The NBA Finals

Someone's excited

This is where legacies are made.

The NBA Finals begins tonight and in at least four games (possibly seven), we will look completely different at some players than we do today.

It's one of the reasons I love sports. It's a big reason I love the NBA Finals.

Imagine what you'll think about Dirk Nowitzki or Lebron James once this thing is all decided upon. It's incredible. Both players have had to work to patch together their identity and reputation in different ways.

Nowitzki was considered a great player, but a soft one. One that could be pushed around and kowtowed to opposing players. Someone that was on that third tier of superstardom.

James dumped his multi-billion dollar reputation in the toilet a summer ago with "The Decision" and the apparent tampering involved with him going to the Miami Heat in free agency. His reputation is not completely healed and it might take years. Or a championship.

Many think that the Heat are just going to improve over the years and that this is the last year before they take over. This is awfully presumptuous, clearly. I don't pay it any mind. Still, Heat or no, this is probably a final hurrah for Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Shawn Marion and others. With a work stoppage looming, it might be the last chance for the Mavericks as we know them today.

My first thoughts about this series started with match-ups. I honestly don't know who guards James or Dwayne Wade (stick DeShawn Stevenson on James ... OK, who guards Wade?). I also don't know who guards Nowitzki. Truth is, the Mavericks haven't faced an animal like James or Wade nor have the Heat faced an animal like Nowitzki.

It comes down to execution, clearly. If Jason Terry shoots 2-12, the Mavericks are sunk. If Kidd turns the ball over six times and dishes three assists, the Mavericks are sunk. If Lebron James shoots 22 feet from the basket or if Chris Bosh goes 5-15, the Heat don't stand a very good chance.

Honestly, if either team wants to win, you simply go to the hoop. You'll get lay-ups, you'll get fouled and you'll put the opponent in deep shit with foul trouble.

When's the last time you watched the 2006 Finals? I re-watched them recently on YouTube. It's extraordinary how "facts" change when you watch those games again. So much attention was poured on the officiating. You forget Josh Howard and Jason Terry being the dumbest basketball players on Earth. You forget DeSagana Diop being the starting center. You forget Dirk Nowitzki not touching the ball for possession after possession in the fourth quarter.

You forget the 20 footers in crunch time. When the Mavericks absolutely needed a basket, they could not (or would not) get any closer than 20 feet for a shot, many of them bad with the shot clock winding down. Meanwhile, if the Heat needed a basket, they could drive past their defender ANY TIME THEY WANTED and get a lay-up or a WIDE-OPEN jumper.

Want know why the Mavericks didn't get the free throw attempts? They shot the ball from 20 feet away from the basket.

Our idea of officiating was skewed. We thought free throw numbers should be even. However, re-watching those games, the fouls were not even. Maybe there were some missed calls that were in favor of Dallas, but there were twice as many Mavericks mistakes and just as many times the Heat took advantage.

The Mavericks -- contrary to what their owner would tell you -- killed themselves.

If it happens again, blame the referees all you want, but chances are we'll be able to check the tape and find out that execution and intelligence was lacking.

Five points:

Ghosts
If you don't think that Mark Cuban, Terry and Nowitzki hasn't thought about 2006, you are crazy. They've pretty much said the same thing. Granted, the rest of the roster was not around. But neither was most of the Heat's roster, outside of Dwayne Wade and Udonis Haslem. Neither team may realize the ghosts that inhabit the eastern American Airlines Center, but the fans know, Nowitzki knows and Terry knows. Dangerously, Wade knows. Bad sports mojo exists. It was one of the greatest collapses in sports history. That can not be forgotten.

Chris Bosh
As Bosh goes, so do the Heat. Simple. Two superstars are fine. It'll get you in the arena. Three superstar-like players win you most games. Tyson Chandler has a mighty deed to stop him and make him look silly. If Bosh spits the bit, the Mavericks win.

Depth
Famously, the Heat employ the services of Joel Anthony, Mike Bibby, Mario Chalmers, James Jones, Juwan Howard and Erick Dampier. It is safe to say that the Mavericks hold the edge on depth over the Heat. Hell, it's safe to say most teams hold that edge. It's one thing to hold that edge. It's another to make it work for you. The Mavericks bench will need to be notable in this series. You'll need to see a double-digit point differentials from the bench players. Jason Terry will need to be good. And they'll all need to be as good as they can on defense, especially Brendan Haywood and J.J. Barea.

Lebron James: Defender
Forget his offense, James has solidified himself as a top-notch defender this season. I've always felt this way, but there's an intensity in these playoffs that have caught everyone's attention. I think the Heat will throw a number of looks at Nowitzki and I think a big one will be James. Yes, a smaller player (a player Nowitzki's punished before), but he's not smaller in the way that Kobe Bryant or Kevin Durant are smaller. He's like a tall linebacker. Either way, he could guard Jason Kidd, Jason Terry or Shawn Marion. He can take away at least one of your players. Period.

Dirk
Take all the good press, impressive players and fantastic games Nowitzki's had this post-season and stuff them into seven games. That's what he'll need to do. Take that 2006 Nowitzki and improve him 45 percent and that's the guy that'll need to show up. The Heat can probably survive a superstar struggling. I don't think the Mavericks can do that. I hate to put everything him, but we'll need to be agog in regards to Nowitzki when this thing's over if the Mavericks hope to win.

Prediction
Mavericks in 6
Dirk's different. This is a team of destiny. A team defying all odds, so why should that change? I said I wouldn't pick against them again after the Los Angeles sweep and I'll stand by that. I think the depth will hurt the Heat. I think the Mavericks are smarter and I don't think they'll fall into the same traps they did in 2006.

Distractions

Olssen twins

Dirk Nowitzki -- probably jealous of Tony Romo getting hitched -- supposedly proposed to his girlfriend, Dallas art curator Jessica Olssen.

The very last thing you wanted to hear with game 1 of the NBA Finals hours away. And considering his past with females.

Don't like it.

UPDATE: This was false. Apparently they are not engaged. She's still a distraction.

Where are all these people going to go?

Tanner Scheppers: Bullish

A couple of seasons ago, a change came over the Texas Rangers.

Suddenly, a ripe farm system bloomed. Elvis Andrus, Neftali Feliz, Julio Borbon, Matt Harrison, Derek Holland and Tommy Hunter all made their MLB debut within a year or so of each other.

There's a significant circumstance here: The Rangers had holes. Meaning, the Rangers could promote Andrus because they didn't have a third baseman and Mike Young was pushed over. There wasn't anyone in the rotation that was either A) injured; B) ineffective; or C) wholly missing.

So it worked out. It made sense.

I have a feeling, however, that within the next calendar year or so, the Rangers will need to made a number of hard decisions (some of which may backfire). It might result in some hard trades. It might result in some guys walking. Bottomline: There will be change.

This might start in the next two weeks and there might not be convenient excuses (injuries, ineffectiveness, free agency) in place to allow these changes.

Scott Feldman/Brandon Webb/Tommy Hunter
Feldman's n Triple A and not doing great. Still, he's pitched three games since missing most of last year and starting rehab in the last three weeks. No doubt he rolls into the bullpen, probably in Dave Bush's role once he's ready. Webb pitched in a game for the first time in two years yesterday. His fastball hit 84 and his control was questionable. He might never pitch for the Rangers. He might be ready in July. Who knows? Still, where does he go? You can't touch four-fifths of your rotation. The bullpen seems relatively settled. As for Hunter, see above. A starter who doesn't have a place and could be ready by July, too. Thing with Hunter is that he was a closer at Alabama in college and you wonder if he'd be switched around. Because you could use a big right arm with the absence of Alexi Ogando.

Julio Borbon/Leonys Martin
Right now, you can't send Endy Chavez back down. And you can't have your bench outfield bat be another lefty (Craig Gentry is right handed). Doesn't matter. Martin is your starting centerfielder next season. I suspect he'll be in Arlington in September anyway. He's bashing Double A pitching (.353/.438/.588) and his defense is MLB-ready.

Cody Eppley/Mark Hamburger/Tanner Scheppers
Eppley's going to be here sooner or later. No room in the bullpen ... right now. Outside of Eppley and Pedro Strop, Hamburger might be the next bullpen arm in the Majors. He's at Round Rock and can not go anywhere but up. Scheppers is the heir apparent to the closer's role. If he can get healthy. Then again, if he's your closer and Neftali Feliz is moved to the rotation where do Webb/Hunter/Feldman/Holland go?

Neil Ramirez
Made a spot start in Round Rock. And hasn't left. He hadn't pitched in nothing over Low-A ball before this season, so because he's holding his own in Triple A is promising. At worst, he should be at Frisco. September call-up? A potential 2012 bullpen arm? Trade chip?

Martin Perez
A lot to improve upon. Walks are high. But he's being stretched out and his pitch counts are higher than they have before. At 20, no need to rush. But it's foolish to not think he wouldn't be a call-up candidate in 2012 with the idea of him being in the rotation by 2013.

Robbie Erlin
Erlin is a lot like Perez: A 20-year-old starter in Double A. A smallish (6-0) lefty that is tearing up the minors. Double A will be a challenge worth watching. He's flew through the system and, like Perez, is someone to watch for next mid-season and for 2013.

Joe Wieland
A big righty sitting and dominating at High-A right now. At first opportunity, he'll be in Double A. He's gotten better year after year. He's struck out 70 and walked three. Yikes. A similar route to Erlin, both being names to watch for September 2012 and Spring Training 2013.

Notable Omissions
Miguel De Los Santos, Chris Davis, Eric Hurley, Omar Beltre, Pedro Strop, Zach Phillips, Darren O'Day, Fabio Castillo.

Simply offensive

The King, doubling up

The onslaught continues.

The Texas Rangers continued their offensive ways collecting 20 hits, 11 runs, four home runs and five doubles in a 11-5 win yesterday in Tampa Bay.

Take in the Kansas weekend series and they've 15 home runs and 35 runs scored in four games. Bad pitching or not, that'll win you more games than not.

And we should never, ever take Josh Hamilton for granted. I would include Nelson Cruz, but he was still with the team as the offensive sputtered through the last five weeks. Hamilton's the anchor here. His insertion puts almost everyone into their right place, and clearly having Cruz is a huge help.

As for the pitching, well, Hamilton can't help that. Here's the thing with Derek Holland: When it clicks that he needs to simply trust his stuff, make his pitches, throw STRIKES, quit sniffing around the corners, he'll be OK. I think he'll be quite good.

Until that time, expect starts like yesterday. On at least three occassions he failed to record a 1-2-3 inning due to a walk. He walked five and only allowed five hits. He walked Nos. 8 and 9 hitters Kelly Shoppach and Justin Ruggiano once each. Two of his five walks scored.

Throwing strikes (and, yes, he was trying to nibble around the plate the entire afternoon) would have changed everything. He most probably goes seven innings instead of five, at least. The pitch count soared due to the free passes. And that would have saved the bullpen.

Two, that's the difference between a quality start and a dud. I'd rather give up a home run than a walk. Walks kill.

Notes:
1. I love the "Darren Oliver has lost it" talk. It's funny. The guy has two bad outings and his ERA "soars" to 2.95. He's allowed three total walks, opponents are hitting .226 and his WHIP is 1.00. The Rangers need the entire bullpen to "struggle."

2. The ascertion that Mike Napoli could hit 30 home runs is alive and well. Had two yesterday including a double. He has nine RBI in his last three games. Seven of his hits in that span have gone for extra bases. The assertion that he could be an extra in Road House is also alive.

3. The Tampa bullpen pitched 6.1 innings yesterday. And they have a rookie going today.

4. Elvis Andrus had two doubles. At seven, he has one less than Josh Hamilton, two more than Nellie Cruz and one more than Napoli. He had 15 doubles all of 2010.

5. Mitch Moreland's home run still hasn't landed.

6. Mike Young has 14 hits in his last 10 games. He has 70 on the season, 82 short of 2,000. Secondarily, he could approach 1,000 runs and RBI before the season ends in addition to 400 doubles.

7. What do you do with Endy Chavez?

The fine line between madness and genius

Kirkman: Do you like websites?

Can the Texas Rangers find a third-base coach at the trade deadline?

Mike Napoli -- who runs as if he's treading through three-foot-deep peanut butter -- scored from first on a Elvis Andrus single in the bottom of the ninth inning giving the Rangers a 7-6 win and a series victory over the Kansas City Royals.

The problem: He was out by a country mile. Andrus' hit was not hit extremely hard (which was a big reason it took a little time to get to), but Dave Anderson waved Napoli around anyway. Saving his bacon, Napoli made a savvy move in not attempting to slide around Royals catcher Brayan Pena, he went right at the plate, which wasn't being blocked.

I think what got to Pena, more than anything, was that Napoli was actually coming. Maybe Anderson made the exact right move: He did what the opponent did not dare think he would actually do. Look at the replay. The ball is coming in, Pena glances to his left and his head jerks realizing that dumb, fat Napoli is steaming down the third-base line. In the brief second of confusion, he forgets to block the plate. So idiotic, that it worked.

This isn't Anderson's only snafu. He's had his fair share. But when it works, everyone is cool.

If you blinked this weekend, you probably missed something from the Rangers-Royals, which turned out to be pretty entertaining. There was 11 Rangers home runs, an extra-inning affair, a walk-off play at the plate and 24 home-team runs scored.

Now for some awards:

Biggest Asshole
Brayan Pena
The man has three home runs this season. All three are against the Rangers. He also has 15 RBI on the season. Ten are against the Rangers. All three are three-run home runs. Seeing him spike the ball this afternoon in disbelief was magical.

Best Relief Appearance
(tie) Yoshi Tateyama and Michael Kirkman
Kirkman pitched 2.2 scoreless innings in the series, including two innings today to keep the game at hand. He had three strikeouts on the day. Kirkman's ERA dropped from 27.00 to 10.38. Tateyama pitched 4.1 innings allowing an unearned run and walking no one. Most impressively, he induced 11 groundball outs. What if the Rangers have something in these two dudes?

Worst Relief Appearance
Dave Bush
Friday night, Bush faced eight Royals hitters in getting three outs. He allowed five runs on four hits and a walk. Eight of those hitters hit home runs. Including that asshole Pena.

"Oh-Shit-We-Got-To-Deal-With-Him-For-Another-Decade" Award
Eric Hosmer
It's going to really stink when he's a Yankee.

In The Same Boat Award
Neftali Feliz and Joakim Soria
The debate is still on. Is Neftali Feliz hurt? Is it all mental? It's all a moot point. If Feliz is hurt and isn't telling the coaches, then that's on him. Ron Washington has no other reason not to send him out there to at least figure it out. Seems like Feliz is throwing hard, he's just not locating things very well. I don't care who you are, if you throw pitches down the middle of the plate and the hitter knows its a fastball, it'll get hit. There's no nuance to Feliz' game right now, and that kills him more than anything. Add to the fact that he has zero confidence. Soria's not that far behind. He's had a really bad year and a bad series. Frankly, teams are not out of it if he's on the mound. Considering Aaron Crow's emergence, you wonder how long Soria has.

Best Start
Matt Harrison
Put together another beautiful start Saturday going six innings and allowing no runs on five hits and a walk. A blister ended his night prematurely. For the record, that's four straight pretty good starts and two straight great starts. He hasn't allowed a run in 16.1 innings.

Worst Start
Sean O'Sullivan
Hopefully the bullpen took him out to Cheddar's after the game. O'Sullivan took the beating opposite Harrison sticking around for 5.2 innings allowing 15 hits, 10 runs, five home runs and two walks.

Minor Threat 3.0

Nothing says on-base percentage like Sarah Marshall

A semi-weekly look at the Texas Rangers' farm system. And typically a photo of some hot, unattainable woman.

Round Rock Express

Michael Kirkman's been moved to the bullpen. His ERA is 5.35 overall, but 0.00 in relief. He's struck out seven in 4.2 relief innings.

Despite some on-again, off-again control issues, Neil Ramirez is battling. He's got 48 Ks in 43 innings and a .235 BAA. He's also allowed just two home runs.

If you want a name to watch, try Hamburger. Mark Hamburger, that is. He's 24 and had in the Eddie Guardado trade with Minnesota a few years back. He's got a good fastball and is five games into his Triple A experience. His last appearance was a clean inning with two strikeouts.

Scott Feldman's allowed seven runs in 11.2 innings.

Frisco RoughRiders

Jose Ruiz, 26, is hitting .323 with eight doubles and four home runs. And he might become a pretty good linebacker for the Cowboys (6-3, 235).

There's a hundred things to love about Leonys Martin. No. 54: 11 RBI in 13 games. From the lead-off spot.

Reliever Tyler Tufts has walked two in 20 innings this year. He's walked 36 in about 185 minor-league innings.

Martin Perez has allowed two earned runs in last four starts, 26 innings.

Mike Bianucci, Jon Greene and Tommy Mendonca have struck out a combined 147 times this season.

Jacob Brigham has a 4.56 ERA despite just a .225 BAA. He's averaging a strikeout per frame.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Ryan Strausborger has quite the line: 32 runs, 27 RBI, 13 doubles, four triples, five home
runs and 15 steals. Productive.

Rob Erlin and Joe Wieland are wonders. They've allowed more home runs (10) than walks (8). They've combined for 123 strikeouts and WHIPs of 0.55 and 0.88, respectively. UPDATE: Erlin's been promoted to Frisco!

Kasey Kiker's walked 20 batters.

And if that weren't enough, Barrett Loux and Robbie Ross are 9-4 having allowed one home run 97.2 innings. They've combined for 95 strikeouts.

Jared Hoying and Mike Olt have combined for 80 strikeouts and 50 walks.

Take out Zach Osborne's one bad game, he's allowed no runs and five hits in seven games, striking out nine.

Joe Ortiz has a 1.66 ERA in relif. Trevor Hurley's at 1.93.

Hickory Crawdads

Josh Richmond is hitting .270. He also has 14 doubles and five RBI.

Luke Jackson made his debut this week. He followed a so-so first start (4 IP, 4 hits, 4 runs, 4 Ks) with a sloppy -- but scoreless -- second start.

Jurickson Profar is getting better and better. Hitting .452 in last 10 games. Average is up to .274, but this on-base percentage is a ridiculous .401 thanks to 23 walks compared to 20 strikeouts.

Jacob Skole also is gettin better. The power is not there, if it exists at all, but he's hitting .313 in last 10 and he has a very healthy walk rate. And he's extremely signable.

Jorge Marban has 17 Ks in 12 innings. Opponents are hitting .119 off him.

Colby Killian keeps the ball low. No home runs allowed and he has a 2.50 ground out/flyball ratio. Averaging more than a strikeout per frame.

Matt Thompson having a much more sane year. ERA down to 3.26 and his BAA is .228.

Tomas Telis is co-leader in hits on the team with 46.

John Rhadigan gets Jason Botts treatment

Friends, don't let anyone tell you that democracy is dead.

Fans of the Texas Rangers have proven this.

John Rhadigan was relieved of his post as play-by-play announcer of the television broadcast yesterday, a mere 50 games into his tenure.

Everyone knows the story here. Rhadigan was a longtime studio host and TV guy for the last 20 years, really. Over the off-season, the Rangesr jettisoned the polarizing Josh Lewin and hired Rhadigan despite having no play-by-play experience.

By all accounts, it was a disaster. This is no knock on Rhadigan. He's really good at what he does. However, getting good at play-by-play takes A LOT of time and the Rangers were not willing to give it to him. Without knowing any more about it, it would appear that complaints from fans were was lead to the move.

I thought Rhads was a bit off. I felt he was calling the game on a two-second delay. What I was seeing was always a little before the call. It actually makes you appreciate what Lewin, Eric Nadal, Dave Barnett, Mark Followill, Ralph Strangis and others do night in and night out, and all of them do it quite well.

The loser in all of this, kinda, is Rhadigan. Granted, he'll get his spot on the Fox Southwest desk back and all will go back to normal. But there has to be a little resentment considering they weren't willing to give him the chance to succeed and that they hired him in the first place.

Barnett, who I really like, will go to the TV broadcast and Steve Busby will pitch in the radio broadcast for the time being. I can't imagine them bringing in a full-time TV guy mid-season ... but I never thought they'd give Rhads 50 games to perfect something that's taken some years to get good at.

C.J. Wilson: Ace?

Ace of spades

The definition of an "ace" starting pitcher in professional baseball is malleable.

I've heard it being a guy that you depend on every fifth day giving your team an overwhelmingly good chance at winning. Someone who wants the ball. Someone that will -- more often than not -- break a bad stretch with an outstanding performance despite his team.

Or, it's been defined as someone withe gaudy numbers.

The misconception is that an "ace" is simply the best starter in the rotation.

Roy Halliday is and was an ace. He has both qualities. For the Rangers, Kenny Rogers was once considered an "ace," but he fit the first definition more than he put up awe-inspiring numbers. He was also the best starter the Rangers had.

With all of this said, is C.J. Wilson an ace?

He spinned another beauty yesterday in a 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox pitching into the seventh inning allowing one run, walking none and striking out five.

His numbers are good: 3.25 ERA, 65 strikeouts, his walk numbers are waaaay down and his strikeouts are at a good pace. He's on pace for 240 innings. He's allowed just six home runs this season. That's certainly low. Except when you compare it to the mind-boggling 10 home runs he allowed all of last season ... in 204 innings.

Most importantly, he wins. And he helps the Rangers win. Since becoming a starter, the Rangers are something like 31-13 in Wilson's starts. This year, the Rangers are 7-4 in his starts. Six of his 11 starts have been deemed "quality."

In my book, that's an ace.

Notes:
1. For the first time this season, Wilson did not walk anyone. Free passes were a huge issue last season for him. He has three one-walk games and three two-walk games.

2. The Rangers offense mustered three hits.

3. Of the past eight runs scored by the Rangers, three have come by the sacrifice fly.

4. Yorvit Torrealba went the last decade without an extra-base hit. Suddenly he has doubles in two straight.

5. Since his return to the bigs, Mark Lowe's pitched 7.1 innings. He's allowed four hits and three walks. And Ron Washington seems to trust him whole heartedly.

6. Lowe and Darren Oliver pitched out of jams. Oliver threw nine pitches. Beautiful.

7. I think Neftali Feliz is generally OK. He's stumbling coming off the DL. He's not confident in his secondary pitches and attempting to blow batters away with his heat. It's more mental than anything.

8. I find it odd that a team with Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko anchoring the middle of your line-up can't hit.

Tony Romo's getting married Saturday and I haven't even gotten my invitation

The brushing blind

\Where's the ceremony? When is the ceremony? What should I where? Where are they registered?

You know what. It's too late. I've got plans anyway. So, Tony Homo, you can take you stupid wedding, stick it in your pocket and kiss my black ass.

Have fun with the hot guy from Gossip Girl's sister. Good luck keeping Jerry Jones sober. He'll wind up with the punch bowl on his head doing karate chops and honking your mom's boob.

Welcome to the 148th Byron Nelson Championship

Lord Byron

The EDS Byron Nelson Championship begins today in Las Colinas.

The difference between this year and years past is that the Dallas Mavericks typically aren't in the NBA Finals and the Texas Rangers aren't typically good and they're at home.

Not that everyone won't pay attention, it's just that the media play has been minimal. Plus, you'll have 40K going to the Ballpark Friday, Saturday and Sunday. There's just too much going on.

I'll pay attention though. Even if the field totally sucks (damned Colonial).

The contenders (since David Toms is not playing):

Matt Kuchar
Again, the highest-ranked player in the tournament at No. 10. Did nothing at the Colonial.

Dustin Johnson
An exciting up-and-coming "kid" on the tour. Has two top-3 finishes this year and in a light field, he could make noise.

Jordan Spieth
As an amateur, will not win this tournament. However, it was just a short year ago when the 17-year-old Jesuit kid captured the hearts and minds of Dallasites after finishing 16th.

Charlie Wi
David Toms finished second at the Players and won the Colonial the next week. Wi finished second at the Colonial last week ...

K.J. Choi
Coming off a win at the Players and throwing out the first pitch at the Ranger's game.

Scott Verplank
Jason Day
Rory Sabbatini
The last three champions at the Byron Nelson.

Anthony Kim
Plowing through an awful year. Maybe some home cooking will do the trick.

The ouster

Eins. Zwei. Drei

Question: Will Mark Cuban be criticized for his reaction to the Mavericks winning the Western Conference Finals as much as if it was Lebron James?

Answer: No.

I’m about to be a big asshole right here, so hold on to your hats. Watching the post-game celebration last night I got sick to my stomach. In the gaggle of revelry there was Cuban, Jason Terry, J.J. Barea and others right up front, pointing to the crowd and whatnot.

I just thought to myself, “You’d be nowhere without Dirk Nowitzki.”

It sounds rude. Cuban, of course, signs the paychecks. Terry had a nice series against Los Angeles. Barea, I’m sure, brings something to the table. Off the court, of course.

Still, I saw them glowing in the spotlight meanwhile Nowitzki stood there awkwardly for a little bit, raised the trophy, looked happy and then slipped off to the locker room. The good German does not want to celebrate now. He does not want a parade route. He wants to win another four games and be done with the 2010-11 season.

That’s all. Right now, he doesn’t want to grin for the camera, point at the crowds of fans that he know would give a shit had they slipped in the first round. All he wants to do is win. For the past 16 games, he has done that almost by himself.

When a team finds success in the post-season, the contributions (or lack thereof) tend to get exaggerated. Case in point: Brendan Haywood in the Lakers series. Come on. You really want to call him a key to winning that series while playing 10 mistake-filled minutes? But, you sweep a team and those 10 minutes become “productive.” It’s the nature of the beast.

For my money, one guy has been game in and game out great, and that’s Nowitzki. Shawn Marion’s probably the only player in the second tier. Third tier includes Jason Kidd and Tyson Chandler. Most games you’ll find quality contributions; however, there are long stretches when you wonder where they’ve gone.

Then there’s the rest. Terry certainly had his stretch. Barea’s had his moments, but mostly he’s such a huge liability defensively that you just hope to break even (note any time the Thunder pulled away in this series – win or lose – and you’ll see Barea on the court, and that is not a coincidence). I think Haywood’s been, generally, awful. Stevenson’s had his moments. Too many
“I need my shots!” moments with him.

It’s about Nowitzki, which is my general point. Any thought of giving significant amounts of credit to any tandem or individual is offensive.

The age-old argument in sports still persists. Would you rather be the Atlanta Braves and go to the playoffs a billion times and win one World Series, or the Florida Marlins who go to the playoffs twice and win World Series both times?

Would you want to be the Buffalo Bills and go to four straight Super Bowls and never win, or go to one Super Bowl and win?

I still have no hard-and-fast answer. As of this minute, it feels extremely nice going to the NBA Finals for a second time in five years. This, despite the fact that the Mavericks have won nothing as of yet.

It feels real good, and it’ll feel good in five years if they don’t go to another finals and they’re losing 55 games a year. Nothing beats winning and watching your favorite sports team make it to the pinnacle of that sport. Nothing.

We are so blessed to have Nowitzki on our team, in our city. Such a consummate professional, who wants to win more than anyone. We are lucky enough to have watched a legacy be built here with Nowitzki. He will one day be inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame as a Dallas Maverick. When that day comes, we will know these moments. That ball-breaking three pointer last night. The 48 he poured on the Thunder in game 1. The crazy one-legged fall away in game 4.

History, literally, is being written. Nowitzki – and, in turn, the Mavericks – from gone from being a national, leaguewide joke to being a salty character no one wants a part of and that everyone generally agrees is one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

It's all present tense, too. It's being written. There's one chapter left. If you want an epic, just watch these final seven games (if needed, of course).

Can't stand the Heat, get out of my kitchen

The Bron

I have openly and unapologetically rooted for the Miami Heat all season.

Why? Mostly because of Lebron James. I don't own jerseys or apparel. I don't gloat or necessarily promote (this point makes this post rather awkward) that I like James or the Heat. I am just of the opinion that James is the best player in one of my favorite sports and I find a lot of pleasure in watching him and watching him win.

So, I root for the Heat.

Over time, I tended to root for them because no one else really was, and most tended to openly hate the Heat. It's for no real reason, which makes this feelings so frustrating and it makes me root for Lebron and Co. even more. Right now, with the Heat a mere game from the NBA Finals, they're on the verge of forcing all of the playa hatas to step off.

I find the hate dumb. Granted, James clearly handled "The Decision" really poorly. OK. So he's not a public relations specialist. He's also 25 years old and surrounded by more hype men than wise men.

What James did was cocky. Not harmful. He didn't hit a pedestrian and flee the scene. He wasn't busted with drugs. He's not getting arrested for smacking around his baby's mama. He's just a foolish kid. Let's put this in perspective.

As far as "hurting the game" by joining forces with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh (and any collusion that took place), that's bullshit. Nobody said that about the Boston Celtics four years ago. No one made as huge a fuss over the Lakers getting Pau Gasol. Hell, the NBA had a referee that was fixing games due to gambling issues and that's largely forgotten. But not Lebron and the Heat.

People also like to drag Chris Bosh down, noting that the power forward is not a superstar like James and Wade. Maybe he's not a superstar. He's still really good and better than most. He's also the third best player on his own team. Isn't that just about right for him?

Fans -- more so than any other group -- hold more double standards and think with such distortion that it's borderline unfair being involved with sports. We want our heroes to win more than anything -- more than all of the money in the world. When they choose the best chance to win, and it's not OK with us, we are allowed to hate.

It doesn't make any sense. I choose to fight irrational behavior.

For whom the Heath Bell tolls

Ring-ding-dong

I'm sure that headline's NEVER been written.

It's late-May and the trade rumors are already out there. Yesterday, the Rangers were one of several teams that it appears have called the San Diego Padres about closer Heath Bell.

It makes so much sense that it makes me throw up in my mouth.

MLB Trade Rumors discussed Bell's trade value.

Bell is a 33-year-old 6-3 righty badass and the only consistently good to great piece of a sad-sack San Diego Padres team.

For the last six years, you'd be hard pressed to find a better bullpen hand. He set up for Trevor Hoffman for two years and has served as closer the last three years.

He's just as good this season with a 2.00 ERA and hitters have a .209 average against him. But his strikeouts are down to 6.4 per nine innings. The difference is that his groundball percentage is up to 54 percent. His fastball is still good at 93 mph, on average.

What drives up his value is his success, demand (at least four times off the top of your head would be interested) and he's arbitration eligible and would get you two draft picks if he walks.

What drives down his value is his relative lack of time he might spend with a club. You might have him for half a season. I would suspect the Rangers would try to keep him if they should trade for him, especially if the goal is to still move Neftali Feliz to the rotation next season.

He's not a spring chicken (although 33 is not old) and he's also not cheap. He's due $7.5 million this season.

Obviously, is the same ol' song and dance here. A team will give up better prospects if the Padres would be willing to pay some of that deal. Or the Padres could just keep him, offer arbitration and let him walk for the draft picks.

I would find it unlikely the Padres would trade him without getting a top 10 organizational prospect, not top five, but top 10.

Regardless, the Rangers have to make this happen. For this season and for the next three or four. He's a guy you can put in the back end of the bullpen and let ride through his mid-30s as this team rides this crest of success and youth.

The late late show

It was a dark and stormy night ...

Someone recently wrote an article about the 100 most bizarre moments in Texas Rangers history.

The fucking story won't show up in a Google search or I'd link to it. Screw it. It happened and it was mildly interesting.

Last night added to the drama.

The Rangers lost to the Chicago White Sox 8-6 in front of 7,000 fans after a gigantic storm sent most packing and the game re-started at 11:20 p.m.

I enjoyed the first four innings -- at its regularly scheduled time -- in person. I was told that the storm was going north of the Ballpark, so there were no worries.

What shocked me was the wind. The flags atop the video board were perpetually whipping in what seemed to be consistently high winds. By the third innings, the American flag was ripped off its moorings.

Then the clouds rolled in. Still, we were being told that the storm was bypassing the Ballpark. No worries. Still, the thunder and lightnining was in the background, the clouds looked ominous as hell and people began to worry more.

By the third inning, Chuck Morgan had everyone in the top deck move down "due to high winds." Which makes no sense. Do they think people will blow off the top deck? The only reason you'd move people down is for lightning or severe weather outside of high winds and rain. Still, no worries.

By the middle of the fourth, before it even started raining, the tarps were rolled out and a delay took place. I meandered for a little bit, then left after I learned the storm wasn't really due for another 30 minutes.

Then, apparently the hail hit. Tornadoes crept into the area, fans were evaculated into the tunnels and belly of the Ballpark.

No worries.

The game went on and it was a disaster. Carlos Quentin resembled Mickey fuckin' Mantle for a night, we got a look at Yoshi Tateyama, the bullpen couldn't keep it together and the offense didn't have enough mustard, despite a relatively upbeat night.

Glad I didn't stay.

Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz, welcome back, but you're not the story

Oh oh oh Ogando

It was May 23 and Josh Hamilton hit his first home run of the season. Should probably lead every game story about last night's Texas Rangers' 4-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.

It shouldn't.

The Rangers are a pretty sad-sack 25-23 this season and what would normally be a deep disinterest in such a mediocre team is instead met with excitement. This is because the Rangers have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball and any night could be something spectacular.

Enter: Alexi Ogando. I think we have a pretty good cross section of starts for him now and I think we can safely say that this team would suck with him in the bullpen. In fact, Evan Grant tweeted last night that Ogando's success is evidence that the Rangers should push Neftali Feliz into a starter's role next year.

Ogando pitched a complete game shutout last night. His last pitch -- a soft groundout to end the game -- hit 97 miles per hour.

He was simply phenomenal. His fastball was between 93-96 all night. His slider was in the mid-80s and was thrown for a strike all night. In fact, he abused the strike zone all night (John Danks also pitched a complete game in the loss and he too threw strike after strike). About 70 percent of Ogando's pitches were strikes.

There is absolutely nothing -- right now -- to dislike about Ogando. In nine starts, he's gone at least six innings in each. He's thrown quality starts in eight.

In 59 innings, his BAA is .181 and his WHIP is 0.87, meaning he's not only not allowing runs, he's not allowing baserunners. He hasn't allowed more than six hits in a start, and he's allowed six just once.

Ogando's ERA has dipped to a lofty 1.87. He's allowed just six home runs all season and just three in the last 40 innings spanning six starts.

Right now, the Rangers have no one else as dependable as him. And that's a remarkable thing to say.

Notes:
1. The Rangers bullpen since Thursday: Three total innings pitched.

2. Nelson Cruz has homered in four straight games going back to his rehab stints in Frisco and Round Rock.

3. Mike Young had another three hits, including a triple. It's his third, matching last year's total.

4. Hamilton and Cruz's return to the line-up had a real influence in that dugout. It was noticable when Hamilton homered and you could see the weight's lifted off the shoulders of Dave Murphy and Mitch Moreland and Mike Napoli. Like they weren't have to carry the world on their shoulders. Everything seemed in its right place. Thanks Thom Yorke.

5. Young is 88 hits away from 2,000 in his career.

6. Ian Kinsler is by a million miles the most inconsistent, maddening guy on the team. Had another two hits last night including his 14th double. Still, he's hitting .230. I wonder if it'll click for him this year.

7. John Danks is a remarkable 0-7, and he's not that bad. You just wonder what this team would look like if that dumb trade was never made. Do you take a chance on Colby Lewis? Do you feel the need for Cliff Lee? Is Ogando in the bullpen still? It's night and day thinking about it.

8. I've always considered Murphy an above-average defender with an above-average arm. Do I like him in centerfield? No. Does he kill you defensively? Hell no. Murph covered some pretty good ground last night on Paulie Konerko's gapper and with an amazing throw (turning around, on his back leg) threw a beauty to Ian Kinsler on a play that surprised Konerko more than anyone.

9. The highlight of the game: The foul ball headed right at George W. Bush. For one, Bush looked terrified and frozen. Like he didn't know what to do. Nolan Ryan thought the ex-president was going to die in his ballpark. What was Ruth Ryan doing? Was she trying to dive in front of Laura and George? Where was the secret service? What was that usher guy doing? It was a really funny moment. I strongly suggest finding it and watching it.

Collapse and release

Das German

First of all, and with little to really say: I'm happy it finally happened to someone else.

I've been witness -- as have most of us -- to many Dallas Mavericks collapses over the years of all kinds. Finally, it's the morning after and no one's talking about the Mavericks in terms of disappointment.

The Mavericks overcame a 15-point deficit in the final quarter last night getting an overtime win 112-105.

There's too much here. Sports overload. What do you start with, how do you finish and just imagine the other 1,000 things in between that defined this silly basketball game.

I will say this: I thought the Mavericks were toast. Everything was against them. The crowd. The odds. The rebounding differential. The Thunder's field-goal percentage. Six minutes left in last night's game and the Mavericks had nothing -- zero! -- going for them.

Even the Mavs' white flag -- J.J. Barea -- was eating up big minutes in the third and beginning of the fourth quarter.

Then like a flash, when it seemed all was lost, it snapped. The Thunder had their lead, they got lazy and the Mavs never quit pushing. When all is said and done, that's all you want out of your professional sports team, to never quit pushing.

Five things:

1. I feel absolutely sick for Kevin Durant. He's one of the most enjoyable -- and by all accounts, sweetest -- players in the league, and to lose that game on your homecourt when the ball pretty much in other people's hands was killer. He wants to win as bad as anyone and he's stuck with a teammate (Russell Westbrook) that's too big for his britches. That game should have been lost with Durant taking a majority of the shots.

2. Small keys: Shawn Marion entering the game, Barea going out, Harden fouling out with four minutes left (do you protect him knowing what was coming?), Kendrick Perkins being an absolute non-factor, Mavs hitting the boards late (if you look, the rebounding differential shrunk considerably from the third quarter to the end of regulation) and the Thunder committing ridiculously bad fouls and sending the Mavericks to the line.

3. The legend of Dirk Nowitzki -- just when you think it can't anymore -- keeps growing. He is beyond words. Right now, the basketball world is watching him and wondering what they were watching the last 10 years. It's indescribably beautiful.

4. As unimpressive as Westbrook has been, Nick Collison has been equally as impressive. Love that guy and I'd have him or someone like him on my team any day of the week.

5. I think the age and experience has finally shown itself in this series. I think, also, hunger is playing a big role. Not that Durant and Co. aren't hungry. They probably want a title more than anyone. However, the Mavericks are hungrier, and, on top of that, they know exactly what to do to reach that certain level to get it. The Mavericks are old. This could very well be the final season for Jason Kidd. As presently constructed, it's conceivable that Mark Cuban could light the fuse and blow this team up if the Mavericks don't win and win big. With a potential work stoppage, that only complicates things for a group of guys mostly in their 30s and knowing that the Thunder are only going to get better with age.

Turning Japanese

Yoshinori or can we call you 'Yoshi'?

It's somewhat official: Josh Hamilton and Nellie Cruz are Rangers again and Taylor Teagarden is going back to Round Rock. Still, another move will need to be made.

Furthermore, Cody Eppley is going back to Round Rock to round back into form and make another run in the bullpen later this season.

Coming up: Yoshinori Tateyama.

For one, I don't like sending Eppley down. I think he was put in some high-pressure situations and he wasn't just fantastic in those spots. Then he'd sit for days at a time and come back in. Eppley will be back soon.

The Rangers signed Tateyama in November to a one-year deal along with a club option for 2012. He's 35 and a Japanese import. As much work as the Rangers' scouting department's put into the Pacific Rim, they've had minimal success in the Majors.

The initial scouting report is good. Early returns in Round Rock are excellent:

21 IP - 2.14 ERA - 1.00 WHIP - 26 Ks - 4 BBs.

The Rangers have potential bullpen help in the minors. All you really need is for one or two to work out. Maybe Tateyama is there.

Hamilton, Cruz to return ... now to figure this thing out

Breaking the Hambone

Outfielders Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz are set to return to the Texas Rangers' line-up tonight.

Their return will spell the end of someone's tenure with the club for now. It'll be either Chris Davis, Endy Chavez, Craig Gentry or Taylor Teagarden.

My gut feeling tells me it'll be Teagarden and Chavez keeping the left-handed Davis and the righty Gentry in the line-up.

Is that the right move? I find it hard to believe they'll keep three catchers (Yorvit Torrealba and Mike Napoli already in tow) and Chavez is a lefty not unlike Dave Murphy, Hamilton and Julio Borbon (when he's back).

No matter who stays or who goes, I think Ron Washington needs to take this time -- as we go into June -- to establish a day-in and day-out line-up.

Even when Hamilton and Cruz were healthy, there were a ton of interchangeable parts to the line-up based on giving guys a day off, getting guys at-bats and loading up with lefties against a righty starter and vice versa.

I see the point. However, I don't think it works. Aside from the first two weeks of the season, the offense has sucked and I can't help but feel that it has everything to do with rhythm. They say swinging a bat has everything to do with timing and when a guy comes up from the minors or is injured for a long period, the period of struggle in their return or call up has to do with timing the pitch from the hand to the catcher's mitt.

How can a guy like Mitch Moreland, Napoli, Gentry, Borbon or Davis really get a good rhythm when they sit for three days and play two only to sit another four days. It doesn't make any sense. You can't really win with 15 hitters that could all be starting, or you think could be starting.

Sometimes, you've got to understand that Murphy and Napoli are best coming off the bench. Sometimes Jason Terry makes more sense off the bench than starting. Sometimes you need that back-up running back for a change of pace, but hardly do you give him 20 carries a game.

Washington needs to establish roles. There are complications. Injuries are one. It should be known that the Rangers could offset making a decision today by placing someone on the disabled list (let's say Napoli gets "shoulder soreness" at some point today).

Borbon's return complicates things, too, whenever that happens.

Also, there is initial talk that Hamilton could DH quite a bit in his return. This puts Mike Young at first base for at least a semi-regular time only and keeps Moreland (someone I consider a big-league hitter) on the bench. Of course, you could put Cruz in left, Moreland in right and Gentry/Borbon/Chavez in center. I hate it, but Washington is prone to do it.

Still, the Rangers need consistency here. At some point Hamilton will need to return to the outfield keeping Cruz in right (far more natural there) and Moreland can play first (Young at first make me feel uncomfortable ... as if something's going to go wrong).

Seems like there's not enough role guys and too many that need 500 at-bats. Doesn't seem healthy.

A foursome named 'Toms' wins Colonial

Toms-Toms

If you are a golf tournament like the Colonial, you want one of two things: A big shot to win or an insane finish, something to capture headlines.

A big shot did not win. David Toms won, shooting a three-under Sunday. Not the insane finish or hte big name, but it was quite the story.

In my short time watching and appreciating golf, I never seen a player cough up a lead on Saturday only to roar back on Sunday for the win. Except now.

Toms shot a 74 Saturday to allow Charlie Wi the lead going into Sunday. Not interested in letting another Asian guy steal a tourney out from underneath him, Toms played very well Sunday for his first tourey win in like five years, or something.

Good for Toms. He has a new plaid jacket. Although the Colonial is getting no love on the front page at the World Wide Leader, the golf page is all about Toms' comeback and win.

On Thursday morning, I picked a couple of names to watch. I did not have Toms on that list, even though he'd just finished second at The Players Championship the week before. Screw me.

Zach Johnson -- -9
Was under par the entire week. However, he could never have that one day much like Toms had 62s on Thursday and Friday.

Matt Kuchar -- -4
The highest ranked PGA player at the tournament. Bookended a pair of 67s with a set of 71s.

Jim Furyk -- -3
A 72 on Saturday killed any chance he had going into Sunday. Remained under par the rest of the time; however, never made a huge run.

Adam Scott -- +4
At least he made the cut.

A starting point

It's always sunny in Philadelphia

I will give the Texas Rangers credit: They went to Philadelphia, and, I feel, played their asses off.

I've been overly critical of the offense; however, going to face Roy Halliday, Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt on consecutive days on the road is not a great way to fix things, especially without your best two hitters.

Now, the Rangers escape a road sweep with a 2-0 win today behind Matt Harrison, and head home to face a much easier Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Royals rotations with the possibility of Josh Hamilton and Nellie Cruz returning.

The story this weekend should not be about losing a series as much as it's about the hitting and just how piss-poor the Phillies and Rangers are on offense.

For the weekend, in total (both teams):

9 runs -- 38 hits -- 13 walks -- 41 strikeouts.

That's an average of three total runs per game, 6 hits per team, 2 walks per team and 10 strikeouts a game. That was as much a playoff series as anything.

As for the Rangers, a billion kudos to C.J. Wilson, Colby Lewis and Harrison. I thought all three were really good. I thought Wilson was particularly nasty, Lewis deserved a better fate and Harrison was just rock solid. For the series:

22 IP - 16 hits - 5 runs - 7 walks - 19 strikeouts.

That should win you two games. It got them one, and considering the two other games came against two of the foremost starting pitchers of the past decade, we'll take it.

What Wilson, Lewis and Harrison were able to do -- outside of keep their team in all three games -- was protect the rusty and irregular bullpen. For the series:

3 IP - 1 hit - 0 runs - 1 walk - 1 strikeout.

Heading into next week, the bullpen is well-rested, the starters are on a roll and Hamilton and Cruz are back Monday.

Let's party.

OK in OKC

To be or not to be

It was one of those games. One those where you looked at the final score and you wonder how each team got above 70 points.

The Dallas Mavericks took back home-court advantage beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 93-87 last night. They have a 2-1 advantage in the series. They are two wins away from a second trip to the NBA Finals.

It was not pretty and it was never easy. The Mavericks darn near blew a 22-point lead in the second half, but it was the struggling Dirk Nowitzki who forced some shots down and iced the game, for all intents and purposes.

Neither superstar was particularly sharp. Neither second fiddle was just awesome (Russell Westbrook took 20 shots to get 30 points). The benches were awful.

Again, how they combined for 180 points is beyond me.

What I think we did learn is just how immature the Thunder are. This was a point made by some before the series started: That the Thunder didn't know how to win on this stage. Generally, that's a ... generalization that I tend to not buy into until it actually happens, if it does.

To proclaim that a team doesn't have what it takes to win at a certain level is disrespectful and, really, impossible to know until it happens. Consider that many veteran teams never learn to win on the highest level (see: the Utah Jazz of the 1990s and early-2000s). And then how would you explain the Memphis Grizzles doing what they did to the San Antonio Spurs or the 2007 Golden State Warriors dismantling the 2007 Dallas Mavericks. That argument holds little empirical weight.

Now, it is clear the Thunder are a tad over their heads. They are probably a veteran or two away from really giving a better team a run for their money.

It will not get easier for the Mavericks, however. The Thunder may be overmatched, but they are prideful and a team of some badasses who will not go quietly into that good night. I still say this goes seven games and there's little evidence at this point that suggests otherwise.

It is disconcerting how apt the Mavericks are at coughing up double-digit leads. Good grief. How many more times can they afford to do that? It's shocking that the Mavericks have had a lot better teams that have not made it any further than this Mavericks team. It seems all too good to be true. But I'll take it if it gets the German a ring.

Colonial, day two

Rickie, don't lose that number ... or hat

Day two came and went and for David Toms, all is well. To the leaderboard:

David Toms -- -16
Toms followed his 62 on Thursday to another 62 Friday. Five strokes up.

Charlie Wi -- -9
Steven Bowditch
Mark Wilson
John Senden
Completely disinteresting.

Rory Sabbatini -- -8
Rickie Fowler
Interesting. A local guy with a win here already. The young kid looking for a breakthrough.

Stewart Cink -- -5
Stuart Appleby -- -5
Stormed back on Friday with a monster -6 to put himself square in this tourney. Cink squandered whatever opportunity he had.

Jim Furyk -- -4
Adam Scott
Tread water Friday and found themselves left behind.

Sergio Garcia -- -1
Jason Day
Maybe some other time. Thanks for playing.

Missed Cut
Angel Cabrera
John Daly
Davis Love III
Justin Leonard
Vijay Singh
Corey Pavin

Interleague fun!

MJS

The Rangers travel to Philadelphia for a weekend Interleague series against the Phillies. There, they will face the vaunted aces: Roy Halliday, Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt. Yikes!

No worries. The trio are 17-16 career against the Rangers with ERAs of 5.36, 5.55 and 4.54 against Texas. Suck it.

And, no, the Silver Boot will not be at stake tonight.

I promise, pitching is not the problem

That's the way baseball go

I'm still her to convince you that the Texas Rangers don't have a pitching problem.

Yes, it's scary to see Neftali Feliz struggle and blow another save. Yes, it sucks to lose 2-1 to split a series with Kansas City.

However, you have to look at it this way: You asking Derek Holland and/or Neftali Feliz to pitch a complete game shutout.

Granted, it's the year of the pitching and asking a pitcher to throw a shutout is not out of the question. At some point, you hope that the offense is able to plate a couple of more runs.

Holland was brilliant last night. If not for him, the Rangers bullpen would be in complete shambles. He went eight allowing a run, striking out five and walking just one. It was not pristine, but with a little help from the offense, he gets a win. It's his second-straight good start allowing just three runs in his last 14 innings.

Still, it came down to three outs from Feliz in the ninth.

For one, I really don't know if it was necessary to pull Holland. I won't nitpick. He was at 113 pitches and had allowed his ninth hit. But he'd also induced two double plays and pitched himself out of some trouble already.

Two, I don't know how wise it was bringing in Feliz. He'd throw 26 pitches the night before and it was his first back-to-back since returning from the disabled list. And he hasn't been that good since coming back, basically throwing a wild fastball again and again. Problem is, it's not missing bats.

Meanwhile, the offense mustered six hits, two walks and an 0-14 turd in the top three spots. The offense was a solo home run from clean-up hitter Chris Davis (his third, he's hitting .255).

As a side note, doesn't it seem that the Rangers have thrown out an inordinate amount of baserunners. Yorvit Torrealba threw two out last night and a third on Wednesday. Then there's Feliz' pick-offs the other night. Need to investigate.

One rough night

Leonys Martin: Get used to that face, you'll be seeing it soon

It was indeed a very poor night for Dallas-Fort Worth sports fans. The Rangers blew another game. The Mavericks forgot to play defense.

Naturally, I was at the Frisco RoughRiders game against the Midland RockHounds. The home team won, 7-4.

Here are some thoughts as I astutely scout the Rangers' farm system:

1. It was nice of Chris Mobley to throw batting practice for the RockHounds. Oh. Wait a sec. He was actually pitching.

2. Oakland's farm system sucks. Granted, most of their talented kids are in the Majors. Still, I took a glance at Baseball America's top 100 prospects and they had two: No. 63 Grant Green and No. 91 Chris Carter. Green's on the RockHound's roster. He did not play.

3. I was interested in seeing Fabio Castillo and Adalberto Flores in action. Luckily, Mobley sucked so badly I got that chance. Flores worked three scoreless innings. He's listed at 6-7, but I was at field level and he did not look 6-7. He also doesn't throw like a giant. With no official (or accurate) radar gun reading, I suspect his fastball was going in the low 90s. He was a tad wild at first. Failed to really locate his mid-70s curve until his final two frames. By then, he was cruising. Castillo went two scoreless. He's on the Rangers' 40-man roster, so there's a more than zero percent chance we'll see him in Arlington this year. He has not been very good this year; in fact, last night was probably one of his better outings.

4. Leonys Martin will be the Rangers' centerfielder in 2012. Book it. In the second inning as the RockHounds batted around, Martin prevented a run on a hit. Took the ball in the mid-outfield area and simple rocketed a strike to home with no bounce. It was more of a strike than anything Mobley had. Later, the RockHounds set a couple of pitches on a ride and Martin tracked them down in the outfield. In one night, he showed just how good he is in the outfield. Nothing against Julio Borbon, but Martin exceeds him in every way.

5. With Engel Beltre, the Rangers may have two of the best defensive centerfielders in baseball. You wonder if both will still be in the system at year's end.

6. Josh Hamilton looks put out by rehabbing.

7. Tommy Mendonca has seven walks all year. I saw two of them last night.

8. Sad I missed Mike Bianucci and a decent starter.

Colonial, day one

Cink or swim

The great thing about pro golf in north Texas is that it attracts the hottest ass. Mostly hot rich ass. But hot, nonetheless. Let the Fort Worth Star-Telegram take you away. You have to fight through the douchebags with their gay visors and Titleist hats and you will find premium skirt.

The other great thing about pro golf is the golfers.

Here's are things are looking through one day.

David Toms -- -8
The leader after day one. Just days after choking away The Players Championship. The 40-something is clearly playing great golf.

Rickie Fowler -- -7
If you watched the Masters closely, you remember Fowler. He's a young kid that looks like a total dick (flat-billed cap, orchestrated wardrobe), but he can play some golf. Looking for a breakthrough. Let's see where he's at Sunday afternoon. Considered a huge contender for this tourney.

Stewart Cink -- -6
He finished second at the Colonial in 2000 and has never missed a cut in 14 attempts.

Adam Scott -- -4
Eh.

Sergio Garcia -- -4
Rory Sabbatini -- -2
I love that Sabbatini is always a favorite at north Texas tournaments because he lives here and he's won once. Kind of need to win again at some point. Remember when Sergio was relevant?

Jim Furyk -- -3
Anthony Kim -- -3
It'd be cool to see either win this tournament.

Zach Johnson -- -2
OK day one. Needs to ramp it up for the weekend.

Jason Day -- +1
Yikes. So much for him.

Dogfight

Getting my Harden

You didn't think it'd be easy, did you?

The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-100 last night at the Amercian Airlines Center, stealing home-court advantage in the Western Conference Finals.

Someone noted that one tactic the Thunder might take is the simple law of averages. That Russell Westbrook wouldn't shoot that poorly, that the bench wouldn't be that bad and that Dirk Nowitzki wasn't going to get 30 free-throw attempts per game.

On cue, that happened. The Thunder bench was phenomenal. Westbrook was loads better. And Nowitzki went to the line 10 times. It all evened out, much like the series itself.

The one constant is this: The Mavericks' inability to play defense. In that fourth quarter, with the game on the line -- and make no bones about it, this was a wide-open game -- the Mavericks could not get a stop. Period.

Some of it was the Thunder making some tough shots. A lot of it was the Mavericks' greatest weakness (defense) coming to light.

What was most shocking to me was how much time Jason Terry and J.J. Barea -- the team's two worst defenders -- were getting in this time period.

I thought they were abused. I was pretty much floored watching Barea get those fourth-quarter minutes. Seems like he plays 30 minutes a game. That's how bad he is defensively. Look at it this way, Barea's line:

15:40 minutes - 11 points -4 assists - 0 turnovers - -12 plus/minus

Consider that for a minute. He played 15 minutes of professional basketball. He scored 11 and was a helper in at least eight other points (this doesn't count for free throws and the extra point on a three pointer). He was responsible for at least 19 points while he was on the floor in 15 minutes. He did not personally turn the ball over.

Still, the Thunder outscored the Mavericks by 12 when he was on the court. That's remarkable.

I've never seen guards quite like Terry and Barea get so lost in a zone defense like they do on a nightly basis. The zone is a relatively simple proposition. You stay in a zone and guard anyone in it. However, you will regularly find Terry and Barea six feet from a guy in his zone while they are chasing a player in another zone. This, too, is remarkable.

Eric Maynor -- who was good last night -- is a legit problem for Barea and Terry. Problem is this: He's as quick and fast as they are. That's not something they saw against Portland and Los Angeles.

Rewatch the fourth quarter. Count the times Terry and Barea were scored upon. At will.

Another awful basketball player is Brenda "Brendan" Haywood. You can try and convince me that he's better than Erick Dampier. Go ahead. But I am not buying in. Dampier was not great. Haywood is awful.

For one, he was posterized by Kevin Durant. You could argue that Durant's facial on Haywood last night was worse than Tracy McGrady riding Shawn Bradley like a rented mule.

Haywood is seven feet tall. Durant was at least 12 feet from the tip of his finger in the air and Haywood stood there, limpy, getting beat like a red-headed stepchild.

Add in all the dumb fouls, the times he was beaten to a rebound and that dumb face running back down the court like he could give a shit, it was arguably the worst single game by a Dallas Maverick in playoff history. It was anti-Dirk.

However, again, this was a close game. The Mavericks had their shot. They failed. Nothing to get too discouraged about, but you must adjust and fine tune your game defensively. It was never going to be easy and now's not the time to sit still and expect the higher seed to simply roll.

Hitting a wall

Double down

There is a radical misconception about the Texas Rangers.

Most nights the spotlight is placed on the pitching staff. In their 4-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox, the MLB.com story focused on Cody Eppley allowing the winning run.

Bunk. They gloss over the Rangers having one extra-base hit (an Endy Chavez double), leaving 18 runners on base or squandering seven walks in addition to a quality Matt Harrison start.

Hell, they even gloss over Harrison's own control problems walking two White Sox before Brett Morel's three-run home run. That was the real clincher. Of course, the Rangers offense had one actual RBI (they scored on a double play ball, an error and a sac fly). Do not worry about Neftali Feliz, Darren Oliver or anyone else.

The same ol' story in Kansas City last night. Alexi Ogando was fantastic (seven innings, five baserunners). Yet, the offense did not show up. They eked out five runs after a two-run Adrian Beltre single in the 11th inning.

Imagine scoring just three runs in regulation off 13 walks, eight hits and five stolen bases. They left 22 on base. That is ridiculous. Even bad teams will get six across with 21 men on base.

They ground into three double plays and "wasted" three outs on sacrifices, including one by Ian Kinsler, your No. 3 hitter.

Furthermore, Mike Young walked three times in virtual intentional fashion because opponents apparently have zero problem throwing to Beltre, in spite of his 37 RBI.

Thankfully, help may be on the way. Josh Hamilton and Nellie Cruz rehabbed last night in Frisco. Hamilton homered. In any situation in which Dave Murphy, Craig Gentry, Chavez and Mitch Moreland aren't the outfielders is a vast improvement.

It'll allow Beltre to move down and potentially protect Hamilton in the three-hole with Mike Young (or Cruz). Right now, Beltre's your No. 7 hitter with Cruz and Hamilton healthy, right?

I do wonder if the Rangers are rushing Hamilton back a little, whether he's truly healthy or not? That could be bad news. Recurring injuries typically always crop up. Rather get him healthy now.

Let's play golf

Zach Johnson & Johnson

The Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial began this morning in Fort Worth.

Every spring, we are reminded in Dallas-Fort Worth just how stinking lucky we are, sportswise. It's one thing to have four relatively successful major sports franchises.

It's another thing to have the ancilliary events like The Colonial and the Byron Nelson in Dallas. Just think, you could leave work right now, head on over to The Colonial and watch some of the greatest golfers in the world, right now. It's relatively easy. You might see Lebron James or Sidney Crosby once a year; and you might see Adam Scott, Jason Day, Jim Furyk or Angel Cabrera once a year. Fact is, in Dallas, you can.

Here's who to watch:

Zach Johnson
The defending champ and the 36th ranked player in the world. One top 10 finish in 2011, so far.

Matt Kuchar
The highest-ranked player at Colonial this weekend. He's having a stellar 2011 with six top 10 finishes.

Jim Furyk
A consummate professional. Love watched him play. Very understated for a guy who's won before.

Jason Day
Impressed the pants off everyone at the Masters. He's 23 and has five top 10 finishes so far.

Adam Scott
For a three-year period, Scott was my boy. Rooted for him as the potential next big thing. Then he flamed out. Did finish second at the Masters.

The Western Conference: In review

Wouldn't it be nice if he had teammates

If this playoffs has done anything in the NBA, it's proven that the regular season means nothing and the line between a No. 8 seed (Memphis) and a No. 1 seed (San Antonio) is minimal.

Or, it represents the fact that the Western Conference is incredibly deep and that if you give a team seven games to win four, you will get upsets. Yes, it's about match-ups and the Grizz were an animal the Spurs didn't have an answer for. Still, the Grizz are not a bad team by any means. They're really good. That's good for the league. That's good for fans.

Los Angeles Lakers -- 59-25 -- 57-25
The Lakers are a good team. Hate them all you want. Still, it's a good team. Something clearly went haywire in the playoffs and if someone wanted to write a book, that'd be a good topic.

Oklahoma City Thunder -- 58-24 -- 55-27
I thought James Harden made a minor jump. Think Russell Westbrook made a huge jump to one of the top 15 players in the league this season. Still, there's room there to get a lot better. That's the reality here: The Thunder will only get better.

Dallas Mavericks -- 51-32 -- 57-25
I thought this was the same team as last year. Clearly not the case. Point to Tyson Chandler all you want. I think Dirk Nowitzki found some even level and turned some corner that we failed to realize was there to turn.

Utah Jazz -- 51-31 -- 39-43
Everything I thought about the Jazz was wrong. Outside of Gordon Heyward, of course. I thought he was pretty good for a rookie.

San Antonio Spurs -- 50-32 -- 61-21
Who knew they had this in them? A superbly run franchise.

Denver Nuggets -- 46-36 -- 50-32
Denver somehow got better without Carmelo Anthony. Figure that out. Just so athletic. With Utah struggling, Denver was bound to pick up a few more wins.

Portland Blazers -- 45-37 -- 48-34
Greg Oden and Brandon Roy couldn't stay together for even a game. Yet, LaMarcus Aldridge took the jump of year and became a beast.

Phoenix Suns -- 44-38 -- 40-42
It's Steve Nash (an aging, expensive Steve Nash) surrounded by poo-poo and bad coaching. Remember when they were athletic and scary?

New Orleans Hornets -- 44-38 -- 46-36
I never quite feared the Hornets. Still, they worked it and got 46 wins despite an insanely unstable future. Chris Paul is strong, to quite strong.

Memphis Grizzlies -- 39-43 -- 46-36
"Zach Randolph didn't get any major MVP consideration a year ago, but was there any other 10 guys that meant more to his team (the Grizz approached .500) than Randolph?" True that. ZBo was fantastic and no team brought it defensively more than Memphis. Just athletic black dudes working hard, wreaking havoc.

Los Angeles Clippers -- 36-46 -- 32-50
I don't understand why they weren't better. I could not have estimated Blake Griffin being any better. I'm sure Baron Davis' departure hurt in addition to Eric Gordon's injuries.

Sacramento Kings -- 35-47 -- 24-58
The Kings are on arrest alert. No less than four Kings will be arrested this summer. Look for it. Ironically, the Kings were almost moved and yet everyone fought to keep them. Fans, of course, and city leaders wanted them there. Funny thing, there's not a more unlikable team in the NBA. You never want to lose a sports franchise, but would most of Sacramento really miss this Kings team?

Houston Rockets -- 30-52 -- 43-39
Blow. Them. Up. All of them. Including Luis Scola and any youngsters. Sell high.

Golden State Warriors -- 24-58 -- 36-46
Speaking of, see what you can for Monta Ellis. No doubt he has a ridiculous, untradeable contract, but test the waters. Blow it up.

Minnesota Timberwolves -- 19-63 -- 17-65
Chris Paul is superstar No. 1 with zero help. Kevin Love is top three. There is little reason why he is not on a team winning 50 games a year.

Dirk

We love you, Dirk Nowitzki

I've watched a lot of NBA Playoff basketball in my life. I've been fortunate enough to have been a monster NBA fan in the late-1980s and throughout the 1990s, when I was privvy to Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Reggie Miller and many more.

I'm not an expert on the NBA and there are many others that have seen and remember more than me. Still, Dirk Nowitzki's 48-point effort in the first game of the 2011 Western Conference Finals ranks. The Dallas Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 121-112.

Some of the more remarkable aspects of Nowitzki's night:

1. It took him a mere 15 shots (12 of which he made) to get his 48 points.

2. He still filled up the box score getting six rebounds, four assists and four blocks.

3. He did not attempt a three pointer.

What more can I say? What can I type here that could appropriately communicate to you just how gloriously fantastic Nowitzki was and has been the last two weeks?

I will say this, it was effortless. He scored 48. It felt like 25. That is the highest praise I can give Nowitzki for last night, yet, I don't feel it's good enough.

I think there's little analysis and not very much to talk about here, honestly. That sounds weird.

I think the Mavericks go to the film room with a lot to improve, and if you're the Thunder, you don't fee completely out of it.

As good as Nowitzki was last night, Kevin Durant was maybe just as good. He was almost perfect for most of the game and he scored 40 himself.

I think the lynchpin here is Russell Westbrook. I said yesterday that if he's not scoring 25 and completely controlling the tempo, then the Thunder don't have a prayer. He shot 3-15 from the field, and wound up with 20 points, mostly from the charity stripe.

If Westbrook figures some things out and gets the Thunder on the run, they will give the Mavericks trouble.

For the Thunder, they will start to double Nowitzki and force the rest of the Mavericks to shoot, which is wise. They threw James Harden, Durant, Thebo Sefolosha, Serge Ibaka, Nick Collison and the kitchen sink at Nowitzki. None of it worked.

Another note: Tyson Chandler needs to chill the fuck out. He can claim innocence all he wants, but that was a dumb technical at the start of the game, and it's been a recurring theme these playoffs and this mock "thug" act is getting old.

The Dallas Mavericks: Why the fuck not?

Durant, OklahomDurant, Oklahoma

The Dallas Mavericks begin their fourth Western Conference Finals in franchise history tonight against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

I'm tired of doubting the Mavericks. I doubted them against Portland. I doubted them against Los Angeles.

It goes against everything that is right and normal in the world. But the Mavericks are winning games and no matter what I think of Oklahoma City or the Mavericks, I sure as hell am not picking against the latter.

Mavericks in seven, because I can't imagine it going just five and I don't think the Mavericks will win it on the road. Too tough. That goddamn city is nuts.

Five things:

Russell Westbrook
I don't care what happened in the regular season. Westbrook played like a top 15 player in the league all season and he is fit to get the Mavericks fits. He's big and quick. He can pound the smaller guys and by Jason Kidd any time he wants. Westbrook should score 25 points a game, and if he doesn't, the Thunder are screwed.

Rust v. Rest
The debate of the long rest versus fighting off rust will get an answer. Frankly, if there was a definitive answer to whether long layoffs help a team, we'd have it. I think the Mavericks might be a little rusty to start, and, ideally, it'll shake off with time. Can the Thunder pounce?

Mis-match-ups
One thing that worries me about the Thunder is that the Mavericks' strengths defensively (quick, smart guards and bodies frontcourt) do not match up to the Thunder's strengths offensively. The Thunder have zero length and Kendrick Perkins is a nice piece in the middle, but he's not a guy like LaMarcus Aldridge or Pau Gasol or Andy Bynum that needs constant attention. The Thunder depend on the George Gervin-like Kevin Durant and Westbrook. As noted, Westbrook should punish the Mavericks. As for Durant, the Mavericks will need an answer. He's no warm body just jacking up shots. He's won the scoring title two straight seasons. He's a super-duper-star. You can't imagine that Shawn Marion will stop him for seven games.

Experience
Does it really matter? Do the Chicago Bulls have experience or any more experience than the Thunder? To me, it's bullshit. The idea that a team "doesn't know how to win these type of games" seems lame. It's convenient. Why can't a team just not execute. Happens all the time. Hopefully the Mavericks aren't hanging their hats on experience.

Peaking
Did the Mavericks absolutely peak against the Los Angeles Lakers? Let's face it, they played a nearly flawless series and that game four was otherworldly. There's a good chance they'll never play that well again. In a perfect storm (or a nearly-perfect storm), the Thunder run the Mavericks out of the gym. I don't know if the Thunder have that in them; on the other hand, I don't know if the Mavericks have the legs or guts to go seven games with the young Thunder.