Anaheim since rejoining the Rangers. Hamilton served as the rally sparker, going 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. That accounted for half the Rangers scoring. One Hamilton run was on an excellent squeeze bunt laid down by Robinson Chirinos. The other was on a Shin-Soo Choo double.

Meanwhile Keone Kela struck out Albert Pujols to end the eighth inning with the tying run on base. Shawn Tolleson tossed a scoreless ninth to finish up the game.

The true star of the night though was starting pitcher Colby Lewis, shown here on card 87 of the 2011 Allen and Ginter set. Colby has been the Rangers big game guy in the past and he brought his A game to the Big A. Over 7.2 innings Lewis allowed just five hits and one walk while striking out nine. The Angels scored just two runs on him as the win moves Lewis' record to 10-4. It was a head-turning performance to be sure. That leads to the dilemma.

The Rangers win drops the Halos into a tie with the Astros for first place but only brings Texas to 7.5 games back. Of course, they're ahead of Seattle and Oakland and could conceivably still make a run. The chances of such a run seem to be very hard to gauge with this team. Jon Daniels is to the point in the season of deciding if he is going to buy or sell. If the guys take this series from the Angels will that mean they could stay in the mix? If so, are they strong enough to go all in? Colby Lewis thinks they are still a contender. He said so when asked if his performance last night might get other teams to call about him. Of course, he's going to be optimistic, players always are. It appears Colby Lewis might have just won another big game for Texas. What that game means remains to be seen.

If the decision is to sell then the question becomes, how much? With the young guys the Rangers have, and if Darvish, Holland, and Harrison are healthy next year, contention in 2016 is a real possibility. If JD decides to sell, he might also be buying for next year. With his age and contract status, Lewis could well be on the block if the Rangers decide they won't be needing him for any big games.

The Texas front office has some tough decisions to be making in the next few days and it's impossible to predict the course they will choose. You can read and hear pundits on both sides of the issue and all of them seem to be absolutely certain they are right. The fans are equally divided. I don't expect a full-blown fire sale but anything beyond that is possible. One thing's for certain, no matter what decision is made, somebody's going to be unhappy about it.

Congratulations to Beltre on #400.

First off, let me say congratulations to Adrian Beltre, shown here on card 14 of the 2011 Allen and Ginter set. Beltre hammered his 400th career home run on Friday to give the Rangers a lead. unfortunately the pitching could not hold and Texas ended up losing the game. 400 dingers is a milestone though and it legitimately puts Adrian in the Hall of Fame discussion. He's definitely got a shot in my opinion. Year in and year out he's been one of the best defensive third baseman in the game and a consistent threat at the plate. Easily the best in Texas at the hot corner since Buddy Bell. If Beltre can keep it up for a couple of more years he should have enough on his resume to make a very strong case.

Secondly, I want to thank you for putting up with my pre-scheduled posts for the past couple of weeks. While the Rangers demoted Rougned Odor to the minors and overhauled their bullpen, I was on a family trip to Hawaii. Mrs. Spiff is from there and still has quite a few relatives on the islands. It was time for great-grandma to meet the grandkids she'd never seen and for the kiddos to get a feel for where mom grew up. Very enjoyable but I'm glad to be back. I intended to post while I was gone, at least on Thursdays, but the laptop I took with me developed a propensity to crash so that didn't happen. The five hour time difference didn't help either. Back in action now and looking to get on top of things. Thanks again for your understanding.

2x3 Greatness.

The past couple of weeks have been like a delayed Christmas for me. Surprise packages of cards arriving from awesome guys like Jeff over at 2x3 Heroes. A couple of days ago a bubble mailer arrived from Jeff. Inside was greatness.

Jeff sent me 23 Rangers cards ranging from the early 90's to 2014. The lot included some base cards, inserts, and even two game-used. One of the game-used was this 2010 Allen and Ginter Relics card of Nelson Cruz. The other was my first ever Adrian Beltre game-used card. It will be saved for an appropriate posting during the upcoming season.

All told I think Jeff hit holes in my collection with at least 14 of the cards he sent. If his White Sox can win games like he fills in other folk's collections, the rest of the league better watch out. Thanks a ton for the cards Jeff. I'll see what kind of return I can come up with sometime soon.

Heartbreaking surprise.

So, awhile back I dropped some random Twins cards on Matt over at Heartbreaking Cards. I needed the space and wanted to send the cards to somebody who might appreciate them. Matt likes the Twins. Perfect match. Out went the Twins and I gained some ground in my war for space in my card boxes.

Unexpectedly, Matt sent me some Rangers in return. Some very nice Rangers. A couple of minis, a Topps Chrome Yu Darvish, and a couple of game-used cards. One of the game-used cards was this 2010 Allen and Ginter Relics bat bit card of Ian Kinsler. Every card in the bubble mailer hit a hole in my Rangers collection. Thanks a ton Matt! The cards were an awesome surprise. I'll be sure to keep you in mind for any Twins I might be able to send your way.

Speaking of sending cards out. So far I've received just one comment regarding the Christmas giveaway I will be commencing here in a few days. Had a nibble on the Red Sox but no email with an address. If you want to shout out for a team lot of free cards shoot me an email at rmatlack3 at juno dot com. Remember, I gotta have an address to send the cards to. Help me out here, I can't buy any of the new releases until I clear enough room for the non-Ranger teams.

Catching up.

Been a little over a week since my last post and I apologize for the delay. Things got busy at work and home and a computer issue ate up any remaining time I had. Lots happened with the Rangers during that time as they seem to be determined to finish the 2014 season on a high note.

After the sweep against the Braves the club traveled to Oakland to take on the A's. The A's had the first AL wildcard at the time and were hanging on by a thread in the division race. The Rangers didn't help either cause as they swept the series to run their win streak to seven. That's the highest win streak of the season. The Angles clinched and the A's found themselves tied for the second wildcard and looking at missing the post-season. A 1-2 series against the Angels finished out the road trip and the season's travels. Back in Arlington the Rangers have handed the Astros a loss to start the final home stand.

Yesterday's win came with Derek Holland, shown here on card 230 of the 2013 Allen and Ginter set, on the hill. It's win number 63 and assures the club that, no matter how dark this season is, it will not be a 100 loss season. Derek went 7+ innings and allowed just two earned runs. That runs Dutch's record to 2-0 and his season ERA to 1.31. Really makes one regret his missed season and hope he can keep it going next year.

While the club was busy playing spoiler they announced that Alex Rios will likely miss the rest of the season with his bruised thumb. Looks likely to me that Rios has played his last game as a Range. I don't look for the team to pick up his option in 2015. Colby Lewis is the other big name the Rangers are looking to lose in 2015 through free agency. He has already spoken to Jon Daniels about a contract for next year. JD says the talks will be serious and the team is interested in retaining Lewis. Lewis is interested in staying so it looks good that he will be back in 2015.

Almost to the end of the season. After the current series with the Astros, the A's come to town to finish out the Rangers year. If the Rangers can return the favor from 2012 it just might finish out the A's year as well. With the way Texas has been playing, it just might happen.

Cruz signs, Spring Training goes on.

Ron Washington and Jon Daniels have been saying they expected Nelson Cruz, shown here on card number 25 of the 2011 Allen and Ginter set, to sign elsewhere. He did so this morning. Eight million for a one-year deal with Baltimore. Texas at least gets a draft pick out of the deal. Strikes me that Nellie had to settle for fewer years than he would have liked. Hopefully that's related to his PED suspension and will help send a message to any other players thinking about using to get the big contract.

Geovany Soto's going to miss the next three weeks of Spring Training. He had surgery this morning to remove a bone from his left ankle. Apparently the bone was putting pressure on a tendon and causing soreness. The team is expecting him to be back in time for a few Spring Training games and the word is he should be ready to roll on Opening Day. Hope so. Guess if he isn't JP Arencibia will have a shot at grabbing the starting role.

Matt Harrision is back to saying he should be back on track soon. His MRI Thursday showed no problems and he says his back feels a lot better after sleeping on the floor. He's still going to be examined by a doctor in Dallas next week. Lots of folks out there with their fingers crossed hoping for the best. If Harrison can return to something close to his 2012 form I will feel a lot better about the pitching situation.

Mitch Moreland is reportedly working on playing the outfield. It's not altogether new territory for him. He played right field a lot in the minors as I recall and spent some time there the first year or so he was up. I guess he is figuring the more valuable he is to the team the better his chances of staying around. Looks like his chances may have improved with Nelson Cruz's signing by the Orioles.

Still no word on how the starting rotation is looking. I wouldn't be surprised if the management wants to give everyone in the hunt a good long look before deciding. Let the guys get into form before trimming the list. It would be nice if the decision is a hard one and the club ends up with someone waiting in the wings if there is a stumble.

Nellie says no.

Nelson Cruz, shown here on card 133 of the 2010 Allen and Ginter set, turned down the Rangers one-year offer yesterday. That wasn't unexpected and insures Texas will receive a compensatory draft pick if Cruz signs elsewhere.

Word is Nellie wants to test the free agent market. The Rangers would like to keep him and have stayed in contact with his agent. A lot will be determined by whether or not Cruz is actually interested in staying in Texas. A lot will be determined by Cruz and his agent's willingness to keep talking to the Rangers as other teams get involved.


Cruz is considered a top-tier free agent. The only other outfielders in that group are Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran, Shin-Soo Choo, Curtis Granderson, and Marlon Byrd. If the Rangers can't retain Cruz, they might make a run at one of the others in the group. Ellsbury is the only one who really stands out to me as a possibly good signing. Choo and Byrd have defensive limitations. Beltran and Granderson are aging.

As much as I doubt Cruz and his slowly declining defense, it looks like keeping him might be the Rangers best option. The team needs to upgrade its offensive capability. Obviously Cruz wouldn't be an upgrade over himself but keeping him would allow the club to upgrade in another area.

Trading with Roadkill.

So, a little over a week ago I sent out a plea for Rangers minis with a post of the minis I have for trade. At first there wasn't any response but a few days after the trade Duane over at Democratic Roadkill contacted me. He needed a couple of the minis I listed and wanted to work out a quick deal. I agreed.

I found out Duane's definition of a quick deal is to overpay for the cards he wants. In exchange for the two cards he needed from my list, he sent me six Allen and Ginter Rangers minis I needed. Included in the lot was this nice 2009 Allen and Ginter mini A&G back Kevin Millwood card.

I will give you this fair warning. If Duane ever contacts you and wants to make a deal, do it. You won't be disappointed and you will be glad you made the trade. I was. Perhaps you should even head over to Duane's blog, check out his wantlists, and see if you can help him out in his mini collecting quest.

Thanks again for the trade Duane.

Trolling for Trades.

Well, the off-season is well under way it seems. The League Championship Series seem to be good ones but I just can't get into them for some reason. Time to look at building up the collection for the upcoming season.

That brings me to Ian Kinsler's 2007 Allen and Ginter Mini #324. I generally consider my Rangers collection to be pretty well rounded. Not always complete but with a decent representation of card brands and years. Not so much with minis. For some reason that area is lacking.

With that in mind I am calling out for anyone interested in trading minis. You got Rangers minis, I probably want them. I do have a few from other teams for trade. Here's the minis trade list:

Minis
2008 Allen and Ginter #4 – Roy Halladay
2008 Allen and Ginter #26 - Corey Hart
2009 Allen and Ginter #88 – Brad Penny
2009 Goodwin Champions #23 – Kevin Youkilis
2009 Goodwin Champions #31 - Hanley Ramirez
2009 Goudey #111 - Ben Sheets
2010 Allen and Ginter #295 - Josh Thole
2011 Gypsy Queen #83 - David Price
2011 Gypsy Queen #131 - Cody Ross
2011 Gypsy Queen #141 - Brandon Inge
2011 Gypsy Queen #253 - Carlos Lee
2011 Gypsy Queen #350 - Carlos Pena
2011 Gypsy Queen G.Q. back #185 - L. Morrison
2011 Gypsy Queen G.Q. back #198 - Jayson Werth
2011 Gypsy Queen G.Q. back #348 - J.A. Happ
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-1 - Ubaldo Jimenez
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-6 – Clay Buchholz
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-15 - David Price
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-26 - Justin Morneau
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-36 - Hanley Ramirez
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-51 - Hank Aaron
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-64 - Jackie Robinson
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-86 - Whitey Ford
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-92 - Frank Thomas
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-111 - Tris Speaker
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-115 - Ty Cobb
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-136 - Paul Molitor
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-147 - Mark Teixeira
2011 Topps Kimball Champions #KC-150 - Joe DiMaggio
2012 Topps 1987 Topps Mini #TM-5 - Howie Kendrick
2012 Topps 1987 Topps Mini #TM-13 - Jayson Werth
2013 Allen and Ginter #40 – Will Middlebrooks
2013 Topps 1972 Topps Mini #TM-17 – Johnny Cueto
2013 Topps 1972 Topps Mini #TM-51 - Ken Griffy Jr

I am working on updating the rest of my trade list so let me know if you see any minis or any other cards you might be interested in. I would love to work a few trades. Be sure to check back since the updating will be an ongoing process.

Good news, bad news.

Yesterday was a mix of good and bad news for the Rangers.

Good news: Texas wins to take the series from Detroit. Bad news: Derek Holland gets knocked out before going five innings. Good news: So does Detroit's Doug Fister. Bad news: The bullpen melts down again. Good news: So does Detroit's. Bad news: Miguel Cabrera hits four long balls in the game. Good news: Adrian Beltre, Geovany Soto, and Lance Berkman all enjoy stellar nights at the plate.

That leads us to Murphy's Law: One bat alone will not win games. David Murphy, shown here on card 231 of the 2009 Allen and Ginter set, was batting second last night behind Elvis Andrus. Murphy's bat has been heating up with the weather and he kept it going as he went 2-for-3 with a walk and sacrifice fly. David hit a three run home run and collected four RBI total while scoring twice. That gave him just one less RBI than Cabrera. Combine his performance with the others and you get a 11-8 slugfest win. Great to see practically the whole lineup firing.

So, why was Murphy batting second? Because Adrus was leading off. Why? Ian Kinsler has been out for several days with a muscle strain. Yesterday the Rangers put him on the 15 day Disabled List. That's bad news, Ian was having a super year. There's some good news though, Jurickson Profar was called up to replace Kinsler on the roster. Profar will start tonight against the A's. Good chance for him to get some Major League seasoning and show what he can do.

Oswalt, pitching, and defense.

So the Rangers have signed Roy Oswalt to a one-year deal. I guess that's good. Could be he does real well and gives them a solid spot in the rotation. Could be his already creaky back goes down after a start or two and all Texas gets is a few spot starts. Either way it's only for one year. Hopefully Nolan Ryan's judgement of players holds up on this one.

The man Roy Oswalt is looking to replace in the rotation takes the hill tonight against the Mariners. Scott Feldman is looking to extend the Rangers current win streak to five games. If he gets the help that Matt Harrison did last night he should be able to do it.

Matt got a great defensive play from Nelson Cruz, Ian Kinsler, and Mike Napoli in the eighth inning. After Craig Gentry dove for and missed a drive into center it looked as though the Mariners were going to pick up two runs on an inside the park home run. However, Cruz backed up the play and fired the ball into Kinsler. Ian relayed it to Napoli, shown here on his 2011 Allen and Ginter Hometown Heroes card, number HH92. Nap blocked the plate and tagged out Seattle's Brendan Ryan.

If that play wasn't enough, Napoli hammered a three run home run in the sixth inning to put the Rangers ahead for good

Of course Matt Harrison maximized on the help by going eight innings and allowing just two runs on seven hits. He also struck out five while walking nobody. That kind of pitching keeps the team in the game so that hitting like Napoli's and defense like Cruz's matters. Final score: 4-2 Texas.

Hamilton's home run derby.

There isn't much to be said about Josh Hamilton's Tuesday night performance other than that it was simply a thing of beauty.

Josh, shown here on card 274 of the 2009 Allen and Ginter set, went 5-for-5 against the Orioles. That in and of itself is noteworthy. Of those five hits one was a double and four were home runs. That is historical. I believe that Hamilton is now one of 17 players to ever hit four home runs in a single game.

That is one of the most exclusive groups in baseball history. To help put it in perspective, more players have pitched perfect games than have hit four home runs in a game.

Of course the radio talk shows are all abuzz with speculation that Josh's performance is going to drive up his asking price as he goes into a free agency year. Perhaps. It's a long season though and Hamilton has a hard time playing full seasons. If he misses too much time on the Disabled List it could counter Tuesday night's performance. In the end though the ongoing contract negotiations will have to run their course. I will be surprised if a deal is announced before Josh gets to talk to other teams.

The second thing that folks are talking about following Tuesday night's game is Hamilton's legacy. Talk of the Hall of Fame, the single-season home run record, and a possible Triple Crown are in the air. As premature as contract speculation might be, this type of talk is even more so. Josh is dominating when he is healthy. Hopefully he remains healthy and can continue to dominate. However there have been many promising careers cut short by reasons as varied as the ballplayers who played them. The thing is, we may well be watching our generation's Willie Mays. We won't know for several more years though. What we do know right now is that Hamilton is something special with the potential to become something legendary.

Man of many talents.

Listening to last night's game and one thing really stood out. The Rangers were fortunate not to have to face Oriole's reliever Chris Davis, shown here on card 188 of the 2009 Allen and Ginter set.

Davis came on in the bottom of the 16th inning against the Red Sox on Sunday night. He tossed two scoreless frames to pick up the win when the game finally ended after the 17th inning. Rangers fans knew Chris could field and hit but probably had no idea he could pitch as well. Apparently Texas gave up more than they thought in the trade that sent Davis to Baltimore.

Judging by the seven run ninth for the Rangers last night, the O's would have been wise to have broken out their secret weapon again.

Back and catching up.

Ok, so it's been a busy past few days for the Rangers. Now that I'm back from visiting family over the weekend let's take a look.

Probably the biggest news is the signing of Ian Kinsler to a long-term deal. Kinsler, shown here on #67 of the 2009 Allen and Ginter Code set, is now locked up through at least 2017. There is an option for 2018 as well. Seems like a good move to me, if Texas can keep winning. If they repeat their early 2000's nosedive then Ian could find himself on the trade block. Also, is is being reported that Texas mentioned during the negotiations that Kinsler could be asked to move to the outfield at some point in the future. Good move to mention that possibility now rather than waiting for the need to arise and then springing it on Ian.

Four games into the young 2012 season and the Rangers are at 3-1 and sitting in first place. Way early but these kind of starts are always good.

One of the Texas wins came last night for Yu Darvish. The long-awaited debut finally took place. Darvish got rocked for four runs in the first before settling down for the next 4.2 innings. All told Darvish coughed up five runs and would have taken the loss if not for the Texas offense. By the time he left the game in the sixth the score stood at 8-5. The Rangers would later add three more runs. Mitch Moreland, Nellie Cruz, Josh Hamilton, and Ian Kinsler will all be hitting Yu up for dinner after they hit home runs to rescue his first MLB win.

Good to see Nelson's bat show up last night. He, Mike Napoli, Elvis Andrus, and Adrian Beltre are all a bit cool at the plate coming out of the gate this year. Not sure I see any reason to hit the eject button yet on any of them though or even to be all that worried. All are capable of coming around and doing so very quickly once they get on track.

Robbie Ross has also arrived in the Bigs. In spite of wearing a kids cowboy outfit during his walk to the bullpen on Sunday he made good when called into the game. Coming in to start the eighth he worked a scoreless inning. Nice to see some more of the Rangers young arms coming up.

One last tidbit from T.R. Sullivan to close out the post. "Matt Harrison, after six scoreless innings on Sunday night, has a career ERA of 2.91 against the White Sox. That's the third-lowest by a Rangers pitcher with at least six starts against the White Sox. Jon Matlack had a 2.67 ERA and Bert Blyleven had a 2.68." Can't pass up a chance to point out a mention of Jon Matlack.

Rangers avoid arbitration with Andrus.

MLB.com is reporting that the Rangers have avoided arbitration with Elvis Andrus, seen here on card 89 of the 2009 Allen and Ginter set.

While the official announcement won't come until tomorrow, the word is that Texas has signed Andrus to a three year deal worth $14.5 million. That buys out the rest of his arbitration years and keeps him in a Rangers uniform through the 2014 season.

I have to say that I like the deal. Three more years of Elvis is ok by me. There are some who wince at Andrus' error totals but it pays to remember that his range is significantly higher than most other shortstops in the Majors. That means he makes (and sometimes fails to make) plays that other middle infielders wouldn't even try to make.

Elvis also provides some speed on the base paths as he has over 30 stolen bases in all three of his Major League seasons. Add to that the improved on-base percentage each year and he is increasingly becoming an offensive factor. There are those that take issue with his lack of home runs in 2010 but with the Rangers current lineup they need speed more than power right now.

All in all Elvis seems to be improving his game each year. Locking a 22-year-old up for three more years doesn't seem like a bad move to me. Especially when that youngster can turn a breathtaking double play, lay down a picture perfect bunt, and steal a base or two in the same game.