1/4/2023 0 Comments Rangers shortstop![]() ![]() ![]() I still think the likeliest outcome for Solak is that he is packaged in a trade once the lockout ends (hey, maybe the Marlins?) but if the Rangers can’t find a suitable partner, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him as the fourth outfielder on Opening Day, especially if Eli White’s elbow isn’t quite at 100 percent when spring training concludes. If super-utility is a role he’s unwilling to fill, there are surely a number of teams out there who could use a Gold Glove-caliber infielder, but with his defensive prowess and unique skill set, it would greatly benefit the Rangers if he could be an every-day-at-a-different-position guy. That’s an experiment the team abandoned in 2019, but with the additions of Seager, Semien and Jung, perhaps they will ask him to stay sharp, just in case. When that happens, Kiner-Falefa will either have to pick up an outfielder’s glove (he has played a combined 10 games in left field and center field in the minor leagues) or find a way to be content playing the Ben Zobrist/Chris Taylor role as the Rangers steam forward into contention, with a possible bonus: He has caught 73 games in the big leagues. But the writing is on the wall: Josh Jung is coming. He’ll almost certainly start the season as the Rangers’ third baseman. He won a Gold Glove at third base in 2020. This one’s easy, at least for the time being. Let’s see if we can find a good fit for each. That’s the right answer, of course, but for those 11 guys - to varying degrees - the fight for a full-time job just went from, “Which one of us is going to emerge victorious?” to “Which one(s) of us will be traded, and which will end up at another position?”Īs for what position each guy should familiarize themselves with? Well, it varies by player. I think it’s pretty cool that hopefully one day I’ll have the chance to play with those guys, whether it’s backing them up or playing a different position.” Those are two of the better players in the major leagues, in my opinion, at premier positions. “But like I told (the front office), for the Rangers to get both of those guys is extremely big for this organization. “My immediate reaction was, ‘I probably should get an outfielder’s glove (and) try to find a new position,'” Smith said at the Rangers’ leadership mini-camp last week. (Of note: For the sake of this exercise, I’m not including names like Yonny Hernández, Andy Ibáñez, Davis Wendzel or Keyber Rodriguez, all of whom probably already profile to be utility guys.) To Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Nick Solak, Josh Smith, Ezequiel Duran, Justin Foscue, Luisangel Acuña, Maximo Acosta, Trevor Hauver, Cameron Cauley, Chris Seise, Thomas Saggese and others: You might want to start thinking about your defensive versatility. But the move also sent another unspoken message. The Texas Rangers were on the rise again. When the Rangers signed Corey Seager and Marcus Semien to long-term deals in November, it was an announcement that the worst of the rebuild years were over. So it’s not like they don’t have a blueprint for what might come next. In addition, the Rangers had Robinson Chirinos and Hanser Alberto on the bench, bringing the total to seven current or former shortstops on the roster. Of the starting nine, no fewer than five - Profar, Desmond, Odor, Rua and Andrus - had played shortstop at some point in the major or minor leagues. It was June 7, 2016, and I had a realization while watching the Texas Rangers play the Houston Astros: Man, there sure are a lot of former shortstops out there right now. ![]()
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