VERY INTERESTING ARTICLE ABOUT THE TEXAS RANGERS "FREE SPENDING"

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Free-spending Rangers headed for trouble
By Ken Rosenthal - The Sporting News


Now that his payroll is $105.7 million, Rangers owner Tom Hicks finally is recognizing the importance of developing young, inexpensive talent. Not only is he late to the party, he also can't stop the music, for the damage is done.

Rather than retrench after finishing 43 games out of first place last season, the Rangers assembled the game's third-highest payroll. They traded their best young player, first baseman Carlos Pena. And by signing four major free agents, they lost their second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-round draft choices.

What was the point?

Injuries contributed to the Rangers' 3-8 start, but even healthy, they aren't as good as the Mariners. Nor are they as good as the A's, especially not after sending them Pena and reliever Mike Venafro for four minor-leaguers. Worst of all, their loss of draft picks could lead to a nasty cycle, forcing them to plug holes by signing more free agents.

As it stands, the Rangers' past two offseason shopping sprees will leave them with a maximum of three players from the first five rounds of the 2001 and '02 drafts. The A's, by contrast, will benefit from their free-agent defections by ending up with a maximum of 18 players, including seven of this year's first 39 picks.

Hicks showed his admiration for the Oakland model by hiring former A's scouting director Grady Fuson as assistant general manager. Someone should have alerted the owner: A bricklayer can't work without bricks.

"Baseball has a pretty deep draft," Hicks says. "We've got a first-rounder and then a sixth. Grady has found some good talent at six before."

Pitchers Tim Hudson and Mario Ramos -- the centerpiece of the Pena trade -- were two of Fuson's sixth-round picks for the A's. But three of his other heralded choices -- third baseman Eric Chavez and pitchers Mark Mulder and Barry Zito -- were top-10 selections.

"When you get past the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds, you're dealing with a wide collection of players with equal ability," Fuson says. "The guys who have special ability, they're already gone."

Hicks says the Rangers will preserve future draft picks by signing fewer free agents. But that was their plan last offseason until the prices dropped on pitcher Chan Ho Park and right fielder Juan Gonzalez, prompting the Rangers to take another plunge.

Hicks, concerned about declining attendance, says part of his motivation was to rekindle fan interest. Yet, he acknowledges that the team's projected revenue won't support its payroll and that cutbacks are inevitable over the next five years.

The Rangers would have been better off if they had started that process this season. But shortstop Alex Rodriguez didn't join the Rangers to become part of a rebuilding program. Neither did new GM John Hart.

When Hicks fired GM Doug Melvin last October, he said, "I'd love to hire a general manager . . . who has built an organization that developed young players."

Little did Hicks know Melvin had built a farm system that might be strong enough to help the Rangers overcome their shortage of draft picks.

This year's team features three impressive youngsters: third baseman Hank Blalock, lefthander Doug Davis and righthander Colby Lewis, whom manager Jerry Narron calls "the best (young) pitcher by far that the Rangers have had since I got here (as a coach) in '95."

But the Rangers shouldn't have stopped there. Aaron Myette or Rob Bell should be in the rotation. Francisco Cordero should be in the bullpen. Instead, all three pitchers opened at Class AAA, and the Rangers went with more established -- and often higher-priced -- veterans.

It's no different with the position players. Michael Young should be starting at second. Gabe Kapler should be in center instead of Carl Everett. And Pena, a Rookie of the Year candidate, should be in right rather than with a division rival.

The Rangers asked Pena to play right in winter ball, knowing they were locked into Rafael Palmeiro for two more seasons at first. But once they signed Gonzalez, they had no place for Pena. And they felt comfortable trading him, believing that last year's No. 1 pick, Mark Teixeira, could be the long-term answer at first.

Fair enough, but after leading the majors in homers last season, the Rangers didn't need Gonzalez. They promoted another outfield prospect, potential 30-homer man Kevin Mench, when Gonzalez went on the disabled list last week with a hand injury. And the $24 million they guaranteed Gonzalez would have been better spent on catcher Ivan Rodriguez, who is likely to leave as a free agent.

Meanwhile, the four prospects the Rangers acquired for Pena and Venafro -- Ramos, outfielder Ryan Ludwick, first baseman Jason Hart and catcher Gerald Laird -- remain in the minors. Hart already is distancing himself from the trade, saying, "Grady was obviously the driver behind that deal."

Fuson says: "I think it's going to come out just fine."

Viewed strictly on its merits, the trade was not without logic -- it could help the Rangers compensate for their lack of draft picks. But for a club seeking a quick fix, that rationale is a contradiction. Teams were willing to trade current major-leaguers for Pena. The Blue Jays, for example, probably would have offered pitcher Chris Carpenter.

Hicks talks up young players, but the Rangers keep trading kids off their 40-man roster to clear space for non-roster veterans. They can't make veteran-for-prospect deals, because most of their veterans have bulky contracts. Hart says the franchise simply is not in position to retrench.

Well, even Hicks concedes the Rangers are only delaying the inevitable. Without Pena, without draft picks, they'll be fortunate to avoid a crash.

Senior writer Ken Rosenthal covers baseball for The Sporting News. Email him at krosenthal@sportingnews.com.