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I can't even tell you how many times the Rangers have put one of the best offenses in the AL on the field with the worst rotation and bullpen. Maybe the best hurler the game has ever seen may instill a little pitching philiosophy in this perenial .500 club.

Ron Washington must go. Nolan was brought in to fix this team and it needs to start with the manager. A manager whose philosophy is solid defense, fundamental baseball and pitching has failed horibly at his job. The team with the worst defense and unearned runs allowed, not to mention the mental fundamental mistakes made throughout the entire year. Lets mention Milton Bradley, why has Ron been protecting him all year. His decisions not to put him on the DL has cost this team valuable match-up at bats on one of his day-today injuries that last for weeks. For not being on the DL he still does not have enough at bats...get real. I can't blame Ron for the pitching......J.D. be ware. I believe in Nolan Ryan, but I will not continue to support a team that has a manager that has no clue.......Fire Ron Washington and I will renew my season tickets, keep him on and I will see you later.

the only thing Nolan is shaken up right now is his drinks..

NYY25to13: 1. What do you know about Nolan's drinks? 2. Yes, it is over in the Bronx.

I absolutely love Nolan Ryan. My son's name is even Nolan. But I'm not sure if he's the right guy for this. So far, so good, though. The Rangers have produced good pitchers in the last few years... problem is, they all pitch for other teams (Edinson Volquez, Chris Young, John Danks for example). One signing, one trade and some good draft picks could make a huge difference.

Problem with the Rangers every off-season is they can't decide wether to be a power team offensively or a E.R.A. team!!! Got to meet somewhere in the middle. "If it's broke fix-it" !!!

Dirty Bird - Not sure this is a proper analysis:
the best hurler the game has ever seen may instill a little pitching philiosophy in this perenial .500 club.

I have all the respect in the world for Nolan Ryan. Especially his longevity of pitching 27 years in the major leagues. However, there are other things to take into consideration: He only had 2 - 20 win seasons; I don't believe he ever won a Cy Young award. 12 of his 27 years were in the American League with a DH. His team could afford to keep him in games where pitchers in the NL would have been long gone. It would be interesting to see how pitchers like Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Steve Carlton or Tom Seaver would have fared if they didn't have to come out of the game in the 7th or 8th inning because their team was down by a run or two. Again, I'm not taking anything away from Nolan; it's just my opinion he is not the best hurler the game has ever seen.

Who besides Dirty Bird has ever considered Ryan "the best hurler the game has ever seen"? I was a kid in Orange County when Ryan was with the Angels, and the thing I remember was this: you didn't know if you'd win or lose--it could be a no-hitter or he could get roughed up for eight runs--but you knew you were going to get somebody fierce. I was sad when he left the Angels, and it didn't matter to me that his career record when he left was only a couple games over .500. I don't follow the Rangers closely (except to know the obvious: they need pitching), but baseball is such an intuitive thing, and why wouldn't you want someone who loves it in charge. Maybe that fierceness will rub off on the Rangers. I never root for them (they're in the same division as my team, who are so bad this year I can't bring myself to name them--cough, cough, Seattle, cough, cough), but Ryan's a good choice because of the respect everyone--even fellow execs--will have for him.

My guess is he keeps Wash & Daniels. He signed off on dumping respected pitching coach Mark Connor a couple of months ago to bring in someone who more reflects his pitching philosophy. If the Rangers can get the pitching to click the manager and GM may be kept. If 2009 starts out poorly I look for Washington to get the ax first. Daniels, while no boy wonder, gets a reprieve for having a hand in building the minor league system to respectability. Plus Nolan won't allow him to pull the trigger on stupid pitching trades.