Teagarden’s Takeover: Rangers Shut Out Twins, 1-0
Taylor Teagarden was the Rangers' savior on Sunday. - Jason Cole/Scout.com
For five-plus excruciating innings, it was a startlingly familiar episode in the Texas Rangers’ appalling start to the second half of their 2008 season.
Though right-hander Vicente Padilla had limited a pesky Minnesota Twins lineup to just three singles and a walk over five exceptionally strong shutout innings, his starting counterpart (Scott Baker) had effortlessly matched him every step of the way, retiring 17 consecutive batters to begin his Sunday afternoon outing at the Metrodome.
But then something funny happened: Texas won, albeit by the slimmest of margins imaginable. And in a three-game series that found the Twins outscoring their visitors by an eye-popping 20-3 margin, Texas transformed their jump out of the gates from catastrophic to merely disappointing.
They can zealously thank their rookie backstop for salvaging that one game.
Catcher Taylor Teagarden, the 18th challenge undertaken by Baker in his ultimately unsuccessful quest for perfection, quietly worked a 1-2 count full by laying off a pair of tough fastballs. Whether or not the 24-year-old Metroplex native knew that he had irreversibly swung the pendulum in his favor, the fact remained that Baker had been particularly vulnerable in full-count situations all season long, permitting opposing batters to hit a whopping .318/.500/.591 with the count loaded.
His sixth and final pitch of the at-bat, a 92 MPH heater at the knees but down the middle of the plate, would eventually prove fatal for the Twins - and thoroughly uplifting for the shell-shocked Rangers, who had gone nowhere except backwards in the standings since the conclusion of the All-Star break.
Teagarden, a Carrollton Creekview High School graduate and University of Texas at Austin attendee, smashed the errant fastball just beyond center fielder Carlos Gomez’s outstretched glove and over the wall in left-center field, signifying his first Major League hit (and home run) just one inning after he cut down third baseman Brian Buscher on the basepaths with a perfect strike to second base, which denoted the first of what should prove to be many caught-stealings to come:
“There is no doubt I want to be here helping this team,” said Teagarden, who did finally crack a grin after the win. “It would be an unfortunate situation not to go to Beijing, but how could I tell [manager] Ron Washington I’d rather be there, especially since I don’t even feel that way. If there’s an opportunity to be here, I want to be here.”
His status for the ‘08 Olympics remains shrouded in doubt, thanks to a multidimensional roster conundrum. While Jarrod Saltalamacchia has reportedly overcome his groin- and flu-related ailments and should be available to play on Monday evening in Chicago, Gerald Laird (strained right hamstring) could conceivably embark on a minor league rehab assignment sometime later this week.
And that’s not even considering right-handers Eric Hurley and Scott Feldman, whom are expected to rejoin the active roster today in different pitching capacities. Relievers Dustin Nippert and Warner Madrigal would ostensibly appear to be in the most immediate danger of being cut, but axing both would reduce the Rangers’ bullpen to just six pitchers, and it’s unlikely Washington would wish to place his pitching staff in such a precarious state.
Teagarden may not be able to assume his catching responsibilities for Team USA if he is not optioned back to the minors by Tuesday, the purported eligibility cutoff date. Texas could alternatively option Saltalamacchia or fellow young backstop Max Ramirez back to the minors and retain Teagarden, which would undoubtedly elicit some controversy - particularly if the former were to be the recipient of that demotion.
The most logical (and least surprising) move, of course, would be to allow Teagarden to fulfill his Olympic obligations and limit the current catching dilemma to just the three-man triumvirate of Laird, Saltalamacchia and Ramirez, thereby knocking out two birds with one stone.
But then general manager Jon Daniels has never been one to not unleash a few surprises, has he?
While Padilla went on to post seven shutout innings that were uncharacteristically bereft of a single ‘K’ (representing his first start of six innings or more without a strikeout since August 31st, 2007), southpaws Eddie Guardado and C.J. Wilson managed to nail down the Rangers’ first 1-0 victory since September 19th, 2004, which somewhat ironically came against their hated first-place AL West adversaries, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
And by the way, regarding Wilson: Yeah, he got the save. But he couldn’t have possibly terrified us any more en route to acquiring it.
In classic C.J. fashion, the mercurial 27-year-old induced a pair of quick outs, promptly yielded a four-pitch walk to Joe Mauer to place the winning run at the plate in the person of All-Star Home Run Derby winner Justin Morneau, fired a horrendous wild pitch that inexplicably allowed the tying run to move to third base, and then miraculously escaped with a game-ending grounder.
Impressive save percentage or not, I know I’m far from alone when I say that I’m sick of this garbage. Wilson’s Sunday afternoon performance perfectly exemplified his frustrating proneness to ill-timed lapses in his concentration and focus, which has proven damaging to both his team and his statistics in 2008. And impressive save percentage or not, he’s eventually going to pitch his way out of the closer’s role if he doesn’t make some much-needed adjustments.
There are but a handful of pitchers in Major League Baseball who possess the rare, energy-sapping quality of consistently being able to make a win feel like a loss. Wilson, to me, has disturbingly evolved into one of those pitchers.
If your closer is continually instilling an overwhelming feeling of dread into your die-hard fanbase each time he toes the rubber with a narrow lead, then something is very, very wrong.
Fortunately, the same cannot be said for Mr. Teagarden. From the pile of Major League firsts to the exciting immediate future that will find him either in Arlington or Beijing, Taylor is actively fulfilling his childhood dreams.
If only we could all be so lucky.
Quick Hits: FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal reports that the Rangers “probably will not trade designated hitter Milton Bradley unless they receive an overwhelming offer,” and are fielding calls for outfielders Marlon Byrd and Nelson Cruz, the latter of whom belted his 31st home run for Triple-A Oklahoma on Sunday…Washington refrained from placing Josh Hamilton in his lineup on Sunday, insisting he needed the day off.
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11 Responses to “Teagarden’s Takeover: Rangers Shut Out Twins, 1-0”
July 21st, 2008 at 1:00 pm
It’s amazing how good Vincente Padilla is and how better he can be. This guy has always had the stuff to be good. It’s just a matter of consistency. He was very, very good. You don’t shutout the Twins at home that easily. He just made it look easy out there. He had to pitch well because Baker was that good yesterday. I just tip my hat to Texas and move on.
I know the feeling about C.J. When Eddie Guardado was closing for the Twins, it was scary to watch. Tigers fans know how you feel when Todd Jones is on the mound. At Motown Sports where I post, Tigers fans like to talk about being on roller coaster rides.
This was a big win. To be 10 games back would have been tough to handle. Angels are starting to have that cushion of a lead in the division after their sweep of the Red Sox. I hope Texas can get back on track by taking care of Chicago. I hope they get it done. Texas always plays the White Sox tough so I can count on them.
Good writing as always, Joey.
Good luck to the Rangers for the rest of the season. I will be rooting for them.
July 21st, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Thanks for the support, Leslie. I would like nothing better than to see Anaheim and Chicago somehow miss the playoffs, and though the odds of Texas recovering to overtake the Angels are virtually nil at this point, I’d like nothing better than to see the White Sox miss out on October baseball altogether.
July 21st, 2008 at 3:22 pm
And by the way, don’t think it really requires a separate post this close to gametime, but Teagarden has been optioned to OKC, Feldman has been promoted (and will start tonight), and Hurley remains on the 15-day DL - this time, with a “sore arm.”
July 21st, 2008 at 4:11 pm
I don’t like the White Sox. I hate them. That franchise represents arrogance to the nth degree and their fans are horrible people. Better yet, I hate all Chicago sports teams in general. I hope the Cubs go home once the regular season is over. I hope Milwaukee or St. Louis wins the division. Being a Minnesota sports fan, hating Chicago is a requirement if you look at the history of the rivalries such as Twins/White Sox, Bears/Vikings, North Stars/Blackhawks (the Stars used to be the old North Stars when that franchise was in Minnesota). and etc. I don’t even like the Bulls either.
The White Sox, Red Sox, and the Yankees are three teams I really can’t stand.
I obviously have no hatred towards the Angels since the Twins don’t have much history with them. Of course, I am tired of the Angels beating the Twins everytime whne those two teams face each other. The Angels along with the Orioles and the Jays are the teams that have had their way with the Twins at the Metrodome this season. I respect how the Angels do their business, and I am a Mike Scioscia fan.
I want to see the Rangers do well because I like Ron Washington and I like what this organization is trying to do which is build from within.
BTW, MLB Extra Innings have been showing two different feeds of a ballgame. On Saturday night, I got to see FSN North and FSN Southwest’s version of the Twins/Rangers game. It was fun to watch the game on both networks. I listened to FSN North when the Rangers were batting and FSN Southwest when the Twins were batting. It was fun. I hope this happens for MLB.tv next year where fans can pick an option to watch a telecast. I don’t want to listen to Michael Kay or Ken Harrelson when the Twins play the Yankees or White Sox. I want to listen to the Twins’ guys not an other team announcer.
July 29th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
To Leslie Monteiro and Joey Matschulat:
Both Minnesota and Texas blow!!! Joey, you write for a web site I have never heard of so go ahead and write what you want, nobody will read it.
Leslie, you are one of two things a woman, or a man with woman’s name. Either way, I couldn’t respect your baseball opinion any less. You wouldn’t know a winner if it sat on your face and Jessie the body is a turd. Don’t speak negatively about a great sports city like Chicago, unless you live in one and the “Twin Cities” doesn’t qualify.
Best Wishes,
Matt Walsh
July 29th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
Rest assured that I’m tremendously hurt at the idea that you’ve never heard of BTiA.
Best wishes,
Joey
July 30th, 2008 at 10:49 am
Dear Joey,
I truly didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. What I meant was that nobody outside of Arlington had ever heard of BTiA. In fact, google it. You’ll see that the Belize Tourism Industry Association gets top billing, followed closely by an advertisement by them for their own expo.
If you are sincerely interested in anyone taking you seriously, yes even in blogs. You should consider laying off comments like, “I’d like nothing better than to see the White Sox miss out on October baseball altogether”.
You seem to know a bit about the game, but comments like that are as classless and grossly biased as that he-she, Leslie Monteiro’s comments about White Sox fans being horrible people.
Thanks again,
Matt
July 30th, 2008 at 11:34 am
I appreciate your opinion, Matt, but I must apologize if not really wanting the White Sox to make the playoffs renders me “classless” in your eyes. Beyond just winning a World Series in 2005, the White Sox have (a) a manager that I can’t stand, (b) a catcher that I can stand even less than the manager, and (c) a general manager that I’ve heard more than a few unpleasant things about.
But if it makes you feel any better, I don’t have a problem with the remainder of Chicago’s active roster.
Best wishes,
Joey
July 30th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Joey-
As a Chicago native, and a true fan of the sport, the way it should be played..i.e by the Cubs, the only major league team in this city, I respect your opinions, and knowledge of the game. Ozzie is a terrible manager who ran into a string of SUPERB LUCK in 2005, and was even worse as a player…AJ is a joke for a catcher…all you have to do to see a true catcher is look across town to the rookie, Soto. I think it is quite obvious that Mr. Walsh’s comments, are based solely on living in a city, where he remains one of 4 White Sox fans, and they live with a Napoleon complex, due to the Cubs running this town. Best Wishes!
Rich Pearl
July 30th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
Mr. Pearl and Joey:
The Cubs are an embarrassment to sports in Chicago and have more he-she fans than combined in Texas and Minnesota. I won’t even respond to Pearl’s argument because it plays into the hands of Leslie’s blog, although I, and most true knowledgible sports fans do not consider the Cubs a professional sports team.
The only thing I will say is it all stems from jealousy on both of your parts.
Joey, how about some examples of why you hate Kenny, Ozzie and AJ, instead of just making the comment, support your weak and silly argument.
Rich, you are from Northlake, it would be hard for you to be a Chicago native. You will always be a suburb boy and a minor league baseball fan and therefore not allowed to particapte in an argument about MLB.
Respectfully, at least to Joey,
Matt Walsh
July 30th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Mr. Pearl,
Your comments seem like they are stemming from a bit of Jealousy. You are from Northlake? Thats funny i know a guy from there Derek Farinosi. He told me about another cub fan that he watched cubs games in their singlet. Please dont respond as your opinions are not wanted.
Thanks,
Matt
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