Free Agent Pitching

Starting pitchers:

• Shawn Chacon (30) - Stats in 2007: 5-4 w/ a 3.94 ERA (1 save) in 96 innings
• Matt Clement (33) - did not play in 2007
• Bartolo Colon (35) - 6.34 ERA going 6-8 in 99 1/3 innings (missed August)
• Josh Fogg (31) - Has a 4.79 ERA in a hitters park (understatement) with a 10-9 record and 161 2/3 innings. His ERA was at 5.27 on 8/22, but has given up 11 Earned Runs in his last 6 outings. He looks to be a hot item in the off-season.
• Casey Fossum (30) - Retired maybe??? He just might be retired simply due to a lack of interest by the game. In '07, he went 5-8 with a 7.70 ERA and hasn't pitched since August 5th. Later, Casey.
• Freddy Garcia (32) - Went 1-5 with a 5.90 ERA. Not on the hot list... Through only 58 innings this season, but it is his previous seasons that interest me. He could come cheap and might be worth it. But knowing the Rangers luck...
• Livan Hernandez (33) - He could be a hot item on the market, but only time will tell on that. 4.93 ERA and an 11-11 record, he's tossed over 200 innings this season. He's a consistent 200 inning guy, having done that the previous three seasons. I would consider him. But only if the $ is right.
• Jason Jennings (29) - I can't say that Jason Jennings is going to be a "hot" item... in fact, he might be lucky to land a minor league job this off-season. He finished the year with a 2-9 record (OUCH!) and a 6.45 ERA. If he can attract the Ranger's attention, it would be only because his birthplace is in Dallas.
• Joe Kennedy (29) - 4-9 with a 4.80 ERA. He threw 110 2/3 innings this year.
• Byung-Hyun Kim (29) - 6.08 ERA with a 10-8 record (good run support?). He pitched 118 1/3 innings and had 107 Ks. Not bad. He also had 68 walks and gave up 20 HRs. Location, location, location.
• Brian Lawrence (32) - Already a free agent, he pitched for the Mets earlier this season, going 1-2 in six starts, posting an ERA of 6.83 over 29 innings.
• Jon Lieber (38) - Jonathan Ray Lieber (cool name), Lieber had season ending surgery in July. He should still be a great pick up for who-ever lands him. He went 3-6 with a 4.73 ERA in 78 innings. His injury was non-arm related, actually a torn tendon in his right foot. I personally do not know his pitching style, but if he is big into using his legs like Nolan Ryan was back in the day, then it could affect the way he pitches in the future. We'll see.
• Kyle Lohse (29) - went 9-12 with a 4.62 ERA. He had two complete games (that's two more than the Rangers) with a shutout. He pitched 192 & two third innings. (Millwood led the team in innings pitched this season with 172 & two thirds.)
• Rodrigo Lopez (32) - He went 5-4 with a 4.42 ERA. He started only 14 games. He was limited to 79 1/3 innings this season before being sent to the DL in July for a torn flexor tendon in his right arm, his pitching arm. He could come cheap due to some question marks.
• Eric Milton (32) - He went 0-4 in six starts. He has a career ERA of 5.01 and with that said, I will stop looking at him now.
• Tomo Ohka (32) - He has had a dismal year, to say the least. He has a career record of 50-62 and a career ERA of 4.14, which should be considered when looking at what he did this last season. He went 2-5 with a 5.79 ERA in ten starts. The question is will he regain his form of his career ERA or will he continue his 2007 woes if he is signed?
• Russ Ortiz (34) - Ortiz posted a 2-3 record with a 5.51 ERA. He had eight starts and 49 innings. It is notable that his career record is 110-82 and a career ERA of 4.42. He could come with a smaller price tag since he light workload this season... but he will miss the entire 2008 season. Who wants to pick up that kind of luggage? All the same, it could be rewarding when it is all said and done.
• Joel Pineiro (29) - He ended his season really strong. In his last ten games, he went 6-3 with a 3.68 ERA. He could be the starter the Rangers are looking for this off season. He only started 11 games, but played in 42 games. His 7-5 record and 4.33 ERA are very attractive. He pitched 97 2/3 innings this year. His last start of the season went 8 innings.
• Carlos Silva (29) - He's attractive for several reasons. He pitched over 200 innings this year (202 innings, actually) and his ERA was a nice 4.19, which would have been better than the Ranger starters this year. He did have a record of 13-14 and had two complete games and one shutout.
• John Thomson (34) - He had two starts this season. That's it. He had back spasms that put him on the DL in mid-season and hasn't seen the pitching mound since. He went 1-1with a 3.38 ERA in 10 2/3 innings. His ERA has climbed coming into this season and isn't known for being successful (a career 63-85 record with a 4.68 ERA). 2004 was the last season he pitched the entire season.
• Koji Uehara (33) - He currently pitches for the Yomiuri Giants. He is born on 4/3/1975 and is a right-hander. He has never posted a losing record. In 1999, he went 20-4 with a 2.09 ERA. This season, he became a closer, with a 4-3 record and 32 saves with a 1.74 ERA. He gets close to a K an inning over his career, with this season posting 66- Ks in 62 innings. I have to retract about the always a winning record. Last season he went 8-9.
• Jeff Weaver (31) - He stunk it up this year. There's no way around saying that. His record was 7-13 (OUCH!) and his ERA was 6.20... it's hard to say whether he will get a good contract, but he should take what he can get. His career #'s are 93-114 and a 4.72 ERA. Despite his bad numbers, he still managed to get three complete games and two shutouts.
• Jaret Wright (32) - He went 0-3 and had a 6.97 ERA. I don't think the Rangers are going to pursue him, and I can't blame them.