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Oates' departure is far from shocking
With an 11-17 record and his club 11 games behind the Seattle Mariners in the AL West, Texas Rangers skipper Johnny Oates on Friday became the second managerial casualty of the 2001 season, resigning from his position. CNNSI.com spoke with Sports Illustrated baseball writer Tom Verducci about Oates' departure and the situation in Arlington. CNNSI.com: Obviously the Rangers' horrible start had much to do with Johnny Oates' resignation. Is a change something the players are in favor of, or do you think they will be unhappy with the move? Verducci: Oates is a very easy manager to play for. I can't imagine anyone would complain about his style. But it's a bottom-line business. I know the team didn't have any pitching, but the Rangers should have been better. CNNSI.com: What's the long-term outlook for this club? You mentioned it doesn't have quality pitching. It doesn't look like this team can be turned around too quickly. Verducci: I would think a guy like Jerry Narron, the third base coach, would be a natural fit for them. I would suspect that the Rangers are going to take a longer look at bringing in a veteran manager. Maybe someone like a Jim Fregosi. But with their pitching, it's going to take through at least one offseason to improve the rotation. The free-agent class out there is not great, but Hicks will have more money coming off of the payroll this year, so that's where all of the team's efforts will be devoted, in both trades and free agency. CNNSI.com: What do you think is going through Alex Rodriguez's head right now? He leaves the Mariners, who have the best record in baseball, and now he's on a team with one of the worst records in the game, and the manager has resigned a little more than a month into the season. Verducci: Well, he's probably wishing he was with the New York Mets. He'd definitely be the kind of bat that the Mets need. But I would be surprised if A-Rod has been shocked by what has happened in Texas. I think he knew when he signed with the Rangers that the team was going to struggle this year. He knew the team was short of pitching, and when he went on his free-agent tour he asked about teams' minor-league systems -- that was an indication, at least in Texas' case, that he knew the Rangers weren't going to win his first year there. He might be surprised by what has happened in Seattle, but I don't think the Texas situation has caught him off guard. He had his eyes wide open, and my impression was that he knew the Rangers were going to struggle this year. CNNSI.com: It's hard to say that a division has been won after just one month, but Seattle has built a tremendous lead. If you're the Rangers right now, and it's only May, do you start the rebuilding process already, or do you keep fighting for this year? Verducci: I still think you fight for something, especially with the unbalanced schedule. Now the problem is every time Texas plays Seattle the rest of the way, the Rangers have to win the series and chip away at the Mariners' big lead. Losing two out of three or splitting four games isn't going to cut it. The head-to-head games will decide Texas' season, and the only way it can get back in the race is by winning every one of those series -- and there is tremendous pressure being in that position. Sports Illustrated senior writer Tom Verducci covers baseball for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Click here to send a question to his Mailbag.
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