It is clear that Tom Hicks is turning into Ross Perot Jr. – at least his pattern of ownership seems to be very similar.
If you recall, Perot lead the group that bought the Mavericks from Don Carter. Shortly after that, the Mavs spiraled downward until they were the laughingstock of the NBA. ESPN even flashed “Mavericks highlights – turn away!” on the screen during Sportscenter to alert fans to the horrible basketball that was about to be shown. Perot was all about real estate development and didn’t know anything about creating a winning basketball team. He (with Hicks as a partner) later developed the very successful Victory Plaza around the American Airlines Center after he sold the team.

Hicks now seems to be totally immersed in developing Glorypark between the ballpark and Jerryworld. Just as Perot always had more of a knack for real estate than the pick and roll, Hicks seems to be devoting more and more resources to development and less to winning. Our only hope is that there is a passionate baseball fan that can convince Hicks to sell the Rangers. This guy would have to overpay, because Hicks would not like the idea about “selling low” now that the Rangers are abysmal. The longer he waits, the worse the Rangers will get. They have in no way hit rock bottom, but that could be coming in the next year or two. I would suggest the time to sell would be immediately. In other words, the Rangers need to find their Mark Cuban. Say what you will about Cuban, but the Mavericks would not be where they are without him. I am not saying it should be Cuban, just someone like him. Surely there is a passionate baseball fan with hundreds of millions of dollars to invest.

Remember when Hicks bought the Rangers? Everyone was excited because the perception was that the previous ownership did not have the money to pursue high dollar free agents. Everyone thought Hicks would spend what was needed to bring a winner to Arlington. One of the first things he did was sign ARod to the largest contract in baseball history, paying him tens of millions of dollars more than anyone else would. On the ticket they extolled Hick’s greatness with a song about his “big 12 pounder” implying that Hick’s had the stroke to get whatever the Rangers wanted.

Unfortunately, in baseball, you have to be smart as well as rich. Proof of this is George Steinbrenner, who annually spends twice as much as virtually every team in baseball, but has not won a world championship in this millennium. When Hicks bought the Rangers, they had a strong minor league system which regularly churned out top position players, particularly Latin players. Hicks ignored these assets and like any other asset they depreciated until now they are in a very sorry state. Hicks inherited a quality GM in Doug Melvin, but later fired him to hire “the smartest GM in baseball” John Hart. After dabbling with Grady Fuson, Hicks hired the youngest GM in baseball history who has made mistakes of the highest magnitude in both hiring and trades.

Hicks bought the best soccer club in England and they promptly lost their first championship match under him. He commented about how the fans were so loyal and passionate as compared to the US teams he owned. Be careful what you ask for. I am sure those fans are feeling the same way Rangers fans did back when. They expect him to get them the players they need to be perennial champs. How long will it take for them to realize that this won’t happen? If his poor management skills rear their ugly head in Liverpool, those fans will be calling for Hicks’ head and he may not feel so comfortable traveling in the UK.

Mr. Hicks – please see the handwriting on the wall and sell now, before the Rangers hit rock bottom with your continued mistake-ridden Ross Perot Jr.-like leadership!

Reported today:
ARLINGTON, Texas — Rangers general manager Jon Daniels was given a one-year contract extension Tuesday despite a 26-43 start that left Texas with the worst record in the major leagues.

The 29-year-old Daniels, who became the youngest GM in major league history when he replaced John Hart in October 2005, now has a contract through 2009.

Going into Tuesday night’s game against the Chicago Cubs, the Rangers and rookie manager Ron Washington were 17½ games behind AL West leader the Los Angeles Angels.

“I have always been a believer in JD and his management team,” Rangers owner Tom Hicks said in a statement. “While we are disappointed with our record this season, I know he can take the Rangers to where we want to be, a team that is consistently a contender.”

What in the wide, wide world of sports is a-goin’ on around here?” – Taggart AKA Slim Pickens in Blazing Saddles

I need to work for Tom Hicks. If he rewards incompetent performance like this with additional years on a contract, just think what he must do for a competent, productive employee? I don’t understand what could possibly be the justification for such a move. All but one or two of Daniel’s moves has failed miserably. The team has the worst record in the majors. The (players) manager has lost control of the team and appears to be on his way out. The minor league system is devoid of significant talent with one or two exceptions.

Honestly Tom, George Costanza could have done as well or better than JD thus far.

The only justification behind this could be Hick’s grudging admission that 2007 is lost as well as 2008. In order for JD to make deals that benefit the team in 2009, he need to assure him that he would be around for 2009. Given his track record, I am not sure we need him around until then, but clearly Hicks has cast his lot.

Let the dealing begin. The fire sale will soon be underway. 2008 is in the tank as well. 2009 is the first year the Rangers will target for any possibility of competing for a division title, but we already knew that anyway. Will the firing of Wash be the next move? Or will Tom reward his “exemplary” performance too?

This is a troubling report from the Dallas Morning News. It tells me that Daniels is not going to pro-actively do the things needed to clean house. There is no doubt that the vultures will soon be circling, looking lustily at the Rangers bullpen.
DMN article
“Daniels says he has no plans to shop Teixeira

GM Jon Daniels said his club would probably be a seller as the trade deadline approaches unless it makes a quick and drastic turnaround, but he downplayed the possibility of trading Mark Teixeira.

Daniels said he had not talked to any clubs about Teixeira recently. Daniels, however, also acknowledged that most clubs are tied up with preparations for the upcoming amateur draft. He said he did not have any plans to shop Teixeira, who is eligible for free agency after 2008. There have not been any substantive talks about signing Teixeira to a contract extension.

“Do I expect to get some calls? Probably,” Daniels said. “But I won’t be making any. Mark is not one of our issues. He’s been our most consistent player. He’s a star in this league.”

Clubs are starting to circle. Detroit and Atlanta had scouts at Tuesday’s game. Both could use some bullpen help. Philadelphia, which spent some time over the winter talking with the Rangers about a bullpen trade, is also searching for relievers. “

First of all – “probably be a seller”? Duh!

That small paragraph in the middle bothers me. He won’t be making any calls? That’s his job. Saying that Mark’s potential future departure is not one of their issues is like saying “I’m really happy with our starting rotation”. Tex’s impeding free agency in 2008 is THE BIGGEST ISSUE FACING THE TEAM beyond the obvious problems in the lost year of 2007. What also bothers me about this is the implication that the Rangers are still trying to “manage” 2007 rather than looking forward to 2009 and beyond. Losing our star player and getting only draft picks in return would be a colossal blunder, but Rangers management has been the king of the “charlie foxtrot” in years past, so why should we expect anything different now?

Hopefully, he will change his tune after the draft is complete. Understandably, that has to be the Rangers main focus for now. Then it should be “let’s make a deal”. Rather than wait for others to call, Ranger scouts should be all over potential trade partners’ top prospects, then the Rangers should pro-actively decide which ones they want and go after them. They should not sit back and wait for offers from teams that are ready to cut bait on prospects by offering them in trade.

Do the Rangers have the right people in place to evaluate talent? That is the question that underlies all of the current issues. This is critical in not just the draft, but the potential trades that will be forthcoming. If the Rangers fail to trade Tex, that also tells me that they don’t trust their talent evaluation people.

JD – After the draft is over, get on the phone! Don’t wait for them to call you.

The momentum is building on the trade Tex bandwagon. The national media is starting to write about it in addition to the local media and bloggers like me. This is the first time I have heard about troubles between Wash and Tex. I don’t think either are going to be with the Rangers long term. Here is a portion of Buster Olney’s story from ESPN.com:
Rangers likely to deal Teixeira
posted: Friday, June 1, 2007

Scouts are telling tales of tension between new Texas manager Ron Washington and first baseman Mark Teixeira, and saying that this is making it more likely that the Rangers will deal Teixeira, who is eligible for free agency after next season and — being a Scott Boras client — is unlikely to sign an extension.

Tried to get some response from the Rangers on these points, but there was none, and Rangers GM Jon Daniels tells Evan Grant he’s not going to respond to media speculation all summer. Fair enough.

Called executives with other teams, who said they had not yet been made aware that Teixeira was available in a trade. But if and when Daniels does begin the process — and that seems inevitable — there was unanimous agreement that he will have a very difficult challenge of trying to make a trade palatable for the Rangers and its fan base.

Buster is right on target about pressure being on Ranger management. If they strike out on this trade, they will be vilified for a long time. I don’t see discussions happening until the draft is complete. Then the phone lines will begin to heat up, but there probably won’t be a deal until the next homestand ends.