Rangers notes: Hamilton returns with hopes of helping in postseason

Josh Hamilton was back in the Texas Rangers’ starting lineup Saturday for the first time since Aug. 15.

Hamilton, who had surgery to repair the meniscus in his left knee on Sept. 11, started in left field and played the entire game, going 1 for 4 with three strikeouts.

Before Saturday, he had had just four at-bats since going on the disabled list with a knee injury. He had been 0 for 2 with two strikeouts in two pinch-hit appearances since the surgery.

The Rangers hope Hamilton proves the final week of the regular season that he can be used as more than just a pinch hitter in the postseason.

“I’m as ready as I’m going to get,” Hamilton said. “If I can start building up over the next week or so and treat it like a spring training deal where you play a little more each time, that would be good in case we got into the playoffs.”

Hamilton still has some pain when running on the knee.

“It’s not the same pain I had before. It’s more of a functional pain now,” he said. “I can do what I need to do. It hurts but I’m OK with that. Before it was a pain and it wouldn’t work.”

Hamilton’s progress will be measured on a day-to-day basis, manager Jeff Banister said.

“We’re at a point now we need to find out how it’s going to go,” Banister said of the postseason. “He feels good enough to do it. He’s up for it, we’re up for it also. If it feels good enough to get out on the field and play, then we need to get him out on the field of play because he’s one of the guys that can impact the game for us.”

Hamilton has looked good during batting practice the past couple of days and the Rangers would love to have his bat available for more than just a pinch-hitting role in the postseason.

“We’ve re-oiled him, tightened up all the nuts and bolts and ran him through the car wash,” Banister said.

Catching on quick

This has been a heady two months for catcher Chris Gimenez.

Since being called up from Triple A Round Rock on July 31, he has put together the best 30-game stretch of his major league career. He already has career highs in runs (17), RBIs (14) and homers (five). He also has two stolen bases, doubling his career total in parts of eight previous seasons. And Friday night, he hit his first-career triple, driving a pitch off the left-field wall, to stretch his hit streak to five games.

“How about that? I think it was more like, ‘what the heck just happened,’ ” Gimenez joked. “I blacked out. I don’t know what’s going on. I made the split-second decision fairly early that I was going [to third], I don’t care if I’m out or not.”

The Rangers are 23-4 in games he has started, making the losses of Robinson Chirinos and Carlos Corporan to injuries almost an afterthought. Bobby Wilson, who started Saturday’s game, has also been productive. He has 10 RBIs with five doubles and a homer.

“We had an expectation behind the plate, defensively,” Banister said. “Offensively, our expectations weren’t anywhere close to what they’ve given us. All of it has been a plus. They’re doing some things for us that when you look at the numbers, have been outstanding for that nine-hole slot.”

This story was originally published September 26, 2015 at 11:08 AM with the headline "Rangers notes: Hamilton returns with hopes of helping in postseason."