Rangers’ three Amigos go to Arkansas to meet up with Cliff Lee
The Texas Rangers made history last season when they cleared the tough competition in the field to make it to the World Series. The ball club that had gone into bankruptcy during the season, climbed out of a playoff drought to claim a spot in the post season
when they topped the American League West. The side had been through dismal problems during the season. Hard Hitter, Josh Hamilton had gone though a drinking incident and Manager Ron Washington had admitted cocaine addiction.
The Rangers made the most out of the season when they took out the challenge in the league and went on to win the series against the Tampa Bay Rays in the playoffs. They won their first ever series in the post season and it marked the 1st time
the ball club went out of the prestigious event, back in 1999. Regardless, of what the accomplishment may have been, they went up against a side that had always booted them out of the competition. The New York Yankees were up next and they were the obvious
favourites. It wasn’t to be their year though, as the Texans pushed them out of the American League Championship and went in to the World Series for the first time.
Cliff Lee was responsible for getting the side to the final tournament and with a good performance record against the top ball clubs in the playoffs; he ended his run in 2010 with 7 wins and 2 losses in the post season.
It’s reasonable to say the Yanks are now after the players and Brian Cashmore’s visit to Arkansas proved that belief. However, the three amigos in the Texas club are not going to let their prime ace man leave without a fight. The top pitcher is a sensitive
investment item and the ball thrower got a visit from club President – Nolan Ryan, General Manager – Jon Daniels and Chief Executive Officer – Chuck Greenberg.
Nolan summarized the visit with, “We just went over there and visited with them, see if they have an interest in coming back. I think they do. We didn't make an offer. We left it open – ended. We said we'd get back to them. They don't have a time frame.”
Jon explained the situation with, “At the end of the day, Cliff and his family are going to have a number of good choices. He's put them in a good position. They have good choices to make. We think we've got some things to offer, but obviously some other
clubs do, too. For me, personally, it doesn't make a lot of sense to play it out publicly. At the end of the day, he's going to make a decision that's right for him and his family and go to a place where he feels he's going to have a chance to win and be happy
and be compensated fairly.”
Tags: