PLAY BALL! Let's Go Rangers!

"There are 108 beads on the Catholic Rosary and there are 108 stitches on a baseball. When I learned that, I gave Jesus a chance" - Annie Savoy

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If it has not become evident, while we write about all sports, our hearts are with baseball and to be more specific,Texas Ranger Baseball. Sunday night the Rangers open the season against the Houston Astros, the newest member of the American League West.

Unlike the last few seasons, the Rangers will truly have a new look. Michael Young is a Phillie, Mike Napoli is in Boston, Colby Lewis and Netfali Feliz are still on the shelf and of course, the story of the off-season, Josh Hamilton and his reality tv like career, signed with the Angels.

"Baseball is only a pastime, a sport, an entertainment, a way of blowing off steam. But it is also the national game, with an appeal to Americans of every race, color, creed, sex or political opinion. It unites Americans in the common cause of rooting for the home team." - Jackie Robinson

The beauty of opening day is that last year is forgotten and there are high hopes in every major league city. It is a day to forget about the past and talk about the future. So after six months of finding new ways to insult Hamilton, with an exception here or there, old JDaddy will do his best to move on and look at three key areas for the Rangers in 2013.

Read More after the break

Texas Rangers 2012 - The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

Somehow, some way, the sun came up Saturday morning after Friday night's Rangers loss to the Orioles. To be honest, I was more surprised with that fact after Game 7 in 2011 than I was this time around. It is a good thing that we can now complain about a 93 win season. The bar has been raised by the Rangers organization, the players, and the fans. Over 3 million were in the Ball Park this year and many more like me kept up on TV or through the Internet. We talked about it on Facebook and some of us learned to Tweet. The third time would be a charm and in April we seemed locked an loaded.

But it all came crashing down. While the last two weeks were bad, there were signs along the way that this team had many leaks in the dam.

It never won an Academy Award, but if ever there was a movie title which exemplifies the 2012 Texas Rangers season, it is Clint Eastwood's spaghetti western classic "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly". We have gathered a few and would like to hear some of yours.

Check it out after the break.

TJ Kool on MLB's New Playoff Structure

After the announcement by Major League Baseball that there would be a second Wild Card team from each league beginning this season, I was curious how they would fit it in.

There are a lot of changes in MLB right now. Salaries are going up, hitting power numbers have mellowed, the Houston Astros are headed to the American League West, and teams like my Rangers, the Tigers and Brewers are contenders, after decades of obscurity.

Changes keep the sport fresh and relevant. Baseball is the most exclusive of the big 4 sports when it comes to the playoffs. Of the 32 teams in the bigs, only 8 got in last year, and 10 beginning this year. In the NFL, 12 of 30 get in, followed by the NBA and NHL which both allow 16 of 30. That exclusivity in the MLB is what makes consecutive playoff year streaks so special.

With MLB's new system, less than a third of the teams will get in, I know that is still exclusive when compared with the NFL, NBA and NHL. My biggest concern is the new 1st round.

Ryan Braun...The More Things Change....The More Things Stay The Same

With the news today that Milwaukee outfileder and N.L. MVP  Ryan Braun tested positive for P.E.D.s , we at JDadduDu demand that if these charges are proven true the MVP award be given to Matt Kemp of the LA Dodgers.

The award should have been Kemp's all along as he put together the best season no one knew about. In addition, he was awarded the prestigious "Batsman of the Year" award from JDaddyDu.

As is always the case, Braun has said there must be some mistake in the testing, but as we know, that's what they all say. Maybe he "mis-remembered".

But nothing should surprise us any more. In our article of October 9th, we profiled the Brewers as a team that reminded us of "Curly Joe" of the "Three Stooges". The misfit who never fit in. But we gave Braun a pass....... Shame on us. He fits right in with the rest of them.

Braun has been one of those who seemed above it all.

Baseball should know better. We should know better. When will we ever learn?

National League Most Valuable Batsman

Last week we announced Miguel Cabrera as our Most Valuable Batsman in The American League. Cabrera edged out Yankees All Star, Curtis Granderson by a "Cheap Seat Score" of 1024.9 to 1024.3.

In the National League, our winner led the field by a wider margin. With very little fan fare and more attention being paid to the plight of his franchise, he ended the year with the highest score of any player in either league.

Our National Leaguers averaged 97 Runs, 172 Hits, 31 Home Runs, 106 RBIs, .302 Batting Average and an OPS of .925

Our National League Batsman of the Year is..........................................

Rangers/Brewers/Cardinals/Brewers.................. The Three Stooges?

With the Tigers/Ranger rain out of game 2, there was some time to take a look at what promises to be a very exciting end to the 2011 Major League Baseball season. In a non alcoholic vision, I realized that the final four teams remaining are just like my heroes "The Three Stooges".

Welcome Back NFL and MLB's Ugliest Players

This week we bring you news from the NFL and from MLB.  JDaddy gives some thoughts on the NFL labor dispute, and CDog takes disrespectful potshots at men bigger than he is by introducing his Top 10 ugliest MLB baseball players.

We also have a casting call out.  With football season approaching we want to include some football season or tailgaiting recipes.  If you have something, send it to us and if we use it we'll give you a shout out and plug your website/blog/whatever if you have one. 

Now, onto the column.