Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt were just destined to be good buddies. Lee is from Arkansas. Oswalt is from Mississippi. They both like fishing, hunting and the great outdoors, and Oswalt's accent makes Lee sound like a neutral talker from Ohio.
They also both like baseball, specifically throwing them, and they're both pretty good at it.
After spending the 2011 season together in Philadelphia, the Phillies declined to pick up Oswalt's contract for 2012, making him a free agent. And even though they aren't teammates anymore, Lee had a role in Oswalt's decision to sign with the Texas Rangers this week.
Oswalt said he spoke with Lee, who spent four glorious months with the Rangers in 2010, about the atmosphere of the Rangers' clubhouse, the fanbase and everything else involved with playing in Texas.
Of course, the rest is history. Not that Lee played the biggest role in Oswalt coming to Texas, that would be his familiarity with pitching coach Mike Maddux and owner/president Nolan Ryan, but Lee's input certainly couldn't have hurt the situation.
Time will tell how Oswalt pans out for the Rangers, but Rangers fans can thank Lee, who will forever be a legend around these parts, for at least helping us to get a chance to find out.
