Fort Worth Star-Telegram from Fort Worth, Texas • 58

BASEBALL EXTRA if FridayJuly 16 1993 Fort Worth Star-Telegram Section Page II West pennant race is wide open to everyone By Simon Gonzalez Fort Worth Sur-Telcgram ARLINGTON And the winner is Chicago Or maybe Seattle Or perhaps California or Kansas City or even Minnesota orOakland In the wild wild American League West anything is possible According to the Texas Rangers any of the above could win and all of the above could stay in contention in the second half "There's some quality teams out there" Rangers reliever Tom Henke said "Chi- cago Seattle Kansas City Everybody's got a chance Nobody's going to run away with "it "It should make for an interesting pen- nant race" Rangers fully expect to be in that "race Texas entered the All-Star break just a game out of first despite injuries to starting pitcher Nolan Ryan outfielder Jose -Canseco and infielders Manuel Lee Jeff Huson and Billy Ripken With all but Canseco expected to contribute in the second half the Rangers are optimistic about the second half "Right from the start of spring training I thought this was a team that was going to win this year" general manager Tom Grieve said "I think we've weathered a storm in the first half" But other teams have reason to be optimistic too Four teams were also within one game of first-place Detroit at the break Only Oakland and Minnesota lagged and the Athletics were only six games out and the Twins 8'2 "I think there's a lot of parity in the West" Grieve said "It's not because the top teams are worse The bottom teams are better" Rangers manager Kevin Kennedy said he expects the race to stay close for the rest of the season "It's gone 80 some-odd games like this" he said "There's too much balance for any one team to fold There's just a lot of talent that's even "I still think Chicago's got a good club but there's a lot of good teams Seattle's got good pitching California's a good team And you can't count Minnesota manager Tom Kelly or Oakland manager Tony LaRussaout" Still the near-consensus is that Chicago is the team most likely to lead the pack "The team to beat is probably the White Sox" first baseman Rafael Palmeiro But no one considers them invincible "A lot of people think the White Sox have the most solid team" Grieve said "They have an ace in Jack McDowell and Alex Fernandez and Wilson Alvarez are pitchers who make their rotation solid "But I don't look at them and see a team that's head and shoulders above the rest" No one sees Seattle head and shoulders above the rest either but the Mariners also were mentioned as a contender "I think Seattle looks pretty tough" third baseman Dean Palmer said "They've got a good pitching staff and they're swinging the bats pretty well" While Chicago Seattle and virtually-every other team in the AL West can be considered a contender Palmeiro said the Rangers shouldn't be concerned about them "The team that we're playing today that's all we're worried about" Palmeiro said "We just have to worry about the team we're playing" The Rangers did that successfully in the final 16 games before the All-Star break winning 13 of them That got them in the race To stay there they just have to stay consistent "If you win series you don't have to win 1 5 or 20 games straight" Henke said "Just go out and win two of three here three of four there and you'll win it" If they do that the Rangers won't have to worry about Chicago Seattle or any other team in the West "I think we definitely have a shot" Palmer said "There's some quality teams out there Chicago Seattle Kansas City Everybody's got a chance Nobody's going to run away with it It should make for an interesting pen- nant race" Tom Henke Rangers reliever Sox Charleston Rainbows (A) McCoy finds true self in Drillers' uniform (Through Wednesday) Oklahoma City 89ers (AAA) 2B 3B HR RBI SB Avg From Page 12 1 14 2 28 8 45 11 280 274 1 26 2B 3B HR RBI SB 5 0 0 13 0 7 2 3 19 0 0 0 0 1 0 11 9 10 33 12 Batten JackStanczak Scott Makxie Jamie Bemke GMercedes WEggteston Steve Burton DaveHeb Chris Burr AB 101 13 29 282 44 79 234 24 64 319 40 81 136 25 33 238 26 56 13 1 3 287 29 64 20 29 254 7 26 Three is not enough Beyond the top three starting pitchers Jack McDowell Alex Fernandez and Wilson Alvarez there has been little to rely on The statistics for the five pitchers who have been used in the No 4 and No 5 spots: W-L ERA KirkMcCaskill 2-7 590 Jason Bere 4-3 596 Rodney Bolton 1-5 661 Scott Ruff corn 0-1 978 DaveStieb 1-3 605 Combined 8-19 618 Returned to minors June 20 'Released May 23 1 0 3 18 0 21 68 243 235 231 223 222 216 8 44 13 30 21 44 2 4 40 64 18 46 43 79 35 79 28 54 38 67 23 58 14 27 28 41 1 4 Batten AB EverMagaNams 96 Chuck Jackson 144 MkeBerger 14 RobDucey 229 KatriM 171 Steve Balboni 306 Donald Hams 322 Larry Harton 234 Benny DistefanoSOO Ray Stephens 263 Doug Davis 124 Luke Sable 199 JeffHuson 21 Marvin Matos 230 32 51 MarcSagmoen 74 10 16 215 HanleyFrias 279 36 60 312 31 64 5 34 2 21 5 19 7 41 3 9 0 17 0 3 13 205 0 148 143 Franklin Parra GCampusano ScotSealy TimCossins Pitchers 0 3 54 1 8 7 0 1 20 3 0 IP 000 ERA "I've grown up a lot and I realize what this game means to me" Trey McCoy Tulsa Driller Avg 313 306' 286 279 269 256 245 231 223 221 218 206 190 ERA 315 397 411 464 470 472 482 496 588 648 681 769 794 831 838 1055 39 26 10 24 160 Kerry Lacy 223 Brandenburg 40 41 19 94 65 33 ScottEyre 76 70 37 56 56 29 ER BB SO 7 21 36 0 2 10 10 43 5 3 28 35 111 8 4 29 19 63 7 3 22 24 35 3 4 25 36 51 3 2 21 33 64 2 1 52 39 72 4 6 15 19 15 1 1 27 19 38 2 4 60 60 84 2 5 56 49 32 2 7 JackKimel David Manning ChadWtey Heath Vaughn Jerry Martin Mike Anderson Paulino Perez 57 43 30 42 33 26 102 99 56 268 342 354 392 446 459 466 528 714 840 IP 80 84 31 11 5 30 36 16 21K 24 11 154 16 11 68 77 48 65 84 42 89 101 51 26 40 18 82 100 62 76 97 62 21 35 24 39 57 36 17 21 17 9 17 9 21 39 26 ER BB SO 28 22 47 3 4 0 5 6 11 0 0 2 14 11 20 2 2 0 11 4 10 2 2 5 8 5 12 1 2 0 36 29 42 3 3 1 35 19 42 3 5 1 49 27 39 2 5 1 17 13 11 0 2 0 59 36 50 3 6 0 58 44 35 2 10 0 18 4 14 1 1 0 35 26 21 2 4 0 16 13 11 0 3 0 9 4 9 0 0 0 25 8 9 1 2 0 Prtchera Steve Dreyer Barry Manuel James Hurst JeffBronkey Dan Smith Mark Lee Rob Brown Aten Anderson RobbNen r-Ofcveras Terry Burrows Steve Fireovid CedhcShaw Steve Sadecki JoseAlberro GAlexander 29 26 17 46 49 28 RamiroMartinez 75 81 65 Jeff Bunion 60 73 60 Erie Sailors (A) 3B HR RBI SB Avg 0 SOU Batten Chris Unrat Lome Goldberg AB 2B 2 0 11 98 16 32 3 23 6 7 1 Tulsa Drillers (AA) 0 10 12 327 0 2 0 304 6 19 0 282 2B 3B HR RBI SB Avg Marcaagmoen Wes Shook Wesley Sims Batten AB TrevMcCov 296 11 1 281 43 93 19 3 0 9 1 271 41 103 25 48 103 19 335 336 3 19 66 1 314 3 6 31 3 307 5 9 44 7 307 2 8 34 8 270 1 6 28 4 256 Cns Colon Rusty Greer Frank Turco 2 3 7 247 3 233 103 22 29 5 9 27 2 48 7 13 6 85 13 21 3 43 7 10 1 87 15 20 3 55 3 12 1 83 7 17 3 66 11 13 1 330 15 1 230 38 89 12 32 65 21 16 26 3 3 0 218 1 1 5 3 255 TimrrwMorrov254 TerreHLowery 102 BeraiGI 192 205 5 1 10 32 6 250 2 4 197 250 237 2 10 5 190 20 48 16 40 11 28 31 56 23 46 10 23 1 4 0 146 DavkJRots 160 BobSimonson 118 Ben Castillo 246 RogerLuce 219 MCastetanos 136 14 6 228 19 0 210 0 1 0 000 12 1 169 Alexis Cabreja Brian Blair AITnptett Michael Hi Osman Estrada EricDominow RayDeSimone Corey Pearson Jorge Melendez Kevin Wocdall Prtchera Joseph Morvay Eric Moody Rod Sap BertGerhart Robert Kel Jeffrey Davis PaulLesch MarkOBhen GregWIming PeteHartmann DevinKunz Jim Franklin Scotty Smith BB SOW ERA 29 44 2 210 202 6 14 2 2 0 217 "We've hit the hard-throwing lefties pretty hard" Burks said "But these soft-tossers give us trouble It's like we're too anxious against them" Lamont also has vowed to put more runners in motion The White Sox have stolen only 56 bases 10th in the league This from a team that tied for second in the AL last season -with 160 The main dropoff has been from left fielder Tim Raines who has only four steals in 10 tries after missing six weeks with a torn ligament in his thumb Second baseman Joey Cora on pace for 18 steals has replaced Steve Sax who stole 31 a year ago Guillen isn't running much any more leaving Lance Johnson (24 steals) as the only threat "We have to stay aggressive on "the bases" Lamont said "We can't sit back and wait" Not with Bell slumping and little to turn to on the bench Lamont has been so limited by the over salaried and under productive quartet of Bell Sax Dan Pasqua and reliever Bobby Thigpen he has been accused of having to play with a 21-man roster What's worse that number was considered to be 20 until the June 28 release of Carlton Fisk a gut-wrenching event that undermined morale The White Sox had won seven of eight and built a 2 '2-game lead on the day of Fisk's departure then promptly lost four consecutive games But it's hardly as if there weren't a drawer-full of individual success stories during the White Sox's first half For instance it's rather EZ to point to Alex Fernandez Wilson Alvarez and Roberto Hernandez A qualifier to the White Sox being the pre-season consensus to win the West was depth in the rotation But Fernandez and Alvarez both 23 have emerged to ease that concern Together they are 1 8-9 with a 302 ERA With 17 saves and a 236 ERA Hernandez has built on his strong second half of 1 992 Mean- while Jack McDowell's 1 3 victories make him a leading Cy Young Award candidate The White Sox also batted 1000 By Simon Gonzalez Fort Wonh Star-Telegram If Trey McCoy was a normal young Double-A slugger his prodigious numbers would have him at the top of the Texas Rangers' list of prospects The 6-foot-3 215-pound designated hitter at Double-A Tulsa leads the Texas League with 1 9 homers is second with 66 runs batted in and fifth with a 3 1 4 batting average But McCoy isn't a normal young Double-A slugger He is 26-years-old has no position and has two "retirements" on his resume Thus McCoy remains a long shot for a major-league job Rangers farm director Marty Scott said McCoy is likely to remain at Tulsa the rest of the season and report to minor-league camp next spring with an opportunity to earn a job at Triple-A Oklahoma City If he does that and continues hitting at the higher level then he might get some big-league consideration McCoy realizes he faces long odds to make the majors but he isn't concerned "That the big leagues is always in the back of every player's mind" he said "But I can't worry about it I just have to keep putting up the numbers" McCoy certainly is putting up the numbers this season Enough to earn a spot in the Double-A All-Star game where he went 2-for-3 AH in all he bears little resemblance to the player who was so disgusted he gave the game up twice previously McCoy a ninth-round draft choice out of Virginia Tech in 1 988 batted 357 with 14 homers and 78 RBI in 68 games at Butte in '88 and was chosen the "Star of Stars" in the Pioneer League He hit 280 with 18 homers and 89 RBI at Class A Gastonia in '89 and earned an invitation to spring training the next season He didn't expect to break camp as a Ranger but he did think he'd be a Driller Instead he was sent back to Gastonia "I was down on myself down on baseball" he said "I said I retire" 29 50 5 5 3 36 126 8 7 0 273 352 84 8 16 4 41 5 6 0 3 0 0 0 IP ER 10 6 1 1 22 20 8 4 26 18 10 8 37 29 15 12 12 7 4 4 15 15 7 6 13 12 8 5 12 10 9 7 22 17 15 13 23 25 19 14 13 23 19 11 13 21 18 11 6 9 6 6 IB SOW ERA 6 10 1 0 0 0 84 4 15 1 0 0 164 4 22 3 1 0 277 6 28 2 1 0 292 7 17 0 0 0 3 00 5 17 0 3 6 3 45 6 7 1 2 0 346 10 10 0 0 497 7 20 0 0 0 5 16 13 27 1 3 0 5 40 5 9 0 2 0 743 7 13 0 3 0 762 42110 810 IP ER 49 45 22 11 29 26 14 7 52 38 18 16 120 100 51 47 79 81 40 36 69 70 42 35 61 65 42 34 96 102 69 54 317 34 21 18 53 53 37 32 34 51 37 27 Pitchers Ritchie Moody Bobby Reed Darren Civet Rick Helling Brian Romero David Perez Steve Rowley Kurt Miller MikeAmer Chris Ses Barry Goes 29 63 5 5 0 4 07 18 62 3 7 2 457 18 40 4 4 0 5 02 45 68 6 8 0 506 9 19 0 0 0 517 in their position-player rehabilitation projects Guillen is nimbly bouncing around shortstop again and is on pace for his best offensive season after missing almost all of last season with torn anterior and medial collateral ligaments in his right knee The Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers among others were skeptical of Burks last winter because of chronic knee and back trouble But the White Sox took a 500000 free-agent gamble and won big Burks (295 in 264 at-bats) already has earned $1 million of a possible $15 million in incentives on top of a $500000 guaranteed deal His 1 1 homers are five more than the White Sox received all last season from their right fielders His 45 RBI are only two short of matching the production of White Sox's right fielders a year ago "I hope I can stay on this pace all season" Burks said "A 295 average 20 homers 80 RBI I'll take that" Jackson's comeback and clubhouse presence are a source of positivism and because of Bell's struggles he is getting a temporary look as an everyday DH "He's definitely an option to be the designated hitter in the second half" Lamont said "I want to see what happens if he gets to hit a little more regularly He struggled when he was only playing against lefthanders He'll have to supply some power if he's going to be the DH" That is just one question for which the White Sox are about to provide an answer Lamont issued a call for patience for those in waiting "You make a decision on what a team has done after the season" Lamont said "Not halfway through A season is 162 games We've played 86 Everybody here needs to get better" 19 21 1 4 0 537 701 1 27 33 2 2 Two months later he was asking for his job back and returned to Gastonia He eventually made it to Tulsa in 1991 and was back there last season But 1 5 games into the season he had a 192 average Scott wasn't happy with the way he was playing or his attitude and gave him two options: go back to Gastonia or accept a release "I figured I'd been in Gastonia enough so I took my release" McCoy said But he couldn't catch on with another organization so he went back-toGastonia He returned with a new attitude "I've grown up a lot and I realize what this game means to me" he said "I'm a lot more positiveVith my mental approach" He hit 354 with eight homers and 30 RBI the final 32 games of the season at Gastonia and is having the great season at Tulsa this year Briefly Tulsa shortstop Benji Gil just returned from a two-game suspension for bumping an umpire He was called out on strikes in a recent game and thrown out for questioning the call The argument grew more heated after Gil was tossed and he bumped the umpire twice RobbNen is struggling at Oklahoma City The right-hander with the 89ers on rehabilitation assignment is 0-2 with a 588 ERA in five appearances (four starts) He has allowed 40 hits and 13 walks in 26 innings and struck out 1 1 Tulsa outfielder Terrell Low-ery raised his average to 255 by going 5-for-13 in his last three games -c Charlotte Rangers (A) Gulf Coast Rangers (Rookie) 2B 3B HR RBI SB Avg 2B 3B HR RBI SB Avg 20 34 1 14 23 54 104 1 5 Batten JoseTexidor Desi Wilson Bnan Thomas AB 72 329 16 3 395 0 345 2 319 15 316 0 313 14 312 276 46 86 Richard Aurrta 7 333 6 282 0 250 1 20 15 25 8 20 0 1 14 19 3 12 3 275 Todd Guggana 338 36 93 Danyl Kennedy 215 27 57 Mike Edwards 305 42 80 3 265 6 262 6 46 6 238 0 235 0 235 9 200 2 4 LannyWiiams 142 13 MikeSmith 310 33 173 GI 254 242 231 222 192 171 128 36 75 40 10 10 38 11 Rod Morris 158 154 147 143 45 52 222 Mike Welch Jim Clinton 9 4 5 7 0 0 Batters AB Mike Bel 86 LarryEphan 58 Ed Diaz 75 ManoGonzalez 71 Travis Shows 4 AndreausLewis 80 Andrew Vessel 51 SteveOuimet 17 LuisGartia- 45 Ray Williams 57 Roderic Walker 26 Whitney ShankNn 34 LelandMacon 49 Ariel Deno 4 Greg Lewis 9 Prtchera IP Domingo Detzine 20 GardnerOHym 15 kjorOropeza 22 JulioSantana 16 MarkOcasio 22 Michael Jackson 17 Michael Cather 9V Darnel Smith 21 Toure Knighton 11 LeoPerez 12 RyanFalmief 13 Terry Rosenkranz 5 000 000 ER BB SO BB SOW ERA 0 0 90 ER 20 2 2 5 ERA 0 000 1 168 1 212 0 217 6 247 MikeCrespo 86 Prtchera IP ChnsNewcomb 8K JoeBrownholtz 48 Vi DavidGiberti 80 Daryl Henderson 70 LSchuerrnann 43 Darmy Patterson 45 JohnDettmer 96 DaveGeeve 88 Wilson Heredia 38 DaveGandolph 26' ChnsCunis 96 Washinmon 23' 0 1 6 0 0 9 11 38 3 0 19 26 61 7 0 17 25 56 5 2 12 18 43 1 3 14 19 29 4 4 30 24 76 8 2 34 11 53 6 6 16 20 26 1 5 11 23 14 3 2 42 33 36 4 5 10 3 14 5 14 3 21 7 17 12 9 4 22 9 12 7 278 279 348 9 0 42 9 64 22 54 21 31 17 38 17 86 32 99 36 30 17 33 13 99 45 19 14 55 36 120 123 169 201 357 372 386 409 450 593 794 15 372 1 376 391 11 21 9 1 16 10 6 14 9 9 9 5 5 424 457 33 40 38 4 3 bb Inside the West Inside the Rangers Another race shaping up for players Players offer insight into lives Going west? Statistics of on-the-block players who could be traded to AL West teams: Rangers interests The hobbies of Rangers players according to the Rangers media guide: Fishing 13 players Golf 9 Hunting 8 Basketball 4 Bowling 3 Physical fitness Tennis 2 Reading 2 Music 1 Trapping 1 Cooking 1 Glove repair 1 Cutting horses 1 Chess 1 Rusty Meacham as well as a hitter Next most likely to deal Texas: General manager Tom Grieve says he will wait on Nolan Ryan before dealing prospects for pitching As one talk-show caller suggested it sounds like a case of 'Oil Can'-Baines fever Seattle: One of the few team's with solid starting pitching the Mariners are offering Tim Leary Another bat is needed especially in left field although Chris Sabo and Eddie Murray are possible rent-a-players California: In a cost-cutting mode the Angels are more lilcely to trade a veteran than acquire one Chuck Finley's name has begun to be heard Oakland: General manager Sandy Alderson has said he won't add a salary at this point Starting pitching is the obvious need Minnesota: Nothing doing for now but at the top of the list would be a starting pitcher charity golf tournaments: David Hulse (UT-Arlington) Ryan (Alvin Community College) Kevin Brown (Arlington Big Brothers) Ivan Rodriguez (National Hispanic Scholarship fund) and Jeff Huson (Special Olympics) Canseco and third-base coach Dave Oliver hold a bowling tournament for the American Lung Association Henke is actively involved in the Special Olympics and is the national chairman for the Association of Retarded Citizens Rafael Palmeiro is involved in Caring for Kids and Juan Gonzalez is involved with the United Way Rogers was chairman of the Diamond Ball benefiting Cystic Fibrosis Lee sponsors a Little League program in the Dominican Republic Brown Canseco Palmeiro Henke Gonzalez Julio Franco and Craig Lefferts rotate nightly buying 1 34 tickets for children's groups Ryan purchases 100 tickets a ight for youth groups TR Sullivan Besides the race that will be waged in the standings American League West contenders and that's certainly a crowded list isn't it? also will be trying to improve via the trade market in the upcoming weeks In many cases that could mean teams vying for the same player or players So it will become apparent who is willing to pay the most for that precious chance to win a division title What follows is a list of needs for each of the division's seven teams and how willing they appear to be at th is poi nt to fill them: Chicago: The White Sox have been saying they are close to a deal for a starting pitcher (likely Dennis Martinez) for so long it's becoming a bit of a joke in the Windy City They have the pitching prospects to pull off such a deal and Montreal Expos scout Eddie Haas has been watching them Expect something soon Kansas City: The Royals already have picked up Gary Gaetti and Dave Stieb and are looking Who are those guys asked Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid On the field the Texas Rangers are professional baseball players Off the field they dance to their own tune usually with a fishing pole orgolf club According to the Rangers media guide 13 players list fishing as their hobby with golf (nine) and hunting (eight) the next two most popular pastimes when they aren't playing the National Pastime A few unusual hobbies are list-: ed Tom Henke is into trapping Dean Palmer likes to cook Butch Davis plays chess Gary Redus collects antique cars and Kenny Rogers is into cutting horses Six Rangers have graduated from college: Jeff Frye (Southeastern Oklahoma) Dan Peltier (Notre Dame) Charlie Leibrandt (Miami of Ohio) Bob Patterson (East Carolina) Matt Whiteside (Arkansas State) and Davis (East Carolina) Patterson has a degree in indus- Pitchers Player team Dennis Martinez Expos Tim Balcher Reds Greg Harris Padres Mark Portugal Astros Frank Viola Red Sox Rec ERA 10-5 332 7- 5 405 8- 9 399 7-4 347 5-7 368 trial technology He has invented and marketed a conditioning oil for baseball gloves known as Dr Glove and also operates a batting cage in his hometown of Hickory NC Nolan Ryan among his other accomplishments has co-authored four books: Throwing Heat Miracle Man Kings of the Hill and The Pitchers' Bible The 23 married players have 34 children between them Seven players are single: Jose Canseco Manuel Lee Robb Nen Roger Pavlik Jon Shave Whiteside and Doug Strange Five players hold or sponsor Hitters Player team Avg HR RBI Chris Sabo Reds 277 9 46 Eddie Murray Mets 269 11 53 HowardJohnson Mets 234 6 25 for another pitcher either a starter or a setup man to replace Tony DeMarco Ik.