Poor Toby's Almanac...Memorial Day Weekend

I know I said I wasn't going to blog comment anymore (because of D'god's obnoxious behavior) but I can't resist this one. Call it age if you want. Tom Grieve has been in the Ranger organization longer than anyone else. His comments of the broadcast are always a welcome addition to the game. My good wishes, thoughts and prayers, Tom, and I'm sure the same is true for many of you. Tom, you're a real gentleman...good luck next month.

I'll second that. Apart from sounding one heck of a nice guy, he is head and shoulders above the other analysts on mlb.com TV. Besides, D'god has been very quiet lately. I suspect it's because the Rangers are winning, but he could have gone into obnoxious bloggers rehab......

Come on guys i love the fact we are winning. Wash is leading this team, the "organization" has been golden in all player transactions. I would like to see Cat dealt when it is convenient for us. I can't wait for Davis to be up here. I like the young players. I was wrong about Hamilton, even if i was right about Volquez. Ham is a player, probably the best we have seen here. Better sign him up before others start clamoring. I still believe that he is the future right fielder, but that is ok. It was a good trade, but Volquez looks like he might win 18 or more games if he stays healthy. Oh well at least we have a MVP caliber player to show for it, something Daniels hasn't been good at. Dushcherer was lights out yesterday another pitcher from our past. Oh well, didn't realize i was being obnoxious, just truthful and critical of what had been going on. I like this team and we aren't that far off or away, give or take a few players. The youth and exhuberance on this team is exciting.

Ditto to the other comments on Tom Grieve. As an avid Ranger's fan who lives a long way from Arlington, Tom is my connection to the Rangers. He is so right-on in his analysis, and seems to be a great guy. Best of luck Tom.

Like every Ranger fan, I am so happy that May was the opposite of April. Certainly, the "new" offense of Hamilton, Bradley and Murphy has been outstanding; Kinsler and laird are doing what we expected; and when Young and Byrd start hitting, the other pitchers better look out. The Rangers are probably still a first baseman, and a couple of good starters away from being real contenders, but progress is being made.

Finally, what I really am liking is the visible emotion the guys are starting to show. In April, when they sturck out at a bad pitch or the ump made a bad call, most of the guys seemed to shrug and sit down. While it is not good to play without Bradley, Hamilton or Kinsler, I am glad to see them get mad. We have played better and have been competitive since they started acting like losing was a bad thing!

d(GOD) you must not read anyone else's posts except yours. There have been several people that have told you were obnoxious but i guess you missed them. The trade for Hamilton is way far in our favor as the question has not been answered on Volquez. BTW how are your picks on who will win their division? The Rangers sometimes need just a little luck like a ball thru the legs. What is RW's average now? This is an exciting team to watch.

Welcome back, D'god, to the land of true Rangers fans where the next game will always be a win, and the next season better than the last...(we hope!). You are of course correct that pitching is everything (well, almost everything), but the fact is that pitching prospects tend to fall by the wayside at an alarming rate. Vasquez is doing fantastically well for the Reds(far better than they hoped for, surely), but next year? The arms of pitchers are so very fragile-far more so than the limbs of position players. So bewail the loss of Vasquez in a year or two-not now. Hamilton? More likely that his body will hold up than that of a pitcher, but who knows? Shame on the Indian "fans" who chanted "Rehab..rehab..." at him but hey! let him wear that nickname with pride! Let him be an inspiration to all those who fight inner demons. You meet these tortured souls on the street as a policeman? Remind them that the letters of the insult "rehab" can be rearranged to "Home Run".

Go Rangers!! And may the fates provide me with the opportunity to see a game at Arlington once more before I die.

Pitching is everything! And our starters have been better this year and are not the problem, but, how is it that we can staff other teams pitching staffs but not our own? Here is how: Duchscherer A's, Galarraga Tigers, Young Padres, Harang Reds, Volquez Reds, Davis Diamondbacks, Danks White Sox, Dempster Cubs. We are doing better this year, Padilla is the Ace on this staff and a bulldog. Millwood is lazy and should be gone asap. Feldman is a find, Gabby can pitch but may be hurt. So things are looking up. Bossman 300 said the other day that all of the other teams have players spread out across the league, just as we do. I whole heartedly disagree. No other team in this league has as many good players especially pitchers than what we have let go through our fingers. Ham is a player no doubt, i am glad we have him, but if Volquez were here and assume he has the same record, that 7-1, #1 makes him the ace of this staff and # 2 bumps our record up above .500. The bottom line is the PITCHER can have a more direct impact on the outcome of a game, can dominate it. Volquez turned the corner last year went through the growing pains and we should have reaped the benefits of it. That is what is killing this "organization" As COCO said, The Rangers can't afford to trade pitching. He is right about that even if Ham is on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Here are some more former Rangers spread out through the league: Catcher Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez Tigers, 1B Mark "Tex" Texiera Braves, LF Alphonso Soriano Cubs, Kenneth Rogers LHP Tigers. Just what would this team be with TEX at first base????? Who is our catcher Salt or Laird?

Here are some former Mariners spread out through the league: Randy Johnson, George Sherrill, Derrick Lowe, Gil Meche, Freddy Garcia, Rafael Soriano, Jamie Moyer, Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, Carlos Guillen, Adam Jones, Jason Veritek, Omar Vizquel, Jose Guillen, Mike Cameron…….

Here are some former A’s spread out through the league: Tim Hudson, Danny Haren, Barry Zito, Mark Mulder, Jeremy Bonderman, Aaron Harang, Ted Lilly, Keith Foulke, Octavio Dotel, Chad Bradford, Jason Giambi, Jermaine Dye, Milton Bradley, Nick Swisher, Eric Byrnes, Jose Guillen, Gerald Laird, Johnny Damon…….

Here are some former Angels spread out through the league: Jarrod Washburn, Bobby Jenks, Troy Percival, Derrick Turnbow, Brendan Donnelly, Bengie Molina, Orlando Cabrera, Jose Guillen, David Eckstein, Troy Glaus and my favorite, this guy: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Warner%20Madrigal&pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=444127

“Bossman 300 said the other day that all of the other teams have players spread out across the league, just as we do. I whole heartedly disagree.” – Just another incident of you disagreeing with me and being proven dead wrong.

“Just what would this team be with TEX at first base?????” – About 6 months away from losing him and only having 2 draft picks to show for it.

“Padilla is the Ace on this staff and a bulldog.” – You mean Paidwella, who should have been traded all of last season, all off season and up until a few weeks ago according to you? You’re really fickle for a dude.

“Millwood is lazy and should be gone asap.” – Or until he has 2 nice starts in a row and you totally change your capricious little mind again.

“Volquez turned the corner last year went through the growing pains and we should have reaped the benefits of it.” – We are. To the tune of 58 RBI. This trade worked out for both sides. Let me know when Edinson makes the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Oh, yeah. What happend to all the Trey Hillman love, frontrunner?

I was wrong,hefe. This leopard hasn't changed his spots at all. Same old cracked record. Sad, really...