By trying to decipher the talk from Texas Rangers front office personnel, namely Nolan Ryan and Jon Daniels, it seems as though the Rangers are prepared to lose C.J. Wilson to free agency this off-season.
We all are well aware of Wilson's struggles in the 2011 postseason with a 5.79 ERA and an 0-3 record. In fact, he has just one postseason win to his name over the past two World Series runs.
But still, Wilson is a big part of the Rangers staff, and he was the Rangers' ace this year even if he wasn't a true "ace" by MLB standards, winning 16 games with a 2.94 ERA, the lowest for a Rangers starter since 1991 (Nolan Ryan).
But where will he end up? The natural assumptions say New York or Boston since they always have the deepest pockets, and word is Wilson will cost in the $85-95 million range while more "word" is saying it'll take a six-year commitment to land the lefty who turns 31 this week.
But then there's the whole Califonia thing. C.J. loves California, where he was born and raised. The Los Angeles Dodgers, as evidenced by their signing of Matt Kemp, suddenly have some money to spend, and then there's the Rangers' biggest rival, the Los Angeles Angels.
The Angels GM Jerry DiPoto met with Wilson's agent on Monday night in Milwaukee at the GM meetings.
It would seem the Angels would have bigger needs than Wilson, such as, I don't know, some bats? But Wilson's addition to the Angels rotation would be scary adding him to the likes of Jered Weaver, Ervin Santana and Dan Haren.
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Then again, the Angels might just want to stick it to the Rangers, who traded for former Angels catcher Mike Napoli just days after he was dealt to Toronto and turned around and stuck it to the Angels on multiple occasions this year while being the best hitter in baseball over the second half of the season.
Wilson would fit anywhere from No. 2 to No. 4 on that staff, which is probably what would suit him best, while he'd probably be the No. 1 if he comes back to Arlington.
There are mixed reviews out there on whether Wilson ends up back with the Rangers, but you'd have to think, deep down, that the Rangers would not want him pitching with the Halos.
