Injuries Pile Up For Rangers
{fshare id=4947}
The Texas Rangers entered spring training with plenty of optimism following an offseason in which they made a pair of major acquisitions.
However, they will limp out of camp at Surprise, Ariz., with a lot less enthusiasm following a difficult spring that was marked by injuries and ineffective performances.
The good news for the Rangers is that their two biggest additions, first baseman Prince Fielder and left fielder Shin-Soo Choo, got through the spring relatively unscathed. Fielder appears ready to add thump from the No 3 spot in the batting order after being acquired from the Detroit Tigers in a trade for second baseman Ian Kinsler. Choo will provide a spark from the leadoff spot after signing a seven-year, $130 million contract as a free agent in December.
After failing to qualify for the postseason for the first time since 2009 last year when they lost to the Tampa Bay Rays in a tiebreaker for the second American League wild card, the Rangers are hopeful Fielder and Choo can get them back to the playoffs in 2014.
However, the duo will have to carry a fair share of the load as the Rangers will be without catcher Geovany Soto and second baseman Jurickson Profar until possibly the end of June. Profar was diagnosed with a muscle tear in his right shoulder March 23 and, later that day, Soto tore cartilage in his left knee, an injury that will require arthroscopic surgery.
Though neither Soto nor Profar were expected to be key components of the Rangers’ offense, their
absence will test the organization’s depth.
The Rangers’ options at second base are a trio of journeymen in Adam Rosales, Kensuke Tanaka and Josh Wilson. Though the organization’s top prospect, Rougned Odor, is a second baseman, general manager Jon Daniels says he will resist the temptation to push the 20-year-old with just 30 games of experience at the Double-A level to the major leagues.
J.P. Arencibia and Robinson Chirinos figure to see time behind the plate. While Arencibia hit 21 home runs in 138 games for the Toronto Blue Jays last season, he struck out 148 times, drew just 18 walks and had a .194 batting average and .227 on-base percentage. Though Chirinos has impressed this spring, the 29-year-old has played just 33 major league games.
The Rangers also found out during the second week of camp that left-hander Matt Harrison won’t be ready to pitch in the major leagues until at least late April after he was sidelined by lower back stiffness. Harrison had a pair of back surgeries last season when he was limited to two starts after winning 18 games in 2012.
That came on the heels of lefty Derek Holland injuring his left knee so severely during a fall at home in January that he required microfracture surgery. Holland is hopeful of returning by mid-June, though the timetable set at the time of the surgery was the All-Star break.
The Rangers signed left-hander Joe Saunders and right-hander Tommy Hanson to minor league contracts as free agent in hopes they could fill the rotation voids. However, neither was a lock to make the roster going into the finals days of spring training after pitching poorly for much of the spring.
On top of all that bad news, ace right-hander Yu Darvish’s availability to start the opener against the Philadelphia Phillies on March 31 is in question because of a stiff neck.
