Isiah Kiner-Falefa is Texas Rangers’ shortstop. Can he match what Elvis Andrus did?
The potential elephant in the infield, the awkwardness that had the potential to make camp on the left side of the Texas Rangers’ infield this spring has been all cleared up.
That happened when Elvis Andrus was traded to the Oakland A’s, leaving Isiah Kiner-Falefa free to take over shortstop without any side-eye glances from wherever Andrus was going to be stationed.
In fairness to all involved, Andrus would have followed the example of Michael Young in 2009, when Andrus was inserted at shortstop and Young was pushed to third base in a noisy offseason move. Young was the perfect teammate once everyone arrived for spring training.
Moving Kiner-Falefa made noise, too, as he had just won a Gold Glove at third base and was unseating a fan favorite who had been the Rangers’ Opening Day starter for 12 consecutive seasons.
However, the threat of some uncomfortable moments and weird conversations is gone, and Kiner-Falefa can proceed full steam ahead when the Rangers hold their first full-squad workout Monday.
He said he’s been doing that in Hawaii, which sounds pretty fantastic right about now, since getting early notice of his job change.
In all the commotion of the rebuild and the aftershocks of the Andrus trade, a fairly big question needs to be answered:
Can Kiner-Falefa be as good as Andrus was?
“I want to try to be a five-tool shortstop, not just a defensive-purpose guy,” he said. “I think that’s necessary. The product is ready. I can’t wait to put it on the field. I’m hungry and ready to go.”
The Rangers are of the mind to never put anything past Kiner-Falefa, who was a catcher entering camp two seasons ago. He entered last spring needing to win a roster spot as a utility infielder.
Then a funny thing happened. He started hitting home runs in spring training, and the power surge continued in July after baseball began summer camp following the near four-month long COVID-19 hiatus.
He was so good, and the candidates to play first base were so not good, that the Rangers moved veteran Todd Frazier from third to first and slid Kiner-Falefa into an everyday role at third.
By the time 60-game season ended, he had played himself into Rangers Player of the Year honors from the media covering the team.
“The position that I’m in now, that’s what I was working for,” Kiner-Falefa said. “But the first step was to win the utility job, and the next thing was to be the third baseman. I understood that things aren’t just given to you, so you just got to take them one by one.”
Andrus was the Rangers Player of the Year in 2017, when it looked as if he was becoming a complete player more worthy of his eight-year, $120 million contract. He was derailed the next season by a broken arm, but hit 12 homers and posted a .707 OPS.
That’s not great, but it’s higher than what Kiner-Falefa posted last season (.699) when he hit only three home runs. Andrus, battling a back injury, also hit three in 108 fewer at-bats.
But the increased pop from Kiner-Falefa suggests he has more to offer. During an offseason review of his season, he pointed to one thing that could help him improve at the plate.
“I need to swing at strikes more,” he said.
The Rangers have no shortage of shortstops in the system, but only Anderson Tejeda has played above A ball. He made his MLB debut last season and survived despite his aggressiveness at the plate.
Tejeda has all the tools Kiner-Falefa has, and arguably has more power, is a faster runner and a better fielder. Another season in the minors will help Tejeda hone in on an approach that would help make him a tougher out.
Max Acuna, Luisangel Acuna and Chris Seise are years away from the majors, but are highly regarded, high-upside prospects. The Rangers have the second pick in the 2021 draft, and the best prep prospect is Dallas Jesuit shortstop Jordan Lawlar.
For now, Kiner-Falefa is the Rangers’ shortstop.
