Subject: Nelson Cruz

• Dwarfed by the Cowboys' New Stadium, the Rangers Spiffy Up Their Park

  March 26, 2009

• Surprise, Surprise, Surprise

  March 21, 2007

• Wake Me Up, Before You Zi-to

  December 13, 2006

• This is The Last Time We'll Let Richie Explain Why the Mavs Were Bounced, Swear.

  May 9, 2007

• Tom Hicks: Wait Till Next Year … Or The Next ... Or The Next ...

  June 20, 2007

• Seriously, Tom Hicks, Just Sell the Texas Rangers and Stop Pretending Like You Give a Damn

  December 10, 2007

• Arm-Chair Managing in the Hours Before Ron Washington's Fired

  April 25, 2008

• Sure, the Rangers Are Fun and All. But There's Still Some Fixin' To Do.

  July 30, 2008

• Texas Rangers Will Try to Brighten Day of Kids Still Living at Convention Center

  September 17, 2008

• 10 Steps to Fixing Your Texas Rangers

  October 2, 2008

• A Christmas List for Jon Daniels

  Here in The Sportatorium, every now and then we like to talk baseball. I mean hard-core, balls-and-strikes baseball. By "every now and then" I mean this morning. And by "we", of course, I mean seamhead colleague Sam Merten. Sam, the floor is yours: For those of you distracted by Sean Avery's antics, the format change at Live 105.3 FM and the drama at Valley Ranch, Rangers' GM Jon Daniels and his colleagues spent most of last week in Las Vegas for baseball's Winter Meetings. Daniels has be

  December 18, 2008

• Play Ball! 5 Players the Rangers Need to Have a Good Spring Training

  Spring has sprung. Look out your window. And turn on your radio. Not only is it supposed to hit 80 degrees here today, but the Texas Rangers make their Spring Training debut on new weekday home 105.3 The Fan in, oh, about three hours. I know yesterday was the unofficial official opener in Arizona and I realize the Rangers have already crashed three homers, but there's nothing like Eric Nadel in the afternoon to announce the door has finally been slammed on winter. Kevin Millwood g

  February 26, 2009

• Rangers Spring Training Grades

  TexasRangers.com The kid's catching on pretty fastOnly 19 days until the Texas Rangers open the 2009 regular season at home against the Cleveland Indians. In other words, time for some mid-spring training grades. So far, so good I'd have to say. No major injuries. Josh Hamilton is pounding the ball. Michael Young is flawlessly fielding grounders at third instead of questions about swapping positions. Earlier this week the Rangers scored 10 runs off Indians' Opening Day starter

  March 19, 2009

• Whitt's End: 4.3.09

  Whether you're at the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End: *Seems Highland Park-ex and potential No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick Matthew Stafford isn't comfortable talking with teams - specifically a psychologist for the San Francisco 49ers - about his parents' divorce. It's wrong for 49ers coach Mike Singletary to go public with the tale, telling a radio station "if you're going to look at drafting a guy in the first round, and you're going to pay him mi

  April 3, 2009

• Texas Rangers Opening Day: Pre-Game Observations

    Your new third baseman, taking Opening Day BPFirst pitch in T-minus two hours ... *When I stepped on the field at 9 a.m. it was 39 degrees. Factoring in the northern howl of about 30 mph and it felt, ya know, about 0. *You know it's a different, bigger day when you get on the press elevator and are greeted by secret service and their bomb-sniffing dogs. Wearing a black coat with my hands in pockets, I'm betting I looked terribly guilty. Of something. *Ballparks always look sparklin

  April 6, 2009

• The Texas Strangers

  Seriously, who are these guys? With generally the same cast of characters that has face-planted out of the gate the last two seasons, the Texas Rangers are off to a dream start. Granted 2-0 gets only a subtle nod in Boston or New York or Anaheim, but in Arlington it's cause to get Laura Miller on the horn and dust off the Mavericks' old parade route. At least in September we won't have to hear the same old status woe from manager Ron Washington: Sept. 26, 2007: "We made it real tough

  April 9, 2009

• After a Dynamic Season Opener, Rangers Fans are Seeing Red

  The Rangers' debut was shockingly accessorized by pitching, defense and, don't look now, relevance.

  April 9, 2009

• The Hapless Texas Rangers Turn to their Farm System

  February 5, 2009

• Status Woe

  Insane Rangers again take similar path to identical destination

  October 2, 2008

• Rangers Redux

  Desperate for an assist from Dallas, the Rangers implement yet another rebuilding plan

  June 28, 2007

• Rangers: The Texas Treadmills

  Your Rangers yet again perfect the art of going nowhere fast

  October 4, 2007

• Boy Blunder

  Is baseball's youngest general manager man enough to rebuild the Rangers?

  July 12, 2007

• Play It Again, Sammy

  Can the Rangers' oldest rookie leave his diva days behind and deliver?

  March 29, 2007

• Washington Monument

  New Rangers manager injects hope and, yep, even optimism in Arlington

  February 8, 2007

• So, Which Are They: Real or Fake?

  Two weeks ago I said that on June 15 - hello! - we'd know if the 2009 Texas Rangers were authentic or artificial. A pinch here. A jiggle there. Couple of healthy squeezes. And, of course, the taste test of a 5-7 stretch against some of of baseball's best teams and the verdict is ... Real. I think. I mean, the Rangers are still in first place by 2.5 games. But those ominous sounds in the distance are the Angels charging and Rangers optimism melting. Didn't see a lot of Rangers' gam

  June 15, 2009

• Paging Mr. Jaramillo ... Mr. Rudy Jaramillo.

  Let me guess ... strike three?This is a cruel joke. Texas Rangers fans who for decades have yearned for pitching are finally getting it, only to see their woody go limp when they finally need it. Something I thought I'd never type: The Rangers can't pitch hit. Spent Father's Day plopped on the couch not believing my eyes. Ricky Barnes leading the U.S. Open in a train conductor's cap. And the Rangers - long the best boppers in the American League - going 34 at-bats without a hit

  June 22, 2009

• Some Random, Frustrated Thoughts on Your Texas Rangers

  Yeah, he had some help. But he blew it.​*Catching and throwing the ball has rarely been a problem this season, but yesterday's 5-3 loss was hideously reminiscent of years gone by. First off, I blame C.J. Wilson. The worst thing you can do when protecting a 1-run lead is walk the leadoff man. Nelson Cruz made an error and Hank Blalock made a high throw and - considering they got only eight hits and scored only eight runs in three games at the Metrodome - the tiny margin fo

  August 31, 2009

• Texas Rangers: The Hits Keep a Comin'

  Neftali Feliz likes him. So should you.​I have no idea who or what Omega El Fuerte is. But if it's good enough for Texas Rangers' fireballin' phenom Neftali Feliz, it's good enough for me. When the ridiculous rookie enters a game over the weekend in a crucial series against the Seattle Mariners, he'll be serenaded by cheers from frenzied fans and by the pulsating sounds of Omega - a hot Latin artist from his Dominican Republic - courtesy of Rangers' in-game entertainmant guru

  September 10, 2009

• The Rangers May Be Out But They Are Not Down--Not Come Next April

  October 8, 2009