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More Rangers Notes

Posted on September 29th, 2009 9:03pm by Evan Grant
Filed under Uncategorized

ANAHEIM, Calif - Though he made a poor throw when tested from left field on Monday, rookie Julio Borbon is still likely to get a chance at center field before the end of the year.

It just won’t happen until the Rangers final standing is settled. The Rangers began play Tuesday still mathematically alive in the AL Wild Card race, though a single win by Boston or loss by the Rangers would eliminate them. The Rangers were in second plce in the AL West five games ahead of Seattle with six to play. Any combination of Rangers wins or Mariners losses adding up to two owould clinch second place for the Rangers. Not until those two questions are answered does manager Ron Washington want to put Borbon in center.

“We haven’t settled everything there is to settle,” Washington said. “Once that happens, we will run him out there.”

The Rangers want to look at Borbon as a potential center field option for 2010. The club would like to move Josh Hamilton, the opening day center fielder the last two years, to right field to reduce the risk of injury. Marlon Byrd, who has started the most games in center this season, is a free agent after the seasona nd the Rangers are uncertain about whether they will be able to afford to bring him back.

Borbon will spend about a month or six weeks this winter playing center field for Aguillas in the Dominican Republic. The hope is that he can start to get better reads on balls and make more accurate throws.

Davis sore: 1B Chris Davis tweaked his hamstring on Monday and will not play tonight. His status for the rest of the season’s final week is undetermined. Hank Blalock is back in the lineup at first. Davis had been playing third base with Michael Young out of the lineup, but moved back across the infield when Young returned from a hamstring strain on Monday.

Angels change pitchers: With the division clinched, the Angels elected to skip LHP Scott Kazmir, who had been scheduled to pitch Tuesday. Instead, Los Angeles is starting RHP Sean O’Sullivan. O’Sullivan went six innings against the Rangers on June 29 and allowed a pair of runs.

6 Comments to “More Rangers Notes”

Buck @ September 29th, 2009 at 9:19 pm

So Wash thinks Borbon is a liability in center defensively, but doesn’t think Chris Davis is a liability at third in the late innings of close games? Well, for that matter what about Nellie Cruz all year in the outfield? Hank Blalock at first isn’t exceptional either. I wish I could understand his thought process.
TXHC @ September 29th, 2009 at 9:45 pm

Can we please fire this jackass? His logic is mind-boggling.
Bobby in Bryan @ September 29th, 2009 at 9:46 pm

How come we never heard about Julio’s rag arm before he was called up? I never saw anything about it in the minor league scouting reports.
JustSaying @ September 29th, 2009 at 11:04 pm

the sooner they try borbon in center the better…….don’t wait wash…..your options are fading fast……..
badspellr @ September 30th, 2009 at 7:02 am

Why do people assume Burbon will be good in center? Rickey Henderson couldn’t play it. Juan Pierre can’t play it. It takes more than wheels.
selke99 @ October 1st, 2009 at 10:23 am

Remind me again what kind of award TX gets for finishing 2nd instead of 3rd in the division, out of the playoffs? Borbon needs as many games as he can to try him out at CF.

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