SPORTS
THE BATTALION
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
No A-Rod, no problem
^Rangers tied for first atop AL West
By Stephen Hawkins
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARLINGTON, Texas —
fter three straight last-place
nishes in Texas, Alex
odriguez wanted out.
Now the American League
VP’s former team is tied for
e AL West lead, while
odriguez and the New York
[ankees are struggling.
The Rangers, built around a
fcre of young players, are 11-8
alter the opening stretch of the
ason against division oppo-
nts. They’re even with
naheim for first place — and
xas won five of seven against
e Angels.
“Us being young and every-
ing said about us, we came out
d just wanted to play well,”
tcher Gerald Laird said
onday. “It’s just chemistry. Our
am is really open and we like to
ave fun and do a good job.”
When Texas traded
odriguez just before spring
aining, having already let go
sluggers Rafael Palmeiro
d two-time AL MVP Juan
mzalez, there were plenty of
|ire predictions of a 100-loss
ason.
Imagine the thoughts after the
angers lost their first two games,
three weeks later, Texas tops
division after a three-game
eekend sweep of Seattle that
Iminated with a 14-6 win.
The Rangers are still scoring
1 a lot of runs (5.8 per game)
iHespite the departed power hit-
rl ters, and lead the majors with a
®15 batting average — the only
Bam over .300. Their pitching
staff, the worst in the majors
Bree of the last four seasons, has
■4.34 ERA, fifth-best in the AL.
1 “We have a lot of confidence
in our young guys,” manager
Buck Showalter said. “I’m not
intentionally low-keying. It’s
ality. We’ve played 19 games
|ut of a 162-game schedule. So
r, so good.”
Especially for a team coming
four straight last-place finishes.
During the three seasons
with Rodriguez, the Rangers
lost 270 games and were atop
Be division for only three days,
Bne of those after winning last
Bear’s season opener.
I While Rodriguez is finally
starting to shake his slump in
Blew York, the Yankees were
Iwept by Boston last weekend
to drop to 8-1 1 and 4 1/2 games
lut in the AL East. The last time
Jeffrey Washington • KRT CAMPUS
Texas Ranger first baseman Mark Texeira disrupts a throw from Anaheim
Angel second baseman David Ecksteins during the first inning of the
Rangers' 7-6 win April 1 2 at the Ballpark in Arlington. Texas and Anaheim
are tied for first place in the American League West.
riHiYl'i
Hi
in
New York was three games
under .500 this late in the season
was 1997, the last time they did
n’t finish first.
“It’s not going to get any
easier. I’d rather go through this
now than any other time,”
Rodriguez said. “We will turn
this around.”
The Rangers, whose last divi
sion title was in 1999, have sure
turned it around without A-Rod.
The last time Texas was three
games over .500 was at 30-27 in
June 2000, the summer before
Rodriguez arrived. The Rangers
then lost eight in a row and
spent most of the time since at
the bottom of the AL West.
Things are much different
this season. Not only its
record, but the feeling sur
rounding the team.
“We have a sense of direc
tion. We talked about it all win
ter, and I think it was ultimately
culminated with the trade,” gen
eral manager John Hart said.
“We were going to commit to as
many young players as we could.
We also realize we do have holes,
this is not a finished product.”
But a pretty good one.
Michael Young, one of the
AL’s best defensive second
basemen, has made the transi
tion to shortstop to fill the void
left by Rodriguez and is hitting
a team-high .378. His only two
fielding errors came on consec
utive plays in the home opener.
Alfonso Soriano, the second
baseman who came over from
the Yankees in the A-Rod deal,
is hitting .338. He has just 10
strikeouts in 78 at-bats.
The Rangers are also getting
good production from young
players such as Hank Blalock
(.325, four home runs, 17 RBIs),
Laynce Nix (.364, 5, 13) and
Laird (.356), who played in 19
major league games before this
season. Veterans such as Eric
Young (.378) and David
Dellucci (.314), signed to one-
year contracts to fill gaps, also
have been solid.
“We’re a confident group of
guys right now,” Michael
Young said. “We believe we
can go out and win, and that’s a
good feeling to have.”
Even with starting pitchers
Colby Lewis and Mickey
Callaway on the disabled list, the
pitching staff has not self-
destructed. The struggles of Chan
Ho Park (1-3, 5.19 ERA) contin
ue, but Kenny Rogers (3-0, 3.96)
has been a solid No. 1 starter in
his third stint with Texas.
Archery
Continued from page 8
archery team will be that it has to fund itself
-just like the other 29 club sports currently
at A&M.
But without a significant growth in archery,
that money can be better used elsewhere. It
could be used toward the other 16 varsity
sports currently sponsored by A&M, or it
could go to a new varsity sport that already has
NCAA sponsorship - even if the budget allo
cated for archery is minimal.
Either way, it is money better spent if it
increases the Athletic Departments’ success
across the board.
Although archery does give A&M some pres
tige to those who follow the sport, it does little
else. Archery brings very little revenue, if any, to
the Athletic Department.
Without a chance of growth in the sport and
an NCAA-sponsored championship on the hori
zon, the benefits that archery brings to A&M
don’t justify the money spent for it.
Byrne’s decision to put the archery program
under review is the best decision for A&M’s
Athletic Department.
Sometimes feelings have to be pushed aside
in the business world.
CONGRATULATIONS.
YOU NOW HAVE
A THING CALLED
CREDENTIALS.
Diplomaframers.com is your ultimate source for diploma frames in styles to fit every budget. Design and order
your frame online, in minutes, and insert your diploma later. Get hooked up now at www.diplomaframers.com.
FREE shipping through May 15th
OFFICIALLY LICENSED BY TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
Diploma
Framers.com
Heart of Texas
GOODWILL IND.
NOW ACCEPTING DONATIONS
AT^jJU^LOCATION
2704 TEXAS AVENUE
SUITE # 3
(near Tractor Supply)
RETAIL STORE OPENING SOON!
lfJl"Aggieland DepottlL
Boot Display Cases
www.aggieland-depot.com
% Culpeppe04az|^MS9^^22jj^^
Hot and Ready
Large
Pepperoni
Pizza
s 5 Little Caesars
EVERYDAY 696-0191
carry out only
2501 Texas Ave. S
NAMED ONE OF
BRYAN/COLLEGE STATION’S
HIPPEST NOOKS & CRANNIES!
2 16 N. Bryan . C, C O p
( Egi rtInvert)
Handpainted Kites • Incense 6 Oils
Museum Reproductions • Religious Art
Music of the Spheres Chimes
Garden Art
Wood Sculptures • Buddha Boards
Beautiful Sterling Silver Jewelry
beans
NOW OPEN
452 Southwest Parkway
979-694-2600
(Corner of Southwest Parkway & Dartmouth)
, ^buy'one'get one"free s i
ii„*:i m~. i inrH
I
Until May 1.2004
ot^ beans
4S2 Southwest Parkway
^ (Southwest Parkway & Dartmouth) J
Gj-kircUtlli CkocoUtc
ses
Ejyrcsid
?mjyt
Stvcovikitr
3ctd 2) rinks CajhKCciM
Sbaily (jrihd ddot ChocoUtt
Orc^sK Ck&t d&ttt
The
Battalion
IN PRINT
ONLINE
ON RADIO
E
8
■
ts
(O
£1
O)
News
Sports
Opinion
Mailcall
Aggielife
Photo
Graphics
Comics
AP News
Classifieds
Class Councils Presents:
CLASS OF 2005
Tickets: $15 at MSC Box
Office or $20 at the door
Formal attire
Pictures start at 5pm
ROOT DANCE
iWBBr fir"** iWwn
Live entertainment
T-shirts on sale:
April 19th-30th
Clas8of2005.tamu.edu
May 15, 2004
9pm-lam
Rudder Exhibit Hall
Smart Move.
Pack in extra credits this summer