a good move for the Tigers to get rid of that contract.

and yes, Fielder's numbers are trending in the wrong direction. But the Rangers' ballpark will provide a boost

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I tried to tell people that about Pujols, before Anaheim signed him, and why I didn't want the Rangers near Pujols.

With Fielder, the numbers are less dramatic. Coming off the 2012 season, 2013 looks bad. For most players, 2013 would be a pretty solid. 25 HRs would have put him 3rd.

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To somewhat argue against myself on Fielder's durability, I'm not sure I follow the reasoning here.

Pujols' "trend downward" in his last 4 years with the Cardinals was 1.114> 1.1011> 1.001> .906 OPS, and 37> 47> 42> 37 HR.

Fielder's "trend downward" in his last 3 years is .981> .940> .819 OPS and 38> 30> 25.

So I'm not sure what was less dramatic than what, nor the qualification about "most players."

(p.s. In 2012 with the Angels, Pujols posted a .859 OPS and 30 home runs, and he was on pace to hit 28 home runs last year.)

Instead of comparing Pujols to Fielder, you ought to compare Fielder to Mitch Moreland.

I'm actually liking this deal more now. I have a very good feeling Fielder is going to have a very good '14. The Beltre / Fielder tandem looks scary good.

I'm just wondering if the Rangers are really serious about Cano. Wow. Couldn't they use another starting pitcher?

And here comes the crazy player and agent.....we weren't part of the plans and Kinsler is the last player that Rangers fans can relate too. He is starting to sound like Josh's crony.

I think we can all relate to Elvis, Adrian, Yu....

http://rangersblog.dallasnews.com/2013/11/ian-kinslers-agent-rangers-traded-last-player-fans-could-relate-to.html/

[This message has been edited by MountainAg99 (edited 11/22/2013 4:04a).]

**** off *******. Kinsler was by far my favorite ranger, and a lot of people felt the same. My guess is you also hate Romo.

Hell yes, I can relate to Kinsler.

I can't hit a curve ball or play good defense. And I get picked off a lot too. Kinsler and I are kindred spirits.

The agent makes 2 great points:

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“After [the Rangers] got rid of Josh [Hamilton], Ian was arguably the last player people could relate to,” Franklin told Fox.

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Of the players on the team... it is true Kinsler is one of the...if not THE last person I could relate to. I couldn't relate to Hamilton, either. I don't think many of us could relate to Hamilton.

quote:

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Franklin declined to clarify his statements Thursday about both the direction of the organization and fans’ ability to relate to current Rangers.

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I think he is making two points.
- The direction. It is true... Texas was heading in a direction that would move Profar to 2nd, and Kinsler somewhere. I suppose he didn't like that direction.

Regarding fan's ability to relate to current Rangers. What he is implying is that Texans are a bunch of racists who are prejudice against anyone who is not a white American:

Of the everyday players, here is some background:
CC - Soto: Puerto Rico
1B - Fielder: African American <- Technically not on the team so wouldn't be included.
2B - Profar: Netherlands Antilles
SS - Andrus: Venezuela
3B - Beltre: Dominican Republic
LF - Open
CF - Leonys: Cuba
RF - Rios: Puerto Rico

Add to that:
SP - Darvish: Japan
SP - Perez: Venezuela
SP - Ogando: Dominican Republic
SP - Harrison <- Didn't really play last year
SP - Holland
SP - Feliz: Dominican Republic

So, aside from Holland, which clearly the agent believes fans relate more to Kinsler is the only other white person (apology to white Hispanics)...

I think the agent might ought to get to Texas a little more, because aside from the female contingency, most Rangers fans like the move.

There was a race preference post on the politics board, which was quite humorous. Personally... I could don't care where a player is from or what he looks like. I like my players to NOT cheat on their wife, to NOT use PEDs, and to NOT look lost at times. I want them to have fun (Beltre and Andrus) and to give their best. That's all.

With Kinsler being traded, it makes consideration that Andrus might be traded, look ridiculous. His relationship with Beltre and how the handle themselves... seems to bring a levity to the team.

[This message has been edited by DallasAg 94 (edited 11/22/2013 7:49a).]

Pat - not sure if that question was directed at me since I posted it. I loved Kins and his hustle, leadership brought to the team. I also like Romo and have always felt bad that he hasn't had a defense around him or an OL for that matter.

I do think its crazy the way the blog reads from his agent.

I'm not understanding the discussion.

I loved Kins. I'll miss what he brought to the team, and the chemistry between him and Elvis.

But this is a baseball team. I dont want to relate to everyone....I want to see a world series trophy.

This was a good move for the baseball club.





[This message has been edited by AgGrad99 (edited 11/22/2013 8:31a).]

relate to?

why would I give a rats ass who I relate to?

I want the best team. they don't even have to speak English.

I don't like that point made by the agent.

I'll admit my bias which is that I have had a burr in my saddle for a long time re kinsler. He's has actually been one of my least liked players on the team. I disagree on the hustle comment. I think kinsler plays with his head up his ass a lot and very much has an entitled attitide, especially since the recent success. His fundamentals are very flawed, especially his approach at bat. His defense has been a roller coaster over the years - sometimes great sometimes atrocious.

So for all these reasons and some more, I frankly am pretty glad he's gone. And I'm extremely glad Hamilton was gone. So I do think there's a portion of the fan base that feels very different than the agent.

Now, I fully acknowledge what those guys brought to franchise, but I really don't think the fan base is all broken up by this.

BTW... anyone else see this:

http://www.realtor.com/news/texas-rangers-elvis-andrus-splurges-on-hot-dallas-mansion/?cid=PRT300024

Good thing Andrus was kept. ;-)


Mac

The most loyal of Rangers fans probably agree with much of what you've said

Kins served us well. Greatly appreciate what he brought to the table... I'm looking forward to an IF of Beltre-Andrus-Profar-Fielder.

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I'll admit my bias which is that I have had a burr in my saddle for a long time re kinsler. He's has actually been one of my least liked players on the team. I disagree on the hustle comment. I think kinsler plays with his head up his ass a lot and very much has an entitled attitide, especially since the recent success. His fundamentals are very flawed, especially his approach at bat. His defense has been a roller coaster over the years - sometimes great sometimes atrocious.

So for all these reasons and some more, I frankly am pretty glad he's gone. And I'm extremely glad Hamilton was gone. So I do think there's a portion of the fan base that feels very different than the agent.

Now, I fully acknowledge what those guys brought to franchise, but I really don't think the fan base is all broken up by this.

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I came here to post this exact thing, instead I'll just copy this since I couldn't say it any better.

I'd say Beltre was the more beloved Ranger this past year and has consistently been above Kins the past few years. Continues to produce consistently at a higher level than Kinsler, gutted out through injury, and seems to be a pretty funny guy that has a great relationship with his teammates - and the fans seem to notice and appreciate all of that. Kinsler's popups and baserunning have been a thorn in the side of most fans who actually pay attention. His agent should have said they just traded away the most popular white guy.

[This message has been edited by DannyDuberstein (edited 11/22/2013 11:05a).]

Agree 1000% on beltre.

yeah but I don't RELATE to beltre so bring back Kinsler and Murphy.

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Kinsler was by far my favorite ranger, and a lot of people felt the same. My guess is you also hate Romo.

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What'd Kinsler do to make him such a favorite amongst you and others?

He wasn't ever the best performer. He wasn't ever the guy who treated the fans the best. He wasn't ever the guy who was smiling and running around pulling pranks and having fun.

As an outsider looking in, I just don't get it. He's always been that guy who didn't seem real smart, but someone figured out he was good at baseball when he was young, so they bought him a glove and bat, and he ended up getting signed by the Rangers, so he went out in a Rangers uniform every day and did what he remembers they told him to do in little league, and as an opponent, you knew he was pretty good, but you could get lucky and watch him get himself thrown out of the game.

I just don't get it.

I don't get the Romo comparison, either.

[This message has been edited by TheAngelFlight (edited 11/22/2013 1:39p).]

quote:

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What'd Kinsler do to make him such a favorite amongst you and others?

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I'm pretty sure for a lot of the Rangers' fanbase, it's cause he's white, good looking and wears his pants pulled up.

My wife liked him because he wore the fashion statement knee high socks, so maybe that's a part of his appeal.

She does NOT like my imitations of the Kinsler optimistic look upwards immediately followed by the dejected head drop move he makes every time he pops up...

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I'm pretty sure for a lot of the Rangers' fanbase, it's cause he wears his pants pulled up.

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Ding ding ding

Kinsler never tried to pull himself off as an intellectual. He never tried to be anything more than he was.

He was always kind, and welcoming to fans. He came to play and gave his best, regardless of the circumstances. He made some really fantastic plays and always seemed to be near the ball.

In short, he was always a gamer who wanted to win.

The problem and rub comes from recent years. Once the Rangers started having playoff success, he started getting a little more full of himself. He had a bit of a chip on his shoulder, with something to prove, and that was in a good way.

At some point, he started to disconnect from the fans, and started to act more like a primadonna. Not sure how that coincided with his big PayDay. He looked lost at times, and started wanting to play the hero. That led him to start popping up more and hitting homers less. He started to get picked off more, and stealing less.

I think he also felt more and more disconnected from management. With MYoung's diminished role and subsequent trading... then Hamilton leaving... 2013 wasn't a good year with the fans.

In a nutshell, he stopped doing many of the things fans liked about him.

Like not hitting pop ups. .

Need more high socks....
Less pajama pants....

Gonna miss kins regardless

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Kinsler never tried to pull himself off as an intellectual. He never tried to be anything more than he was.

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...which was a poon.

quote:

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He was always kind, and welcoming to fans.

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He also liked to call them out.

But that's small change. He was mainly just a poon.

I loved Kins the first few years he was with the Rangers. He brought a cocky attitude and played hungry and hard. He was kind of a ****** and tended to talk trash to other teams players, but he was our ****** so I let his antics slide. The last 3 or 4 years, I've soured on him quite a bit. He rarely seemed engaged in the game, played lazy and his pop ups and caught stealing screw ups drove me nuts. After Hamilton and MY left, he rarely seemed to have any fun out there.

I think this trade is just what he needed to reinvigorate himself. At the least he is going to play with a chip on his shoulder every time plays the Rangers and after his first couple of games back at the ballpark, I don't think the Ranger fans are going to care for him much any more. Kins always plays better with that chip on hs shoulder. Before we started beating the Angels regularly, he would be the only one who seemed to step up and act like beating them was a big deal.

I'll miss the cocky, hard charging, guy that used to play the game like he loved it. The problem is, that guy hasn't shown up much the past couple of years.

Kinsler wanted to win. So does every ball player. Kinsler might have wanted to win, but not that much. And he was unwilling to change to help the team win.

He didn't want to help the team win by moving to the outfield.

He didn't want to win enough to change his hitting approach. He still thinks he is Babe Ruth.

He didn't want to win enough to pay attention for entire nine innings. If they kept a stat for brain farts, he would have lead the American League for past five seasons.

Good riddance. Kinsler was a turd that had been circling the bowl for too long. I'm glad that JD flushed a second time.

DMN says Kinsler was with Andrus and Beltre, in Hawaii...

That's correct. They were on vacation with their families when he got the call.

It's reported that they immediately invited Profar to dinner that night, and told Kinsler to eat somewhere else.

Not bad.

kinsler hustled???? I must have missed that on his ground outs as he barely jogged to first....

The first few years Kinsler was with the big club, he hustled his tail off. The past 3 or 4, not so much.

About a .230 hitter on the road the last five years. That won't cut it. Profar has significantly more upside and is much cheaper. An infield of Beltre, Andrus, Profar and Fielder is pretty stout. I think north of Beltre, Andrus, Kinsler and Moreland.