Texas Rangers: Spring Training Information

By Joey Matschulat
Location: Surprise Stadium – Surprise, Arizona
Pitchers and Catchers Report: Feb. 14th
First Game: Feb. 27th
Schedule

Projected Opening Day Lineup

1. Frank Catalanotto (DH)
2. Ian Kinsler (2B)
3. Michael Young (SS)
4. Josh Hamilton (CF)
5. Hank Blalock (3B)
6. Milton Bradley (RF)
7. Marlon Byrd (LF)
8. Ben Broussard (1B)
9. Jarrod Saltalamacchia (C)

Projected Rotation

1. Kevin Millwood
2. Vicente Padilla
3. Jason Jennings
4. Brandon McCarthy
5. Kason Gabbard

Projected Bullpen

Long: Jamey Wright
Situational: John Rheinecker
7th Inning: Kazuo Fukumori, Frankie Francisco
8th Inning: Joaquin Benoit, Eddie Guardado
Closer: C.J. Wilson  Continue Reading

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Key Battles: If one were to glance through the annals of the Texas Rangers' not-so-storied 36-year franchise history, they'd likely be hard-pressed to find a squad fraught with more pre-season unpredictability than the 2008 rendition.

Fresh off a disappointing 75-87 campaign in 2007, general manager Jon Daniels went out this past winter and aggressively restocked his roster, acquiring a new first baseman (Ben Broussard), center fielder (Josh Hamilton), right fielder (Milton Bradley) and starting pitcher (Jason Jennings), as well as a pair of crafty veteran relievers (Kazuo Fukumori and Eddie Guardado). Though all of the aforementioned players should, in theory, be able to anchor down everyday roles in some capacity or another come Opening Day, there remain plenty of tough questions concerning the state of the Rangers' eventual 25-man roster.

I now present to you Exhibit A: the outfield/first base/designated hitter situation. It's a mess, to put things mildly. The Rangers plan on rolling out a starting outfield of Marlon Byrd in left field, Hamilton in center field and Bradley in right field, but many wonder if Byrd will be able to maintain his high level of offensive production from 2007 (.307/.355/.459 in 414 AB) into the new calendar year. Hamilton, despite his seemingly limitless potential, carries his own set of worrisome injury concerns from Cincinnati to Arlington after having played in just 90 games last year, thanks to separate bouts with gastroenteritis and a sprained wrist. And Bradley, who continues to recuperate from off-season knee surgery to repair a torn ACL in his right knee (sustained during the course of a bizarre altercation with umpire Mike Winters last September), may not be ready to assume outfield duties straight out of the gate, which could relegate him to DH duties through the first month of the season – an added dynamic which only further complicates this already muddled outfield conundrum.

With so much risk and variability surrounding the tentative starting outfield, it would only make sense that the backup outfielders, in this instance, would be especially important. Here, the Rangers have a plethora of options, though admittedly not particularly exciting ones: David Murphy, Jason Botts, Nelson Cruz and the freshly inked Kevin Mench will all battle for a pair of available roster spots over the coming six weeks.

Murphy has the inside track on the 4th outfielder job, while the final spot is most likely to be filled by either Botts or Cruz. Each has his own set of merits and flaws: Botts possesses superior plate discipline and excellent power, but his swing remains rather “loopy,” and his outfield defense is nothing to write home about. Cruz, on the other hand, is a competent defensive corner outfielder, with an excellent arm and decent range, and he wields amazing power potential in his own right – but his inability to hit breaking pitches consistently, or draw walks for that matter, have his big league career teetering on the brink of outright failure. And keep an eye on Mench, the looming dark horse candidate behind Botts and Cruz. Manager Ron Washington has been known to favor veterans over talented but unproven commodities, and a strong spring could still springboard him to a guaranteed roster spot coming out of Surprise.

Frank Catalanotto, signed by the Rangers during the 2006-2007 off-season, will almost certainly serve as their everyday DH against right-handed pitchers – though, again, the status of Bradley's health might force Catalanotto into mandatory outfield service early on, where he ranks as passable but somewhat below-average. With the recent departure of Sammy Sosa from the organization, Texas will be seeking a platoon partner for Catalanotto, whose career track record against left-handers (.248/.332/.344 in 323 AB) shows that he really can't hit southpaws to save his life. Botts, Cruz, Mench and even minor league first baseman Chris Shelton are all candidates to fill this role, as well. Pencil Botts in as the early favorite, but his lack of minor league options make it so that he can ill afford to come down with a nasty case of the spring training blues at the plate. Cruz and Shelton are also out of options, though Murphy still has one to his credit. Mench, meanwhile, has a clause in his minor league deal that allows him to become a free agent if he's not added to the active roster by June 1st.

The rest of the positional battles, thankfully, are a bit less pronounced. Ben Broussard hasn't shown himself particularly capable of being an everyday first baseman, especially given his offensive deficiencies versus left-handed pitching, but Ron Washington seems to have already publicly committed to him. Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, the centerpiece of the monster package of prospects acquired by the Rangers last July in exchange for first baseman Mark Teixeira, will likely face some degree of competition from fellow backstop Gerald Laird, despite the latter's horrid offensive performance (.224/.278/.349 in 407 AB) in 2007. Laird's the superior defensive catcher and “game-caller,” but Saltalamacchia's tremendous offensive potential make it unlikely that he'll begin the 2008 season at Triple-A Oklahoma, even though the front office has previously hinted at that possibility. Utility infielder Ramon Vazquez will face some spring competition from the likes of promising second base prospect German Duran and veteran infielder Edgardo Alfonzo, but should be able to successfully stave both of them off.

Incredibly enough, the Rangers' long-suffering pitching staff may prove to be the most stable component of their 2008 roster. Texas will carry just 12 pitchers out of spring training, in all likelihood, leaving room for just seven relievers. The core of that seven-man bullpen unit has already been defined, and will be comprised of fireballing right-hander Joaquin Benoit and blue-gloved lefty C.J. Wilson, as well as the aforementioned duo of Guardado and Fukumori. Ron Washington has not committed to his Opening Day closer as of yet, but Wilson is the early favorite; granted, his grip on the closer's role will be something less than secure going into spring training, as Washington made no secret of his desire for the Rangers to add a veteran closer over the winter. Those of you with designs on selecting Wilson as part of your fantasy baseball drafts may want to snag Guardado as insurance – or better yet, avoid the situation altogether.

Texas has a bevy of options for the final three spots at the back of their bullpen. Right-hander Frankie Francisco, whose command utterly abandoned him in 2007 as he made his first prolonged comeback from April 2005 Tommy John surgery, has the inside track on a middle reliever spot. That leaves a collection consisting of John Rheinecker, Wes Littleton, Scott Feldman, Jamey Wright, Kameron Loe, Josh Rupe, Jason Davis, Robinson Tejeda, and a few other fringe candidates vying for those last two coveted spots. It's especially hard to make an educated prediction here, given the sheer quantity of options, but Rheinecker's strong LOOGY (Lefty One Out Guy) tendencies – he held left-handed hitters to an anemic .229/.289/.371 batting line in 2007 – and Wright's emergence as a reliever during the second half of the 2007 season (2.05 ERA, 1.08 ERA and just 1 HR allowed in 30.2 IP in that role) render them both as especially enticing candidates to fill in the cracks. The Rangers may not want to go into the season with three lefties in their bullpen, but Rheinecker's lack of options prevent the Rangers from shipping him back to the minor leagues without exposing him to waivers – and with the strong league-wide demand for competent southpaw relievers, the odds of him clearing those are slim to none.

The starting rotation picture appeared to be discombobulated by the Josh Hamilton trade, as Texas was forced to ship promising young right-hander – and tentative fifth starter - Edinson Volquez to the Reds in order to seal the deal. But the signing of Jason Jennings has nullified that confusion, to a large extent, and barring injury (which is always a risky proposition where the Rangers are concerned), the starting rotation will consist of Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla, Jennings, Brandon McCarthy and Kason Gabbard. Of those five, Gabbard has the weakest hold on his respective rotation spot; then again, Texas isn't exactly overflowing with on-the-cusp alternatives, as young hurlers Luis Mendoza, Eric Hurley and Matt Harrison could use a bit more seasoning in the minors. But all five starters either spent significant time on the disabled list in 2007 (Millwood, Padilla, McCarthy and Jennings), or have extremely sketchy injury histories to their credit (Gabbard, in particular, has undergone four elbow surgeries throughout his career), making it likely that we'll be seeing Hurley toeing the rubber at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington sooner rather than later. While this may be a rotation loaded with potential, or at the very least the potential to be league-average, this is also a rotation loaded with a hefty dose of risk.

What To Expect: Texas will likely push for Bradley to play in the outfield as soon as he's physically capable of doing so, allowing Catalanotto to hold down the fort at DH and creating additional playing time for Murphy and Botts, the early front-runners for the two backup outfielder jobs. Saltalamacchia should safely secure the starting catcher's job, and while Wilson will hopefully go into the season as the closer, Ron Washington's patience will run paper thin if he begins to falter early on.

With the fine job of under-the-radar talent acquisition performed by Jon Daniels over the past two seasons, the Texas Rangers find themselves in a rare position. Not only do they have several fine, young Major League players worthy of building their future around in second baseman Ian Kinsler, Hamilton, Wilson and Saltalamacchia, but they also possess one of the game's deepest and most talented farm systems.

And believe it or not, enough potential exists on this 2008 squad for the Rangers to contend for the AL West title. Injury avoidance and a little help from some overachievers could propel this team beyond the 90-win threshold; conversely, an ACL tear here or some lingering elbow tendinitis there, or a return to the underachieving ways that derailed the Rangers' 2007 campaign before it really had an opportunity to get started, might send Texas tumbling back into last place for a second consecutive season.

But no matter the outcome, it promises to be an exciting ride.

Joey covers the Texas Rangers on his blog, Baseball Time in Arlington.

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