Monday Morning Manager...Lincoln at Gettysburg

1. No - Old School, Old player, best left a story that's just history and with no future.

2. None. I'd take 28 year old Coco Crip and the (upto) $18.5m on his 3 years. This team is building, so do we really need $90m on Hunter who'll probably have to play in the corners by the time we're ready to compete? No thanks. A bad move for Texas if we get him at that price. Less money and years is the only compromise. I'd be happier with Rowand at 5 & $55m but still not enough. Cameron? No thanks.

3. No

4. Play again? Maybe, but doubtful. Hall of fame? Maybe but doubtful.

5. Interesting. Not sure I'd let Hank go just yet. Murphy needs a second look in the outfield and Volquez has shown enough progression to also keep around for a while longer. Probably would pass on that one.

1. I don't like Kenny Rogers but, he is a winner. That is something the Rangers rotation does not have and desperately needs. Yes.
2. Torii Hunter doesn't seem to be a good fit on this team, too prima dona-ish. Aaron Rowand, on the other hand is a hard-nosed player who I think would be a good influence on the young players we have.

3. The Rangers need a power hitter where ever they can find him, to play first base. Sean Casey isn't that guy.

4. What team would be foolish enough to sign Barry Bonds at this point? He will never play again and if convicted he will not be in HOF. I'll also say that Hank Aaron will be the recognized legitimate homerun champ. That is until A-Rod reaches 756.

5. TR, uh, we actually NEED some of those players you're getting rid of. We need Volquez, he is going to be a winner for this team. Murphy looks like the kind of player you can put in the line up every day and watch him produce. Why does everyone want to trade Hank Blalock? Let's keep him. You're giving away too much in this trade.

1. No
2. Hunter for four years at $64million, Rowand four years at $48 million, and Cameron not at all.

3. No to the mayor.

4. He should be in the HOF. Whether he gets in despite the strong bias against him is another question.

5. More upside with what the Rangers already have. I'd pass on this one.

1. Yes
2. Opt for Cameron, we won't be competitive til the end of Hunter and Rowand's contracts.

3. I'd rather see a young player like Jason Botts or Victor Diaz tried there.

4. No, Barry Bonds should be erased from baseball.

5. Heck No!! I would do that trade if you swapped Ian Snell or Tom Gorzelany but after a great rookie season Duke has been a model of fluff and inconsistency. I do like LaRoche but I would want the deal to center around the pitcher.

If it took Abraham Lincoln about 2 minutes to read the Gettysburg address – that is 10 minutes shorter than it takes to read some of the responses on Monday Morning Manager (including mine).

And by the way, it’s a myth that President Lincoln wrote the address on the back of an envelope – I suggest reading Doris Kearns Goodwin “Team of Rivals” for the full account of the evolution of the speech.

1. Not just no, but heck no.

I am mystified and appalled that the Rangers are even thinking of bringing him back. So much for following the “plan” of building a long term contender through the farm system and getting to the playoffs like the Rockies and Diamondbacks. It’s back to the same old Rangers philosophy that’s kept them out of October baseball for 8 years: let’s just sign a bunch of old guys, cross our fingers and hope. Patience is a virtue for everyone except Tom Hicks. Anyone remember how this short term philosophy works and how many playoff games the Rangers participated in 2000? 2001? 2002? 2003? 2004? 2005? 2006? 2007?

2. No on Torii Hunter and Mike Cameron. I am an Aaron Rowand fan. That contract sounds reasonable – as long as isn’t doesn’t include any kind of “not trade” clause.

3. Yes, a one year contract wouldn’t hurt. And if you’ve ever had the opportunity to meet Sean Casey or hear him speak he’s a terrific person who would be good to have in this organization.

4. Why do I have the sneaking suspicion that since Arte Moreno’s plan to get ARod has been foiled he might be willing to take on the Bonds sideshow as the Angels DH?

Well Barry didn’t bet on baseball – which seems to be the only offense that baseball specifically states as illegal so yes, eventually he’ll get in. Fortunately in about 6-7 years – ARod will surpass Barry as the top All-Time HR hitter and Barry will just be the unlikeable runner-up.

5. I am going back to enforcing my personal "no trade talk" policy.

http://emc.mlblogs.com

1. No. The only way that would make any sense to me is if they were planning to salary dump Padilla, and I don't want either of those things to happen.

2. Of those 3 options, Rowand at 5/55 looks the best, but I bet he gets a better deal than that. I wouldn't give Cameron a 3rd year, but 2/18 is doable. To me, a 6th year for Hunter is an absolute deal breaker. If the Rangers feel that Boggs or Borboun will be ready by 2010, then Cameron on a 2 year deal looks OK.

3. No. Great guy, but he can't hit enough to justify every day time at a position of offense. I'd rather see Cat play first against righties than bring Casey in.

4. No. Yes.

5. I don't see that as an improvement. Laroche for Blalock is a wash offensively and Duke was pretty awful last year. I like that he's lefthanded, but I'm kind of high on Volquez right now. I'd consider Laroche for Volquez straight up if Laroche were open to signing a 4-5 year extension.

1. No way
2. The Rowand deal

3. Eh... He doesn't excite my baseball pants, but neither does Cat.

4. Playing career is done. I don't see how the writers could keep him out forever though. I think one day in the future, steroid use won't be considered that big of a deal.

5. How dare you. Murph is better than LaRoache and Duke combined. It's a shame Wash won't let Murph pitch.

It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues --

Abraham Lincoln

1. No how, no way, go away

2. Bring me the head of Torii Hunter

3. Catalanotto should play first so Murphy can play left and Botts can DH

4. I think Bonds should be banished from Monday Morning Manager

5. I'd trade Blalock for LaRoche but leave the rest out

1. No. The Reason? Did you see him eye a Detriot reporter after a Tiger-Ranger game this year? The reason he did that is because he didn't recognize the reporter as being from Detriot and has great hostility towards anyone who would be with Texas. A fellow reporter had to tell Kenny that that guy was "Okay". Now if that is not a completely immature person I don't know what is.

2. Not that much or should I say that many years for Torii. Yes to Rowand. No to Cameron, mainly because this offseason he has tested postive for some an illegal drug in baseball.

3. Yes.

4. Yes and yes.

5. Exactly how low is Blaylock's stock right now if you have to include Volquez, Wes and Murphy in order to get LaRoche and Duke. I would think Duke and Volquez are fairly equal in value and LaRoche is a tad bit above average player. That trade is skewed heavily in the favor of the Pirates. The only way that trade would make sense is if we needed to dump salary, which is the oppisite of what we need to do. Blaylock is a really good player, we shouldn't just give those away.

1. It depends on if you can move Padilla and save about 8 mil.

2. If Hunter gets 6 years the 6th needs to be a vesting option and it needs to be 84 mil. Rowand no, Cameron yes

3. Yes if the trade market is dry.

4. No, and yes if he doesn't get indicted.

5. Swapping the pitchers doesnt make much sense to me. Id rather get Bay than LaRoche out of pitt also. LaRoche isnt much better than Blalock if Blalock is healthy. So Id pass.

5) I'd make that trade as quickly as I would trade Chris Young and Adrian Gonzalez to San Diego for Adam Eaton and Akinori Otsuka, as in never. You should be careful, T.R., Daniels may read this column and take your crazy trade ideas seriously.

3. What about Jason Botts at first? I bet with a full year his #'s would be better than Casey's.

5. NO, way too much. If I talk to the pirates I talk about Bay first.

1. I don't think that it would hurt us to give Rogers 8 million for a year. It would help the rotation and make us more competitive next season. I say yes but I wouldn't go any more than 8 million. That's a very generous offer.

2. Hunter all the way. I love the thought of having a Texas boy in center for the next 5-6 years. Hunter is a health nut and if there is anyone who can play into his late thirties then it's him. Rowland to me is a 2nd option but if you can get Hunter (and i think we will) then i say for sure take Hunter.

3. We will have to do something at first and Casey would be an upgrade from what we have.

4. Look Bonds did steroids and when we look back at this time in history we will remember it as a steroid era. I would still put Bonds in the Hall of Fame. He has had a great career and i honestly don't know how much of it is b/c of steroids or how much is just his raw talent. I would be surprised to see Barry Bonds play another game.

5. Ok I love this trade. Blalock is great and a fan favorite but Zach Duke is a good pitcher and will be a better pitcher. He has played for an awful team and gets no run production. The man can pitch and would be another good young arm into our rotation. A year or two ago it would have taken a lot more than that to make a trade like this happen.I'm really not high on Volquez and if we can get Adam LaRoche then that would fill a hole at first base. Sure I'd rather have Jason Bay but Adam LaRoche is a good young middle of the lineup type of guy.

1. It sounds like a good idea, but, thanks to Tom Hicks' inability to forgive, that question is a moot point. Rogers dumped Boras so he could resign with the Tigers - he's not coming here. And we can all thank our esteemed owner for that.

2. Hunter is getting old. He might have 2 or 3 good years here, but I would not want him on the payroll at that price for 6 years.

Rowand is the best solution, but with all the competition for him, he's probably going to get much more than $55 mil. - and maybe even 6 years like Torri.

Mike Cameron - not even worth discussing.

3. No, too old. I'd rather try Catalanotto there.

4. Maybe Bonds will play with that independent team that made him an offer, but I don't think we'll ever see him in the Majors again. And as for the HOF, just think of it this way: is Michael Vick going into the football HOF? Covicted felons need not apply.

5. As TR has it set up, that's way too much to give up for two guys. Like Bigdsport says, exactly how low is Blalock's value right now?

But take out Wes Littleton, and replace David Murphy with John Mayberry or Brandon Boggs and that's a trade I'd consider. Zach Duke is a good young pitcher with more experience and upside than Volquez, and swapping Blalock and LaRoche would be an even trade of mid-order bats - and it would open up 3rd base Metcalf and Chris Davis.

1. Absolutely, to get a quality starter for 8 million would be a steal in this market, especially if he can help Kason Gabbard develop.

2. The team who gives Hunter more than a four year contract is making a huge gamble. Despite what people keep saying, he would already be an average to below average offensive corner outfielder, so there is no reason to think he would be able to be an average to above average one in a few years. I wouldn't do that for Rowand either. I would make that deal with Cameron. He's a headcase, but he's been just as good as Hunter over the past three seasons (check the stats if you don't believe me). He'll probably decline faster, but his contract is only three years.

3. Ummm...no. The Rangers have better internal options than Casey. He's terrible.

4. Barry Bonds will most likely not play again. Should he be in the HOF? Absolutely, and on the first ballot. He played in an era when everyone juiced, with the majority of juicers being pitchers. If you take 20% of his production away due to steroids, he's still one of the top 50 players ever. And the "greats" like Clemente, Aaron, Mays, et. al. used whatever performance enhancers were available to them. Aaron said in his autobiography that there was a season he couldn't have made it through without amphetamines. If you need a drug to even make it through a season, then that's the very definition of a performance enhancer. Let Bonds in with the rest of the bunch. The game hasn't been clean for fifty years, so let's not punish this batch of players as scapegoats just so we can feel better about the game.

5. No.

1) Yes. Kenny is a leader. All of the non-sense with the Rangers has had to do with money. Imagine that. The Rangers didn't want to pay him what he was worth, he wanted a new contract and didn't know how to go about getting it. Does anyone really think that Hicks cares that this guy assaulted a cameraman. It is the least of his worries. Rogers pitches well out there at the ballpark and would probably be the leader of the staff.
2) No 5 years guaranteed with a buyout for year 5. Hunter is a health nut. He will make it. Besides he could go to right field if he slips. How about developing our own guy? I could get Cameron for a bag of cocaine. Rowand is over rated, but is cheaper.

3) No

4) Bonds is going to the Federal Pen for 18 months, if he plea bargains. If he goes to trial as everyone is saying that he is that defiant, he will get a longer sentence. Hall of Fame votes will be based on what is disclosed at trial. Did he test positive, is Anderson testifying against him. It looks kind of fishy that Anderson is released on the same day as the indictment is announced. Sounds like Anderson cut a deal. Perjury and Obstruction Of Justice, as i said are serious things to the Federal Boys, unless you are a sitting president. My opinion on this is the Federal Government should be handling the immigration issue not investigating some ego-maniacal multi millionaire. Doesn't this country have larger issues that need to be addressed? What a waste of time and money. How much has it spent on this case already? Ultimately Bonds has disgraced himself and hurt mainly himself. No one else was harmed.

5) No. How many times have we had this discussion? You don't trade young pitching prospects, it is too unpredictable. I am tired of watching our pitchers develop elsewhere. Trade Blalock at the all-star break next year once he rebounds. His trade value will be higher then. Keep the rest of those guys. The only guys i would deal are Millwood, Padilla, Cat, Laird and possibly Young.

Tori Hunter, you better call A-Rod before you sign here. Be wary of the money being dangled in front of you. Beware, Beware. Once he signs here, it would be nice if a certain writer would throw these words at him and i doth quote, "It is about winning, it ain't about the money." No one else is going to give the Prosper native anywhere close to what we are going to offer him. Is this guy another one of T. D. Jakes disciples? I hope this doesn't mean we will have to look at Deon and Michael.

1. Absolutely!! The Rangers have already made the mistake of letting Kenny get away from the organization multiple times. He knows how to win. He may not be what he used to be but I still think he would be a good number 2 guy behind Kevin.

2. There is no way I would be willing to give 6 years to Torii Hunter. The guy is a classic case of having a monster walk year and is going to get paid more than he's worth. I would love to see Aaron Rowand for the next 5 years as the Rangers everyday centerfielder. The 55 million may be a little steep for tightwad Hicks though. As for Mike Cameron... No thanks.

3. Not in the least bit. I'd rather re-sign Brad Wilkerson than have Sean Casey.

4. I doubt that Bonds ever plays again but I sure would like to see him as the Rangers DH next year!

5. Is Blalock's value really that low? I'd stick with Volquez and Littleton over Duke at this point in their careers and I believe Murphy has shown that he has a ton of potential and wouldn't mind seeing him as the Rangers' everyday centerfielder next year. Just please Ron Washington due us all a favor and don't make us watch Nelson Cruz waste anymore at-bats!

1. No Kenny. This makes no sense at all. In fact, even the thought of his agent shopping him to Texas caused Kenny to fire the agent.

2. No Torri. In 2010 his contract, combined with MY's will be drag on the payroll ($30 million), and could keep the team from adding the final couple of players needed when the team is finally competitive. I like Rowand, but not at the prices being discussed. No Cameron.

I will say this. If Rangers mgt is committed to spending a bunch of money on a "star player" just to sell tickets, then sign Cameron - at least his deal is only for 3 years. I'd really prefer to see the team trade players and CASH for prospects who will be ready in 2007 or 2008. We spend it in the draft in bonuses, and we spend it on scouting - both for players that are 3 to 4 years from the majors. Why can't the team spend it on players who are 1 year away and are better risks? It's outside-the-box thinking, but look what the Mavericks have done by spending money. Hicks has run the Rangers into the ground, and the Stars too. And just when we see a ray of hope that this team is going to try to rebuild, we do our best to screw this up by trying to sign guys like Hunter, instead of pitching. Instead of pitching! Moves like paying a non-pitcher $15M/yr is why this team has won exactly one playoff game in its entire history. Go White Sox - sign Torii!

3. We already have Sean Casey. His name is Cat.

4. I do think Bonds will play again. I also think he will make the HOF - just my opinion of the voters - not my opinion.

5. I have said before that there is no need to give Blalock away - he can hit, and right now he is the closest thing we have to a power bat in the lineup. I would not disagree with those of you suggesting we trade him at the ASB after his value increases, however, if we receive value for value. As for the proposed trade, I'd pass.

Every freaking year we do this. We fail to remember how bad our team was the previous season. We fail to improve the pitching and believe that we are one or two players away from competing. I wish someone over there would just admit that we aren't one or two players away from competing and start dealing guys like Padilla, Millwood, Catalanotto, Blalock and Mike Young too. By the time we are close to being competitive none of those guys are going to be able to help us. Deal those guys for some top prospects and call it what it is. Lets say it together, R E B U I L D I N G. Again R E B U I L D I N G, Again. R E B U I L D I N G. Get Cabrera and Willis if you can. Spend that 15 million a year on either one or both of them. It will help us a lot more. I want to win the whole shebang, not just compete for the west. The Angels got Garland today, what do we have?

dwidregod...Do you know anything about the Rangers or baseball?

He does.

1) NO! Been there, done that. Please don't gamble on the Gambler, JD.

2) Mike Cameron..because he's cheaper, still fast, and hits with authority. It will save $60 million over Hunter.

3) No. Casey isn't any answer.

4) Bonds better not get inducted into the Hall of Fame now after lying repeatedly to a Grand Jury--reminscent of a discredited Politician about 10 years ago, whose wife has been in the news alot recently. Why would we be surprised if Bonds got off? That same Politician did. What would Bonds' defense be? He lied! With the stupidity abounding in baseball, he might play again..better if he played for the prison team.

5) No. Giving away too much young talent.

But DWI-DRE,
As great as M. Cabrera is-- Like Teixeira, he's one of the few immediate-impact players in the game--

getting him...

a)would cost us much of the youth with which we are (successfully) rebuilding;

AND

b) would be fraught with the same problem which you see so keenly with others (such as MY): by the time our potentially excellent pitchers have been developed, today's best hitters will be too far past their prime for us to put it all together.

Cabrera is no exception.

If MY, Ranger-Torii, AND Ranger-Cabrera ALL defied Father Time, AND we had chosen the right 7 prospects to deal to Florida, so that we still had the 3 who really DID pan out by 2011, then we'd have all our eggs in that one year's basket-- ALL OR NOTHIN'.

On the other hand, if we go after guys like SF's Lincecum, the Met's Milledge, and others that the fast-track teams are too impatient to develop, AND we develop our own, then we should have about 5 years in a row with a legitimate shot (2011-2016).

I'm with you on being willing to trade some of our best now, to have a chance then, but if we had Cabrera today, he'd be one of those we'd have to be willing to trade.

1. Absolutely YES. I don't care about the reporter issue. People have bad days. A-Rod bashed the Rangers on his way out and a lot of people want him back (I wouldn't take A-Rod back if he came here for free). Kenny Rogers was brought up by the Rangers, has always been a Ranger, and will always be a Ranger. People make mistakes. I say get him back and lets retire his number when he's done.

2. Hunter all the way. He will be happy here. His family is here. If his age catches up with him we can put him in a corner infield spot or even DH. His presence will help the young players develope. Question: Why wasn't Michael Young at the wine-and-dine w/ Hunter.

3. No. Let's go Cat. Cat studies everything. With Ron Washington as his coach, Cat can become a great first baseman.

4. No he won't play again. If Pete Rose can't get inducted for gambling, Bonds should never be inducted for cheating, lying and teaching kids that if you want a historical baseball career and you want to break a record held by one of baseball's finest, just take steroids and deny everything. How can he even accept that record knowing he cheated to get it. Boo that man.

5. No way.......but if you take David Murphy out of the deal and you've got yourself a good trade. Murphy's got some great years ahead of him.