Best Seasons: Julio Franco - 1991.

Number 12 on T.R. Sullivan's list of the Fifty Best Seasons in Rangers history goes to Julio Franco, shown here on card number BC39 of the 1990 Baseball Cards Magazine set.

Julio's 1991 season really stands out for one number, his batting average. Franco tormented opposing pitching that year as he racked up a .341 average. That easily won Julio the first batting title in Rangers history. How easily? Well, he was nine points ahead of second-place Wade Boggs in the race.

While the batting average and title stole the show in 1991 they weren't the only impressive numbers for Julio that year. He also complied a .408 on-base percentage and stole a career high 36 bases. His 108 runs scored were also a career high.

All told Franco had a career year with the bat in 1991 and the awards committees recognized it. In addition to the American League batting title he also went the the All-Star game and received a Silver Slugger award as well as receiving some MVP consideration. Perhaps just as important for the fans, he brought a batting title to a team that had never had a player win one.

Angels arm up for 2012

Well, the past day or so has certainly been huge in the American League West. The Angels broke the bank open and signed both Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson to long term deals. Texas had told Wilson they were interested but had never tendered him an offer due to the long-term offers that the Angels and Marlins were shooting his way.

The question becomes, do these moves change the balance of power in the division? I think the answer is, it's hard to say.

The Halos addition of Pujols is a definite plus for them. There is always the possibility that the ten year, no trade contract could become a weight on their payroll but if any player can pull this one off it would be Albert Pujols.

The signing of C.J. Wilson is a little more murky. Wilson has pitched pretty well for Texas as a starter over the past two seasons. In the two seasons combined he has posted a 3.14 ERA, a 1.215 WHIP, and a 31-15 record.

Those aren't bad numbers at all but there are a few things to consider in light of the five year deal that the Angels just gave Wilson. First and foremost, his age. Wilson is 31 right now. That puts him at 36 by the end of the contract. Pitchers not named Nolan Ryan tend to start to slow down in their 30's.

The second item is his workload. Wilson has made a total of 73 starts in the Major Leagues in seven seasons. All but six came in the last two seasons. He has pitched a total of 708 innings in his career. 427.1 of those were in the past two years. Compared to the early years of his career Wilson has been under quite the workload the past two seasons. There is always the possibility that after five years of a lighter load, the increased work could catch up with him at some point. It might not but if it does it will be sooner rather than later.

The third point to consider is Wilson's performance in big games. Mainly that he doesn't. If he had the Rangers probably would be the World Champions right now. That's because they would have had the home field advantage and played games six and seven at home had C.J. not lost the All-Star game. He also stumbled badly in the 2010 and 2011 post seasons.

Back to the original question. Do these signings shift the balance of power in the A.L. West? I think that the answer is, possibly. Pujols is huge and is a veteran. He'll adjust and be the threat that he was in the National League. Barring injury he will be a major weapon for the Angels for the foreseeable future. Wilson is more of a question mark. While he has an engaging personality I can't help but doubt that he will be a force for more than a season or two at most. I think it's very possible that Anaheim will regret his contract. For the same reason I doubt that his departure will be a long term setback for the Rangers.

1975 Topps - Tom Grieve.

Tom Grieve, shown here on card 234 of the 1975 Topps set, had a two-fold mission in 1975. First, he had to build on his 1974 performance and second he had to prove he could hit right-handed pitching.

TAG played in 118 games for Texas in 1975. That was a career high to that point and netted him 396 plate appearances. He managed to get his batting average up to .276 and his on-base percentage inched up to .316. Tommy also had a much higher RBI total with 61 and scored more runs than in 1974 with 46. He also hit 17 doubles, one triple, and 14 home runs. He did walk 22 times but struck out a troubling 74 times.

Tom played all three outfield positions in 1975 and served in 41 games as the designated hitter. He played left field most with 328 innings in 46 games. Next up was right field with 126 innings in 16 games and then center with ten innings in two games. His fielding percentage for all three positions combined was .990, better than the league average by eleven points.

Tom Grieve had been given a chance in 1975 and seemed to have used it. Perhaps he hadn't awed observers but he had significantly improved his offensive performance in almost every category while starting to hit right-handers and had maintained his great defense in the field. The only disturbing trend was his tendency to strikeout, he would need to figure out how to cut down on that. If he could 1975 looked to be his breakout year.

Minor League Monday - Jeff Fry, 1989 ProCards.

Card 1023 of the 1989 ProCards set makes me smile. Jeff Fry looks so intense and yet so young. His boyish face, slight build, and screen-backed cap make him look more like a high school ballplayer than a 22-year-old man attempting to play his way the Major Leagues.

The Rangers drafted Jeff in the 30th round of the 1988 draft. He played in Rookie ball the same year with the Butte Copper Kings. In 1989 he would be assigned to Single A and would play with the Gastonia Rangers of the Gulf Coast League.

In 125 games Fry made 543 plate appearances. He posted a .313 batting average and a .405 on-base percentage. His on-base percentage was helped by the fact that he knew how to take a walk. He worked 72 of them while striking out just 53 times. While Jeff could get on base he didn't have much power at the plate. He hit 26 doubles but only three triples and one home run on the season. He could run though and stole 33 bases but needed to work on his technique as he got caught 13 times.

As the front of his card indicates, Jeff played second base. In 1989 he put together a .977 fielding percentage at that position. His errors matched his uniform number, 14. Defense was definitely an area for improvement in Fry's game.

Apparently the Rangers thought Jeff had potential. Probably it was his bat that caught their eye. As a result he got a promotion. Not to Double A though but to A plus Charlotte for the 1990 season. I'm not positive but I would guess that the partial promotion had to do with the need for him to improve his glove work.

Senators Saturday - Joe Hicks, 1962.

1962 was one of the few seasons that Joe Hicks, shown here on card 248 of the 1962 Topps set, spent the whole season in the Majors. In fact, most of 1961 had been spent in the minors.

Joe played in 102 games in 1962 and made 191 plate appearances. That was more in both categories than in all three previous seasons where he had Major League experience combined.

In his 191 plate appearances Hicks posted a .224 batting average and a .286 on-base percentage. His on-base percentage was undoubtedly hurt by the fact that he struck out over twice as often as he walked. (15 walks to 34 strikeouts.) He also displayed a lack of power with just four doubles, two triples, and six home runs.

In the field Joe served as a fourth outfielder and played 282.1 innings total in all three outfield positions. He made three errors for a .962 fielding percentage - well below the league average .980.

1962 was Joe Hicks first big shot at the Majors. Too bad he really couldn't capitalize on it. He needed to show something big in order to dislodge one of the regular outfielders. That just didn't happen either in the field or at the plate.

Decisions: Two-for-one.

Ok, I have to plead ignorance as far as the first of the next two decisions off of T.R. Sullivan's list. As for the second, well I wasn't really paying much attention in 2001 so I don't remember it.

Number thirteen is is the rejection of Edward Gaylord's attempts to buy the Rangers. He tried in 1987 and 1988. Both times the American League refused to approve the sale for fear that Channel 11 would become a superstation. I have no memory of this and find it hard to understand given Ted Turner, TBS, and the Braves. I do know that with the Rangers still unsold the result was the ownership group headed by George W. Bush buying the team in 1989.

Number fourteen is the firing of Doug Melvin. I'm not sure what Tom Hicks was thinking when he fired Melvin and brought in John Hart. I do know that under Melvin the team had qualified for the playoffs three times and that they didn't at all under Hart. Meanwhile Melvin moved on to Milwaukee and moved them from a sub .500 team to postseason qualifiers. Not hard to see that the switch wasn't a very good move.

It's Valentine's day in Boston.

MLB.com is reporting that the Red Sox will introduce Bobby Valentine as their new manager this evening at Fenway Park. Bobby V was the Rangers manager from 1985 to 1992. I am showing him today on a 1987 Topps card that he signed for me through the mail in 2008.

Valentine was the first Rangers manager that I can really remember. Doug Rader would have still been in place when I first latched onto the team but I have no memory of him. Valentine I remember and always enjoyed watching. I'm not the only Rangers fan who remembers Bobby. Until Ron Washington's recent postseason successes he was probably the most popular manager in Rangers history behind Johnny Oats.

After leaving the Rangers Bobby managed the Mets from 1996 to 2002. Not a bad stint for such a volatile environment. It probably helped that the Mets had several postseason appearances during his tenure.

Boston is probably closer to New York than Texas when it comes to the atmosphere and pressure of managing. Unlike New York though, the Red Sox are Boston. No shadow of the Evil Empire there, all the focus is on the Sox. Hopefully Bobby V will be able to deliver some success to the franchise and placate the fans and media. It would be nice to see him back in the Bigs and doing well. Not too well of course, can't root for Bobby over the Rangers.