Did Tiger Tank?

Formerly in this space was a post about our buddy Tiger Woods and his TANK JOB at the US Open.

Well, it happened to be up to the somewhat higher standards of our buddy Jay Busbee's site Sports Gone South, so you can now find it at that link.

It's not deadspin, but his 50ish(?) readers are more that our two-ish. It's also full-text instead of just a link. Booya!

I'm taking over the Intrawebs - One blog at a time.

Blogservations - Print Edition

It’s been a big week for us here - we’ve been recognized by deadspin, and we’ve nearly wrapped up negotiations with our first corporate sponsor. On top of that, we’ve done a lot of work perfecting the blog-voice, where we refer to ourselves in plural pronouns, despite the fact that we are a singular entity. We may have some trouble with it, I tend to have trouble with change (Awwww, crap!).

Here’s the latest installment of blogservations - the print version. We call it that, because it’s not very timely. Some of these are weeks old, but both of you reading this will forgive me (awwww, crap!), we’re sure:

Alex Rodriguez caught a ton of flack for shouting some phrase or primal noise in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays, thus causing Howie Clark to spaz and drop the ball.

We’re shocked, not so much because A-Rod would do something that is against “The Code,” but that A-Rod’s lisp didn’t give away the fact that he wasn’t John McDonald.

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The media loves to report, and the people love to hear/see/read, bad news. So it’s not shocking that when the NCAA granted every member of the Duke lacrosse team an extra year of eligibility for the missing season it wasn’t headline news - anywhere but North Carolina, that is.

It was another day of vindication for the boys on the team, one that was met with great jubilation. In fact, it was worthy of a party. Lots of booze, lots of strippers, we're told.

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Reds outfielder Ryan Freel isn’t quite ready to get back on the field after suffering from a concussion.

I’m shocked that (Awww, crap!) the dude with the imaginary friend is having trouble getting a clean bill of mental health. Shocked, we tell you!

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Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware is the latest athlete to sign on the dotted line and become a spokesperson for Chunky Soup.

No punch line, we’re Cowboy fans, so the joke is on us.

Bud's Big Day

When you take a little Bud Selig ingenuity, combine that with a touch of four-letter devil overkill and a hint of college football signing day, you get MLB Draft ‘07 - Live on the Deuce!

I thought about typing out my observations as they came to me, forming sort of a stream-of-consciousness post of chronological thoughts (I know that makes NO SENSE!), but that’s work. Listening to the radio is already work for me, if watching TV becomes an exercise in critical thought I might as well just become a Gigolo on the weekends so that I can make everything fun into work.

That’s not to say I didn’t pay attention, I did. Sorta. On deadspin.com, Will Leitch made a big deal out of watching ESPNs for 24 straight hours earlier this week. Hell, I did it for about 38 hours on NFL Draft weekend, and that’s when the entire family of networks was showing the same thing.

With that experience in my background, I came up with a few ideas for ESPN/MLB to make the draft broadcast into something worth watching again. Hell, they’ve produced the NFL Draft for the last 2 decades, you THINK they would know what they’re doing by now.

1. The Draft Board - Where in the meetings to make this broadcast a reality did someone suggest ripping off the Family Feud for the board? Mr. Tony and Wilbon’s board for making lists on PTI features greater technological advancements.

2. We do care who’s being drafted - ESPN decided to devote about 60 percent of the screen to some sort of graphics, yet as soon as the supplemental picks hit they decided that showing which team was on the clock is the most overrated part of draft day. That draft logo really did need to be showcased on the upper left.

3. We do care who’s BEEN drafted - If you were watching this without the benefit of some sort of internet tracking device you had real trouble finding out who went where. The “bottom line” scrolled through the picks during each run through. Of course, that meant waiting through the French Open results, Arena Football transaction report and various other insignificant items.

Then you had to devote a half hour to seeing the picks scroll through, but that’s a problem with ESPN’s general operating procedure for bottom line graphics when something takes up more than 13 letters.

Is it too much to ask that you take SOME part of the screen to constantly scroll through the picks that have been made, and who’s due up?

4. Invite all Scott Boras clients to the draft - All we talk about any more with the NFL Draft is the guys sitting there watching the women calculate how many pairs of shoes they can’t buy with each pick that isn’t him. I don’t know what would have been better. Watching Rick Porcello (Dubbed Mr. Mushroom by yours truly) plummet down the boards would have rivaled watching Rick Porcello react to getting millions of bucks, but having to spend all summer in Detroit as the best moments of the day.

It’s also possible that Matt Harvey would have gone nanners on a camera man for getting to close.

5. Take advantage of Jim Callis - The Baseball America guy predicted the first 18 guys right in 2005. Read that again, and then think of Mel Kiper. He’s way more accurate, and he sorta looks like John Clayton minus 30 years and plus 80 pounds (that is to say he’s of average weight). He’s got everything the 4-letter devil needs in a draft guru.

After the Toronto Blue Jays used their second pick of the day to draft Jonathan Arencibia, one of the ESPN guys (Probably KR) talked about how this was unexpected and a bit of a reach. Callis then laid the smacketh down and said that he was fairly certain of the pick the night before.

Callis should have been on the set instead of Gammons, who allegedly “pumped his fist” after Billy Beane’s first rounder. Asked by KR why, Pete said because he saw the guy pitch in college. Spot on, Pete, spot on. I bet when the WWE goes to Boston Gammons cheers every time someone says “Boston” into the microphone.

6. Be less reactionary - Honestly, it’s not draft day that makes the NFL draft so good, it’s all the different mock drafts and speculation leading up to it. That’s how the baseball draft got a little bit of internet foothold as well letting it get on TV in the first place.

But I heard no one talk about what was going to happen with the current pick until the pick was made. Have I mentioned that Jim Callis was on the broadcast and had the first 18 right in ‘05?

SPECULATE!

7. Change the Day - Suggesting moving it to Saturday is obvious.

8. Replace Bud - Look dude, I know you’re the commissioner. I’ve even softened up on you lately because you’ve not been all bad since “The Tie,” but honestly, when you look down at the card we have to see the top of your head. Not very flattering. Then you read the picks with all the enthusiasm of Ben Stein taking roll. “Beaven, Beaven, anyone, Beaven?”

Get Cal Ripken Jr., to man the podium. He’d be competent. Or if you want to get crazy, get Ted Kennedy. You’d pass the NFL Draft in viewership if you can make that happen. “With the First Pick in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, The Tampa Bay Devil Rays select, David Hyde Pierce, Vanderbilt.” Seeing him demolish names like a car on - too easy. Seeing him obliterate names like a drunken. It’d be funny alright, funny as hell.

That, and hearing him pronounce Los Angeles hurts my brain.

9. Replace the Card - Honestly, the whole Nick Schmidt pick sticks out I my mind as the lasting memory of the broadcast.

Quoth the Bud: “Nicholas Schmidt, Left Handed Pitcher, University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, Fayetteville, Arkansas.” I remember as the pick was made, I heard that he pitched at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville and wondering to myself where the hell THAT school was.

Did I miss anything?

The Best Defense is a Horrible Offense

When I was a kid, one of my mom’s favorite sayings was, “There’s no need to make a Federal Case out of it.” Mom never met Michael Vick.

Federal investigators reportedly descended upon Vick’s Virginia dog-fighting compound (Crimes always happen at compounds, not at rural Virginia homes), looking for evidence of dog fighting. The AP reports that more than a dozen vehicles entered the compound, as they injected themselves into an investigation nearly 2 months old.

Vick has been silent about the development, but he’s found an unlikely champion in the fracas. The prosecutor who was investigating him. Per the AP, Surrey County Prosecutor Gerry Poindexter said, "What is foreign to me is the federal government getting into a dog fighting case." Keep in mind they only did this after a search warrant given to local investigators expired.

Further comments from Poindexter, again per the Associated Press: "I know it's been done, but what's driving this? Is it this boy's celebrity? Would they have done this if it wasn't Michael Vick?"

I’m not a genius, but I’m thinking it’s being driven by Poindexter’s slow-to-react “investigation.” I don’t know if they would have “done this” if Ron Mexico weren’t involved, but I’m sure they wouldn’t have if Poindexter had instructed police to execute the search warrant rather than sit there doing nothing.

Reading the comments of Gerry, it’s possible that rather than defending Vick, he’s simply trying to cover his own ass, since he didn’t want to make a federal - errr local - case out of it. That is, until he goes there.

“There's something awful going on here. I don't know if it's racial. I don't know what it is,” Poindexter concluded. Poindexter, who’d black, didn’t specify if the racist acts of the federal government were directed at Vick for fighting dogs or himself for being an incompetent prosecutor.

If I were Michael Vick, I’d be sleeping pretty well tonight. After all, it’s not that often that the prosecution in a case goes on the offensive for the defense.

(Note, I use the pic of Jack because he's a "FEDERAL AGENT!" There are more of these Jack Bauer Motivational Posters)

EXCITING TITLE DRAWING INTEREST FOR SUBSTANTIVE CONTENT

Andy Roddick lost for the second straight year in the first round of the French Open.

I know, it’s not really news. Anyone not named “Federer” (or Nadal on the clay at Roland Garros) losing at a men’s tennis tournament isn’t exceptionally shocking, but rather expected. Yet listening to Sporting News Radio the news of Roddick’s defeat was able sneak into the Flash.

It got me thinking of the athletes who make news despite being not-news. The guys who get play in the media despite not being able to play. So I started thinking of some guys, and with the help of the most intelligent listening audience in the world, we came up with a list.

First some rules: The list is fluid. After game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Lebron may have made it, but the last two games have gotten him off the list. For now.

A guy may also find himself on the list despite being pretty good, the list is determined by disparity between how hyped he is and performance. The greater the hype, the more that’s expected of you. If this were a hype-list about TV Shows, for example, you’d find Lost right in the middle. While it may be good, it’s not THAT good.

For simplicity, we also eliminate guys who were draft busts. That’s based on projection, so there’s obviously some room for error. That’s how Ryan Leaf avoids the list, because he was hyped coming out of Pullman, but no one actually believed he was good once he got on the football field.

This list is about the right now. Yes, at one point Bill Simmons was hilarious, must-read material. Now, unless you care about the NBA or eat clam chow-dah you spend most of your time reading his columns saying, “Hey, I remember when he played at Duke,” or “crap, more about The Real World, seriously?”

Finally, to quote Jackie Childs, the list is capricious and arbitrary.

We present the list to you beginning with number 1. Why? Because if we tried to build anticipation throughout the list, we’d just be adding to the hype of:

1. Michelle Wie - Playing with women, we mention her as often as Si Ri Pak. Her marketing team thought it’d be a better idea to have her lose to men. Her marketing team = no hype, all substance.

2.. Andy Roddick - Seriously, the only thing this guy has done in the last 3 years is steal Alex Rodriguez’s nickname. He’s tennis’ “Great White Hype.” Hey Andy, Jim Courier called, wanted to know what you’re bringing to the Nick Bollettieri washed-up pot-luck.

3. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. - He’d probably deem his appearance on the list as “bullshit,” but we’d just dock his performance score.

4. Anna Kournikova - Not only could she not play tennis, but she wasn’t even hot enough to live up to the hype. She’s good looking, but she’s not violate-the-law hot like Sergei Federov thought she was. She was even out-Anna’d by Maria Sharapova, which has her down on the list. In 1999, this is her list.

5. David Beckham - I know 2 soccer players: Beckham and Pele. If I know who you are as a soccer player, you better be the best who ever lived. Otherwise, you can’t possibly live up to the hype that’s brought you to my attention.

6. Tony Romo - This one is personally painful, but deserved. You guys broke out the anointing oils, and look what you did. The NFLN broke out a special called “Who is Tony Romo?” On one hand, it says the hype isn’t all that, because people apparently didn’t know. Then again, I didn’t see a special called “Who is Samkon Gado?”

7. Roger Clemens - Ever notice how every time he loses he walks off the mound holding his groin or his hammy or some other fake injury? That’s just a side note. He is going to pitch half a year for a team with little playoff hopes, and his minor league rehab starts make TV. Michael Jordan, Izzy Alcantera, Delmon Young and Roger Clemens - The only people who’ve EVER gotten MiLB on TV. He still performs decently when he decides the fawning and begging has been enough to take a teams millions, but his hype is so great it’s allowed an obvious steroid user to have his name virtually untarnished by the scandal. Side note: Ever notice how since testing became mandatory in spring training, he’s not gone to spring training?

8. Brett Favre - He had trouble living up to his hype in 1996. Now 11 years later, he’s just a drug addict that used to be good and complains too much. I think he had more concussions than Steve Young, because he still thinks it’s 1996.

9. Tim Tebow - Chris Leak did 95% of the legwork in taking Florida to an undefeated MNC, but yet Gator fans clamored for Tebow. LaRon McClain was better on 4th-and-short than Tebow, yet Tebow gets all kinds of pub. They’ve even bastardized Tom Seaver’s nickname for him. I’m sorry, a tip-up touchdown does not earn you the rights to “terrific.”

10. Danicka Patrick - I guess for women we have to start comparing their hype to their breasts, because that seems to be the determining factor. Now, she’s borderline, because if we make this list in October, we probably don’t even think of her. She enters the conscious for about 10 days in May.

Honorable Mention: Daisuke Matsuzaka ($103 Million? Really.), Eli Manning (If his hype was his own, he'd be #1), Devin Hester (Remember Dante Hall?), Reggie Bush (Hey, his hype = rent), Nick Saban (Should that be Nick "Bear" Saban?), Chuck Liddel (see Soccer, but without the disdain)

Quoth Mr. Tony, THAT’S IT, THAT’S THE LIST!

Blogservations

Random thoughts from a litany of sports-like items:

Clinton Portis has caught some flack for recent comments that several viewed to be supportive of Michael Vick.

"It's not that big of a deal, Cold sores are herpes, too," Portis didn't say, "It's his wang, if she's who he wants to do, do her."

The Redskins later appologized for Portis, saying they don't support STD's except for those that Jack Kent Cook had.

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Convicted killer Robert Comer was put to death earlier this week, and his final words before lethal injection were: Go Raiders.

Boy, Al Davis must be proud. It's my understanding that the comments were eerily similar to Davis' last remarks before dying in 1989.

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A Steelers employee recently sent a hardcore pornographic video out to pretty much everyone in authority in the NFL. Through my connections, I was able to obtain a copy of the video.

My review: The rocking of the boat made the camera work unsteady.

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I’m not going to say that baseball teams have been knee-jerk in response to Josh Hancock’s death, but since Hancock’s dad filed several lawsuits this week in the wake of his son‘s drive-and-talk-at-twice-the-legal-limit-while-rolling-a-spliff accident, the Cardinals have taken the unprecedented step of banning tow-trucks from the clubhouse.

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Actual headline from four-letter devil.com: Angels jump on Wang early.

Actual response from Leon Phelps: Yeah, um, those guys are bastards. I don’t think 8 is too early for the wang to be jumped on by anyone named Angel, as long as there’s Courvoisier on hand.

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Ruby Young plead guilty that she tried to extort millions from Bart Starr.

Actual response from Leon Phelps: Oooooh, a story about a lady.

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Phoenix Coyotes assistant coach Rick Tocchet plead guilty to charges that he ran a gambling ring. Tocchet knew that if the case went to trial, the odds were against him.

One gambling rink had acquittal at 10-to-1.

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Thank you, thank you, that’s all for me! You’ve been great!

Outside the Texas Rangers - May 17

I know it’s been a few weeks since I took the time to look at Evan Grant’s Inside the Texas Rangers and answer questions that I wasn’t asked.

I know I fell behind my goal for 7 posts in 7 days. Hopefully I’ll be able to get a pair of them in today. It’s not like I’m lacking for ideas – I added 2 more half-posts to my documents yesterday.

If you don’t know, here’s the deal. Someone asks the Dallas Morning News’ Rangers writer Evan Grant a question. Without reading his answer, I provide one myself as I try to maintain my critical thinking skills.

His answers can be read here.

Q: Given the Rangers' disastrous beginning to the 2007 season, will they have the strength to stay the course and continue to try to build a team around pitching and defense or will they waffle like they have many times in the past?

Bob Womble

A: Bob, I don’t think the Rangers have a choice but to dance with the one’s who brung em – even if it means getting their toes mangled, backs thrown out and, um, calves strained.

There’s not really much they could do to try and reinvent the roster. Some bullpen arms, Ian Kinsler, Mark Teixeira and (for the time being) Michael Young are desireable commodities, but you can’t say that much for the rest of the team. Sure you could try to deal Brandon McCarthy, but you won’t get near what you gave up. The rest of the guys aren’t being asked about too much, I don’t guess. The farm is near barren, so you can’t even raid the silos for magic beans.

This team hasn’t hit, pitched or fielded well thus far, so if Jon Daniels wants waffles, he has to buy milk, flour and a waffle iron. I don’t think he has the budget to do that mid-season. The question comes after the year – when Tom Hicks has to determine if being pancaked in the standings is enough reason for him to look for a different chef.

One last thing to mention however, we know that Ron Washington has been with under performing teams at this point in the season. He’ll be a steadying force for the team, and history tells us the players will play better. It might be a reach for Michael Young to get 200 hits, but I don’t think he’s going to be a top of the order albatross all year. It COULD get better.

Q: I know Nelson Cruz hit the game-winning home run on Mother's Day. But am I the only one who thinks that even John Mayberry Jr. could post those same numbers, if not slightly better? A batting average of .193, with only one home run?

Josh and Tom are always raving about his power displays during batting practices, but obviously that hasn't transferred into any game display. Are the Rangers looking at the trade market to see if any other options are available, or is Victor Diaz gonna have to do if Nellie continues to struggle?

Michael Botello, Jacksonville

A: Who would you have them trade? As discussed before, there’s not many pieces to disassemble in a fire sale. Trading Eric Hurley for an outfielder is stupid, trading Ian Kinsler for an outfielder is stupid. The only thing they can do is make stupid trades unless we’re talking bullpen arms or finally telling Mark Teixeira good-bye.

But if you trade Akinori Otsuka you’re left in a position where even if the outfielder you get hits, and the other guys on the team follow suit, you still don’t have any assurances that you’ll win games 7-5 when the bullpen (as witnessed in the series opener versus Tampa Bay) can’t get a lead.

So they’re looking at the market – I’m sure Jon Daniels has called Omar Minaya about Lastings Milledge, but you don’t have much to give up for him and there’s no guarantee he’d be better than Cruz or Diaz at this point.

With Wilkerson on the DL, the Rangers brought up Kevin Mahar who could hit, but more than likely becomes bench fodder who’ll then be optioned down after batting below the Mendoza Line in about 18 at bats. Then they’ll try to clear him from the 40-man roster to pick up a spot starter off the scrap heap.

The only thing you can do, and this is solid advice, is pay more attention to Cowboys mini-camps and OTAs. It’s looking like a long, hot, swealtering, long, long summer in Arlington. Right now, the only thing worth the trip there is seeing construction progress on Beyond Jerrydome.

Q: Based on the season so far, the Rangers will not contend for the division, therefore players like Eric Gagne and Kenny Lofton will be available to trade. What can they get in return in the form of top prospects? What teams would be interested? I would like to hear your input on other possible scenarios.
Jose Orozco

A: In terms of top prospects how do the names Ricardo Rodriguez and Edwin Jackson sound? Lofton is less than worthless in trade now, and Gagne might want to remain off the DL for a month if he’s looking for a ticket north (or west, east or south).

For those guys you’ll be lucky to get much, and in terms of top prospects you might get another team’s Edinson Volquez, who’s had his fastball closer to the plate than his name to any prospect lists recently. That’s really not a complement.

Then again, sometimes top prospects who don’t get playing time and get lost in one organization’s shuffle end up amounting to something, so it never hurts to pick up talent that one team has given up on. The Rangers have done this in the past. Remember when Todd Hollandsworth was getting at bats? OK that didn’t work out for them, really. As hard as it is to believe, one team gave up on Travis Hafner and Adrian Gonzalez. Though, I suspect that doesn’t make you feel better.

Also, at some point, they’ll start talking about moving Mark Teixeira, and he’ll bring in some top prospects in return.

Q: Do you think what we are seeing with the Rangers is the product of a system change? Do you think that the skipper is trying to change mind-set and showing he believes in these young guys? Like Nelson Cruz? Also, I see Mark Teixeira as not being clutch. Am I mistaken?
John K., Cleburne

A: Lets go from bottom to top here, John, and start with the Teixeira question. I believe I agree with you. With the team in the middle of a battle for the division in April he looked horrid.

Last September, with a pennant on the line, he wilted as well. Let’s not pretend he’s been futile in games that count, because, well, he hasn’t been in many games that count.

The idea of “Clutch” is hard to quantify, but Mark Teixiera is usually hitting, or he’s not. In April he was never clutch, because he was never hitting. As he heats up he’ll be clutch because he’ll be getting hits.

I wouldn’t necessaraly say you are or aren’t mistaken, I’m saying it is still a question.

As to your question about change – there are definatly things that have changed. In 2004, there were no expectations on the club. They went out for most of the year playing like Kenny and 24 kids. This year there was talk of playoff runs and resources (money, prospects and draft picks) put into free agents. These things led to increased expectations.

Ron Washington came in and told the players it was their team. Perhaps what we’re seeing is THAT change – from Buck Showalter’s team to the players’ – is one that these guys weren’t ready for.

More than game decisions, that’s the effect of the Washington regime. It’s not young guys who aren’t hitting. It’s young guys, guys in their prime, and the over-the-hill gang that’s stinking. He doesn’t have a ton of veteran options to turn to, he has to win and lose with the guys he’s got.

Q: Anybody besides me starting to see a similarity in Ian Kinsler and Alfonso Soriano/ Steve Sax? In the words of Barney Fife, Ian better "nip it! nip it! nip it!"

Dick Barron, Fort Worth

Steve Sax got baseball’s version of the yips. Couldn’t clear his head to make throws, and then his body followed. Seems that Kinsler’s errors are because his mind isn’t getting his body in the right place. Not to say he’s disinterested and watching bugs in the lights, but he’s not getting himself to the right spot. .

When he starts thinking about what he’s thinking about – then we’ve got a problem. As it is, he’s still gaining experience. While looking for reasons the team has played as it has, it’s easy to look at Ron Washington and question. But no one will question his reputation as an infield instructor. I’d expect Kinsler to start fielding his position better; Washington will get that much out of this team.

Q: A few years back, Tom Hicks was going to create a new regional TV network with the Rangers. Then Fox Sports drove a dump truck of money up to his house, and that idea was forgotten about with the FSN contract. My question is this: What is the status of that TV contract – when does it actually expire, and has there been any talk of Hicks revisiting this idea now that he owns a third sports franchise?

Joe Siegler

A: Tom Hicks played the media game before merging his AM/FM radio group with Clear Channel, so he’s shown he can be successful. Though he’s also won a title with the Stars showing he can be a successful owner, but it hasn’t translated to the diamond.

Contracts like that one are exceedingly hard to break, and it was a long, LONG term deal if I recall correctly.

I’d suspect that the talk from Hicks was done to make sure FSN didn’t try to low-ball him on the new contract. He did the TV Contract version of a parent counting to three, and Fox backed down at 2 and 7/8ths.

Fox knew that prime realestate like baseball teams was the only way to stay viable in the market, and when there was a potential alternative they came back to the negotiating table. So the talk served it’s purpose.

Unless I missed something, Hicks’ third team is a soccer franchise. I think he’s smart enough to see that creating a network out of a futile baseball team, a hockey team and a soccer team would be a little bit like starting a beauty paegent with a midget, an amputee and a girl with no teeth.

Q: I read in a blog recently that Ron Washington is already a washout, the gap between Buck Showalter's heavy hand and Washington's "no hands" is too great for this mediocre team to bridge. I don't think so, but I am interested in your thoughts on the matter.

David W. Motley, Chicago

A: I’m willing to write off the season as a loss. I’ve done it in prior years, and I’m close to that point now.

But there’s no way that I’m willing to sell Washington down the river yet. He’s managed less than half a year, and there’s certainly a learning curve. His has been steep, sure. His top pitcher has gone on the DL, his top slugger stunk, and pretty much everyone fell below expectations. Part of that goes on him, sure, but the majority goes to the players.

It’s up to the manager to push the right buttons on a team, but so far one button has released a hungry bear, and the other a tiger. There’s not been much he could do.

There’s also growing discontent with Rudy Jaramillo and Mark Connor, but if you look across sports the most successful teams are the most consistant teams. Right now, the only thing that will help long term is for the entire organization to make a committment.

Look at Bill Cower – one year his Steelers were in the bottom 10 of the league, then they had the best record, then won a Super Bowl, then they missed the playoffs. Was he any worse of a coach during the bad years than the good years?

Q: Is there truth to a Tom Hicks-Ron Washington meeting after Monday's loss? Is Hicks about to give the dreaded vote of confidence?

Chris

A: This is a question I don’t think I can answer without ripping off Grant or one of the other writers who are with the team every day. So I won’t field it.

I will say that if a hypothetical meeting did happen, Hicks needs to tell Washington he supports him behind closed doors, then ignore any questions about the meeting or his confidence in Washington. There’s nothing good that can come from the “vote of confidence.”

Q: Tom Grieve stated in a recent broadcast of a game that the Rangers have been outscored in the first inning 68-20 this season. How is this affecting the morale of the Rangers and their ability to trust their pitchers? How do you see keeping the team's morale up? What do you see Ron Washington doing about this?

A: C’mon, you can do better than, “Is falling behind early bad?” It’s been a mailbag with not many comments to take issue with, but this one takes the cake.

Let me answer your questions directly though: It means they can’t trust the starters, the team’s morale couldn’t be lower if they started losing control of their bodily functions, and I see Washington asking Jon Daniels to get pitchers who don’t blow goats.

How’s that?

Q: While I am not yet ready to give up on this year, would the Mets be interested in Vicente Padilla and whom for Lastings Milledge to fix our center-field hole long term? What are the realistic chances of Torii Hunter coming here in free agency?

Gary, Richardson

A: The Mets are certainly looking at options for their rotation, but a guy who’s due more than 30 million dollars and has an ERA that’s 100-times the legal limit isn’t much of an option. Due dilligence would also likely tell the Mets that he’s not a fit for New York. Padillia’s likely a Ranger for the long term.

That doesn’t mean that the Rangers can’t pry away Lastings Milledge. He’s likely done in New York. Other teams know this, and Omar Minaya knows they know. Milledge is currently on the DL, and even when healthy probably isn’t going to be traded immediately. The Mets lose nothing by leaving him in AAA, and will be able to wait until someone comes up with an offer that helps them get past the Braves.

At this point, there are no realistic chances of Hunter signing with Texas. He’s not a free agent, and won’t be for more than 5 months. The team doesn’t know how it will be made up in July, much less in November. Chill out.

Q: Hey, where’s my question?

Adam J. Morris, Houston

A: I was asking the same thing!