Posts tagged HankBlalock at FanHouse

With the trade deadline right around the corner, our MLB editor brings you the top five rumors every day until July 31.

- The elephant in the room four days from the trade deadline is Manny Ramirez, who once again is on shaky ground in Boston. In a perfect world, the Red Sox would love to rid themselves of the near-constant headache that Ramirez provides. In practice, they are still very much in the hunt for their third World Series in five years and would need to replace his production in step with any deal. That makes the completion of any trade unlikely in the next few days.

Joel Sherman and Mike Puma of the New York Post run down the potential list of suitors for Ramirez, and because of Boston's desire to ship him out of the American League, it is a very short one. The Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Mets and Phillies are the teams with both the need and the financial wherewithal to pick up the tab for Ramirez's $20 million deal. Because the left fielder has 10-5 rights (10 years in the league, five with the same team) he can veto any deal the Red Sox put together. That leads Sherman and Puma to conclude that Ramirez would only accept a deal to Philadelphia, where he would be reunited with manager Charlie Manuel, who was his hitting coach in Cleveland.

- And what of the Rays? The Yankees have gotten stronger already, and could add Jarrod Washburn or another pitcher at any moment. The Red Sox are embroiled in the latest Manny drama, but are more likely to improve from within. Tampa Bay has been pretty quiet, but they are out there looking for upgrades in the form of a right-handed outfield bat and bullpen depth. With Xavier Nady and Casey Blake off the market, the team may look internally for a right-handed bat, with the rehabbing Rocco Baldelli a possibility. That leaves the club looking to trade for a left-handed reliever with Brian Fuentes at the top of the Rays' list, with Arthur Rhodes, Jack Taschner, Will Ohman and Ron Mahay as backup options.

Tuesday didn't start out very well for the Texas Rangers on the injury front. Early in the day they found out that Hank Blalock, who they'd been hoping to bring off of the disabled list to use on Tuesday, bruised his hand while diving for a ball at Triple-A Oklahoma and his return to the team will be delayed another day or two because of it. A couple of days isn't that big of a deal though, I mean, at least Hank's not going to be out another 4-6 weeks with a pulled hamstring like catcher Gerald Laird is going to be.

Now, the Rangers could have stopped with the injuries right there, but you know how things are down in Texas. Everything has to be bigger, or they have to have more, so on Tuesday night the Rangers didn't stop hurting themselves. Josh Hamilton had to leave the game in the fifth inning a couple of innings after making a diving catch, and now he's day-to-day with knee inflammation.

The Rangers aren't planning on putting Hamilton on the disabled list or anything, instead hoping that a couple of days off will take care of it, but it should be pointed out that it's the same knee Hamilton had arthroscopic surgery on back in 2006. This may be a good thing for Hamilton seeing as how his batting average has been on the decline in June, so maybe the rest will do him some good.

Though considering the latest injuries to Blalock and Laird, along with the fact Milton Bradley's missed the last six games with a sore quad, I don't think the Rangers will want Josh resting too long.

As I mentioned earlier this morning, the Rangers had a very strong month of May and are starting to look like a team that the Angels should start paying attention to out west. The problem in Arlington right now is that though May went very well, June is already off to a bad start.

First the team finds out that they're going to be without Hank Blalock for a month thanks to wrist surgery, and now they've learned they're going to be without the ace of their staff for at least one start.

Texas right-hander Vicente Padilla left the team on Sunday, returning to his native Nicaragua to attend to what manager Ron Washington termed "a family personal matter."

Padilla was scheduled to start Monday night for the Rangers against the Cleveland Indians. Washington said rookie Doug Mathis will be moved up a day in the rotation to replace Padilla.

The Rangers wouldn't comment on what the family matter was, so I've no idea how serious the situation is or how long Padilla will be gone. There could have been a death in the family, someone may be sick, or perhaps somebody has been kidnapped. Whatever's going on, I hope everybody in Padilla's family is safe.

If Vicente is gone for a while, the Rangers plan on calling up A.J. Murray from Oklahoma to take his spot in the rotation.

The Texas Rangers put the finishing touches on a strong month of May by beating Oakland 8-4 on Saturday. The victory gave the Rangers a record of 19-10 in May (after going 10-18 in April), moved them over .500, and they're now only a half-game out of second place and four behind the Angels for the division lead.

They had also been hoping to get Hank Blalock back soon, and they were planning to have him play first base, which would have been a nice boost for the American League's most potent offense. Unfortunately, they're going to have to wait until July for Hank's return after he had wrist surgery this weekend.

Former All-Star third baseman Hank Blalock had surgery Friday on his right wrist and will be sidelined for at least another month.

Blalock has been on the 15-day disabled list since April 29 due to a torn hamstring. He recovered from that injury, then experienced wrist soreness due to carpal tunnel syndrome.

A cortisone injection earlier in the week failed to reduce swelling in the wrist. Hand specialist Dr. Tom Diliberti then operated.

While being without Blalock for another month isn't great news for Texas, it's not the worst thing in the world either. After all, Hank didn't play in a single game during the month of May, and the Rangers played pretty well without him.

When Rangers third baseman Hank Blalock went on the disabled list back on April 29th, not much was going right in Arlington. The Rangers were 9-18 in last place of the AL West, there were rumors beginning to swirl that manager Ron Washington was on the verge of losing his job, and Blalock's injury was just another indicator that it was going to be a long season for the Rangers.

Then the Rangers won 13 of their next 18 games without Blalock to improve to 22-23, and are now only 3.5 games out of first place. Having a front row seat for those games, Hank saw first hand the improved play and chemistry his team was showing, and he doesn't want to mess it up. That's why when he returns from the DL, he'll be playing first base.

The two-time All-Star third baseman figured the best way to help a lineup that has clicked in his absence was to switch to first base, where production has been a problem for the Rangers since Mark Teixeira's departure last July. So Blalock made the suggestion to Ron Washington on Friday, and general manager Jon Daniels agreed it was a good idea.

"I'm not doing anything to benefit myself here," Blalock said. "It's a new position for me, so I'm not sure how I'll do over there. Just watching the guys and how well we were playing, it crossed my mind."

I wrote yesterday that Hank Blalock would be undergoing an MRI on Monday to take a look at his hamstring. I also said that no matter what the results of the MRI were, Blalock would probably end up spending some time on the disabled list because teams generally prefer to take the cautious route when it comes to hamstring injuries, and want to ensure the injury has time to heal.

Well, Blalock has been placed on the disabled list, but not just for cautionary reasons as the MRI results showed a small tear in the hamstring.

Blalock is expected to miss three to four weeks with a small tear in his left hamstring muscle. Blalock, who was hitting .299 with two home runs and seven RBIs, injured himself running out a double in the 10th inning of Friday's 6-5 victory over the Twins.

"Tough to replace his bat right now, but it's an opportunity for someone else to make an impact," Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. "He was having consistent ABs."

The team called up outfielder Jason Boggs from Triple-A Oklahoma to take Hank's place on the roster.

Blalock missed the vast majority of last season, playing in only 58 games, thanks to having a rib removed that was causing nerve damage in his shoulder. Thankfully this injury shouldn't keep Hank off the field nearly as long, because at the rate the Rangers pitching staff is giving up runs this season, the team can't afford to lose one of it's bigger offensive threats for too long a period of time.

The Rangers have been without third baseman Hank Blalock since Friday when he pulled his hamstring during the 10th inning of a 6-5 Rangers victory over the Twins. He sat out both Saturday and Sunday's contests, and is now slated to undergo an MRI today with team orthopedist Dr. Keith Meister.

"I don't know what to think," Blalock said. "My mind is optimistic, but I'm confused. I've never had a hamstring injury. The soreness died down a little today. It had to after I iced it down about six times yesterday."

Wow, that's pretty impressive actually. All the injuries Hank has suffered in his career, and not once has he tweaked a hammy?

Regardless of what the MRI says, I'm guessing that Blalock is going to end up doing some time on the disabled list because of it. Teams generally take the cautious route when it comes to hamstrings because rushing a player back before he's ready usually leads to a lot of long term problems.

The problem for the Rangers is that, if they do put Blalock on the disabled list, they don't have many options to call up and fill in for Blalock. The only extra infielder they currently have on their 40-man roster is Joaquin Arias, and he's still recovering from shoulder surgery that basically makes it impossible to play on the left side of the infield right now. So it's more likely they'll call up another pitcher, and use Ramon Vazquez and German Duran to fill in for the time being.

Last year when the Texas Rangers opened spring training, they started the festivities by announcing a new contract for shortstop Michael Young. This season it appears it could be Young's double play partner who is going to be cashing in.

Though neither the Rangers or Ian Kinsler will say how close the two sides are to a deal, they're both willing to admit that they've been discussing one since the end of last season.

"If there is a deal that makes sense for both sides, that's something," said Jeff Frye, one of Kinsler's agents. "Right now, all Ian is doing is getting ready for the season."

Signing young players to deals is nothing new for the Rangers, who have taken the same path with Michael Young (twice) and Hank Blalock.

Kinsler got off to a quick start last season hitting 9 home runs and driving in 22 runs while being named the American League's Player of the Month for April. After that, Ian came back down to earth a bit, managing only 11 home runs and 39 RBI during the final five months of the season.

Personally I'm not sure I would jump at signing Kinsler to a deal so quickly if I were the Rangers. While I do like Kinsler's power potential, especially in Arlington, his .260 batting average and .355 on-base percentage last season doesn't exactly inspire great confidence in me. I'm not saying Ian can't develop into a great hitter for the Rangers (he's only 25 after all), I'm just saying I'd like to see it happen before I invest $20-$25 million in him.

There's a pretty simple philosophy amongst general managers when it comes to the trade market. Buy low, sell high. With that in mind, there are a lot of teams that have quietly expressed interest in Texas Rangers third baseman Hank Blalock.

The thought process is, that after coming off a couple of injury plagued seasons, Blalock could be traded for relatively cheap. Teams like the Cardinals, Phillies, Twins and Dodgers have all given Rangers GM Jon Daniels a call to find out what it would take to land Blalock, and they've all been pretty surprised by what they've heard.

"We're not interested in that kind of deal," Rangers GM Jon Daniels said Tuesday after another day at the winter meetings produced nothing in the way of tangible results toward the construction of the 2008 club. "Hank is an original Ranger, and we feel like he's just gotten over the hump with his health. He's youthful and affordable. Somebody would have to make it worth our while to make us interested in talking about him. That hasn't happened."

I can't blame teams for trying to get Blalock because he seems to be a low-risk, high-reward type of guy that could be had for a few prospects. I also can't blame Daniels for his stance on the matter.

Now that Blalock had his rib removed last season he's probably going to have an easier time staying healthy this season, and when he's stayed healthy he's proven himself to be a very valuable asset to the Rangers. There's also talk coming out of Arlington that the Rangers are going to give Blalock some time at first base this spring in hopes of saving his body from some of the wear and tear of playing third base.

Anybody who's paid attention to the Angels the last few years knows that Scot Shields is one of, if not the best, setup guys in the game. For years the Angels have been turning games into 7 inning affairs with Shields and Francisco Rodriguez shutting things down in the 8th and 9th inning.

Or at least they used to be. K-Rod is still doing his job, but Shields has been struggling lately. He gave up a game winning grand slam to Hank Blalock on Sunday, and he has an ERA of 10.00 since the All-Star break. Even worse? He hasn't had a 1-2-3 inning since July 7th. It's hard to keep your job when you perform like that, and Shields found out first hand, as he's been demoted from his normal set up role.

Welcome to the wonderful world of middle relief, Mr. Shields!

"He's a huge part of our bullpen," Angels Manager Mike Scioscia said. "Right now, to get him back to where he needs to be, he needs to take a half-step backward."

Scioscia said Shields would pitch a simulated game today -- a step usually reserved for pitchers rehabilitating an injury -- and would not pitch for another day or two thereafter. Scioscia said Shields would then be used in middle relief so as to "reinsert him in more of a way where he can get his feet on the ground."

Stepping in to Shields old position will be Justin Speier. Luckily for the Angels, Seattle's recent 9-game losing streak helped them build a more comfortable 6.5 game lead in the West, so this move should only be a minor bump in the road.

Going on Shields' track record, I don't think it will be too long until fixes whatever is wrong, and gets his old job back.