Rangers need pitching (duh!)

[Providence A's]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont....1c3444d9.html

Soriano trade came a little late
Rangers' Daniels still has time to bring in some pitching

11:04 PM CST on Thursday, December 8, 2005

The Winter Meetings are officially over, and maybe the most surprising news to report is that there's still a member of the Florida Marlins' 2005 opening day lineup left standing.

Miguel Cabrera, you da man.

Of course, we're used to this by now. Every couple of years the Marlins break up a team, usually as the parties involved are still cleaning champagne from their eardrums.

Moral: Maybe the Marlins aren't so mad. And that brings us to the task for the Rangers' busy, young GM, Jon Daniels.

In his first meetings as boss, he made one fairly big deal, even if Alfonso Soriano didn't bring a starting pitcher.

Bottom line: The Rangers probably would have been better off had they traded Soriano last summer when they had the chance. Club officials now say no big league pitchers were offered, but sources indicate they could have had the Twins' Kyle Lohse and J.C. Romero.

John Hart conceded at the time that Soriano's value would never be higher. But nothing happened, and that's probably why the best Daniels could get this week was a minor league pitching prospect and a couple of outfielders.

Not much of a return for an All-Star. Or at least that's the way it looks until you consider what's to come.

First, you have to assume this isn't the last of Daniels' deals. Now that he doesn't owe Soriano about $10 million, he can write a check to a free agent pitcher.

Can you spell "Roger Clemens"?

He's the Rangers' best free agent option, even at 43. But no matter what Clemens decides in the next few months – and he should talk to Nolan Ryan about what the Rangers are willing to do to accommodate a legend – he's not the Rangers' last chance at pitching help.

The Rangers need more than one pitcher. Unless they can convince Clemens to go with a Matt Morris, say, they probably won't try to buy two. The better option is trading for pitching, a point the Rangers' new boss seems to understand.

Example: Trying to trade Hank Blalock for Josh Beckett. Once an anchor of baseball's best young infield, Blalock is now available for a club calling with the right price.

Could Blalock bring pitching that Soriano didn't? He's younger and cheaper and not prone to Soriano's mental lapses.

Kevin Mench is also available. Laynce Nix, too. Not so long ago the Rangers would have been loathe to give up any of them.

Here's what the last World Series taught us: You don't have to post All-Stars at every other position, a point the Astros took to an extreme. The most startling sight of the first World Series in Texas: Mike Lamb hitting fifth for the National League champions.

Nothing against Lamb, a player who survived his brutal upbringing in the Rangers' organization to play a key role for the Astros, but he would have had a difficult time making the Rangers' lineup.

Granted, the Astros lost to the White Sox because they couldn't score runs. They don't have half the Rangers' hitting. But just look what all those home runs have won the locals.

The White Sox are a bigger, better version of the Astros: Good pitching, more pop and the same proclivity for small ball.

You keep hearing that steals and squeezes and sacrifices don't apply in the big, brawny American League. But that's how the White Sox play. And the Yankees used to, back when they were winning World Series.

Trading for Brad Wilkerson indicates the Rangers' willingness to try something new. His numbers are way off what Texas fans are accustomed to seeing. But, like his college teammate, David Eckstein, Wilkerson gets on base and makes things happen.

The Rangers have tried pounding teams into submission. Time to drop the hammer.

In making this deal, Daniels said he "wanted to change our profile a bit." Get hitters who work further into counts. Make opponents work harder and dig deeper into bullpens.

Only one question: Will Wilkerson do that here? Other clubs like him, too. Daniels might flip his newest acquisition in a package of Rangers, perhaps bringing more pitching at last.

No matter what happens, these next few days should be interesting to watch. Now, if we can just say that in April, too.

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/baseball/13367841.htm

Rangers target pitching

By T.R. SULLIVAN

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

DALLAS - The Rangers spent the last day of the winter meetings making their best offer to pitcher Matt Morris and gauging the level of interest in their outfielders.

They are also contemplating the idea of signing troubled pitcher Sidney Ponson, trading for New York Mets pitcher Kris Benson and getting involved with expensive Scott Boras pitchers.

The Rangers are offering Morris a three-year deal for approximately $25 million in the hopes of luring him away from the San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners and St. Louis Cardinals.

"The Rangers are one of the contenders," agent Barry Axelrod said. "The group is narrowing and they're still in it."

The Cardinals have offered Morris arbitration, which means the Rangers will have to give up their second-round pick if they sign him.

The Rangers will not have to give up a draft pick for Braden Looper or Octavio Dotel, two prime relief targets.

The New York Mets, according to major league officials, have told the Rangers they are willing to trade Benson, who has two years and $15 million left on his contract. The Rangers are mulling it over, but aren't willing to do Laynce Nix and pitcher Juan Dominguez in return.

Club officials have also discussed the possibility of signing Ponson, who was released by the Orioles last September at the end of the second year of a three-year, $22.5 million contract.

That won't get done until a grievance against the Orioles is settled and that might not happen until spring training.

The Rangers have also expressed preliminary interest in four Boras clients, pitchers Kevin Millwood, Jeff Weaver and Jarrod Washburn, and reliever Julian Tavarez. None of them would come cheap.

"We had a meeting and they indicated they were going to take some steps in the near future to change the financial landscape and acquire pitching," Boras said.

The Alfonso Soriano trade likely frees up an extra $5 million on the payroll.

The Rangers are also looking for pitching help through a trade and have a number of teams calling them about their outfielders after they acquired Brad Wilkerson and Terrmel Sledge from the Washington Nationals late Wednesday.

The Dodgers, Astros, Padres, Cubs, Orioles, Blue Jays, Royals, Pirates, Indians and Yankees, who need a center fielder, have all expressed interest in the Rangers surplus.

"People perceive us as having depth and are willing to deal," general manager Jon Daniels said. "Almost every team has called."

The Toronto Blue Jays have a strong opinion of Wilkerson, but have cooled on Mench. The Padres are also high on Wilkerson, but have shown a reluctance to trade pitching, notably Adam Eaton.

The Rangers seem inclined to keep Wilkerson (.365 on-base percentage) because he can play all three outfield spots and can bat at the top of the order.

"One of the things we wanted to do was change the offensive profile of our club a little bit," Daniels said. "Brad does that."

The Rangers also might be more reluctant to part with Mench after losing Soriano's bat from the middle of the lineup.

The Astros are interested, but aren't willing to give up starter Brandon Backe or reliever Chad Qualls.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have also had multiple discussions with the Rangers, who really like Jonathan Broxton, a 21-year-old right-handed reliever.

I don't think it matters who the Rangers get for pitchers as long as they play in that field outdoors. They need a dome or their pitchers are going to be BBQ'd like they are every year

[Providence A's]

Morris is out:

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/ba...s/13383079.htm

ARLINGTON -- Matt Morris was Plan A in the Rangers' attempt to improve their starting rotation.

They are now moving on to Plan B after his agent, Barry Axelrod, told the Rangers on Saturday that Morris has decided not to come to Texas.

Morris is likely to pitch with a National League team, either the San Francisco Giants or the St. Louis Cardinals.

Axelrod said the Rangers' offer of $25.5 million for three years plus an option for a fourth year is less than what Morris will eventually sign for.

As for not wanting to pitch in the American League or at Ameriquest Field in Arlington, Axelrod said, "I would say that if either was a detriment, the ballpark was a larger factor than the league.

"I'm not saying it was a big factor ... Matt's a veteran, he's not worried about pitching in any ballpark. He can succeed in any ballpark. I must say the Rangers were very professional and very convincing. Going into this process, I didn't think the Rangers were going to be a factor, but they ended up being a major factor."

That's little consolation to the Rangers, who wanted Morris to be the leader of their starting rotation.

"We ended up going above and beyond what we originally planned," general manager Jon Daniels said. "There's a level of disappointment anytime you step out on a player and he chooses to go somewhere else. But we're not going to waste time dwelling on it."

The Rangers have two options. They could trade for a starting pitcher or deal with agent Scott Boras, who represents Jarrod Washburn, Kevin Millwood and Jeff Weaver.

Washburn, the only left-hander of the three, will likely be the Rangers' first choice.

"Had we signed Matt, the dollars allocated to him would have been gone," Daniels said. "Having freed that up allows us to move to other things, and I'm sure I'm going to talk to Scott at some point."

As for a trade, Daniels said, "I do feel confident that we can get a legitimate starting pitcher by way of trade."

That will likely come by trading one of their outfielders.

The Toronto Blue Jays are high on Brad Wilkerson, acquired in the deal that sent Alfonso Soriano to Washington, and could offer Ted Lilly in return. But the Rangers appear reluctant to deal Wilkerson.

A number of teams have shown interest in Kevin Mench, including the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets, who are willing to trade Kris Benson.

The Houston Astros have pursued Mench but don't want to give up starter Brandon Backe or reliever Chad Qualls. The Boston Red Sox could get involved if they can't re-sign Johnny Damon or if they trade Manny Ramirez. They are trying to deal David Wells and Matt Clement, but the Rangers like Bronson Arroyo.

Kansas City's Jeremy Affeldt is a possibility, and the Cardinals, who are looking for outfield help, could move Jason Marquis if they re-sign Morris. Baltimore needs an outfielder and appears willing to discuss Erik Bedard. Minnesota wants to move Kyle Lohse.

Lesser free agents who have been discussed include Brett Tomko, Byung-Hyun Kim and Jason Johnson. Sidney Ponson is another possibility.

But pitching is difficult to acquire and expensive to buy, especially if the Rangers are trying to convince them to pitch in Arlington.

"That's something we have to deal with and get past," Daniels said. "Despite being in the American League and playing in what is perceived as a hitter's park, if we can get where we want to be competitively, that will be something we can get over. The Catch-22 is getting there first."