Josh Hamilton is trying to stop dipping

I once had smoked those nasty cigarettes for 40 years. I look back to that and wonder what in the world was I thinking?

The smell, the cost, the health risks, just incredible I did that for that long. It finally took a heart attack for me to realize that hey, smoking ain’t that great for me. I was fortunate I could just kick those smokes aside. It was either that or die.

Now come Josh Hamilton. He’s trying to give up a little different addiction: smokeless tobacco, or as we like to call it here in Texas, worm dirt.

Josh Hamilton made a decision early Wednesday morning before he arrived at Tropicana Field. He is trying to quit using smokeless tobacco.

“Today is the first day,” Hamilton said before the Rangers’ series finale with the Rays. “The Holy Spirit … I kept waking up last night thinking about different things and what might be causing me to stumble in my relationship with the Lord. I felt like chewing tobacco was one. So I got up this morning and threw it all away. So when it is time to take a dip, I pray instead.”

From Hardball Talk :

And you think it shouldn’t be too tough for him given that the dude kicked coke, heroin and booze. But I’ve spoken to a couple of addicts before, each of whom said it was actually harder for them to stop smoking. Their explanation: drugs wreck your body so quickly and can bring you so close to death that — despite how addictive drugs can be — the crappy risk/reward ratio of doing them becomes clear way more quickly than smoking’s does. For the former, there is some fairly immediate “oh crap, I’m gonna die” moment.  For the latter it’s a physical and psychological addiction paired with the mere intellectual realization that, yes, in some years this will kill them.

Good luck Josh!!

 

Josh Hamilton is trying to quit the dip (NBC Hardball Talk)

Oh, it got a little scary in Arlington last night

We here in north Texas had a dose of scary weather last night. I saw baseball-sized hail and the weather was bad enough to postpone the Rangers-White Sox game.

A violent thunderstorm and the threat of tornadoes stopped the Texas Rangers-Chicago White Sox game in the fourth inning on Tuesday night and authorities went even farther with their precautions, evacuating fans from the stands at Rangers Ballpark.

With civil defense sirens blaring because the Arlington area was under a tornado warning, fans were directed away from seating areas — many through the ballpark’s dugouts — and were reportedly funneled to underground tunnels inside the park.

Reporters on the scene (and folks watching on TV) tweeted ominous photos of clouds, precipitation coming down and fans filing through any open exit.

Thankfully, the line of storms yielded no tornadoes. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News wondered where all of the fans were going to go, because they all didn’t seem to fit underneath the ballpark where they were being directed.

They finally resumed the game much later, and in the Ranger’s case, probably wished it had been postponed.

Texas Rangers evacuate ballpark after tornado warnings(Big League Stew)

Josh Hamilton has no regard for his own well being

Josh Hamilton just came back from the disabled list for a hairline fracture to his upper arm. Do you think that entered his mind last night when the Rangers played the White Sox?

In a memorable eighth inning on the bases around 1 a.m., Hamilton slid headfirst into first base in beating out an infield hit, slid headfirst in stealing second and made a nice hesitation headfirst slide to avoid a tag on a wild pitch to get to third. He was stranded there, but he certainly made a statement that his body felt good and that he was going to stay aggressive on the bases.

“I see what you’re saying, but you guys have to have something to write about,”
Hamilton said to a small group of media early Wednesday morning. “If I stop
doing that, then I won’t be true to myself as a baseball player or true to my
teammates or the fans that watch me play the game.

“I just don’t get why you keep harping on it. Just expect it out of me. If I get hurt, we’ll continue
to do this thing. It’s ridiculous. I can’t worry about that. I never think about it.”

So what did all the sliding show?

“That I want to win,” Hamilton said. “Isn’t that what I get paid for?”

Ugh. I think I know where this is heading.

Josh Hamilton not altering his style of play (ESPN Dallas)

Report: Orioles agree to deal with Vladimir Guerrero

From USA Today

The last of the big-name free agents has found a job.

Vladimir Guerrero has agreed to a one-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles, a person with knowledge of the situation told the Associated Press. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the deal will not be completed until Guerrero passes a physical.

Guerrero will make $8 million, a second person with knowledge of the deal told AP.

Welcome to Texas Adrian Beltre

The Texas Rangers and free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre are close to completing terms on a multiyear deal, a source told ESPNdeportes.com on Sunday.

“They are still talking and have not completed the details, but an agreement appears imminent,” the source told ESPNdeportes.com.

Wow, how great would Beltre make an already great hitting line-up?  This deal looks imminent so expect breaking news on this contract at any time now. The question now becomes, what happens to Michael Young when Beltre takes his position at third base? There is talk about making Young a “super” utility infielder and letting him be the DH. If that’s the case then no need for the one year contract for Guerrero. But if Young doesn’t like that deal, maybe he gets traded and save the Rangers some money.

Say it ain’t so!

Wow!  The Phillies?  Really?

I knew something strange was going to happen with this Cliff Lee signing this off-season, but the Phillies? I mean, it doesn’t make sense to me.

According to the Dallas Morning News, one of the reasons he signed with Philly is so he can hit in the National League? Why would a 32 year old ace want to hit?

Lee informed Rangers officials late Monday night that he would be accepting a five-year contract from the Philadelphia Phillies , for whom he pitched the last half of the 2009 season. The deal gives Lee a chance to hit in the National League, which he enjoyed, and gives him a place to pitch where he and his family felt comfortable.

And we’re walking, and we’re walking

Sometimes there are things to write, and sometimes there are things to write but I just can’t write. Right?

As I try to get my fingers used to the keyboard again, lots of things have happened. The Texas Rangers made it to the World Series and put up a valiant effort but lost.  The Cowboys fire another coach. Veteran’s Day has come and gone, and we are now looking right at plans for Thanksgiving. Wow, where does the time go?  Of course moving and going to school took up a large part of that gap.

It’s that Reunion time of year!

  The state of Texas is right on the verge of a seasonal change. I can feel it in the air, and there are several indications as to why I know summer is about to end.

The Cowboys are in the pre-season, the Rangers are in the last 1/3 of their season (and still in first place I might add), Wal-Mart is advertising back-to-school and tax-free weekends. Yeah, it’s all shaping up to be a great seasonal change. I took the garbage out earlier and it didn’t feel like I was walking into an oven when I stepped outside. The Grand Prairie AirHogs’ season has a week left on it. So long to all of my friends at QuickTrip Park, and I mean that.

This upcoming week, my old Army unit will be congregating in San Antonio for an Army Reunion. The First Infantry Division will be gathering by the river to welcome back troops that served in that glorious unit. I’m looking forward to it.

Then, in early September, I will be going to my home town to my high school reunion. Hooo Boy. Supposed to be the “greatest reunion in the history of Sweetwater Texas!” Hoooochie momma!!!!

I have to get ready for fall classes. Hope I can afford the books.

There’s one other sign that the seasons are changing here in Texas. High school football starts this week. Looking forward to reuniting with everything that brings fall weather again.

What am I bid for a Major League Baseball team?

Have you ever heard of a Major League Baseball team being auctioned off? I haven’t either. The sale of the Texas Rangers becomes more bizarre as the days wear on in the Texas heat. Like my friend Willie Martin and I were discussing yesterday, baseball is a large game with many smaller games inside that game. So is the sale of the Texas Rangers.

The judge in this case could decide tomorrow on whether the team’s auction will be held as scheduled on Aug. 4 despite objections from major lenders and the ballclub’s court-appointed chief restructuring officer. 

J.P. Morgan Chase, the lead bank for the top lenders, filed a separate lawsuit Friday saying it holds the right to block the transfer of the $2 million a year lease on Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. That move has a chance to stall any sale of the team.

If that weren’t complicated enough, then there’s Mark Cuban throwing his hat in the ring as a possible investor. Why would he do that? Which side is he on? The Greenberg-Ryan side, or is he really wanting to be the owner of the baseball team himself? Interesting.

Major League Baseball wants Greenberg-Ryan as the owners, and the lenders want the chance for other potential investors to be allowed time to raise the ante so their losses won’t be as great. It’s all very confusing. Stay tuned.

The Grand Prairie AirHogs losing streak reaches 13 games – As some of you may know or not know, I have been spending most of the summer going to AirHogs game in Grand Prairie. I’ve been amazed how after it’s all said and done, it’s all a business. Forget trying to know who’s on first because they will probably be gone the next day. It’s just business. And you think it’s easy on the players?

To me, it seems very difficult to know how to cope with a 13 game losing streak, and then I take a step back and watch and listen.

Kids. They don’t care what the record is….Kids can come to Quick Trip park and get autographs! Kids can have fun no matter what the record is.

So there ya have it. From the 1st place Texas Rangers, to the last place Grand Prairie AirHogs, baseball always stands the test of time. We may get older, but baseball stays the same.

When I was a kid in Sweetwater Texas, I could fly like the wind. Center field was my home. It’s where opposing fly balls went to die.

I think back about center field every time I attend a game now. Baseball is the same. It’s me that has changed.

Rangers acquire left-hander Lee

From ESPN:

Cliff Lee was going to a contender no matter what. Turns out it was the Texas Rangers, not the New York Yankees.

” Lee texted to ESPN The Magazine’s Amy K. Nelson. “It’s official. From last [place] to first.”

After talks between the Seattle Mariners and Yanks fell apart Friday afternoon, the Rangers jumped in and reached agreement on a trade for the left-hander.

The M’s sent Lee and reliever Mark Lowe to Texas for first baseman Justin Smoak and minor leaguers Blake Beavan, Josh Lueke and Matthew Lawson.

The Mariners will also send $2.5 million to the Rangers to subsidize the $4 million still owed to Lee. Texas has financial limitations due to bankruptcy hearings associated with the sale of the team. There has been speculation the Rangers — despite leading the AL West — would not be able to add weapons for the stretch run.

And there still could be trouble. An anonymous official of an MLB team said the Rangers taking on $1.5 million in salary “is going to be an issue” since the team is currently being run by the league. It is not clear if the bankruptcy court would allow the team to take on that kind of debt.

Lee is 8-3 with a 2.34 ERA this season for the Mariners, his first in Seattle. The Phillies traded him this offseason after acquiring Roy Halladay.

Lee won the Cy Young while with Cleveland in 2008. Over nine seasons he is 98-55 with a 3.84 ERA.

It’s unusual for a team to trade a start pitcher within it’s own division, but the Mariners have been a huge disappointment. Heading into Friday’s action, they trailed the Rangers by 16 games.

When asked how he felt about the deal, Lee texted “good I guess. Gonna be on a very good team. Definitely gonna be hot!”

By trading for Lee now, the Rangers potentially gain four more starts from the lefty than they would have gotten if the acquired him at the trade deadline.

The Yankees had offered Seattle a three-player package, centered around catcher Jesus Montero — who is rated as one of the best prospects in baseball, despite questions about whether he can be a catcher in the big leagues — second baseman David Adams and a young prospect.

But the deal began to unravel, a source told ESPN.com, when the Mariners became concerned about the health of Adams, who is out with a sprained ankle.

A source told ESPN.com that Seattle and Texas were very close to a deal for Lee on Wednesday. But the Mariners were pushing for Smoak, the Rangers balked and that deal stalled.

So on Thursday, the Mariners turned their attention to the Yankees and began closing in on that deal. But when those talks blew up, the Rangers — who by then were aware of all the reports about that Seattle-New York deal — got back into the picture and agreed to trade Smoak. So the pieces came together very quickly at that point because the two teams almost had a deal done 48 hours earlier.

And now Lee is on his way to Arlington.

“Bout to go get my stuff from the field,” he texted. “Gonna miss my teammates and coaching staff! Good people!”

ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark, ESPN The Magazine’s Buster Olney and ESPN.com Amy K. Nelson contributed to this report.