If Texas Rangers are in Seattle to open the season, Mike Minor might not be with them
Crowds are going to grow in the coming days at Texas Rangers spring training, as spring break arrives for Metroplex school districts.
Sounds like a good time for me to head back to Texas for a few days.
Stefan Stevenson will be filling in on the beat for the next five days, and filling his Twitter followers’ timelines with pictures of his many meals at Culver’s and Big Buddha.
Follow him at @StevensonFWST. As always, click on the embed below to subscribe to the Star-Telegram Sports Pass.
Here’s the Surprise Five from Thursday at Rangers camp.
1. Mike Minor certainly looked like he will be just fine for the opening series of the season, tossing three no-hit innings in his Cactus League debut.
But he might not be with the Rangers on March 26-29 at Seattle.
The Minors are expecting child No. 3 in early April, which under normal circumstances wouldn’t be a problem for a season that starts in late March.
However, the growing concern with coronavirus in Seattle is on his radar and he might not want to risk potentially exposing an infant to the illness.
Minor would likely have the support of manager Chris Wooodward if he asked to not travel to Seattle. Here’s why:
Woodward was playing for the playoff-bound Boston Red Sox in 2009 and was a candidate to make their roster for the division series, but his 2-year-old son, Mason, had the swine flu as wife Erin was about to deliver a baby.
So, Woodward flew home to tend to Mason so that the baby, Grady, wouldn’t contract swine flu.
“It was more concerning with a newborn baby with my wife,” Woodward said last week. “If he contracted it, Grady wouldn’t have made it. A newborn wouldn’t have survived, and I couldn’t have lived with myself to go play in a playoff series and lose my newborn because of it. It’s not always that drastic, but I think it’s important for guys to be there to support their wives.”
Minor said that he and his wife have discussed arranging private travel from Seattle, or wherever the Rangers are if the series is moved because of coronavirus, to be there for the birth.
The plan is for the baby to be born in Texas, but his family is in Tennessee and the baby could be born there if early.
Minor intends to be with his wife.
“We’re already worried about being across the country,” Minor said. “We’re trying to be the most prepared we can for all the situations.”
He said he has not spoken to Woodward about missing the Seattle series. Minor is one of three candidates to start on Opening Day, but the Rangers could accommodate him by having their other four starters pitch against the Mariners and hold him back for the March 31 home opener.
2. Minor’s postgame outing media session reminded him of the multiple July conversations he had with reporters as his name swirled in the rumor mill as the trade deadline approached.
He was asked about the possibility of signing a contract extension with the Rangers, who have a long track record of negotiating those during spring training. He is interested, even though he could be one of the top starters in free agency after this season.
Minor said he isn’t worrying about it, but he would prefer for it to happen before the season.
“I’m not one of those guys who puts a deadline on it,” Minor said. “But it gets a little weird whenever it’s in the middle of the season when you are talking about extensions and money and the front office is involved and your agent is going back and forth.
“It becomes a big evaluation, a big spotlight on you to pitch well because of the extension. I’d rather be about wins and getting the team to the playoffs and not worrying about all that.”
General manager Jon Daniels said there is nothing to report on the extensions front, whether with Minor or any other potential candidate.
3. Minor worked through his three innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks so efficiently that pitching coach Julio Rangel sent him to the bullpen so that the left-hander could reach the 50-pitch plateau.
Minor said that he hadn’t been feeling all that sharp early in camp, in part because of some tightness in his left hamstring. He elected to work on the back fields in simulated games early in camp until he felt he was game-ready.
“I wanted to make sure I wasn’t spraying it around and getting hit around,” Minor said.
Minor said he feels similar to how he did at this point in spring training last year before embarking on an All-Star season. He indicated that he was probably a tad ahead a year ago, when he wasn’t fighting his command as much.
Thursday, though, was a “step in the right direction.”
“Today I was hitting some spots,” Minor said.
4. Speaking of the back fields, Thursday was a good day for prospect hounds to be milling about back there.
The Rangers sent out top pitching prospects Cole Winn, Hans Crouse and Ricky Vanasco for live batting practice, with Vanasco receiving extra attention under the watchful eye of Rangel.
Vanasco graciously thanked Rangel for taking time away from the major-league club to watch him throw. Rangel told Vanasco that he was tipping his changeup and told him to just throw it like he would his fastball.
If it hit in front of the plate, great. The changeup is a pitch to get hitters off the fastball anyway, so bouncing it is fine.
Vanasco shot onto the prospect radar last season and said he has packed on 11 pounds since the October instructs in Texas as he attempts to carry more weight to help him better survive a season.
5. Over in Mesa, right-hander Jonathan Hernandez either moved a step closer to the Opening Day roster or perhaps caused Rangers brass to wonder if they should commit to letting him be a starter in the minors.
He tossed three scoreless innings against the Chicago Cubs, and looked good doing it. Every Rangers pitcher looked good as they combined on a three-hit shutout, which is a rarity in spring training.
The Rangers tossed one shutout last spring in a 0-0 tie against the San Francisco Giants, the game in which Luke Farrell was hit in the jaw with a line drive. Before that, the last spring shutout came in 2017, but it was in an exhibition game in Arlington against the Kansas City Royals.
Woodward and Daniels have said that if Hernandez is going to make the team it would be as a reliever. Woodward seems to really want Hernandez in the bullpen with his electric stuff and an ability to log multiple innings.
However, if Minor isn’t extended or doesn’t re-sign, the Rangers would have an opening in the 2021 rotation. If Corey Kluber isn’t good enough to convince the Rangers to pick up his 2021 option, that could be a second opening.
Joe Palumbo, Kolby Allard, Taylor Hearn and Tyler Phillips would become candidates for a rotation spot. So would Hernandez if he were to be sent to Triple A Nashville this season to log starts.
But if the Rangers are trying to win now, as their off-season acquisitions and attempted acquisitions would suggest, Hernandez will be in the bullpen to start this season.
This story was originally published March 6, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
