I really can't blame Johnny Oates for stepping aside. Even with Alex Rodriguez, the Rangers have no chance to contend this year or in the near future because of a pitching staff that is simply horrible--not only the worst in baseball right now but perhaps the worst in franchise history. (The 1973 Rangers, who had the highest ERA in the American League at 4.64 that year, might have been even more horrific, with only one decent starter in Jim Bibby, followed by an over-the-hill Sonny Siebert and a trio of once-promising prospects-- Pete Broberg, David Clyde, and Steve "Stunning" Dunning--who all flamed out at the major league level.) Yes, in order to win, you need to be among the top five or six teams in the league in run production, but you also have to have a pitching staff that can limit the opposition to under five runs per game every once in awhile.

Someone over at ESPN's chat room had a great line to summarize the state of the Rangers' pitching staff in 2001: "Rogers and Helling, and three days of shellings!" Yikes!

I really can't blame Johnny Oates for stepping aside. Even with Alex Rodriguez, the Rangers have no chance to contend this year or in the near future because of a pitching staff that is simply horrible--not only the worst in baseball right now but perhaps the worst in franchise history. (The 1973 Rangers, who had the highest ERA in the American League at 4.64 that year, might have been even more horrific, with only one decent starter in Jim Bibby, followed by an over-the-hill Sonny Siebert and a trio of once-promising prospects-- Pete Broberg, David Clyde, and Steve "Stunning" Dunning--who all flamed out at the major league level.) Yes, in order to win, you need to be among the top five or six teams in the league in run production, but you also have to have a pitching staff that can limit the opposition to under five runs per game every once in awhile.

Someone over at ESPN's chat room had a great line to summarize the state of the Rangers' pitching staff in 2001: "Rogers and Helling, and three days of shellings!" Yikes!

I really can't blame Johnny Oates for stepping aside. Even with Alex Rodriguez, the Rangers have no chance to contend this year or in the near future because of a pitching staff that is simply horrible--not only the worst in baseball right now but perhaps the worst in franchise history. (The 1973 Rangers, who had the highest ERA in the American League at 4.64 that year, might have been even more horrific, with only one decent starter in Jim Bibby, followed by an over-the-hill Sonny Siebert and a trio of once-promising prospects-- Pete Broberg, David Clyde, and Steve "Stunning" Dunning--who all flamed out at the major league level.) Yes, in order to win, you need to be among the top five or six teams in the league in run production, but you also have to have a pitching staff that can limit the opposition to under five runs per game every once in awhile.

Someone over at ESPN's chat room had a great line to summarize the state of the Rangers' pitching staff in 2001: "Rogers and Helling, and three days of shellings!" Yikes!