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ARLINGTON -- The topic of Rangers ownership isn't one that normally makes the rounds in the clubhouse. A few players talked Tuesday about how they were aware that the situation is in flux, but they aren't concerned about it. And it's not something they discuss with each other.

"We don't get paid to think about who's running the team," left fielder Josh Hamilton said. "We get paid to play baseball. That's just not high on the priority list. We're getting our pay checks and we don't worry about it. I think fans worry about it more because it's how the organization is run, it's how the atmosphere around the ballpark is run. We don't think about it all. I don't think about it unless you guys ask."

Second baseman Ian Kinsler agreed.

"It doesn't matter to me," Kinsler said. "I have no control over any of that. I just work here, man. I'm aware of the situation, but I'm not worried about it. There's nothing I can do."

The topic is bound to come up at this week's owners' meetings, where there's a chance Major League Baseball would seize the franchise in an attempt to expedite the sale to Rangers Baseball Express, headed by Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg and club president Nolan Ryan. But that shouldn't change anything from the point of view of the players.

Manager Ron Washington said his team's singular focus is on the field.

"That's where it should be," Washington said. "It will take care of itself."

Washington was asked about the possibility that the team would be handcuffed at the trade deadline because of it.

"I think this will be done by then," Washington said. "Hopefully, it will. We're concerned about today."

ARLINGTON -- I don't know about you, but that 7-6 loss in 13 innings is still floating around my brain. A few random thoughts after hearing from manager Ron Washington and the players after the game:

* You can bet that Washington and his staff learned from the miscommunication in the ninth surrounding whether to have Neftali Feliz up and warming to come in if the left-handed hitting Eric Chavez gets on to start the inning. Washington, pitching coach Mike Maddux (and even bench coach Jackie Moore) have to be on the same page there. For some reason they weren't. Washington said it was his fault for not telling Maddux to have Feliz ready. Like I said, they'll learn from it. Should Feliz have started the ninth inning no matter who was at the plate for the A's as the closer?

* As I mentioned in an earlier post, I don't think that David Murphy would have been hitting with a runner at third and two outs in the 12th if Dave Anderson hadn't sent Andres Blanco home. My bet is the A's would have intentionally walked Murphy to pitch to Ryan Garko, who was 2-for-27 coming into the game. Nothing against Garko, but I can understand Anderson rolling the dice and forcing the A's to make some good throws. And they did to get Blanco easily.

* Murphy is playing well enough that I'll be interested to see what the Rangers do to get him some more playing time when Nelson Cruz comes back. Do you consider giving Borbon some days off, moving Josh Hamilton to center and letting Murphy get in the lineup that way?

* Neftali Feliz didn't have it on Tuesday. He put the first four batters he faced on base to give up the lead and get the blown save. He's shown an ability to bounce back. He'll probably get to show that before this series is over.

* Andrus did a good job to get a bunt down with runners at first and second with no outs in the fifth. He did it on an 0-2 count. But as we discussed in yesterday's in-game chat and in the game thoughts entry, should Andrus have been bunting in that situation? He is hitting nearly .500 with runners in scoring position.

* Texas had four sacrifice bunts. That's the most by the Rangers in a game since four on July 23, 1997 against Baltimore in a 12-inning loss.

* Oakland had three blown saves and won the game anyway. The last team with three or more blown saves to win: Chicago White Sox on Sept. 14, 1998 at Detroit in a 17-16, 12-inning victory.

* The Rangers have lost seven times in the opponent's final at-bat this season and they've lost four times when leading after eight innings. They lost five times in that situation all of last season.

What are your thoughts on last night's game?

ARLINGTON -- Manager Ron Washington took the blame for Neftali Feliz's late entrance into Tuesday's game in the ninth inning.

Josh Hamilton's two-run homer put the Rangers up 4-3 going into the top of the ninth inning. Washington said he planned to have lefty Darren Oliver, who had pitched a perfect eighth, pitch to left-handed hitter Eric Chavez and then bring Feliz on for the next hitter, right-handed batter Adam Rosales. But Feliz was not warmed up and got up as the inning started.

"I messed up by not letting Mike [Maddux] know to have Feliz ready," Washington said. "He wasn't ready. I take the blame for that."

Oliver ended up getting Chavez to hit a ground ball, but it was bobbled on a tough play by shortstop Elvis Andrus. Rosales then singled off Oliver. Feliz got warm by that point and entered the game. But he hit pinch hitter Jake Fox with a pitch and then gave up singles to Landon Powell, Rajai Davis and Cliff Pennington to surrender the lead. That started the chain of events that sent the game into extras.

Washington said he felt like Chavez, who had homered earlier in the game, had hit right-handed pitchers well and he wanted a lefty in to pitch to him.

"I thought he [Oliver] had the stuff to get him out," Washington said. "He got the ground ball, we just didn't make the play."

Other reaction:

* Washington said he had taken the bunt sign off when Andrus was down 0-2 with runners at first and second in the fifth. But Andrus felt like he could get the job done and bunted anyway, which pleased Washington, who called it "very professional."

Andrus said he showed the bunt too early on the first two pitches.

"I knew I could do it," Andrus said. "I trusted myself and I did the job."

* Washington said he understood that third-base coach Dave Anderson was taking a chance with two outs to try to win the game in the 12th. Anderson sent Andres Blanco home from first on a single and he was thrown out easily. But Anderson was rolling the dice with two outs and forcing the A's to make a play.

"The second baseman just happened to make a great throw," Washington said. "If the throw's off just a little bit, no telling what can happen. I'm not going to second guess what David did. He felt like he might have had a shot at him and he took it."

The reality is that David Murphy, who was in the on-deck circle, probably would have been walked to get to Ryan Garko, who was 2-for-27 for the season coming in. In my opinion, it was worth a try to send him home. I like the aggression there. But that's just me.

* Murphy didn't blame his misplayed ball in right field in the seventh inning on the jet stream, though the wind was making things difficult in that part of the field. Murphy charged the ball and it went over him for a triple that allowed the A's to take a 3-2 lead.

"Initially when the ball was hit, I thought I was going to have to charge it pretty hard. I thought it was going to be a shoestring-type catch. It kind of took off a little bit and I think in combination with -- I knew the runner was going on the play, so I charged it really hard because I wanted to try to double him off. I kind of tried to get two outs before I got one."

ARLINGTON -- The A's managed to pull out a 7-6 victory in 13 innings in a back-and-forth game. It was the Rangers' longest game by innings this season. The win pulls the A's even with the Rangers for first place in the AL West. Some thoughts below (and you can click here for a replay of Tuesday's in-game chat).

* Leadoff walks are big trouble. Just ask Dustin Nippert. He walked Landon Powell to start the 13th inning and Powell stole second (on a missed bunt and run by Rajai Davis and a high throw by Matt Treanor). He went to third on a ground ball and scored on Daric Barton's single.

* The Rangers kept the game alive twice when down to their final strike. In the 11th, OF Julio Borbon got just enough of a Tyson Ross' 3-2 pitch to loop it to left field and score David Murphy. Elvis Andrus did it in the ninth, hitting a 2-2 95 mph fastball from A's closer Andrew Bailey to single to score Borbon from third. It was a rare blown save for Bailey, his first since June 16, 2009. It ended a streak of 27 consecutive saves, the second-longest in the majors.

* Andrus' hit came after the Rangers couldn't hold a 4-3 lead in the ninth. Darren Oliver started the ninth (after pitching a perfect eighth) with Neftali Feliz warming in the pen. The first batter, Eric Chavez, got on via an Andrus error (he couldn't get a handle on the ball after he made a nice play to get to it). A single moved pinch-runner Gabe Gross to third (the Rangers were able to get the runner as he took to far of a turn at first). Feliz then came in with one out and a runner at third. Feliz hit Jake Fox (just 3-for-25 against right-handed pitchers) on an 0-1 pitch and that was followed by a single by Landon Powell to tie the score. Another single by Cliff Pennington gave the A's the lead. Feliz just wasn't his normally dominant self on Tuesday.

* Rangers third base coach Dave Anderson tried to end the game in the 12th. He waved home Andres Blanco with two outs. Blanco was thrown out easily trying to score from first on a single by Ian Kinsler. Anderson certainly took a big risk, especially with David Murphy (who is swinging a hot bat) on deck. But with two outs, that's the time to take a chance. Anderson made the A's make the right throws, and they did. What did you think of that call?

* RHP Chris Ray gave up a two-out solo homer to Daric Barton in the 11th to give the A's the lead. The Rangers' bullpen has given up 16 homers this season. Coming into Tuesday's game, the bullpen was tied for the second most allowed in the AL this season.

* OF Josh Hamilton crushed one to right-center field to give the Rangers the lead in the bottom of the eighth. The key to the inning was that Michael Young was hit in the leg with one out. That put the go-ahead run at the plate in the form of Hamilton. The slugger hit an off-speed pitch over the wall. It was an estimated 438 feet and there was absolutely no doubt about it.

* RHP Colby Lewis had another quality start, his fourth of the season and third consecutive. He left after seven innings with the Rangers down 3-2. He got the first 12 batters he faced in order and then gave up a two-run, wind-aided homer to Eric Chavez in the fifth to tie the score. The A's got the go-ahead run on a fly ball to right that David Murphy misplayed. But Lewis did the job. He has been a solid starter for the club this season, showing excellent control.

* OF David Murphy is sure going to make it tough on the Rangers to get him out of the lineup when Nelson Cruz comes back, probably Friday. He was 8-for-17 (.471) with four doubles, four RBIs and three runs in the sweep of the Royals. He continued his hot streak on Tuesday, with a homer to right in the fourth inning. No doubt he was helped by the jet stream (at first I thought it was a routine fly ball). But he's swinging the bat very well right now and again helped his team.

* Murphy did have trouble in right field in the seventh. He misjudged a fly ball from Eric Patterson and it got past him, giving Patterson a triple and scoring the go-ahead run for the A's. It looked like Murphy didn't take a deep enough route as the ball just carried more in the jet stream than he thought. But he made up for that with his bat and a great diving catch to get the first out of the 12th (Kevin Kouzmanoff). In his defense, the wind looked very difficult to deal with out there.

* Andrus managed to get a bunt down on an 0-2 count in the fifth to move runners to second and third. You don't normally see 0-2 bunts, especially out of leadoff hitters. I know some of you in the in-game chat thought Andrus should have been swinging since he's tough to double up. What do you think? The Rangers ended up not getting any runs in the inning despite the bunt.

ARLINGTON -- Oakland starter Dallas Braden said he was sticking to his routine and not much had changed except his cell phone since his perfect game Sunday.

“By the time I got to the clubhouse [Sunday,] the first time I opened my phone I had 265 text messages and 123 voicemails,” Braden said, who met the media Tuesday afternoon at The Ballpark in Arlington. “I looked at them and read them, but [I deleted them.]”

Braden, who played college ball at Texas Tech, said he received far fewer following the Alex Rodriguez incident. He said most of the texts following that were positive, with a few exceptions.

“All positive, aside from my really good friends who told me to shut my mouth and what are you doing talking to A-Rod,” Braden said.

The historic win has not yet sunk in according to Braden, and he hasn’t seen much more than the replays of the final pitch. A pitch he released thinking the count was 2-2, when in reality it was 3-1.

“I thought the [previous pitch] looked so good, I told myself it was a strike and I threw a fastball,” Braden said. “It worked out, and I didn’t know until the replay [the count was 3-1.]”

Braden will be on the cover of this week's Sports Illustrated and will be "pitching" Dave Letterman his Top-10 tonight.

Braden said he was caught off guard by the myriad media requests this week, but his favorite call came from Mark Buehrle of the White Sox, who threw the MLB’s last perfect game in July 2009.

“It’s pretty gracious of him to take the time and make the phone call and congratulate me,” Braden said. “[Buehrle] said ‘Welcome to the club.’”

Braden’s previous start before his perfect game Sunday was a 4-2 loss to the Rangers May 3. He gave up 11 hits and three earned runs in that contest. Needless to say, Braden and his team weren’t expecting such an outstanding follow up.

“That was not-so-much in the game plan [following my last start at Texas,]” said Braden. “It’s just weird for me because I’m a contact pitcher. For no one to get on base against a contact pitcher is pretty cool.”

ARLINGTON -- Rangers manager Ron Washington said outfielder Nelson Cruz (hamstring strain) is scheduled to return to the lineup on Friday in Toronto barring any setbacks during his Triple-A rehab assignment.

Washington said the plan is to allow Cruz to play the outfield for full games Tuesday and Wednesday in Oklahoma City and then give him a day off on Thursday while the Rangers face the A's in an afternoon affair. Cruz would then be activated in time for Friday's game with the Blue Jays in Toronto.

Cruz was hitting .323 (20-for-62) with seven homers and 17 RBIs when he went on the disabled list late last month with a strained right hamstring. He said last week that the hamstring felt better and he was ready to play in some games.

When Cruz returns, it would be the first time this season that he and Ian Kinsler will be in the lineup at the same time.

Other notes:

* Rangers utility infielder Joaquin Arias (lower back strain) is rehabbing in Double-A Frisco and getting work in at the corner infield positions. He was 0-for-4 in Tuesday's game at first base.

Manager Ron Washington said Tuesday that the club wants to see how Arias does at those spots while they've got the chance. Could it signal that they'd like Arias to be a backup first baseman? Maybe. Arias is a right-handed hitter and if he can play first base well enough to give Justin Smoak a break here or there, it could be an option the Rangers consider. Ryan Garko, the club's current backup first baseman (and right-handed hitter) is batting just 2-for-27 (.074) to start the season.

Infield coach Dave Anderson worked with Arias some at first base while the team was in Oakland.

"The biggest thing at that position is taking a throw from a pitcher and knowing where you're supposed to be," Anderson said. "A ground ball is a ground ball, but you don't normally receive a hard throw from a pitcher. It takes some getting used to in terms of figuring out where you are and where you're supposed to be."

Arias has played just three games in Frisco, but he'll get more chances to learn the positions.

* The Rogers Centre in Toronto has been known for having rough turf. Washington has given players with some injury issues days off because of it. But the stadium installed new turf (it's called AstroTurf and is supposed to have the best elements of FieldTurf and the old AstroTurf) this season. Washington said he still may try to get Ian Kinsler (ankle) and Nelson Cruz (hamstring) a day off during that series. He expects Vladimir Guerrero to play only DH in Toronto.

* Washington is looking forward to seeing Derek Holland pitch on Wednesday. "I'd like to see his progress," Washington said. "He has confidence because he's pitched well."

* RHP Tommy Hunter (left oblique strain) threw 55 pitches his last time out. He would have to start at least two more times before he could even be considered healthy enough to return, but Washington indicated that even then the club would want to see that he could handle 100 pitches without a problem.

Catcher Matt Treanor is back behind the plate after two days' rest as the first-place Rangers host the second-place A's.

Rangers (18-14)
SS Elvis Andrus (.298)
3B Michael Young (.277)
LF Josh Hamilton (.277)
DH Vladimir Guerrero (.339)
2B Ian Kinsler (.324)
RF David Murphy (.229)
1B Justin Smoak (.196)
C Matt Treanor (.197)
CF Julio Borbon (.206)
P Colby Lewis (3-1, 3.03)

ESPN.com started a feature last week called the Cross-Sport Power Rankings. It's exactly what it sounds like, a top-20 ranking of players from all over the sports world that is updated every Tuesday.

In Week 2 of the rankings (which you can find here), it's no surprise that Oakland A's pitcher Dallas Braden sits in the No. 1 spot after his perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Mother's Day. The A's are in Arlington to face the Rangers this week, although Braden isn't scheduled to pitch during the three-game series between the top two teams in the AL West.

Somebody from the rankings, however, will be playing in the Rangers-A's series. DH/OF Vladimir Guerrero checks in at No. 18 after his performance in the Rangers' four-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals.

Other baseball players in the rankings are Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay (No. 7), Colorado Rockies pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez (No. 12), Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier (No. 14) and New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira (No. 20).

The Rangers have promoted pitcher Alexi Ogando to their Triple-A Oklahoma City affiliate. After his ban from entering the country ended this winter, Ogando performed well in spring training and has followed that with an excellent stint in Double-A Frisco, completing 15.2 innings and allowing just four hits. He struck out 21 and walked five. The Dominican features a fastball that sits in the mid-90s and an intriguing slider/changeup mix.

The opener of the Rangers-A’s three-game series at 7:05 tonight at Rangers Ballpark matches RHP Colby Lewis and RHP Trevor Cahill. Here's a brief look at the matchup:

Lewis (3-1, 3.03 ERA): The 30-year-old will be making his seventh start and his second in six days against the A’s and Cahill. Lewis was saddled with his first loss of the season, 4-1, by the A’s in Oakland last Wednesday. The Rangers have scored only one run in his last two starts. He is 0-1 in those two starts with a 1.80 ERA in 15 innings. Lewis has had problems early in games this season, allowing 7 of his 13 runs in the first inning. The A’s scored two runs in the first in his loss last week. Lewis was charged with three runs on five hits with three walks in six innings. He ranks among league leaders in strikeouts (44) and opponent’s batting average (.199). When going to a full count, hitters are 1-for-16 with 11 walks and 11 strikeouts. Lewis will be making his second career start against the A’s. He was in the Oakland organization in 2007, making 26 appearance for the A’s.

Cahill (1-1, 5.40 ERA): The 22-year-old California-native bounced back nicely in his second start of the season, limiting the Rangers to one unearned run over five innings. He allowed five hits and three walks while striking out four. In his first start, the Blue Jays roughed him up for 8 runs (6 earned) and three home runs in five innings. As a rookie last season, the former second-round selection in the 2006 draft was 10-13 with a 4.63 ERA. Home runs were a problem. He allowed 27 in 178 2/3 innings. Cahill was very tough on the Rangers in his rookie season, going 3-1 with a 2.46 ERA, his best numbers against any American League team. In his only appearance at Rangers Ballpark, Cahill pitched seven shutout innings, allowing only one hit, a bloop single by Marlon Byrd in the second inning on Sept. 16. Oakland’s 4-0 win that day completed a three-game sweep and pushed the Rangers closer to elimination from playoff contention.

Hitters: Michael Young (.500, 4-8) has the most success of any Texas hitter against Cahill. Young has a double and the Rangers’ only home run. Josh Hamilton (.333, 2-6) and Vladimir Guerrero (.286, 2-7) have been held to singles by Cahill. David Murphy (.214, 3-14) and Elvis Andrus (.250, 3-12) have had the most looks at Cahill. Most of the A’s got their first look at Lewis last week. Eric Patterson hit a solo home run, Kevin Kouzmanoff had an RBI hit and Daric Barton doubled and drew a walk. Eric Chavez is only 1-for-15 with six strikeouts against Lewis.

Our friends over at Baseball Time in Arlington took a look at the catching situation for the Rangers and some options the team has to improve it.

The Rangers continue to look at all options, including those external. BBTIA looks at some of those as well. Part of the entry:

I'm not going to burn through a bunch of elaborate and circuitous prose en route to telling you just how little offensive production Texas is obtaining from its backstops (we all know it's really bad), but I think it would be instructive to interject a little historical context: using an approximate wOBA scale, the team-wide 2010 production at catcher (.158/.280/.208; .233 wOBA) is worse on a rate basis than the very worst offensive campaign ever posted by a Rangers catcher with 350 or more plate appearances in a season, with that distinction belonging to former Senators black hole Paul Casanova, the source of a spectacularly bad .216/.254/.282 batting line (.242 wOBA) back in 1969.

So, we know it's historically bad (at least on an offensive basis), but how do you go about rectifying it? Well, at this stage, you either (a) ride it out, which is a sticky proposition in that Jarrod Saltalamacchia's evidently battling some form of Steve Blass/Chuck Knoblauch disease, Taylor Teagarden's indescribably lost at the plate and Matt Treanor's utility as a starting catcher is quickly running out, or (b) you move to upgrade the position via external means.

You can read the whole entry here.

Someone asked me the other day if Vladimir Guerrero was the top offensive free agent signing this offseason. You could certainly make that argument.

Guerrero is batting .339 with six homers and 26 RBIs. He even has four stolen bases and his body appears to be holding up just fine so far this season. He's making $5.5 million (the contract includes performance bonuses) this season and there's a mutual option (with a $1 million buyout) for 2011. So who else signed offseason deals that look good so far this season? ESPN Stats & Information put together a list. Here goes (all stats through Sunday):

* Arizona's 2B Kelly Johnson (one year, $2.35M): 10 HRs, 19 RBIs and a .282 batting average. He hit just eight HRs in 303 at-bats last season.

* Toronto SS Alex Gonzalez (one year, $2.75M): He's a defense-first infielder with Toronto who's added 10 HR (he hit eight all of last year) and 27 RBIs.

* Chicago OF Marlon Byrd (three years, $15M): The former Ranger has a .347 BA, 6 HRs, 22 RBIs.

* New York Mets C Rod Barajas (one year, $500K): Another former Ranger, he leads the Mets with nine HRs.

* New York Mets C Henry Blanco (one year,$750K): Backup has thrown out all five baserunners this season in limited action.

* Washington C Pudge Rodriguez (two years, $6M): .365 batting average for the catcher that turned down a one-year offer from the Rangers and got a multiyear deal in Washington.

Here are some who have struggled:

* New York Mets' Jason Bay (four years, $66M): one HR, 12 RBIs, .248 batting average.

* Seattle's Chone Figgins (four years, $36M): He's hitting just .185 for a struggling Mariners lineup.

Just a reminder that we will have in-game chats during all three Oakland A's games this week.

The Rangers face the A's at 7:05 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday and 1:05 on Thursday. Join me right here on the blog for in-game chats. The room usually opens about 90 minutes before the game.

It's a fun way to watch a Rangers game if you've never tried it!

It isn't just about scouting the opposing pitcher or batter anymore for most Major League teams. They also scout the umpires.

Check out this story, which talks about the Rangers and how they have a scouting report on the home plate umpire each night. Here's part of the story:

Ron Washington flips the pages of his three-ring notebook, filled with inside info on the other team's pitchers and hitters.

The Texas manager gets to the back of the black binder, reaches into the pocket and pulls out another scouting report -- on that night's home plate umpire.

It's a color-coded computer printout showing his strike zone -- how he tends to call balls and strikes -- and whether he usually gives the pitcher a break if the ball sails just off the corner of the plate. In this ump's case, the calls on the edges are too inconsistent to be predictable.

"We do have their tendencies in the dugout on the wall. The name of the umpire and his tendencies, what they call and what part of the zone they call strikes," Washington said.

"When I was playing, we just knew he was a high-ball umpire or a low-ball umpire, whether he was a pitcher's umpire or a hitter's umpire," he said.

The difference now?

"Technology," Washington said.

For years, baseball teams have scouted the opposition -- which pitch is most effective against a certain batter, which catcher has a strong throwing arm, and the like.

Now teams are taking it to a different level by scouting the umpires -- compiling information on how consistently they call balls and strikes, how quick they are to eject someone arguing a call, where the crew comes from, the next time they're next in town.

It's an interesting read if you get a chance. Again, the whole story is here.