Oswalt signs with the Rangers!!!

[utexas]

Just reported on ESPN. Love the signing.

[utexas]

http://m.espn.go.com/mlb/story?storyId=7984838


Linkage....

[snepp]

Why the exclamation points? This could be the least surprising signing in the history of baseball.

[Travis40]

I'm not really excited by this deal. At this point, a healthy Feliz is probably better than Oswalt, so this really shows me that Feliz is going to miss the rest of the year or the Rangers are going to move him back to the bullpen permanently. I would've preferred Hamels or Greinke at the deadline, but Oswalt will provide an upgrade over Scott Feldman.

[Perfect Zero]

This means one of two things (possibly both):

1) Feliz is really, really hurt. I was expecting him to be back in the rotation by sometime early July, but with Oswalt signing I'm believing that he is going to be rehabing the rest of the season, if not getting some time in Round Rock.

2) Ryan has his hands too far deep in the business side of things. There is no reason why Feldman can't be the fifth starter of this team if Feliz is out for too long of a time. I would rather Ogando go back down and get stretched out for the fifth role instead of overpaying for Oswalt.

This isn't TORP Oswalt; we're getting a #4 or #5 pitcher here for $5 million plus. This is a head-scratcher.

[bkrich83]

I like Oswalt, so don't take it the wrong way. But for the Rangers unless Feliz is gonna be out for a long time, how does this move really make sense?

[SPTO]

Even if this made sense it still wouldn't work for the Rangers. Oswalt is not the pitcher he used to be and could be easily crushed in that ballpark. I have a feeling he'll call it quits sometime before the season ends.

[utexas]

I don't like Feldman as a long term starter. And with two talented young pitchers in Darvish and Feliz pitching more than they are accustomed to it makes sense to pick up a veteran who is proven. Having too many pitchers is always a good problem, especially for the rangers.

[Perfect Zero]

Quote: Originally Posted by utexas

I don't like Feldman as a long term starter. And with two talented young pitchers in Darvish and Feliz pitching more than they are accustomed to it makes sense to pick up a veteran who is proven. Having too many pitchers is always a good problem, especially for the rangers.

Darvish may be a rookie in the eyes of the Commissioner's Office, but he is not a rookie in any other sense of the term. If you want to look at a "veteran" presence, we already have Colby Lewis in the rotation and Mike Maddux and Nolan Ryan make themselves available to the team as needed.

Right now, the Rangers have two solid pitchers in Darvish and Holland, a good third man in Harrison, a guy who can hold the fort down in Lewis, and Feldman as a decent spot starter. If Feliz can be back within the next few months (or if Ogando can stretch out over that time), why do the Rangers need to piss away money on a guy way past his prime? Too many pitchers can be a good thing, but this is a case of over-reaction and too much faith in a used pitcher. We went down this road with Hicks as owner, I don't want to go down that road with the new ownership.

Hopefully, Daniels sees something in this or Ryan is funding this personally without the help of Simpson and Davis. Oswalt is not the answer.

[jth1331]

One, I don't get this "way past his prime" comments. 2 years ago he posted a 7-1 record with a 1.74 ERA and a WHIP of .895 in 12 starts with the Phillies after getting traded, and pitched overall pretty decent in the postseason that year.
Last year was kinda meh, but still not horrible.

I don't understand why Ranger fans are upset over this signing. Oswalt never has really been prone to giving up homeruns, is a quality starter with loads of big game experience.

Honestly, the Rangers have handled some pitchers kind of quirky, putting Ogando in the rotation, then back in the pen, and moving Feliz from the closer spot to the rotation.