*****UnOfficial Texas Rangers Post-2018 Off-Season Thread****
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Last: 5 yr ago by Fuzzy Dunlop
Quote:
The Arizona Diamondbacks have already agreed to install B1K for 2019. They will be the first baseball team since 1970 to rip out a grass field in favor of turf.
At least the Diamondbacks will be giving it a trial run this season. The B1K turf product is what the Rangers are supposedly moving too. If it doesn't work out well in Arizona, hopefully there would still be time to reverse course and go back to grass prior to the 2020 season.
The turf decision probably stems from these winter golf events that tore up the field a few years back. I'm guessing they want to be able to have more non baseball events without worrying about how it will affect the grass. So a non baseball decision for a baseball field. Lovely.
Rossko said:
The turf decision probably stems from these winter golf events that tore up the field a few years back. I'm guessing they want to be able to have more non baseball events without worrying about how it will affect the grass. So a non baseball decision for a baseball field. Lovely.
Being able to host concerts without damaging the grass/playing surface is one of the reasons that has been mentioned in previous reports.
eleventy million places to have a concert in the DFW area and they want to put in turf for baseball. baffling.
Still haven't seen an answer to how the type of playing surface affects a fan's viewing surface. If we win the division, are y'all going to complain that we are playing on turf?
We did answer. You can reject it, but not seeing an answer is bullsh. That joke of a stadium in Tampa and Rogers Center in friggin Canada are the only two stadiums with turf. But we can't figure out how to keep grass in shape in Arlington, with or without concerts. Other stadiums are having concerts too.AccidentProne said:
Still haven't seen an answer to how the type of playing surface affects a fan's viewing surface. If we win the division, are y'all going to complain that we are playing on turf?
That said, if we're gonna go turf, let's go all the way and make it blue like BSU. That shouldn't negatively impact our fan experience either.
I personally prefer not watching baseball played on carpet. Watch any highlights this spring from baseball played in Austin or Lubbock and tell me it doesn't affect your viewing experience.AccidentProne said:
Still haven't seen an answer to how the type of playing surface affects a fan's viewing surface. If we win the division, are y'all going to complain that we are playing on turf?
:You'd think the organization would listen to its own players (a few now gone, but their point still stands).
https://www.star-telegram.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/mac-engel/article203061049.html
https://www.star-telegram.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/mac-engel/article203061049.html
Quote:
Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus: "Real grass all day long. When I play on (artificial grass), I feel it my hamstrings and my back, for sure."
Rangers catcher Robinson Chrinios: "I'd say grass. When I play on turf, I feel it in my legs and my back. Takes about two or three days (to get over it.)"
Rangers outfielder Ryan Rua: "You don't see it very much in minor league stadiums, but it's different for sure for first-time guys up in Toronto and Tampa. Maybe guys who play there get used to it, but when you're on it the first time you notice it. It's tougher on your legs and your back.
Rangers first baseman Joey Gallo: "Grass, all the way. When you play on that fake grass, your knees hurt like hell, your hips and your back, too. "When we had that series against Houston in Tampa (the '17 series that was moved to Florida because of Hurricane Harvey), and I was playing outfield and my feet and my back were killing me. Guys kept coming up with lower body injuries. That was the series (Adrian Beltre) got hurt. I definitely felt it for a few days. A lot of the guys were talking about it.
"I don't think anybody wants artificial turf, especially outfielders. You can feel it gets hotter. You can definitely feel it on the bottom of your feet."
Rangers outfielder Nomar Mazara: "When we played that series against Houston (in Tampa), I could definitely feel it in my knees. (Former Rangers outfielder) Carlos Gomez and a lot of the guys said they didn't like it. That it hurt. I don't like it."
Rangers catcher Curt Casali (he played last season in Tampa): "I can't speak for them, but I know when I was in Tampa the outfielders all had a problem with it. All of them struggled with it. Personally, I didn't love it."Because there is no moisture for the dirt, it feels different. It's dry and you can't get a grip. I know they wet it down, but it dries up.
"Real grass is just softer and slower. If you just stand on it for 5 minutes, you can feel it in your back.
"I hope you're wrong on this and it's grass."
Rangers outfielder Delino DeShields: "On artificial surface, your cleats get stuck in the grass and the dirt. Real grass has give. It's softer. The game on real grass just feels more natural.
"I remember the first time I ran on (artificial grass) was during a pre-draft workout in Toronto. I was running in the outfield and the first time I tried to sprint I nearly fell over. My cleats got stuck.
"And when I play on it, my shins really bug me. Your legs just get stuck.
They don't give a **** about baseball.
They want to have concerts and other stupid *****
They want to have concerts and other stupid *****
I guess y'all didn't read the article I posted. It wouldn't be the same turf that's in Tampa or Toronto.
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
powerbelly said:
They don't give a **** about baseball.
They want to have concerts and other stupid *****
This.
As soon as concerts at ballparks became a thing, it was all but guaranteed to not be grass.
AccidentProne said:
I guess y'all didn't read the article I posted. It wouldn't be the same turf that's in Tampa or Toronto.
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
We'll see. Sure the company selling it says it's great, but I'll believe it when I see it. Luckily we'll at least here about it from teams going to Arizona this year.
Interesting read on tanking: https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/in-an-era-of-mlb-tanking-and-limited-spending-heres-an-appreciation-of-the-teams-trying-to-win-now/
Quote:
It's time to reassess the practice of tanking, though, and recognize it for what it is: cover for profit-hungry owners to line their pockets, at the expense of their own fans' entertainment. As analytics have taken hold over the past couple decades in baseball, a new mantra has emerged, one that argues that it's futile to try and scratch and claw your way to .500; better to be truly awful than mediocre.
Sure, people who grew up playing baseball and watching baseball their whole lives "most likely won't be able to tell the difference."AccidentProne said:
I guess y'all didn't read the article I posted. It wouldn't be the same turf that's in Tampa or Toronto.
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
Orange carpet is as old as the game itself.AccidentProne said:
I guess y'all didn't read the article I posted. It wouldn't be the same turf that's in Tampa or Toronto.
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
If they do end up going with turf, the one silver lining will be real dirt infields and basepaths. I think the seats would be half empty all year if they installed something like that hahapowerbelly said:Orange carpet is as old as the game itself.AccidentProne said:
I guess y'all didn't read the article I posted. It wouldn't be the same turf that's in Tampa or Toronto.
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
KT 90 said:
Interesting read on tanking: https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/in-an-era-of-mlb-tanking-and-limited-spending-heres-an-appreciation-of-the-teams-trying-to-win-now/Quote:
It's time to reassess the practice of tanking, though, and recognize it for what it is: cover for profit-hungry owners to line their pockets, at the expense of their own fans' entertainment. As analytics have taken hold over the past couple decades in baseball, a new mantra has emerged, one that argues that it's futile to try and scratch and claw your way to .500; better to be truly awful than mediocre.
I think the owners are pinching pennies because they know the upcoming CBA fight will be tough for sure but the teams they lists as tanking and the ones they praise for going for it differ in one key area...cheap, young, controllable, good talent. DET, TEX, BAL, KC, MIA...they all have little or none of that. PHI, CIN, SD, CWS, etc...their systems are stacked with some great high end talent and much of what they have on the current 40 man came from within as well.
Meanwhile back when DET, BAL, TEX, and KC were all highly competitive the teams now being praised for trying to win were awful. Much of it is cyclical just in terms of the talent available to the teams.
But to reiterate...the owners are hoarding cash right now and it's getting more noticeable by the day.
We'll see how the magic extra special carpet does.
Poly grass strands are poly grass strands, so fake will still look fake. What is somewhat different is the base and filler, but we'll see how effective it is at reducing injury. It may play closer to a natural grass field regarding how the ball bounces off of it, but that doesn't mean it's going to interact with the players' back, knees, ankles, feet the same.
The other factor that is hard to account for is how it holds up over time. How that filler is testing in a lab now doesn't mean it will be the same after 2 years of compaction, weather, etc.
Poly grass strands are poly grass strands, so fake will still look fake. What is somewhat different is the base and filler, but we'll see how effective it is at reducing injury. It may play closer to a natural grass field regarding how the ball bounces off of it, but that doesn't mean it's going to interact with the players' back, knees, ankles, feet the same.
The other factor that is hard to account for is how it holds up over time. How that filler is testing in a lab now doesn't mean it will be the same after 2 years of compaction, weather, etc.
And if concerts at the ball-park are going to be a regular thing now, sure would be nice for the season ticket holders to actually get a presale that doesn't have the same generic password that everybody knows. Halfway-decent Billy Joel tickets were gone in about 3 minutes this morning.
Tickets have been on sale since Monday for Amex, fan clubs, etc. All those seats were likely sold before the Rangers "presale" today.
dvldog said:
Tickets have been on sale since Monday for Amex, fan clubs, etc. All those seats were likely sold before the Rangers "presale" today.
American Express and Verified Fan were the only two presales that occurred before the "Season Ticket Holder" presale this morning. I'm fine with both of those groups of people getting tickets early because they at least have to be vetted to a degree.
I googled this afternoon and saw the STH password being shared on a handful of websites/forums because it was 1) generic and 2) the same as it was for Paul McCartney.
Proposition Joe said:dvldog said:
Tickets have been on sale since Monday for Amex, fan clubs, etc. All those seats were likely sold before the Rangers "presale" today.
American Express and Verified Fan were the only two presales that occurred before the "Season Ticket Holder" presale this morning. I'm fine with both of those groups of people getting tickets early because they at least have to be vetted to a degree.
I googled this afternoon and saw the STH password being shared on a handful of websites/forums because it was 1) generic and 2) the same as it was for Paul McCartney.
So there was a presale that started at 8am and another one that started at 10am. You looked for tickets this afternoon and were shocked there wasn't good inventory left?
My reading comprehension of his post was that he googled about the passwords this afternoon and learned of the lack of changing it, not that he tried to buy tickets this afternoon. Earlier post mentioned the good tickets were gone in 3 min this AM, so I take that to mean he tried to buy this AM. But keep on with the snark. It's a really good look for a guy in Ranger ticket sales.
I just logged into to the presale and there are a ton of great seats still available. But keep on with the snark. It's a really good look for a guy that's never posted on a Rangers thread before.
They did say they would use dirt where there is normally dirtpowerbelly said:Orange carpet is as old as the game itself.AccidentProne said:
I guess y'all didn't read the article I posted. It wouldn't be the same turf that's in Tampa or Toronto.
"Prefer not to watch a game played on carpet." Seriously? You most likely won't be able to tell the difference
LOL. Well, as someone that posts here more than I should, I'd agree with OTM. People want to see baseball on real grass. Get over it, jr pisspants. Maybe it's time for a break.
AccidentProne said:
I just logged into to the presale and there are a ton of great seats still available. But keep on with the snark. It's a really good look for a guy that's never posted on a Rangers thread before.
Does that really change his point? Anyone could buy this morning at 8am (season ticket holder or not) with the exact same generic password that was given out last time.
If this franchise had the clout of the Yankees or Red Sox I might understand, but for a team that will just be going through the motions for the 3rd straight year, I can see why the fanbase might have liked a perk not everyone could use.
Yup... "It's a natural kind of artificial!"
Just more evidence this stadium wasn't built to solve a problem that exists for a number of games that you can basically count on one hand (weekend day games in July/Aug) out of an 81 game schedule. It was built as a multi-use entertainment venue. Baseball is gonna take a backseat in some areas.
It kind of feels like the Rangers wanted to put this article out to see what the reaction would be. Grant seems to make it clear that a decision hasn't been made yet, but here is what they would do if they did turf. So maybe if they get enough negative feedback it could have an impact?Schall 02 said:PatAg said:This is just another form of marketing to influence fan opinion.AccidentProne said:
Exactly. Planted story.
So AP I take it you are the resident Rangers employee/rep.
What exactly is the process for seat selection in the new stadium? Everything thus far seems rather vague in how exactly appointment times and selection is going to take place. I know with A&M they could lean on "priority points", but since those don't exist with Rangers how is it going to be done?
Will season ticket holders with the longest tenure get first selection of anywhere in the ballpark, or just able to choose from a "similar area" to what they currently sit in, designated by Rangers?
Does a 10-year Corner Box season ticket holder get to choose his seats before a 2-year Lower Box season ticket holder?
Last email that got sent out mentioned "upgrade now in globe life park to get the best seats in globe life field" -- which makes me believe that it's about location and not tenure?
What exactly is the process for seat selection in the new stadium? Everything thus far seems rather vague in how exactly appointment times and selection is going to take place. I know with A&M they could lean on "priority points", but since those don't exist with Rangers how is it going to be done?
Will season ticket holders with the longest tenure get first selection of anywhere in the ballpark, or just able to choose from a "similar area" to what they currently sit in, designated by Rangers?
Does a 10-year Corner Box season ticket holder get to choose his seats before a 2-year Lower Box season ticket holder?
Last email that got sent out mentioned "upgrade now in globe life park to get the best seats in globe life field" -- which makes me believe that it's about location and not tenure?
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