Friday Happy Hour at the Elysian Fields Bar & Grill

Welcome to the Elysian Fields Bar & Grill, where there are no exceptions to the First Amendment.

Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston on Ron Washington’s chances of AL Manager of the Year: “If I had a vote, I’d give it to him. He’s done a great job over there. Wash is a guy that if something was to happen over there and he didn’t have a job, there’d be a lot of teams that would love to have him. As far as managing and coaching goes, he’s a great teacher. He loves to teach. He likes to play the game the right way. He believes in pitching and defense and that’s what wins ballgames.”

Gaston on the Rangers this year: “I’m not surprised with the way they’re hitting the ball. They’ve always been tough in this ballpark. I think the pitching has helped out and given them a chance to win. I think that’s the big surprise to all of us, just to see the pitching has held up. And imagine if Hamilton was having the year he had last year. They might be in first place. But it looks like he’s starting to heat up now, too, so it’s time for us to get out of town.”

Rangers playoff tickets go on sale Sept. 12. But if you register for Inside Pitch on texasrangers.com, you can participate in an exclusive pre-sale of American League Division Series tickets. Fans can join Inside Pitch and participate in this ALDS pre-sale by registering at texasrangers.com by 11:59 p.m. CT on Monday, September 7. Fans who register will be notified via e-mail of the details of the pre-sale, which will take place on Thursday, September 10.

Over eight starts beginning July 27,  Tommy Hunter has given up 12 of his 23 runs (52%)  in the first inning. In those past 8 starts, he has a 11.25 ERA  in the first inning and a 2.08 ERA  in all others.

Blue Jays right-hander Jason Frasor on the toughest Rangers batter to face: “I’d say Michael Young. He’s always been a tough out. He’s so quick with his hands and that’s why he hits .320 with 200 hits every year. If you throw away to him, he takes it to right-center. If you throw it inside to him, he can pull it. He’s kind of like a Jeter-type hitter and that’s how I approach him.”

Young has played in 1,081 games since the beginning of the 2003 season. Only Ichiro Suzuki has played in more. Four more. Only Ichiro has more at-bats and hits than Young in that time.

Young also has a .900 OPS this year with a .376 on-base percentage and a .524 slugging percentage. If he doesn’t play again, that will be the highest OPS by a Rangers third baseman ever.

By the way, Ian Kinsler’s .891 OPS in 2008 was the highest ever by a Rangers second baseman. Alex Rodriguez twice went over 1.000 as a shortstop with a best of 1.027 in 2001. Rafael Palmeiro was best among first basemen with a .995 OPS in both 2000 and 2002. Juan Gonzalez had the best ever in left field (1.025 in 1993) and right field (1.001 in 1998) but Gary Mathews Jr.’s .875 OPS in 2006 was the best by a Rangers center fielder.

Catcher? Stop it. Ivan Rodriguez has the top eight before Rod Barajas finally shows up

Just for the heck of it: Einar Diaz.

Oyster Burns (right) had 128 RBI with just 13 home runs for Brooklyn in 1890. Not sure that’s a record but 115 more RBI than home runs in pretty impressive. Actually just wanted to mention there was once a player named Oyster Burns.

Rangers pitcher Scott Feldman: “Our staff is really led by Kevin Millwood. As a group, we really feed off of him. He goes about his business the right way. He’s a competitor, and he really leaves everything on the field. All you have to do is watch him and you’re bound to learn a lot.”

Feldman pitches today in Baltimore with a 10-1 record on the road. He needs one more victory to tie the club record for most road victories in one season. Vicente Padilla (2008) and Rick Helling (1998) both won 11.

In case you are wondering, Giants pitcher Juan Marichal won 18 on the road in 1968. Plus eight more at home. He was 18-2 on the road. Greg Maddux was 13-0 on the road while with Atlanta in 1995. That’s the most wins on the road without a loss.

Like those doubleheaders? In 1906, the New York Highlanders played five doubleheaders in six days. They went 10-0. In 1924, the Brooklyn Dodgers won swept four doubleheaders in four days. They beat the Phillies six times. In 1928, the Boston Braves played a record nine straight doubleheaders. They went 4-14.