The bad news? We’re not sure what Nolan will be doing with the club (if anything) anymore. Sure Nolan is still the CEO. But what Nolan Ryan brought to the table can never be paid back. He entered the fray on behalf of the new owner’s group in what could easily be called the franchise’s darkest hour. Tom Hicks had no way out but for bankruptcy court. Even after that, Nolan saw a potential problem with part owner Chuck Greenberg. He led the way to the buyout of Greenberg. Nobody knows what really caused the falling out, but I have always suspected it was the “extra” visit that Greenberg paid to Cliff Lee just a day before Lee decided to sign with the Phillies, who weren’t even part of the bidding to that point. Nolan was a key buffer between the owner’s group and Daniels. He handles administrative duties as well as working with young pitcher in Surprise. He’s Nolan Ryan for cryin’ out loud. How could he not be a positive for the club. Nobody knows what these moves mean for Ryan. He did have a couple of health scares and we don’t know if any of this has to do with a real need to retire.

All of this just makes this a transition year both on the field and off. Supposedly the owners want JD to get his entire team to commit to a longer stay. This could mean that Jon Daniels becomes exclusively the president, while someone like Thad Levine steps into Daniels spot as GM. We have several guys on the baseball operations side who would make great GM’s elsewhere. Then there’s the whole issue of what becomes of Nolan. I sure would hate to see that seat between the dugout and home plate be filled with an unfamiliar face.

Odds and Ends….does anybody really like this whole WBC thing? I don’t. I think it is a major distraction. While it is good for spreading the love of baseball worldwide, it’s horrible in the continuity of spring training…..With the Martin Perez injury and Alexi Ogando struggling so far this spring, you have to think the need for Kyle Loshe wouldn’t be higher than right now…..Elvis, really? A tattoo? Let’s hope the name Boras isn’t in it anywhere….a lot of fans are screaming over our W-L for the spring thus far. That has never bothered me until the last week. I have always felt like everything should start coming together then.

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.

Mitch Moreland comes to Surprise hungry.
(Photo credit: caller.com)

Here’s the beautiful thing about Moreland’s makeup. He’s hungry. Maybe even literally so since he has dropped 15 pounds. By all accounts it’s his job and by his account, moving out of Young and Napoli’s shadow is not a problem. Ron Washington has removed any perceived pressure by telling him to “relax and have some fun”. Washington adds that he doesn’t have to live up to anyone else’s standards but his own. Those are probably some pretty high standards since he worked hard in the off-season and removed the platoon demons from his back by working with his own left-handed pitcher.

Moreland was actually quite a surprise to most fans when he showed up. He leap-frogged Chris Davis and the much heralded Justin Smoak which also allowed the Rangers to make the Cliff Lee deal with the Mariners. A healthy everyday Moreland gives us a much needed left-handed bat in our lineup.  He’s not a defensive liability either.  He’ll get rest by being spelled by Lance Berkman. All of this is part of “The Plan”.

I know in the Moneyball days a lot of the old ways are gone. The whole “when you know, you know” idea has been minimized. Hey fantasy guys…can you say sleeper? With everything I have seen from Moreland and his ability to fight through an injury and passed two other first baseman, I’m feeling pretty good about Mitch this season.  We are putting some stock in our system this season. Mitch Moreland is exhibit A.