The haul

GM Jon Daniels: Only God and Engel Beltre can save him now

Whew! Am I excited or what? The trade deadline has come and gone and it's pretty clear that owner Tom Hicks and GM Jon Daniels are looking solely at the future.

They traded four players -- Kenny Lofton, Ron Mahay, Eric Gagne and Mark Teixiera -- and received nine prospects back. Seems like a drop in the bucket, but the payoff in two, three, four or five years could be tremendous. Could be. Or it could blow up in their face. But the excitement lies in the "what ifs" and "could bes" not in the same ol' song and dance the Rangers have ran out there day after day.

Anyway, love the three lefty pitchers, a couple lefty hitters and Salty's a switch hitter.

Maximiliano Ramirez
22
Catcher
R/R

The Skinny: Ramirez can rake like a mother. He had 12 homers and 62 RBIs with the Braves Single A affiliate. Ramirez is already in Bakersfield.

Impact: Ramirez can't play defense and the Rangers are very deep at catcher. So it wouldn't be surprising to see him traded next summer. Him or another catching prospect. Taylor Teagarden has already been moved up to Double A Frisco.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia
22
Catcher/1B/DH
R/S

The Skinny: The key to the Teixeira trade. He can hit too, is only 22 and already in the majors. Is considered one of the best catching prospects in the league. But with the glut of catching, he might get more time at DH and 1B.

Impact: He'll take over Teixeira at 1B and probably hitting fourth in the order. Straight to the majors.

Matt Harrison
21
Starting Pitcher
L

The Skinny: Known for his control, it shows in Double A ball where he his 5-7 with a 3.34 ERA and a 34/6 K/BB ratio.

Impact: Allegedly, Harrison has a contractual stimpulation that states that he must stay with the Braves through the year, but that may have been a lie or waived. He'd wind up in Double A Frisco if he does.

Elvis Andrus
19
SS
R/R

The Skinny: Of all the Rangers brought in in trades, Andrus might have the highest ceiling. He's struggled a little in A-ball. But he is 19 YEARS OLD!

Impact: He'll go to Bakersfield and hopefully making an impact by 2009 or 2010.

Beau Jones
20
P
L

The Skinny: Rocked A-ball in Rome and then went to Myrtle Beach where he has 15.26 ERA in five games.

Impact: He's young, throws hard, but has control issues. But he's a lefty and will go to Clinton to work things out.

Neftali Feliz
19
P
R

The Skinny: Young. Very, very young.

Impact: He'll go to Class A Spokane. If this guy pans out, then GM Jon Daniels is a golden god.

Kason Gabbard
25
Starting Pitcher
L

The Skinny: Adam at Lone Star Ball is not impressed. I don't know why. He's 4-0 in seven MLB starts this season with a 3.73 ERA. He's shown he can pitch in this league. OK, he's not Sandy Koufax, but I'd rather have him than Gagne. He's a lefty.

Impact: I don't see how Gabbard shouldn't be with the big-league club as soon as possible. The question is this: where does he fit with Padilla, Millwood, Loe, Rheinecker, Wright, McCarthy and Tejeda? I would imagine Wright is about to be released or traded. Loe and Rheins will go to the bullpen whenever or if Padilla is OK.

David Murphy
25
OF
L/L

The Skinny: The oldest guy the Rangers got. He's an outfielder with some power, but he hits more for average. Plus, he's a regional product from Houston and he went to Baylor University.

Impact: He might get on the 25-man roster. If not, he'll go to Oklahoma City and be a September call up. Probably automatically a top outfield prospect, which isn't saying anything.

Engel Beltre
17
OF
L/L

The Skinny: He's a young project. But he 's considered a five-tool guy who could develop power has he fills in and is slated for centerfield.

Impact: He's bound for Rookie League in Arizona.