The way the story is written, God smote the ground one day in South Texas and up sprang Nolan Ryan, firing 100 mph fastballs. Ryan begat Roger Clemens. And Clemens begat Kerry Wood.
And so on and so on.
The tale of Texas power pitchers has become one of almost biblical proportions. And the Rangers in this story, they seem to play the Israelites, wandering for more than 40 years to find their own, homegrown pitching savior.
Think the scouting life is hard? Try scouting Texas for the Texas Rangers.
"It adds that extra layer of self-imposed pressure," said Flower Mound-raised Bobby Crook, who scouted the North Texas area for the Rangers for four years before moving into a special assignment crosschecking role this season.