Apr 19, 2013; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers first baseman Mitch Moreland (18) laughs during the game against the Seattle Mariners at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Mitch Moreland made his MLB debut on July 29, 2010. Moreland was essentially the replacement for the formerly highly touted, Justin Smoak, whom was packaged together in the trade with Seattle that sent Cliff Lee to Texas. Since Moreland’s debut in 2010, he has accumulated 1.2 fWAR over 315 games. Sure, Moreland has exhibited flashes of prodigious power, but his obvious Achilles’ heel has been his inability to hit LHP. For his career in 223 PA against LHP, Moreland has posted a 57 wRC+ and a wOBA of .267, which is truly awe inspiring for all of the wrong reasons (awe inspiring for the fact that Ron Washington trusts Moreland to be the everyday first baseman in 2013). Conversely, Moreland has been above average against RHP. In 889 PA against RHP, Moreland has posted a 109 wRC+ and a wOBA of .344. If utilized correctly in a platoon role, Moreland would provide the Rangers with some marginal offensive value, but as an everyday first baseman, Moreland is well short of getting the job done. To prove my point, since 2010, out of 39 qualifying first basemen, Mitch Moreland ranks 31st in wRC+ and 30th in wOBA, which is simply not acceptable for a first division team.

So sure, the 2013 season is still young, but the odds of Mitch Moreland suddenly becoming able to hit LHP are unrealistic to put it politely. In his current role as an everyday first baseman, Mitch Moreland WILL grow to be an albatross in the Rangers’ lineup. If utilized correctly in a platoon role, Moreland would effectively provide some marginal offensive value.

Mitch Moreland has exhibited exactly the kind of player he is. It is simply a matter of Ron Washington deterring from his gut and utilizing Moreland in the proper role.

Cliff Lee, the guy who appeared to be all but signed on the dotted line in the 2010-11 off-season, came to the defense of Josh and now informs Ranger fans that Michael Young was under-appreciated. Really? He was rewarded with a very handsome contract in 2009. A five year contract for $80 mil. A big contract for its day. Before I tear into this, I want to state that he was Mr. Ranger. He led by example and occasional with his words. He was a player’s player. Between the lines and in the clubhouse he was a team guy. Outside those lines not so much. I will also say that when we signed Adrian Beltre, JD could have probably handled it better with MY. That said, as a fan, he came across as wicked selfish. Did he get moved around a lot? Sure he did. Did it ever come easy for us to watch from afar? Never.  But I will say Young has been above reproach in his post-Ranger comments.

Teammates Again- Cliff Lee and Michael Young
(photo credit: Dallas Morning News)

Management got his back constantly with words of his pride and professionalism. As fans we see a guy getting paid a lot of money to play a game. It’s never easy watching a player in his twilight years. You know it has to be tough. But you would hope there would be some grace in how they handle it. That never came easy for Young. It was painful for me as a fan to stomach. We could all see the writing on the wall after last season, when you could see the ends didn’t justify the means for Young.

That’s the background. Here’s what we have now. Two ridiculously compensated players (Hamilton and Lee) bemoaning their time as Rangers. They all seem quite upset with our ball club  Did they all play a big role in our getting to two straight World Series? Sure they did. But the verve by which they come after the team and us as fans lets me know that we must be doing something right and they really wish they could be a part of it still. How many other teams are you seeing suffer this much vitriol from its former players? Not many, if any. My answer then is simple. We must be doing something right. We have guys who do want to be there and a very simple message is being passed along. We’re not going to play the game like the Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers and Phillies. We saw the Marlins try it and burn it down in a year. The Blue Jays are up now. We’ll see.  The Yankees are trying to pare down their payroll. Having one of the highest every year gets them to the post-season but is clearly not the answer.

In the meantime, we have a close knit group of guys, a lot of whom are fighting for jobs and are more than happy to be there. Yes I know we could be in a less comfortable place come July first, but I’ll take my chances.  We have an ownership group with the means, but the discipline to say no. We have a GM who plays everything close to the vest and knows the weapons he has and those that he needs. We have a manager that is a veteran, but still willing to admit he has things to learn.  Say what you will, bitter former Rangers, but you are the last ones to judge what a real team or organization is when you take the biggest paycheck at the end of the day.

Who would we trade to get Lee? Because of the age of Michael Young, it still makes some sense for the Phillies to want Mike Olt. He would be their third base guy of the (near) future.  But I don’t know that this wouldn’t be the place to ship Elvis Andrus.  Jimmy Rollins has been oft-injured and has just turned 34 and no matter their insistence on keeping him this winter, the front office is crazy if they think there is any chance they will want to meet the Scott Boras asking price when Tiny E’s contract is up. Especially if he puts up similar or better numbers in 2013.

Bring Cliff Lee Back
(photo credit: Zimbio.com)

Based on our off-season, the window everyone spoke of being open for the Rangers for years, appears to be only slightly open this year. While the Angels signing Hamilton was a painful blow to us, it didn’t necessarily hand the AL West title to them, but yesterday’s Morales-Vargas trade with the Mariners makes them better for sure. Then there are the A’s. Nobody has any idea if those guys can play over their heads again for another 162 games. A trade for Lee signals the rest of the division that we are not going to let the window close.  Lee has two more years left on his contract (the most expensive ones) with a damning vesting option in 2016. But Lee is a pitcher and uses his brain as much as his arm which means barring some catastrophic injury, should be solid for duration of his contract.  At worst he moves from our #2 starter to our #4 over the course of his stay here. We are looking for some clubhouse stability right now and Lee can provide some of that. Not to mention how he helped our younger pitchers in his short stay here.

I know that Jon Daniels and Nolan Ryan wanted to send a message in the off-season that we were far from done. The clear opportunities to do that eluded us. So why don’t we make our own opportunity. We had already set aside some cash for the off-season that doesn’t look like it’s going to be spent anyway.