Cliff Lee: Texas Ranger

[bushwacked]

It was frustrating to watch the M's and their horrendous offense, mediocre defense, and mediocre bullpen sabotage good quality starting pitching. Lee's tenure as a Mariner wasn't very long, but it really was a pleasure to watch him pitch every 5th day. I'm sure Ranger fans will feel the same way whether he stays around after this season or not.

[Menudo]

I love we got Lee, but the sad part of all this is the yankees will buy him this offseason. this is the biggest problem with baseball, a team like Ny being able to just buy everyone they want.

 

We need a salary cap, and floor in baseball. Im sick of seeing teams like the pirates and royals not spending money, around 30 mil, and teams like the yanks and sox spending 200 mil. How can it be good for baseball when there is such a gap in payroll like this. this is why the sport is an after thought in 75% of the country.

 

 

 

The most obvious 7 things in sports that need to be changed are.

 

In the NFL, there needs to be a rookie scale with the draft like basketball. Its stupid rookies who have never played a down can immediately become the highest paid player on the team. a mistake at the top of the draft should cost you, but not set you back for a half decade.

 

In baseball there needs to be a cap like in basketball. Even the mighty spankees need the royals, pirates, etc.. in order to play games and have a league.

 

In baseball there needs to be an option to trade draft picks if you think that is the way to improve your team.

 

In baseball if you enter the draft, and are drafted, you either sign with the team for slot money or you are ineligible to be drafted again, and must sign a minimum contract after 3 years of college. this whole process is flawed, where there is slot money, but agents like scott boras demand huge money over slot and if he doesnt get it, takes his players elsewhere only to reenter the draft the next yr or the future.

 

In baseball there needs to be true revenue sharing. And these independent TV deals are a joke. MLB needs to say, this is our game, and we decide who gets to broadcast games, and how much we want to be paid for it, and we will share the TV money equally like in football.

 

In basketball there needs to be a franchise player, so a team isnt wrecked like the cavs just were. I think there should be a way to get a player, if you have the cap room, but if you do, the said team can take any player off your roster it wants, so in clevelands case, if you want to take Lebron, we are taking Wade and 2 1st round picks.

 

Finally, in college football there needs to be a damn playoff.

 

 

 

 

In theory.

 

Basketball does it best regarding draft slot money with the draft.

 

Football does it best with revenue sharing, salary cap, franchise players, and parity in the sport. This is one of the reasons its the most popular sport there is.

 

Baseball is a damn joke in every way. This is americas past time, but its being run into the ground by greedy cheap owners not spending money and screwing its fan base. By greedy owners not giving a damn about the league and buying championships with payrolls 5 times or more than other teams.

 

College football is one of the best products around, and greed is the reason there isnt a true playoff to determine its champion.

 

Awesome post. Seriously, I agree with everything you said in this post. If I put them in order, #1 would be a salary cap (Floor & Ceiling) in baseball, and #1b would be a playoff system in college football. I agree with the rest too, but, those two are killers for me. I still love both sports, but, they could be SO much better if those changes were made.

[Seahawks21]

Baseball has way more champions in the last 20 years than the capped sports, and way more teams that have been able to get to championship games. People act like the Yankees win every year. Didn't they just go 8 or 9 years between championships? The Red Sox? 2 championships in 90 years? We've seen teams like Detroit and Florida and Colorado play in the World Series recently. Kansas City and Pittsburgh can get there, they just have to do it right. If the big spenders made the world Series routinely, this argument would hold much more water, and you could point to legitimate reasons for a salary cap.

 

The only reason it would make sense is because of the Pittsburgh and Kansas City franchises. That said, Florida has found a way to do it with a similar situation recently. Twice.

 

If any given city by pure numbers has a better chance to play in the World Series than they would in any other sport, would you then want to change it so less teams have a chance?

[Pope Flick]

Baseball has way more champions in the last 20 years than the capped sports, and way more teams that have been able to get to championship games. People act like the Yankees win every year. Didn't they just go 8 or 9 years between championships? The Red Sox? 2 championships in 90 years? We've seen teams like Detroit and Florida and Colorado play in the World Series recently. Kansas City and Pittsburgh can get there, they just have to do it right. If the big spenders made the world Series routinely, this argument would hold much more water, and you could point to legitimate reasons for a salary cap.

 

The only reason it would make sense is because of the Pittsburgh and Kansas City franchises. That said, Florida has found a way to do it with a similar situation recently. Twice.

 

If any given city by pure numbers has a better chance to play in the World Series than they would in any other sport, would you then want to change it so less teams have a chance?

 

 

Demonstrably and factually false.

[Gopher]

Let's see....

 

MLB has 12 different winners in the last 20 years (including 8 different winners in the last 9).

 

NFL has 13 different winners in the last 20 years.

 

NBA only has 7 different winners in the past 20 seasons.

 

NHL has 12 different winners in the past 20 seasons (not including '04-05)

 

So, if he had said that baseball has more than the rest, he would have still been wrong, but at least it would have been sort of close. To say that MLB has "way more" is pretty far off, though.

[Pope Flick]

Let's see....

 

MLB has 12 different winners in the last 20 years (including 8 different winners in the last 9).

 

NFL has 13 different winners in the last 20 years.

 

NBA only has 7 different winners in the past 20 seasons.

 

NHL has 12 different winners in the past 20 seasons (not including '04-05)

 

So, if he had said that baseball has more than the rest, he would have still been wrong, but at least it would have been sort of close. To say that MLB has "way more" is pretty far off, though.

 

 

I found that equality rather interesting. But it is proof that once again he just shoots off his mouth without actually checking facts.

 

But if sounds so good when it's written with such certainty.

[Charles]

The only reason it would make sense is because of the Pittsburgh and Kansas City franchises. That said, Florida has found a way to do it with a similar situation recently. Twice.

Let's not attribute their lack of success to just $$ (although it has a lot to do with it). The people in charge in KC are jokers. Pittsburgh has a relatively respectable front office, but they need more worthy talent evaluators located around the country than what they have already. It's not a coincidence that the Rangers have been able to grow one of the best farm systems in the league. There's not a lot of $$ floating around here. It's all about getting the right people in the right places.

 

As far as Cliff Lee, there shouldn't be a single Rangers fan (who has undoubtedly spent just as much time as I have if not longer listening to "next year is the year") that has a problem with this trade. I know we're already in the lead in the division, but there's still three months left. There's a few that keep insisting that we shouldn't have given up on Justin Smoak so quick, especially within the division, and we gave up too much and blah blah blah. I've grown very weary of being dealt foldable hands year in and year out, and I'm supposed to believe when we're dealt some paint we're supposed to check it down? Screw that, why not push all in? It may not be a lot, but at least the other players know we're putting it all on the line. I love it.

 

It probably won't bring us a World Series. It may not even mean a playoff series win. But it's been way too long since we've had this electric atmosphere lingering around the Texas Rangers, and I would hate to be forced to look back on the 2010 season and wonder what may have been if only... Screw the future, I'm ready for the now.

[Gopher]

I found that equality rather interesting. But it is proof that once again he just shoots off his mouth without actually checking facts.

 

But if sounds so good when it's written with such certainty.

Yeah, I didn't realize that it would be that close, until I actually checked it out. Even more interesting is how far the NBA is below the others. Maybe that's what bothers me about the NBA... not the product that is put on the court (there is no arguing that they're the best players on the planet, obviously), but rather the fact that the regular season means squat, and even though the same 16 teams aren't necessarily making the playoffs each and every year, the same half-dozen or so teams are winning all of the titles. Plus, if you have a "playoff race" in the NBA, the teams that are fighting are doing so to determine who is the 15th or 16th best team in the league, essentially. Those teams have basically zero chance of doing anything in the playoffs, nine times out of ten. In baseball and football, on the other hand, two teams could be fighting for a playoff spot on the final game of the regular season (heck... baseball had to go to a 163rd game last year), where the winner has a decent chance of winning it all, and the loser goes home. Totally different relationship between the regular season and the playoffs, in baseball/football, than what it is in the NBA.

 

Sorry... I got off on a tangent. Not trying to turn this into a hoops debate (we've gone over that topic a few times on these boards). Back to Cliff Lee... I agree that there was a lot going on, in that first start, to expect perfection from the guy. Plus, minus the longballs (if you can say such a thing), it was a pretty solid performance, in terms of pitch count, complete game, control of the strike zone (the fact that he never had a three-ball count in nine innings is pretty amazing), etc.

 

Too early to tell, and I wouldn't count the Halos out just yet, but if Texas wins their division, and the Twins continue to falter and don't win theirs, I'll be pulling for the Rangers to come out of the AL in October. For as many great hitters as they have had over the past 25 years, it's a shame that they've never really been able to sustain solid pitching with their hitters, and make a serious post-season run. Heck... most, if not all, of the "expansion" teams (FLA, TB, ARI, COL) have made more of a playoff run than the Rangers have. If nothing else, I'd like to see it happen for the fans (even though that includes a few characters here on these boards).

[Scooby's Hubby]

Will Zonk and his tamborine be coming back to Texas?

[Charles]

Will Zonk and his tamborine be coming back to Texas?

it was a drum, not a tamborine.

[Clubfoothead]

I'm on board with John Daniels needing a lifetime contract.

 

Somebody get Bengie Molina a calf massage stat.

[Scooby's Hubby]

it was a drum, not a tamborine.

no little symbols, huh? i know he had some streamers on that thing. He used to go to Oiler's games, too.

[piratesownninjas]

no little symbols, huh? i know he had some streamers on that thing. He used to go to Oiler's games, too.

Piccalo snare.

[Seahawks21]

I found that equality rather interesting. But it is proof that once again he just shoots off his mouth without actually checking facts.

 

But if sounds so good when it's written with such certainty.

My fault, I meant to say that they have had more teams appearing in the championship, not winning it, I apologize. I heard somebody spout the numbers on local radio earlier that day. It was about championship appearances, not championships. It is possible it was over the last 30 years, but I think I had heard 20. I'll try to do some research over the next few days. I certainly apologize for and retract the statement. I thought those were the numbers that I had heard, thanks for the folks that did the actual research.

[Anna]

Cliff Lee has been traded to the Texas Rangers according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Rangers successfully landed Clifton Phifer Lee after the New York Yankees “walked away” from trade talks today. The Mariners will get first baseman Justin Smoak and other players in exchange for Lee and reliever Mark Lowe

[major-tom]

Cliff Lee has been traded to the Texas Rangers according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Rangers successfully landed Clifton Phifer Lee after the New York Yankees “walked away” from trade talks today. The Mariners will get first baseman Justin Smoak and other players in exchange for Lee and reliever Mark Lowe

 

Wow, nice "get" Anna, that trade happended when? You should float a few applications over to ESPN and CBS sports if your going to break big news like that. Also slip in your websites guised as personal pics (if you're truly a chick) and you will get hundreds of hits!!

[SLAYER]

Not that the Rangers are going to miss the playoffs but that trade ain't working out exacyly like ya'll had planned.

[piratesownninjas]

Not that the Rangers are going to miss the playoffs but that trade ain't working out exacyly like ya'll had planned.

Eh, I'd disagree. He's only had two bad outings really, he just gets rocked by Baltimore. He can't help it if he gets no run support.

Things will get back on track when Kinsler and Nelly get back... But yeah, Lee was horrid today.

[SLAYER]

Eh, I'd disagree. He's only had two bad outings really, he just gets rocked by Baltimore. He can't help it if he gets no run support.

Things will get back on track when Kinsler and Nelly get back... But yeah, Lee was horrid today.

 

and the game before that. the guy is 2-4 in six starts, is that what you expected. and how long does Kinsler and Nelly stay in the lineup before their next injury. Not Ranger bashing or nothing, but there seems to be some holes in their championship run.

[Dallas Sooner]

and the game before that. the guy is 2-4 in six starts, is that what you expected. and how long does Kinsler and Nelly stay in the lineup before their next injury. Not Ranger bashing or nothing, but there seems to be some holes in their championship run.

 

 

We all cant have the 4 highest paid players in the league on our team to fix the holes. Worry about yoru spankees and let us locals worry about our Rangers. Championship or not, we still like our team, so Please let us enjoy our team, while you continue to root for a team 2000 miles away from you....

Edited August 22, 2010 by Dallas Sooner

[tbimm]

We all cant have the 4 highest paid players in the league on our team to fix the holes. Worry about yoru spankees and let us locals worry about our Rangers. Championship or not, we still like our team, so Please let us enjoy our team, while you continue to root for a team 2000 miles away from you....

Actually only 1305.95 miles

[SLAYER]

We all cant have the 4 highest paid players in the league on our team to fix the holes. Worry about yoru spankees and let us locals worry about our Rangers. Championship or not, we still like our team, so Please let us enjoy our team, while you continue to root for a team 2000 miles away from you....

 

Chill dude, you are a bit touchy lately.

[whomper]

We all cant have the 4 highest paid players in the league on our team to fix the holes. Worry about yoru spankees and let us locals worry about our Rangers. Championship or not, we still like our team, so Please let us enjoy our team, while you continue to root for a team 2000 miles away from you....

 

 

Who was the first team to give Arod a 1/4 of a billion dollar contract ?

[piratesownninjas]

Who was the first team to give Arod a 1/4 of a billion dollar contract ?

JD, Greenberg and Ryan had nothing to do with that. Completely different regime, and very few from that time are still around.

[piratesownninjas]

and the game before that. the guy is 2-4 in six starts, is that what you expected. and how long does Kinsler and Nelly stay in the lineup before their next injury. Not Ranger bashing or nothing, but there seems to be some holes in their championship run.

And I am starting to get annoyed with this. Colin Cowherd was talking about Lee a few weeks back and how he shows up agains tthe yankees and pitches as if he doesn't care when it's a sad sack team like the O's... At first I thought he was just talking to talk, but I don't know what's going on with Lee at this point... Is he already counting the money he'll get from being a yank next year? I don't know, but he just hasn't looked right.