Texas Rangers face 6 key questions ahead of first full workout of spring training
The last of the Texas Rangers’ position players trickled into Arizona on Sunday, the day they had to report for spring training.
Chief among them was shortstop Elvis Andrus, who, entering his 12th MLB season, is afforded the right to report at the 11th hour. His manager, Chris Woodward, said he has no problem whatsoever with position players taking their time.
Andrus, though, rates as one of the main cogs in the Rangers’ 2020 goals. The team has said it needs more from him at the plate this season, and he has shed some weight to help him defensively and on the bases.
His ability to produce more rates as one of the keys for the Rangers this season. Where it falls on the spectrum of importance is debatable.
It’s not one of the key questions the Rangers will have as they hold their first full-squad workout of the season.
Here are six to consider:
Can Odor figure it out?
Woodward said that Rougned Odor’s spring is the most important in camp. The Rangers need more than all-or-nothing from their second baseman, who finished the season strong and worked on that swing throughout the offseason.
September, when Odor hit nine home runs, and spring training are the two toughest times to evaluate players, yet the Rangers have little choice. They hope Odor is right, and so does he.
If not, a difficult decision is looming at some point during the season.
Who’s on first?
First base is an open competition, and it looks to be a two-player race between Ronald Guzman, the shaky incumbent, and Greg Bird, the oft-injured former New York Yankees prospect.
Like Odor, Guzman said he was slow to figure out how analytics worked for him but he has an idea now. His battle, though, is always going to be all the extra moving parts in his swing as the result of being 6-foot-6.
Bird must be healthy to get consistent at-bats to show he can be productive.
Gallo a full go?
Joey Gallo is healthy again after missing the final nine weeks last season because of a broken hamate bone. He was an All-Star player before his right hand went bad and needed surgery.
The Rangers need him to be an All-Star over a full season, something he hasn’t done. He’s played a full season, but not at the level he played prior to his July injury. If he is an All-Star for 162 games, watch out.
If.
Where’s Danny?
The Rangers expect that Danny Santana will be in center field most of the season, but they are also open-minded to seeing if anyone else in camp can play the position well enough to allow Woodward to use Santana in a super-utility role.
Nick Solak is the player the Rangers are most curious to see out there. Scott Heineman has the experience but isn’t seen as the same caliber hitter as Solak. Leody Taveras is the future at the position, and could handle things defensively but his bat needs more time.
With external options pretty much gone, center field will by manned by someone in house.
How good is the rotation?
On paper, the five starters the Rangers have assembled could form one of the best rotations in team history.
If Corey Kluber is right physically and mechanically, as he claims to be, the Rangers have one of the best starting pitchers in baseball. Lance Lynn and Mike Minor finished fifth and eighth in Cy Young voting last year. The Rangers think they are catching veterans Kyle Gibson and Jordan Lyles on upward trajectories.
As Lynn said, it all comes down to health. He threw in depth, too, and the Rangers have more quality depth pieces than the past few seasons. At least on paper.
Extension time?
Two players jump to mind as candidates for contract extensions: Minor, who can become a free agent after the season, and Gallo, who has two years of arbitration remaining.
Both players want to stay with the Rangers. Minor holds no grudges after being put through the trade-rumor wringer last season, and Gallo said he wants to become the face of the franchise.
Historically, the Rangers’ extension window comes during spring training. They will have to decide between finding the right value for Minor and Gallo or if they want to see them repeat their All-Star seasons first.
This story was originally published February 16, 2020 at 1:44 PM.
