Yesterday, the Rangers shipped off Eddie Guardado to his former team, the Minnesota Twins, in exchange for a minor league pitcher. But in my opinion, the real news lies in the move the Rangers made when Guardado’s departure freed up a spot on the 25-man roster.
The Rangers called up 28-year old outfielder Nelson Cruz. At first blush, it may not seem like much - here’s a guy who has had over 430 Major League at-bats with only a .230 batting average, 14 homeruns, and 119 strikeouts to show for it. But look a little closer and you’ll see that Cruz’s numbers at Triple-A Oklahoma this year have been anything but pedestrian: .342 average, 37 homeruns, 99 RBI, and 24 stolen bases. That’s enough to make Josh Hamilton blush. Cruz continued his hot season today when he started for the Rangers in the 7-spot, going 3 for 5 with a single, double, homerun, and 3 RBI.
InGameNow user Mr Bickle points out a correlation between the Rangers and the 2007 Colorado Rockies: “The Rangers just need some pitching. I know it’s a hitter’s ballpark, but Colorado managed to win last year. Enough decent pitching can do the trick.” User oflarity reminded us, however, that the Rangers have had pitching, but tend to trade it away, as they did with Chris Young, John Danks, Edinson Volquez, and Armando Galarraga.
Continue the discussion over at InGameNow!
Tags: Eddie Guardado, Josh Hamilton, Minnesota Twins, Nelson Cruz, Texas Rangers
