Wednesday of Change.

I know I am pretty late today, but I am having the worst luck with the phone line in my new neighborhood. Oh well.

The Rangers have made a much-needed change. I have very mixed emotions on the topic. On one hand, I think Jon Daniels is very bright and very talented. I think that John Hart was as bad as one could be with building a relationship with a community and a fan base. I think the moves made were nowhere near acceptable for the most part. I cannot tell you how crazy it makes me to see Travis Hafner and Doug Davis elsewhere. I think enough was enough.

On the other hand, I wonder if the real problem remains that Tom Hicks laughs at spending money. I think that Buck Showalter was in charge, and now he still is. I think Jon Daniels is going to have a hard time having control of this thing. I think without the resources you cannot win. I think that too much has been invested in the hopes that DVD are Glavine, Maddux, and Smoltz.

I will keep an open mind. I want it to succeed. I want Jon Daniels and Chuck Morgan to spearhead the rebuilding of a relationship with DFW and its fans. I think that much is going to happen. Can they win in Texas with Tom Hicks owning the team and with $55 million dollars put in the payroll?

Star Rangers seem pretty cool with the change …

Michael Young and Mark Teixeira were not stunned by the news that Hart would step down and assistant Jon Daniels would be the replacement.

"I've never even talked to him," said Teixeira, with whom the Rangers will investigate a long-term contract this winter. "I can't have much issue with a guy I've never even talked to."

But I can say this: We haven't won as much as we'd like to in the last few years, so maybe a change was needed."

"I have no thoughts on it," said Young, whom Hart tried to trade following the 2002 season. "I had no relationship with John Hart."

Fraley seems less than convinced …

Daniels takes over as the youngest and least-experienced general manager in baseball history.

Daniels is two months past his 28th birthday. His baseball experience consists of one year in an intern program with Colorado and four seasons of numbers-crunching and contract negotiations for the Rangers.

He has never run a draft or directed a player-development system, which previously had been considered absolute prerequisites for a general manager.

Thanks to Adam Morris for reminding me about Jon Daniels Q&A with Baseball Prospectus from last February.

In other news, Carlos Almanzar suspended for steroids …

I know on opening freaking night you would expect more from me on Hockey. Sorry, I am way behind this morning. But the post game show returns tonight.

ESPN’s NHL Preview page …

The Dallas Stars preview … which should be ignored since they are pondering how the Stars will overcome these losses:

Picking up Martin Skoula from the Ducks will bolster a defense that has become thin in the absence of Derian Hatcher and Teppo Numminen.

???? Teppo????

Longhorns decide
talking is the best idea …I disagree…

"Definitely, we can do that," defensive tackle Rod Wright said. "We have the talent. We have the smarts ... [If] we execute the game plan, yeah, we will win the game."
Wright, however, envisions more than merely breaking a five-game losing streak against Oklahoma. He wants No. 2 Texas (4-0, 1-0 Big 12) to dominate the unranked Sooners (2-2, 1-0), thereby silencing critics who question the Longhorns' mental toughness.

"If you want to be the No. 1 team, you have to make a statement every week and shock the world," Wright said. "What I'm thinking is, 'How is the world going to feel if they turn on ESPN to see that Texas just totally goes out there and dominates OU?' That'll shock the world. That'll make a statement. That'll look like the No. 2 team in the nation trying to get to No. 1."

Because the Sooners' lineup features freshman quarterback Rhett Bomar and lots of fresh faces in both lines and throughout the receiver corps, Texas enters Saturday's game with an edge in experience at most positions. OU will enter with its worst record since 1998, when the Sooners also took a 2-2 mark to Dallas.

Asked if the Longhorns "smell blood in the water" because of the Sooners' slow start, Texas offensive tackle Justin Blalock said: "It would be hard not to."
Free safety Michael Griffin said Texas' advantage in personnel and experience is pronounced enough that the Longhorns could win without playing their best game. Asked if Texas could win Saturday by operating at 85 percent efficiency, Griffin said: "I would think so."

My NFL Notes of 3 games I reviewed last night:

Houston 10 at Cincinnati 16

TJ Houshmandzadeh seems like the Reggie Wayne of this offense; after Peyton, Edgerin, and Harrison, there is not a lot of ink left, and the same applies to Chad Johnson, Carson Palmer, and Rudi, but TJ is really a weapon…Not sure what the new offensive coordinator has done to the game plan of the Texans, but they continue to have one of the least impressive OL’s in the game, and unless they address that, their scheme will not be terribly important…Slowly but surely, former Michigan RB Chris Perry is getting more and more involved behind Rudi Johnson for the Bengals…Another week, another week of thinking Odell Thurman is a stud for Cin…I can never put my finger on how exactly I feel about David Carr. I really like his attitude, and his look of fearlessness. However, the Texans never let him throw a ball further than 10 yards, and most of the passes are on simple underneath stuff. By the way, the “fumble” call was a tremendous joke of a replay call. Wow…Houston had a good chance to win this game.

Jets 3 at Baltimore 13

John Abraham is in the Baltimore backfield all day…Curtis Martin doesn’t have a chance to run the ball with Brooks Bollinger at QB. Needless to say, the Ravens don’t seem to respect the arm of Brooks who had 0 yards passing in the 1st Q…Derrick Mason is sure helping the Ravens, despite the QB issues…They can’t keep this poor kid Bollinger playing QB much longer. Jets had 37 yards in the 1st half total offense. Vinny awaits…Jets recover a fumble, run it back to the 1, and the offense still cannot get 7 points…Jamal Lewis doesn’t look like the best RB in football anymore, but he still made some key runs to put the game away…Terrell Suggs hit Martin so hard I was hurt…Perhaps the worst game so far this season.

Seattle 20 at Washington 23

The Redskins, who are playing their first game since MNF in Texas, have their OL looking pretty lame. Brunell got pounded on most passing situations as Seattle saw the blitzing success of Dallas…Washington held the ball for 13:11 in the 1Q alone…Every week I watch the Seahawks, and every week I wonder why Bobby Engram is not more famous. He is a very consistent WR in this league…Chris Cooley makes plays for Washington every single time I see them play…Never ceases to amaze me how many open seats can be seen at a Redskins game…Shaun Alexander was quiet all day, but came through big when it counted…Brunell with a brutal INT with 1:00 to play, but bailed out when Seattle missed the FG…I still don’t know what to make of the Seahawks or Redskins, really…The winning Washington drive? Big scramble of 25 yards for Brunell and a big downfield catch for Santana Moss. Sound familiar?

Today on the show, Jon Daniels at 12:10 and Heisman winner Jason White at 12:50.