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Monday, September 28, 1998
Texas: Bring on those Yankees
By JIM COUR AP Sports Writer
SEATTLE (AP) - The Texas Rangers had a feeling they'd wind
up in Yankee Stadium eventually.
So it might as well be now.
"We thought we'd have to go through the New York Yankees
sooner or later," pitching coach Dick Bosman said Sunday
before the Rangers wound up their regular season against the Seattle
Mariners.
"It's good," center fielder Tom Goodwin said. "It
should be a lot of fun playing one of the best teams of all time."
The Rangers found out their first-round opponent for the AL
playoffs Saturday night when Cleveland beat Minnesota. Cleveland's
victory meant that the Rangers will face the Yankees instead of
Boston.
The Yankees beat the Rangers eight out of 11 times this season
and had 113 wins going into the final day compared to Texas' 87.
Todd Stottlemyre, who beat Anaheim twice in the past two weeks
to help Texas win their second AL West title in three years, will
be the Rangers' Game 1 starter in New York Tuesday night.
"It's going to be a great challenge," said Stottlemyre,
whose father, Mel, is the pitching coach of the Yankees. "They've
had an unbelievable year and they have an unbelievable club. They're
going to go down in history.
"But we think we have a good ballclub, too. We think we
can get the job done."
Stottlemyre came to the Rangers in a trade along with shortstop
Royce Clayton in a trade with St. Louis July 31.
On Wednesday night, the Rangers will use 20-game winner Rick
Helling in New York. When the best-of-5 series switches to Texas
Friday, 19-game winner Aaron Sele will pitch for Texas.
The Yankees beat Texas in four games in the opening round of
the 1996 playoffs. Seven players, including regulars Juan Gonzalez,
Ivan Rodriguez, Will Clark, Rusty Greer and Mark McLemore, remain
from that team.
John Burkett, who will pitch Game 4 in Arlington Saturday if
there is a Game 4, pitched a complete-game 6-2 victory in Game
1 at Yankees Stadium in '96. Then the Yankees overcame Texas leads
to beat the Rangers in the next three games of the series.
During the next winter, ace closer John Wetteland defected
from the Yankees to the Rangers after leading the AL with 43 saves
in '96. He had 42 saves this season going into Sunday's finale.
The Rangers think Wetteland could be the difference in the
playoffs against the Yankees this season. Wettleland had two saves
for the Yankees in '96. Mike Henneman was Texas' closer two years
ago and now is out of baseball.
"I think this is a better ballclub than '96," general
manager Doug Melvin said. "We have John Wetteland now.
"I feel good about this series. I know the Yankees have
had a great year, but I feel real good. I know we're primed and
ready to go."
Rangers manager Johnny Oates said his team was not just happy
to have overtaken the Angels to capture its division.
"There better be pressure on us," he said. "We're
in this thing to win. We're not in the playoffs just to be in
the playoffs."
The Rangers said that left-hander Tony Fossas, who was released
by Seattle and the Chicago Cubs this season, had most their postseason
roster and left-hander Greg Cadaret had not.
Fossas, 40, pitched in nine games for the Rangers after joining
them.
"I want to thank the Rangers for showing faith in me,"
Fossas said. "I sat at home for three weeks this summer not
knowing what my future was. The Rangers decided I wasn't washed
up."
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