Big day for Rangers has nothing to do with Russell Wilson
The Russell Wilson Show visited Texas Rangers camp Saturday, offering a pleasant distraction — or unpleasant, depending on perspective — in the midst of a key week of spring training.
The Rangers continue to tout that Wilson’s one-day appearances, the result of him being in the organization since he was acquired in the minor league portion of 2013 Rule 5 draft, have value.
The Super Bowl-winning and losing quarterback can share his experiences with Rangers players young and old, say the Rangers, and the acquired knowledge can help direct them during lean times.
Sounds good.
But while fans and national media were fawning over Wilson during his second annual visit to the Surprise Recreation Campus, actual baseball players were learning more about their season-opening fate.
Anthony Ranaudo is out of the rotation mix, leaving Nick Martinez as the front-runner for the final spot behind Yovani Gallardo, Derek Holland, Colby Lewis and Ross Detwiler.
Four outfielders are now competing for three roster spots after Nate Schierholtz was told that he won’t make the Opening Day roster and was granted his release.
Alex Claudio could be headed to the minors after the Rangers struck a trade with St. Louis for fellow left-handed reliever Sam Freeman, a Hebron High graduate who lives in Lewisville.
Reliever Shawn Tolleson (forearm) will pitch Sunday and thinks he can be ready for Opening Day, and Ross Ohlendorf (groin) won’t be available to start the season and will open with Ranaudo in Round Rock.
Bigger roster decisions lay ahead for the Rangers before the April 6 season opener at Oakland, but Saturday’s were the biggest so far this spring, even though Wilson was stealing the headlines.
“It was a big day for us,” manager Jeff Banister said. “We moved some guys. We feel like the players we still have in camp are viable options for the positions we have.”
Ranaudo pitched gamely Friday against Oakland, allowing two runs in six innings for his best spring start. But Martinez has been brilliant throughout camp, allowing only one earned run in 10 2/3 innings, and the importance of having starting depth in Triple A pushed Ranaudo out. He was never a candidate to be the Rangers’ long reliever.
Freeman is expected to be on the Opening Day roster, general manager Jon Daniels said, after being acquired for a player to be named or cash. Freeman isn’t a true lefty specialist, leaving open the possibility that Claudio also makes the team. But Daniels didn’t say if the Rangers would keep two lefties in the bullpen or a right-hander such as Kyuji Fujikawa, who has good numbers against lefty hitters.
“We haven’t made those calls yet,” Daniels said. “We thought the time and the acquisition price were right, and we’re going to bring [Freeman] in here and give him an opportunity.”
Outfielders Ryan Rua, Jake Smolinski, Delino DeShields Jr. and Carlos Peguero are vying for the roster spots after Schierholtz was ousted from the roster competition. The most likely scenario is that Rua starts in left field, Smolinski is the fourth outfielder, and DeShields is the last player on the bench after Peguero’s bat has gone cold the past week.
DeShields impressed again with his legs Saturday, including a steal of second base on a pitchout. As a Rule 5 pick, the Rangers would have to keep him on their roster all season, and appear to be leaning in that direction.
“We’re having serious discussions about that,” Daniels said.
After Saturday, the final rotation spot, the final three bench spots and the makeup of the bullpen rate as the key decisions left to be made. The picture became clearer Saturday, a big day for actual players in Rangers camp while Wilson was stealing the headlines.
Jeff Wilson, 817-390-7760
This story was originally published March 28, 2015 at 7:43 PM with the headline "Big day for Rangers has nothing to do with Russell Wilson."