Baseball is a game of failure. This is no new sentiment, but we tend to package that bitter pill in a cupcake of success: at the end of a slump, or after a blown save. This too shall pass. We’ll get ‘em tomorrow.
But when seen through a broader lens, rarely does the indefatigable weathering of baseball more viciously howl its presence than on the most hopeful day of the season. As pitchers and catchers report, and hope spring(training)s eternal, so too do ghosts screech mortality into our ears. Those ghosts have names, and they are all listed conveniently in alphabetical order in PR e-mails from one year ago this week.
When pitchers and catchers reported on February 15th, 2017, the Texas Rangers had 63 players in camp. Of those 63, just 28 will return in 2018. Gone are -takes a deeeeep breath* Dario Alvarez, R.J. Alvarez, Anthony Bass, Doug Bernier, Pat Cantwell, Andrew Cashner, Yu Darvish, Brady Dragmire, Sam Dyson, Andrew Faulkner, Prince Fielder*, Eddie Gamboa, Dillon Gee, Carlos Gomez, A.J. Griffin, Josh Hamilton (!!!), Mike Hauschild, Brett Hayes, Jared Hoying, Jeremy Jeffress, A.J. Jimenez, Steven Lerud, James Loney, Jonathan Lucroy, Adam Loewen, Nick Martinez, Will Middlebrooks, Mike Napoli, Cesar Puello, Tyson Ross, Tanner Scheppers, Travis Snider, Jose Valdespina, Allen Webster, and Wesley Wright. (those in bold played at least one game at the big-league level for the Rangers in 2017).
Some, like Lerud and Hayes, took coaching or scouting jobs in the organization. Others (Martinez, Scheppers, and Hoying) are in Asia. Fielder and Hamilton, at least, are out of baseball. You recognize the ones who were traded at the deadline. And of course, given the stagnant off-season, there are quite a few free agents who may very well plot-twist themselves back into an already-crammed (and—for this practice, anyway—aptly-named) Surprise locker room before Opening Day.
Of course, ghosts being what they are, they cannot out-scream the tangible chorus of leather and wood and horsehide and stitches that has already begun to permeate the ever-elongating days. “Pitchers and Catchers Report” is the crucifix we hold steady in the face of Punxsutawney Phil. No, you corpulent rodent. Winter had its moment. The power of baseball compels you.
As such, there is hope to counterpoise the ghosts.
As of Tuesday morning at 9:55 am CT, there are 65 players with invitations to the Rangers’ big-league camp. That’s before the Seung-hwan Oh signing is announced, so let’s call it 66. They fall into three categories…
There are 28 who were in the big-league camp last year: Hanser Alberto, Elvis Andrus, Tony Barnette, Adrian Beltre, Matt Bush, Robinson Chirinos, Alex Claudio, Shin-Soo Choo, Delino DeShields, Jake Diekman, Joey Gallo, Chi Chi Gonzalez, Ronald Guzman, Cole Hamels, Ariel Jurado, Keone Kela, Jose Leclerc, Nomar Mazara, Yohander Mendez, Brett Nicholas, Rougned Odor, Martin Perez, Jurickson Profar, Drew Robinson, Ryan Rua, Connor Sadzeck, and Jose Trevino.
There are 17 who were in the organization in 2017, but not in big-league camp. Some have worked their way up from the minor-league side, and others arrived in 2017 via trade: Austin Bibens-Dirkx, Clayton Blackburn, Willie Calhoun, Jose Cardona, Paolo Espino, Nick Gardewine, Reed Garrett, Scott Heineman, Jonathan Hernandez, Andy Ibanez, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Brett Martin, Joe Palumbo, Ricky Rodriguez, Adrian Sampson, Tayler Scott, and Jeffrey Springs.
And then there are the new guys. 22 players who were not Texas Rangers when the season ended, but are now sporting the T on their hat and Texas on their chest. In this case, we’ll use bold for those who played in the big leagues with any team last year: Darwin Barney (TOR), Curt Casali (TBR), Juan Centeno (HOU), Bartolo Colón (ATL, MIN), Steve Delabar (CLE), Doug Fister (BOS), Erik Goeddel (NYM), Deolis Guerra (LAA), Ronald Herrera (NYY), Destin Hood (MIA), David Hurlbut (MIN), Kevin Jepsen (WAS), Christian Lopes (TOR), Chris Martin (NPB), Mike Minor (KCR), Matt Moore (SFG), Jon Niese (NYY), Seung-hwan Oh (STL), Mike Ohlman (TOR), Trevor Plouffe (OAK, TBR), Carlos Tocci (PHI), and Shawn Tolleson (TBR).
Of course, each of those guys is missing from a list like this somewhere else in the valley, or in Florida, each failure the result of a beginning, and each beginning a result of a failure. Such is the game of baseball, and such is the way of life. Let’s take another spin around the sun, shall we?
