Ex-Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton says Dallas isn’t a baseball town. (Victor Decolongon/Getty Images)

In the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, the Dallas Cowboys have been the talk of the town for decades. Even after two straight World Series appearances by the Texas Rangers, it appears that notion is not going away anytime soon.

Ex-Rangers and new Anaheim Angels outfielder Josh Hamilton says he understands the football culture even though the Cowboys have won only one playoff game in the last 16 years.

“Texas, especially Dallas, has always been a football town. They’re supportive, but they also got a little spoiled at the same time, pretty quickly,” Hamilton said to a CBS television affiliate in Dallas. “You think about three to four years ago [pre-World Series]. It’s like, come on man, are you happier there again?”

Hamilton who signed a 5-year, $125 million deal with the Angels in December says he expects an interesting reception when his new team comes back to Texas in April for a three-game series.

“It will be mixed feelings from the crowd. People who really get it will cheer and the people who don’t will boo. Either way, I’ll do what I got to do to help my team win.”

The Rangers think the asking price for a Josh Johnson trade is too high. (Sarah Glenn/Getty Images)

Even after getting beat by the Los Angeles Angels in the Zack Greinke trade sweepstakes, the Texas Rangers are not looking to fill their starting-pitching hole by trading for Miami Marlins’ hurler Josh Johnson.

MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan reported that the Rangers are unwilling to give up a big package of minor leaguers for Johnson because they are concerned about his health and his home vs. road splits.

The Rangers are in need of a starter after losing Colby Lewis for the season and with Roy Oswalt battling back issues. But the Rangers are worried about Johnson’s injury-prone nature, as he has started at least 30 games in just one of eight seasons in the major leagues. And they are worried that Johnson is a product of Marlins Park — he is 5-4 with a 3.35 ERA at home, compared with just 1-3 and a 5.48 ERA on the road.

And the Marlins are reportedly asking for interested teams’ top two or three prospects in exchange for Johnson. The risks, combined with the price, are turning the Rangers away. The Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Angels, Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox are also interested in acquiring Johnson.

SI.com’s Joe Lemire wrote Friday that a reactionary move like acquiring Johnson would be out of character for the Rangers front office:

It may have appeared that the Rangers’ signing of Yu Darvish, which followed the Angels’ additions of Wilson and first baseman Albert Pujols by a month, was an answer to Los Angeles’ moves, but Darvish was carefully scouted by Texas over years, meaning the two events were hardly connected.

Perhaps such planning will change now — after all, that division is quickly growing into the wild, wild West.

A strained lower back will sideline Angels ace Jered Weaver for at least two weeks. (Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Anaheim Angels ace Jered Weaver was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday, less than 24 hours after leaving his Monday start against the New York Yankees in the first inning after throwing just 12 pitches.

The team announced that Weaver was suffering from a lower back strain and spasms, and it’s unclear how long he is expected to be sidelined, according to Adrian Gonzalez of MLB.com. Gonzalez also reported that Weaver had X-rays and underwent an MRI on Tuesday.

“It felt like somebody came up behind me and stabbed me,” Weaver said after Monday’s game. “I couldn’t bend over.”

Weaver is 6-1 with a 2.61 ERA this season, including a May 3 no-hitter. Righthander Garrett Richards, 24, was recalled to take Weaver’s spot in the rotation. Richards was listed as the team’s No. 2 prospect in the off-season but had a 4.31 ERA in 10 starts (5-2 record) at Triple-A Salt Lake. He was 0-2 with a 5.79 ERA in seven appearances for the Angels last season.

Albert Pujols is not happy with the Los Angeles Angels batting coach, according to CBS Sports.

The Angels, who made a huge splash in free-agency this offseason, are off to an 8-15 start this season. Pujols, who signed one of the largest contracts in history to join the team this winter, is also having the worst start of his career. The team held a meeting to discuss their early woes on Monday, and Mickey Hatcher, the Angels hitting coach, told the local media about some of the things Pujols had shared with his teammates during the closed door meeting.

“Mickey should have never told you guys that,” Pujols said. “That stuff needs to be private. He should have never told the media.

“What we talked about at the meeting, not disrespecting Mickey, but that stuff should stay behind closed doors.”

Pujols had reportedly told his teammates that he had been with teams who had overcome larger losing streaks in the past, and promised his teammates that he would improve his own performance.

The 32-year-old is hitting .217/.323/.397 with four RBI and no home runs.