Baseball is My Boyfriend

I'm not even going to begin to speculate why Derek Holland seems so mentally solid this year.  But I'm certainly grateful for it. Tonight, he pitched seven innings, allowing just one run on 10 hits.  He even navigated a few innings full of defensive nightmares, not letting them snowball into a slew of runs.  That's maturity at play. At the same time, I want to know who broke Nelson Cruz.  Tonight is a game he'd probably like to forget (along with Game 6 of the 2011 World Series, which he'll probably never live down).  He was 0 for 5 with three strikeouts and at least three bad plays in the outfield.  If I wasn't cringing, I was cussing at him.  Come on, Nelson Robinson Cruz.  Find the boomstick again! Ian Kinsler and Mitch Moreland each brought their version of the boomstick, homering in the 2nd and 3rd innings, respectively.  Moreland ended the night with two RBI, and Adrian Beltre was responsible...

Justin Grimm had an outstanding April -- two wins, an ERA of 1.59, and earning AL Rookie of the Month honors.  But May hasn't been so kind for the Reaper.  Tonight, his ERA ballooned a little more as he gave up five runs in the 1st inning -- on three singles, a double and a home run. It was hideous, but I tried to stay optimistic. It was only the 1st inning after all, and I hoped a near-shutout in Chicago might wake the Texas bats. Mitch Moreland hit a home run in the 2nd inning.  The Rangers started a bit of a rally in the 6th when Jeff Baker hit a lead-off single, scooted to third on an Elvis Andrus double and then scored when Aramis Ramirez biffed on an Adrian Beltre hit.  Andrus scored a little while later on a Nelson Cruz sac fly. The gap was now just 5-3.  Two runs isn't so insurmountable, right? But then Ramirez atoned...

It's no secret that I've always had a special place in my baseball heart for Scott Feldman.  I was probably among the very few who liked him toward the end of his Rangers tenure.  And I will take full blame for his regression after that 2009 season.  I bought a Feldman shirsey and he was never quite the same. He seems to be OK with the Cubs though.  Especially against his former team.  Tonight, he held the Rangers scoreless and almost completely off the bases.  Through seven innings, Texas only reached base three times -- two hits and a walk.  Oh, and Feldman also collected an RBI.  Go figure. Meanwhile, Nick Tepesch was not having a good time with the Cubs' lineup.  He only lasted four innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on six hits and four walks.  That 4th inning was especially ugly -- the Cubs scored five in that time.  Chicago got another run off Michael Kirkman,...

The Rangers must have known somehow that I had a bad day and needed them tonight.  They sure came through.  What good boyfriends! Derek Holland was pretty great.  He tossed eight scoreless innings, allowing six hits and walking one while fanning six.  He didn't have his usual meltdown inning, and he didn't seem to lose focus even after his teammates gave him a nice big cushion to work with.  Now that's a sign of maturity I've been waiting to see from Dutch. Speaking of that cushion, it sure was great to see the offense back at it tonight.  They got one in the 2nd, but then busted the game wide open in the 4th.  It started with a one-out Mitch Moreland single (he was 3 for 4 tonight, by the way, indicating he didn't like me dissing him last night).  When Craig Gentry struck out, it looked like the inning might be over quick.  But no.  Ian Kinsler had other...