Around the Horn: Friday

Today in Oklahoma the temperature is about 70 degrees. It is days like this that make me wish the baseball season would hurry up and start already. College baseball starts on February 20th, a few days before the Rangers kick off Spring Training.

The new station that will be broadcasting the Rangers games, 105.3 The Fan, is reportedly not as powerful as KRLD and will thus not be able to reach as many Rangers fans. Why do I care about this? KRLD could occcasionally be picked up on clear nights in Norman, but according to the linked article, 105.3 The Fan can not be heard around Oklahoma City. Fortunately, I am obsessed enough that I have XM Radio's MLB package and MLB's Gameday Audio, so I will not be affected. There are, however, quite a few Rangers fans here in Oklahoma that are getting burned, and there are no Rangers radio affiliates in Oklahoma. It would seem natural to have Rangers coverage here in Oklahoma (or at least in the Oklahoma City area), given that the Rangers are the closest MLB franchise to most Oklahoma residents, and the Rangers' AAA team plays in the heart of Oklahoma City.

The rest of the reporting today deals mostly with pitchers who have elbow flexor tendon issues:

Gil LeBreton at the Star Telegram thinks the Rangers should wait on Sheets to recover from surgery to repair his torn right elbow flexor tendon. In other words, restructure the contract to let Sheets go through rehab and workout with the team. And then reap whatever "benefits" Sheets sows during the remainder of his contract. The other option for Sheets, of course, would be to wait until August when he is healthy and sign with a playoff bound team desperate for every possible advantage, like the Yankees. For those who are worried about a pitcher's performance after such a surgery, TR Sullivan added this bittersweet endorsement in his "Friday Happy Hour" notes:

"Andy Pettitte had flexor tendon surgery in August 2004. Came back to go 17-9 with a 2.39 ERA for the Astros in 2005. The 2.39 ERA is the lowest ever in his career. Victor Zambrano had the surgery three years ago though and his career is still not back on track."

Speaking of pitchers recovering from flexor tendon surgery, Jeff Wilson reported the Rangers' signing of Jason Jennings to a minor league deal this morning, and Richard Durrett is wondering why people are so opposed to this deal. I'm with Durrett here; the Rangers are going to need all the help they can get. It's not as if Jennings is the new ace, or like he's going to be blocking any of our pitching prospects. Many fans, I imagine, have soured on Jennings based on his performance last year, and based on the pitcher we traded to make room for Jennings on the roster. All that aside, I don't think the Rangers can lose on this deal. If Jennings pulls a 2008 then just relegate him to a long-relief role or send him down to AAA.