Big Win at the Big A

Big Tex saves the day in the 12th …And I do mean saves the day, because the way this team folded in the 8th inning could have been the catastrophic moment. But, they gutted through it and hung in there to get a very large win in a very large series. I really like Wes Littleton. Ron Mahay? Not so much.

As the race began in earnest Thursday, Teixeira continued to dial things up a bit. His ringing homer off Kevin Gregg in the 12th inning pushed the Rangers to a 7-6 win over Los Angeles and helped avert a disastrous start to the final third of the season.

The homer deep into the seats in right field was Teixeira's third homer in the last two games and his 10th in the last 30 days. It's quite a change in production for Teixeira, who struggled to just eight homers in the first three months.

Thursday's homer might have been his most important of the season. It came four innings after the Rangers' unproven bullpen lost a three-run lead with four outs to go.

The win tightened the knot that is the AL West race. The Rangers trail division leader Oakland by 2½ games and Los Angeles by just one-half game.

"If we don't take care of business within our division, we're not going anywhere," Teixeira said. "That's what makes this win so big. We felt like we had it in our hands, and then it got away. To go out and get it back is huge."

Since the weekend leading into the All-Star break Teixeira has reasserted himself as a fearsome power hitter. He's batting .329 with 10 homers and 21 RBIs in 22 games.
Teixeira wasn't the Rangers' only hero, though. Rookie Wes Littleton pitched two perfect innings on just 19 pitches to keep the score tied going to the 12th.

Check out this email from sweet Michelle:

Bob,

I've never felt the need to write until now but if you don't see this I think a great injustice would be done. Thought you would get a kick out of this. Found this Wikipedia entry last night on the internet. Thought nothing of it because it seemed legit and I admit to having cited Wikipedia as a scholarly resource for my past college papers- I might think twice about that now. Check out what it says his ethnicity is and the other comments regarding Alex Rodriguez. I was literally rolling when I saw this. You have to check it out. People are allowed to add to the info. and hopefully it's the same when you see it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Young_%28baseball_player%29

A proud P1

Michelle, 24 F
Dallas, Tx.

Here it is:

Michael Brian Young (born October 19, 1976 in Covina, California) is a Mexican-American shortstop in Major League Baseball who currently plays for the Texas Rangers. Michael Young is the greatest baseball player that ever lived. He is super gangsta.

Originally drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fifth round in 1997, Young was traded to the Texas Rangers in 2000 along with Darwin Cubillán for Esteban Loaiza. In 2001, Young became a regular with the Rangers at second base between shortstop Alex Rodriguez and first baseman Rafael Palmeiro. Young and Rodriguez became fast friends in the infield. Now he realizes that Alex Rodriguez is the most overrated athelete ever to walk the face of the earth.

I expect that will be adjusted very, very soon….



Terrell Owens, left, and Freedo at practice.

Mac Engle wins my daily “Cowboys story worth reading” award again today: Age versus the Cowboys …

With the "if we stay healthy" mantra preceding any discussion of success this season, the Cowboys are crossing their fingers that their age at the skill positions doesn't work against them. And defies a league-wide trend.

Of the 12 teams that made the playoffs last season, the average age of the five starting skill position players -- quarterback, running back, tight end and two wide receivers -- was 27.6.

The Cowboys this season? 29.4.

"Age is a little overrated," Cowboys tight end Ryan Hannam said. "There are guys playing into their late 30s now at a high level."

Hannam is a bit of an expert on this. He played with the Seahawks last season. A Seahawks team that started a pair of 30-somethings at receiver and a 30-year-old QB. OK, OK...so they had arguably the league's best offensive line and running back Shaun Alexander, who won the league MVP award.

The Cowboys feel that despite the advanced age of Glenn, Owens and Bledsoe, they are not laughing at conventional NFL wisdom and defying Father Time.

But there is no proven depth behind Bledsoe. The same for Glenn and Owens. And if any of the three goes down for an extended period of time, the Cowboys could be in trouble.

Barry Bonds 715 ball sold on EBAY …

Rhett Bomar’s MySpace …

I think this will make you laugh: Crazy Frogs Comedy …

Longhorn was not impressed with the Coryatt hit, and they countered with the Vasher hit …

Odds from Vegas suggest the Cowboys should win the NFC …

This weekend, I have much sports planned in SoCal. Tonight, Padres host the Nationals. Saturday, Rangers at Angels. Sunday, FC Barcelona plays Chivas at the LA Coliseum. I am so there!

Ronaldinho is somewhere between the best player on the planet and the most famous player on the planet. He may be both. And I will see him Sunday.

Ronaldinho’s player page …

Highlight Film for Ronaldinho



Skills



A few more emails:

Hey Bob,

Hope you are enjoying training camp. We are sure enjoying the webcam. The forums at www.bobadndan.com/forums would always appreciate a shoutout. Or a post from you!

Anyway, that is off topic. CBS has announced premiere dates for Survivor and most importantly The Amazing Race, which is moving to its new timeslot on Sunday. Sept 14 for Survivor and Sept 17 for TAR.

Take care,

Terry
The Popsicle Stick Chick

That is great news! I am ready for the return of The Amazing Race and Survivor, my two favorite reality shows….

I dont know what it is about your show, but you guys have quickly become the sports illustrated for athletes in this area!

Brad for some reason cant hit the ball......at all.....like a hole in his bat.

bill guerin? gabe? greg zaun? all traded, released, got hurt, or just went south....why bob why?

and for my two cents, Michelle Wie should really try to win a woman's tourney first before trying to make the cut in a men's tournament....thanks annika, look what you started!

P1 Tobin in Arlington

I think it is the nature of the beast- for instance, if we had shows with Pudge, Aikman, Nash, and Belfour, they all went south, too- I think it demonstrates that the shelf life for radio shows is longer than athletes-

Time for a Giant Sports Weekend.