Tuesday, July 9, 1996

Rangers' fans fearing another meltdown from AL West leaders

By TERRY WALLACE
Associated Press

ARLINGTON - The crowds are sellouts. The team is leading the division at the All-Star break. And the offense is one of the most productive in the American League.

So why are Texas Rangers fans so anxious?

July has arrived with its usual 100-degree-plus heat. Historically, the Rangers go into their summer meltdown.

Cracks are appearing in the pitching staff, especially the bullpen. Closer Mike Henneman, among the league leaders with 21 saves, has blown his last two save opportunities. Already, radio talk shows are being flooded by angry callers.

And the Seattle Mariners, the Rangers No. 1 nemesis and West Division rival, came to town and took the first three games of a four-game series before the break. That at a time when the Rangers had, by far, the best home record of any American League team with a 31-12 mark going into the series.

Seattle is 6-3 against Texas this year and 28-7 against the Rangers since Sept. 21, 1993.
The combination of factors is leading to nervous tics in fans who have yet to see a Rangers team reach the playoffs in 24 years.

The public anxiety does not set well with Rangers manager Johnny Oates can't stand it.
"Everybody's already throwing in the towel and saying the season's gone," he said before the 9-5 loss Saturday night.

"There are a lot of people around here panicking," Oates said. "But they're not in uniform."

Until last week, the season had been a thing of joy. Going into Saturday's game, Texas had the highest team batting average in the league with a .295 mark, two points higher than Seattle's, and a pitching staff with a 4.75 earned-run average, fourth-best in the league.

A defensive swap between Juan Gonzalez and Rusty Greer worked well, with Gonzalez installed in the cozy right field at The Ballpark in Arlington with the speedier Greer covering the more spacious left field.

Offensively, Gonzalez has been on a home run tear with 21 - including a club-record-tying 11 in June - despite missing 25 games with various injuries.

Darryl Hamilton has kept center field secure and batted .313 from the leadoff spot with a team-high 105 hits.

All-Star catcher Ivan Rodriguez has established himself as a dependable No. 2 batter with a .308 average and 26 doubles, third-most in the league. And he still has the most feared throwing arm of any catcher in the league.

Career utility man Mark McLemore has found a home at second base and leads the team with 14 stolen bases. Kevin Elster is having a career year in home runs (13) and RBI (58).

Recovered from last year's season-ending ruptured left biceps, third baseman Dean Palmer has 20 home runs and 65 RBI.

But a bruised rib cage has first baseman Will Clark on the 15-day disabled list for the second time this season, along with his .299 batting average with 43 RBI.

Roger Pavlik, selected for the American League All-Star pitching staff, leads the Rangers with an 11-2 record with a league-leading six complete games. But he also has a 4.82 ERA.

"Who would you rather be? Roger Pavlik with an 11-2 record and a 4.82 earned-run average? Or (Florida Marlins starter) Kevin Brown, with a 1.89 earned-run average and a 7-7 record?" Oates asked.

Lefty Darren Oliver (7-2) has come back from last year's rotator cuff injury to emerge as a dependable starter with a 7-2 record and a 3.82 ERA.

But after Saturday's loss, although the Rangers still had a 50-36 record, what had been a seven-game lead on June 27 had dwindled to three.

The lines to sports talk shows are full as fans demand action to shore up the bullpen.
But Oates, who saw his team avoid a sweep by defeating the Mariners 8-3 Sunday, doesn't appear worried.

"We're probably going to go through this cycle probably at least five or six more times before the year's over," he said. "This time next week, we'll be talking about how well this team bounced back. And then somewhere in the middle of August, we'll be asking the question, 'What's wrong now?' "