As we return to a normal MLB schedule with pitchers reporting to Spring Training shortly and the season starting at end of March, Ranger fans don’t know how this season will turn out this year. Fans probably have some of the same questions as I do right now, let’s dive into a few of those questions in this article. 

Question 1:  Is this the last year Joey Gallo will be in a Rangers uniform? The answer is a very tough one to answer.  Defensively he is probably one of the best outfielders in the game.  His arm strength and accuracy from deep center field is a major plus on getting runners out on the bases or all the way to home plate. Offensively is another story, he is what I like to call a “Cluster Hitter”.  He gets his hits and home runs in phases and then goes back to not hitting the ball at all.  Right now, Gallo has one of the highest strike-out rate in the league at 38%. He is also very injury prone. In 2019, he missed 22 games due to a left oblique strain and was out up to 4 weeks later in the season when he had to get Hamate bone surgery.  My answer, unless Gallo is willing to take a substantial pay cut to stay with Rangers long term, let him walk this offseason. 

Question 2:  Is this the last that we see Elvis Andrus in a Rangers uniform? This question is going to be very hard for the Rangers fans that have seen Elvis work his way up from Frisco Roughriders to the Texas Rangers. He has 3 years 43 million left on his current contract including this season which is a very tradeable contract for a veteran short stop his age. Current Rangers catcher Isiah Kiner-Falefa saw playing time at short stop last season while Andrus was out due to injury.  While I hate to say it, if a team comes along during the trade deadline and offers one heck of a deal for him, I would trade him. 

Question 3: Are the Rangers having buyer’s remorse on Rougned Odor’s huge deal?  Odor put the Rangers in a tough situation during a contract year by having a career season.  Since signing that contract he’s had dismal numbers that have sent him down to the taxi squad.  In 2020 he had a.167 batting average and only 30 RBI’s which is below average for a MLB Player. Right now as it stands, he has 3 years 37.5 million left but has a buyout clause for 2023 for 3 million.  If I were the Rangers I would see if he improves over the next 2 seasons.  If he doesn’t, buy him out in 2023. 

The 2021 MLB season could be an interesting one as a Rangers fan. We will see if Texas will stick with the franchise players or if they will turn a new leaf and bring up the prospects that are ready to contribute.

(DISCLAIMER) this was written prior to Elvis being traded to Oakland.

For a while now, the Texas Rangers have had one of the top farm systems in the league. While most teams trade their developing talent for current players in the majors, the Texas Rangers are set for the future with their current minor league talent. Here are the top 8 players that are in the Rangers farm system going into 2021.

1. Josh Jung 3B

Jung spent the majority of his rookie season with the Hickory Crawdads, hitting a respectable .287/.363/.389 with 13 doubles and a home run with the South Atlantic League. Jung is literally ready for the majors and I wouldn’t be shocked if he made the 40 man roster for Rangers this year or next.

2. Nick Solak OF

Solak is basically this generations “Jason Kipnis”. The Texas Rangers were lucky to snag him from the Tampa Bay Rays for Peter Fairbanks. He’s the type of player that shows up to the ballpark, puts in the work and 12 years later you’ll be glad you drafted him. He was promoted mid season to the Rangers and he batted a .293/.393/.491 with six doubles, one triple, and five home runs in 33 games. If he produces like this again in the minors, he might have a permeant spot in the majors.

3. Hans Crouse RHP

The Texas Rangers drafted him in 2017 and he made one of the best first impressions yet. He posted a 30-7 strikeout to walk ratio in 20 games. He needs to work on his pitch squencing and accuracy a bit more down in the minors. There were some games last season before covid hit where his pitches weren’t on target and that’s a factor why he will be in minor leagues a couple more seasons. My personal opinion is I wouldn’t be shocked if he gets that accuracy under control, he will be in Rangers rotation in a couple of seasons.

4. Ronny Henriquez RHP

He is similar to Hans Crouse when it comes to his current development.  He has a decent 90 mph fastball, one of the best splitters in minor league baseball, and a good slider. Where he needs to work is staying cool under pressure with players on base.  As a starter he had two really bad games where he was trying to force pitches and ended up costing the team the game.  If he can control that, then he’s a solid third or fourth pitcher in a starting rotation.

5. Cole Winn RHP

Don’t be surprised if he gets an opportunity in Frisco this coming season.  Winn has a solid pitch arsenal that doesn’t need any work, but needs to work on his control so he is not walking batters. The Rangers could see if he can handle the pressure at Double A. If he doesn’t, don’t be surprised if the Rangers look for offers for the guy at the trade deadline this upcoming season.

6. David Wendzel 3B

David is another solid 3rd baseman in the Rangers organization.  He got on the Rangers radar while they were scouting Jung play against Baylor. While he is already 23, he’s going to have to develop fast if he wants a chance at playing in the majors. I could see him possibly being the backup 3rd baseman for the Rangers in the future if Jung needs a rest down the stretch.

7. Leody Taveras CF

Taveras is what I call a wildcard for the Rangers in the minor leagues. Every time he was promoted up the farm system his offensive production continued to diminish. He was placed at High Class A and averaged  .294/.368/.376. When he was called up to the Texas League (Double A Frisco) half way through season his averaged decreased to a mediocre .265/.320/.375. Basically the Rangers have a solid outfielder in Taveras, but his hitting needs to stay consistent if he wants to stay in majors.  

8. Bubba Thompson OF

Last but not least Bubba Thompson finishes up my list of the top eight prospects for the Texas Rangers. He was on pace to possibly be with Rangers starting in 2020. He was averaging .289/.344/.446 with 18 doubles, five triples, eight home runs, and 32 stolen bases in only 84 games in the minors before he had a lot of serious injuries that hindered his stats. If he can bounce back from these injuries and hit like he did in the minors, there’s a good chance he could be Gallo’s replacement in the outfield.

It was a bit different this year as there was no Baseball being played due to COVID-19. Here is a video by MLB The Show saluting Jackie Robinson showing on what we should have happened this year.

https://www.facebook.com/mlbtheshow/videos/234107190998701/

Sorry its been a while since Ive written a blog post, due to getting ready for graduation from college and starting to job hunt for Sports Radio jobs. As the 100th NFL season ends next Sunday with the Chiefs and the 49er’s playing for it all in Miami, the Cowboys are looking to next season with a new head coach. Here is my prediction on how the Cowboys might draft under Mike McCarthy.

1st Round: Grant Delpit, S, LSU

Safeties in my opinion is the number one need for the Cowboys this year in the first round. Delpit is one of the top rated safeties in the draft this year and is projected to fall right to where the Cowboys are. His size and playmaking ability in the secondary will attract the Cowboys at the Senior Bowl.

2nd Round: Ashtyn Davis, S, Cal

Another ballhawk playmaking safety that will be available in the second round of the draft. With Xavier Woods not progressing as planned and Cowboys not forcing enough turnovers in the secondary last season, this would be the perfect draft to rebuild the safety position.

3rd Round: Collin Johnson or Devin Deuvernay, WR, Texas

It’s a tie between these two because they are basically the same size and have the same impact on the offensive side of the ball. Either one of these players will be perfect in the third round.

4th Round: Tracy James, RB, Abilene Christian

Before I get a lot of comments about this draft pick hear me out on this. He was one of the most consistent RB’s in the FCS this year averaging about 8 yards a carry and at least scored in almost every game this year for ACU. he was nicknamed “The FCS Version Of Ezikiel Elliot” Mike McCarthy loves to have a three back running scheme and would be the perfect addition to the Cowboys.

5th Round: Nate Stanley, QB, Iowa

This pick would be a smart one in the later rounds if Dak gets Franchise tagged this upcoming season and doesn’t resign. He is a good pro style QB and would be a perfect short term replacement if Dak Leaves Dallas.

7th Round: Ross Blacklock, DL, TCU

In the final round Cowboys will look for another gem for the defensive line and will look no further than TCU in Ft Worth. While a project DL, He can become what Malik Collins is for Dallas.

In Honor of College Football starting this coming Saturday, here is the entrance for Virginia Tech featuring message from Metallica.

One of the players named to the 2019 Hall Of Fame Class won’t be there in Cooperstown today. Roy Halladay was a one of a kind pitcher that died in a plane crash. Here is a clip of his no-hitter with Phillies.

As the 2019 baseball Hall of Fame class get inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown today lets remember one of the greatest closers of all time, Mariano Rivera. The video below is him exiting for the last time in his baseball career.

For my last college football post for a while till the season starts, I wanted to go over my top 5 teams that might surprise you.

1. Abilene Christian

We taking over this country, I’m just kidding since I go here, but hopefully they take the next step and make it to the the FCS College Football Playoffs with Luke Anthony at the helm and both running backs are coming back for their senior year. Also if Fink gets wide open down the field, God bless the teams we play.

Here is the start of my real list

1. University of Central Florida

I would be shocked if they were able to replicate last years season with Mackenzie Milton out for this year. You can’t count them out cause they can ball on both sides of the ball.

2. Iowa State

I have Iowa State up here because they just completed their first 10 game winning season in program history and I love head coach Matt Campbell at the helm. They were picked to finish 3rd at Big 12 media days this past week and I don’t have any problem with them being behind Oklahoma and Texas.

3. Michigan

I think this is will be the year that Michigan will break out because Jimmy is finally allowing new Offensive Coordinator Josh Gattis to call the plays for Michigan. he was the reason why Penn State has been efficent on offense the past 3 years so wouldnt be shocked if they beat Ohio State finally.

4. Kansas State

This is a bit of a reach since Kansas State hired North Dakota State head coach Chris Kliman who won the FCS Playoffs the last 3 out of 5 years. But based on how quickly he turned that program around, wouldn’t be surprised if he did it with Kansas State.

5. Arkansas

Arkansas could be that potential dark horse team in the SEC this year after hiring Chad Morris from SMU. While I don’t think they will be bowling this year, I wouldn’t be surprised if they created Chaos in the SEC Standings throughout the year.

As the 2019 College Football season is just right around the corner, several teams have lost a lot of players due to the NFL Draft and Texas is one of those teams that college writers are 50/50 on whether they will be good this year due to players that left for the NFL Draft. Here are three reasons why Texas Football is back and here to stay:

1. Offense is completely intact

The only main weapon that has left the Texas Offense is Lil’Jordan Humphrey. With the offense completely coming back, I don’t see much of a drop in offensive production from Texas.

2. Took down a really good Georgia Team

Texas was a laughing stock when the bowl game matchups came out last season and they were paired up with SEC Runner Up Georgia. College Football Fans were picking Georgia in a landslide to beat Texas but were silenced when Texas was up 20-7 at halftime. I think they will take down LSU in Austin this coming year.

3. Try to find a coach like Tom Herman

Here’s the main reason why I love Tom Herman as the coach in Austin. Whenever Texas is a underdog in a big game, he rallies his players during the week and gets them ready to go into big primetime games and compete. Sometimes they pull out the upset sometimes they come close to it. Instead of that two year deal he signed I would have signed him for another 4 years.

Don’t be shocked this season when Texas surprises everyone and is one of the 4 teams next year in the College Football Playoffs.

Luka Doncic for ROTY Reasons:

Best player on the team with the best record

The Mavericks have 31 wins on the season. The other rookies contending for the award play for teams below Dallas in the standings. Trae Young’s Hawks have 29 wins. The Cavaliers featuring Collin Sexton have 19. Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges are on the Suns with 19. Kevin Knox and the Knicks have just 15 wins.

Luka magic

He became a force in the NBA from opening night. NBA All-Stars were praising him and coaches admitted their game plan centered on stopping Doncic.

Leads rookies in scoring

Luka Doncic leads both the Dallas Mavericks and all rookies in scoring. When looking at this season. it is a runaway win for Doncic. He is averaging 21.2 points per game. Trae Young is second at 19.1 points a night. Collin Sexton (16.7), Deandre Ayton (16.3), and Marvin Bagley III (14.7) finish out the top five in terms of rookie scoring. 

Historic rookie year

only eight rookies under 20 years old have ever averaged over 20 points per game. Doncic’s 32.2 minutes are lowest in that group by a full two minutes. None of those eight players could match Luka’s combination of playmaking, 3-point shooting, and rebounding ability.

Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic just produced the greatest rookie season for a player under 20 in NBA history.

Better stats than Young in every category except assists

Starting with traditional stats, Luka has the per game advantage in points, rebounds, steals, blocks, field goal percentage, 3-pointers made, turnovers, and effective goal percentage. Young leads in assists and free throw percentage.

Clutch Shots 

Has hit more clutch shots and game winners at the buzzer that other players probably wouldn’t be able to make especially like the game tying shot against Portland. 

Reasons why Trae Young should win ROTY

Second Half Stats

Young was one of the NBA’s best the second half of the 2018-2019 NBA season, dropping 24.8 points while dishing out 9.2 assists per game. Those numbers led the Hawks to go into the final game of the season second in the NBA after the All-Star break in points per game (119.3 points), three-pointers made (349) and three-pointers made per game (15.2).

Distribution

Young was able to balance his responsibilities of scoring and distributing the ball beautifully to get the most out of not only himself but his team as well. His 8.1 assists and 19.1 points per game are clear indicators that he is a great point guard and can handle to pressures of the position. He scores when he is needed to, and makes the right decision with extra passes when he is needed to.

Young not only has 29 double-doubles this season, but has seven 30-point, 10 assist games. Doncic has not recorded any of the later.

Games Played 

Trae Young Played in almost every game this season while Luka played in 72

Proved why he was the best shooter in the 2018 draft class

Throughout the season, however, Young was able to prove over and over again why he is the best shooter in the 2018 class. While streaky, we saw flashes of his great range and ability to stay calm in tense situations.