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11-14-2007, 09:34 AM
Team may also be interested in bringing Rogers back to the table
03:04 AM CST on Wednesday, November 14, 2007
By EVAN GRANT / The Dallas Morning News
egrant@dallasnews.com
The Rangers are taking a proactive approach to their pursuit of free agent center fielder Torii Hunter.
And they wouldn't mind reconciling with Kenny Rogers, either.
A club source confirmed that team officials dined with Hunter and his representative, Larry Reynolds, on Monday. Hunter, who lives in Prosper, met with the Chicago White Sox on Sunday. Neither Hunter nor Reynolds could be reached for comment Tuesday.
Tuesday was the first day that teams could start talking about the financial parameters of deals with free agents. General manager Jon Daniels declined to discuss the state of talks with Hunter but did acknowledge the team might have interest in bringing Rogers back for a fourth stint.
"Under the right circumstances, I'm open to it," Daniels said.
The right circumstances would require a mending of fences between two strong-willed personalities, Rogers and owner Tom Hicks.
Hicks, who was dealing with repercussions of firing Stars GM Doug Armstrong, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Rogers, who lives in Southlake, acknowledged he'd be open to a reunion, too, but maintained that there has been nothing resembling contact between him and the club since he filed for free agency.
"I wouldn't close the door on anything that would be easier for myself and my family," Rogers said, "but to say anything else would be putting the cart in front of the horse."
AP
Former Texas Rangers pitcher Kenny Rogers, 43, is a free agent after spending the last two seasons in Detroit. Rogers, who turned 43 on Saturday, is a free agent after spending the last two seasons in Detroit. He went to the Tigers after an acrimonious ending to his last stint with the Rangers. Though Rogers went 32-17 with a 4.14 ERA for the Rangers in 2004-05, he was not offered a contract after the end of the 2005 season.
Rogers' tense relationship with manager Buck Showalter and then-GM John Hart became more tense after he tried to negotiate a contract extension with Hicks. Rogers later had a confrontation with a TV cameraman in June 2005. Though he apologized to teammates and fans for the incident, that he did not apologize to the organization left Hicks stung. The Rangers announced he would not be offered a contract for 2006 even before Daniels was promoted from assistant GM in the first week after the season.
Schedule released: The Rangers released the rest of their 2008 schedule Tuesday. They released the home schedule a month ago.
The Rangers will open at Seattle (March 31-April 2) and Los Angeles (April 4-6). The home opener is April 8 vs. Baltimore. The interleague schedule includes trips to Washington, New York and Houston. Home interleague opponents are Houston (May 16-18), Atlanta (June 17-19) and Philadelphia (June 27-29). It will be the Phillies' first trip to Arlington.
The biggest tweak to the schedule is the elimination of 7:35 p.m. starts. The club had experimented with later start times last summer in an effort to increase attendance. The club saw no real positive impact from the change, and several surveys of fans suggested they preferred the 7:05 start time.
The Rangers will play 15 home day games in 2008, a reduction by one from the 2007 schedule.
03:04 AM CST on Wednesday, November 14, 2007
By EVAN GRANT / The Dallas Morning News
egrant@dallasnews.com
The Rangers are taking a proactive approach to their pursuit of free agent center fielder Torii Hunter.
And they wouldn't mind reconciling with Kenny Rogers, either.
A club source confirmed that team officials dined with Hunter and his representative, Larry Reynolds, on Monday. Hunter, who lives in Prosper, met with the Chicago White Sox on Sunday. Neither Hunter nor Reynolds could be reached for comment Tuesday.
Tuesday was the first day that teams could start talking about the financial parameters of deals with free agents. General manager Jon Daniels declined to discuss the state of talks with Hunter but did acknowledge the team might have interest in bringing Rogers back for a fourth stint.
"Under the right circumstances, I'm open to it," Daniels said.
The right circumstances would require a mending of fences between two strong-willed personalities, Rogers and owner Tom Hicks.
Hicks, who was dealing with repercussions of firing Stars GM Doug Armstrong, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Rogers, who lives in Southlake, acknowledged he'd be open to a reunion, too, but maintained that there has been nothing resembling contact between him and the club since he filed for free agency.
"I wouldn't close the door on anything that would be easier for myself and my family," Rogers said, "but to say anything else would be putting the cart in front of the horse."
AP
Former Texas Rangers pitcher Kenny Rogers, 43, is a free agent after spending the last two seasons in Detroit. Rogers, who turned 43 on Saturday, is a free agent after spending the last two seasons in Detroit. He went to the Tigers after an acrimonious ending to his last stint with the Rangers. Though Rogers went 32-17 with a 4.14 ERA for the Rangers in 2004-05, he was not offered a contract after the end of the 2005 season.
Rogers' tense relationship with manager Buck Showalter and then-GM John Hart became more tense after he tried to negotiate a contract extension with Hicks. Rogers later had a confrontation with a TV cameraman in June 2005. Though he apologized to teammates and fans for the incident, that he did not apologize to the organization left Hicks stung. The Rangers announced he would not be offered a contract for 2006 even before Daniels was promoted from assistant GM in the first week after the season.
Schedule released: The Rangers released the rest of their 2008 schedule Tuesday. They released the home schedule a month ago.
The Rangers will open at Seattle (March 31-April 2) and Los Angeles (April 4-6). The home opener is April 8 vs. Baltimore. The interleague schedule includes trips to Washington, New York and Houston. Home interleague opponents are Houston (May 16-18), Atlanta (June 17-19) and Philadelphia (June 27-29). It will be the Phillies' first trip to Arlington.
The biggest tweak to the schedule is the elimination of 7:35 p.m. starts. The club had experimented with later start times last summer in an effort to increase attendance. The club saw no real positive impact from the change, and several surveys of fans suggested they preferred the 7:05 start time.
The Rangers will play 15 home day games in 2008, a reduction by one from the 2007 schedule.