12/1/17 – The Rangers Upset Update

Today we have updates on Mike Napoli, Anthony Gose, Shohei Ohtani, and Alex Claudio, plus some information from the Rangers on how to attend this year’s awards ceremony.

For the last two years, this column was called the “Baseball Texas Daily”. But with the move to the new site, I no longer had the rights to the name, so here we are, the “Ryan Adams and the Cardinals” of Rangers news updates. I tried to avoid an alliterative title, yelling at myself every time a “Rangers Roundup”, “Arlington Almanac” or “Texas Telegram” assaulted my sleep-deprivation-addled brain, but eventually I wrote out the words Upset Update and sighed heavily. “I guess it’s a little better than calling it the Daily,” I justified. So here we are.

Settle in, it’s the December 1st Baseb—- uhhhh Rangers Upset Update!

Baseball Stuff!

1. So I guess that explains that.

Free agent Mike Napoli had surgery on torn ligament in right hand. Played with it all year. Intriguing power hitting first base option.

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) December 1, 2017

Here’s a quick run-down of the video I was able to find in my files of Napoli talking about being banged up (or not banged-up).

May 31st: Mike Napoli talks about his back stiffening up after playing in the cold in Boston and the turf in Toronto

…okay, actually that’s all the video I can find from 2017 where Mike Napoli talks about injuries. I just sat through about fifteen minutes of listening to him talk about “that’s the way we play the game” and “that’s the kind of team we are”, but nothing on video about injuries, and certainly nothing about his hand.

I did find the story from September 12th, when Napoli and Jeff Banister had a disagreement about whether or not he was going to be in the lineup, and the one from the next day when it was announced that he had a “stress reaction” in his lower right leg, which is a funny way of saying “he needs surgery on his hand and hasn’t told anyone; maybe that’s why he’s hitting .190 and striking out twice per at-bat.”

Okay, I did find one other video, this one from September 3rd, of Mike Giraff-oli keeping silent about his hoof.

2. Shohei Ohtani Update 
If you clicked that first Mike Napoli link up there, you probably noticed that—even then—we were talking about Shohei Ohtani making a decision to come play MLB baseball. They share a story here, as well: that posting process is official now, and according to Ken Rosenthal (sub-title: “…who says ‘according to Japanese media'”), Ohtani is in Los Angeles and will be meeting with MLB teams.

The Rangers, of course, started this process way back when Ohtani was 16, and they were not taken by surprise when Ohtani’s questionnaire was sent to all 30 MLB teams last month.

3. More Anthony Gose details
News broke yesterday that while the Rangers await Ohtani’s decision, they had signed Anthony Gose to a minor-league deal to play both outfield and pitcher. I talked to Emily Waldon, who covers the Tigers minor league system for The Athletic Detroit, and she answered some questions I had about Gose’s recent past:

Me: Gose was demoted to AA after a “clash” with Lloyd McClendon in 2016. Do you have any more details on what happened there?

Emily: The clash happened following McClendon letting Gose know he was benched after a half-hearted attempt at chasing down a fly ball. JaCoby Jones, Gose’s outfield partner that day, received the same punishment and took the direction without any fuss. Gose voiced his annoyance about the punishment and McClendon told him to go cool off. For Gose, it was simply icing on the cake of a very frustrating season. Gose is a fierce competitor and falling below what he wanted to accomplish and having to tune out the frustration of the fans for a guy who doesn’t like to be in the spotlight as it is made for a really messy situation. Gose is also very private.

Me: 99 is a fun number to see, but what else does Gose have in his arsenal? Does he have enough secondary stuff / control to be an interesting proposition at the big-league level? Or is that part of what he still needs to learn?

Emily: During his work through the GCL and Florida State League, he mixed a fastball, curve and changeup. The FB maxed once (I believe) at 101 MPH, but sits more comfortably 95-98. His curve sat average against High-A hitters with his changeup a serviceable, slightly below average offering.

Me: Injury questions: he was shut down last year with an elbow injury that didn’t require surgery. Do you know what the issue was? Also regarding his legs: He stole 76 and 70 bases early in his career, but in the big leagues, he’s only 34/53. Is that just a product of better catchers and perhaps not as big a speed tool as everyone thought? Or did something slow him down?

Emily: I was never given an exact title for his elbow condition, only “elbow discomfort” and the team confirmed he did not need surgery. Had at least one cortisone shot after being shut down. I caught up with him during the end of the Florida State League regular season and he was upbeat and in good spirits. As far as speed, no knowledge of any issue that would derail him from being effective, other than maybe age. He’s suffered no injury, to my knowledge, so not sure what else to add on that note.

4. Congrats to Alex Claudio, who was named the Rangers’ Pitcher of the Year. He’s the first left-handed reliever to win the award, and the ninth reliever overall. Claudio spent 2017 moving up the food chain from Super-Utility Reliever to Closer, and logging a 2.79 ERA. He also led the league with a mark of 13.6 pitches/inning.

You can see the team present Alex with his plaque at the Awards Ceremony on Friday, January 19th. Here’s that info from the team:

Claudio will be honored at the 2018 Dr Pepper Texas Rangers Awards Dinner, which takes place on Friday, January 19 at Gilley’s Dallas. Tickets for the dinner, which will honor a number of baseball personalities and feature appearances by Texas Rangers past and present, are now on sale at www.texasrangers.com/awards. Tickets for the Dr Pepper Awards Dinner are priced at $110.00 each with tables of ten also available. Net proceeds benefit the Texas Rangers Baseball Foundation. The dinner will begin at 7:00 p.m.

5. Rangers Announce Fan Fest Tickets

This from the Rangers’ PR Department:

Arlington, Texas—The Texas Rangers today announced plans for 2018 Texas Rangers Fan Fest Presented by Dasani. The event will take place at Globe Life Park in Arlington on Saturday, January 20 from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.

Tickets for Fan Fest will officially go on sale on Monday, December 4 at texasrangers.com/fanfest or by calling 972.RANGERS.

2018 Fan Fest Presented by Dasani will feature autograph sessions with current Texas Rangers players with individuals signing in the Capital One Club, Hyundai Club, and Jack Daniel’s Club.

Other highlights of the 2018 Texas Rangers Fan Fest Presented by Dasani:

–Interactive Question & Answer sessions with Rangers executives, players and announcers in the Cholula Porch

–On-field events to include running the bases, home run derby in left field, and photo opportunities (weather permitting)

–Free tours of the Rangers clubhouse and dugout

–Free play in the Rangers Kids Zone and autographs by Rangers Captain

–Photo stage with current and former Rangers players

–Information sessions on the construction of the new Globe Life Field

–Rangers Baseball Foundation Sale

–Food and beverages on sale at The Short Stop Grill, Rebecca Creek Saloon, and other Ballpark concession stands

–Merchandise on sale at the Majestic Grand Slam Gift Shop in centerfield

In addition, 2018 Texas Rangers season ticket and mini-plan packages will be on sale.

Admission to the 2018 Texas Rangers Fan Fest Presented by Dasani is $10.00 for adults, $8.00 for season ticket holders, and $5.00 for children 13 and under. A limited number of Autograph Fast Passes, which guarantee the Fast Pass holders every autograph for every player who will be participating in the formal autograph sessions on Saturday with “front of the line” access, will go sale on Monday, December 4 at 9:00 a.m. CT for $500 per pass for adults and $250 per pass for children 13 years of age and under (Fan Fest event tickets are additional cost). Full details and rules for the Autograph Fast Pass are posted on texasrangers.com/fanfest. Parking at Globe Life Park is free for the event.

For more information, please call 972-RANGERS or visit texasrangers.com/fanfest beginning Monday, December 4.

Music Recommendation

You know how sometimes an old song will get stuck in your brain, and even listening to it doesn’t help? That’s where I am with “Underground” from Ben Folds Five, from their eponymous 1995 album.
Spotify / Apple Music / Website