Three Up, Three Down: Final Push for Rangers Opening Day Roster

As the Texas Rangers get closer to making difficult decisions regarding their Opening Day roster, some players are beginning to separate themselves from others.

Author:
Chris Halicke
Mar 17, 2021 1:20 PM EDT

With less than two weeks until the Texas Rangers break camp and head for Arlington, the battle for the final roster spots will surely intensify.

Only a few spots are guaranteed (Joey Gallo, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Kyle Gibson), while other positions are beginning to coalesce (Jose Trevino and Rougned Odor).

There are still several spots on the Opening Day roster up for grabs. The Rangers have made it clear that no player is excused from losing a spot if someone else does enough to take it.

With that in mind, here are three players that are making serious pushes toward earning a trip to Arlington, along with three players that could lose their spots, or be left off altogether.

Three Up

Eli White

Of all the outfielders in Rangers camp, Eli White might be having the best camp out of everyone not named Joey Gallo.

The Rangers love his versatility in the outfield, his speed, and his improved mechanics and approach at the plate. They've also kept him out of the infield this year, giving him more time in the outfield to focus on polishing up his defense.

While Leody Taveras was never guaranteed the center field job coming into camp, he was considered to be the clear frontrunner. Eli White has done plenty in camp to pull up to a neck-and-neck tie down the stretch.

Hunter Wood

The absence of Jonathan Hernández for at least the first portion of the season has left a gaping hole in the bullpen. Wood, a non-roster invitee, has been about as dominant as any reliever in camp.

"I was surprised he only struck out one guy this time," Rangers manager Chris Woodward said after Tuesday's win over the Giants. "His conviction right now, it seems like he's got no fear in throwing any pitch in any count."

A roster move would be required to make room for Wood, but it's something the Rangers are willing to do if he continues to dominate hitters.

Matt Bush

The comeback story is almost complete.

Earlier this spring, Matt Bush was already impressing Chris Woodward in his side sessions, hitting upper-90's with his fastball. His stuff has carried over into game action, blowing away hitters with the fastball and buckling knees with a devastating breaking ball.

Bush has learned to calm his emotions on the mound, and has said he feels more like a pitcher this spring. He has also expressed a strong desire to guide the younger arms in the bullpen.

Three Down

Khris Davis

The Rangers acquired Khris Davis hoping he could tap into the player that hit 40-plus home runs from 2016-2018. It hasn't played out thus far, starting the spring with a dreadful .091 average (2-for-22).

If there's any silver lining, Davis has put up poor numbers in spring training for the past few years, even in 2018 when he led all of baseball with 48 homers. However, the Rangers have showed some concern recently.

While Chris Woodward has praised Davis' presence in the clubhouse and said his swing decisions have been good, he has missed too many pitches he should be connecting with. While it might not quite be time to write-off Davis' chances of making the Opening Day roster, they have definitely gone down.

Leody Taveras

As mentioned earlier, Taveras was never going to be handed the everyday job in center field. His early struggles in camp have proven that to be true. Eli White is nipping at Taveras' heels, and David Dahl can also man center field if needed.

Early on, Taveras' at-bat quality was low. He was overaggressive and showed a surprising lack of disciple. He's seemed to turn that around in recent games, bouncing back from bad calls from behind the plate and roping doubles down the line to the opposite field.

There's no hiding how much Chris Woodward and the Rangers want Taveras to succeed. And he still can. I can't emphasize enough how important the next week-and-a-half is for him.

José Leclerc

With Jonathan Hernández shelved for the time being, the Rangers need someone to step up and take the closer's job by the horns.

Unfortunately, José Leclerc has not shown any signs of the dominant pitcher he was in 2018. In addition, his velocity is down a couple of ticks. If he doesn't have the stuff to blow away hitters, he may have to reinvent himself in a sense.

Outside of actual stuff, Leclerc seems to lack the demeanor of a guy who can get the final three outs of a ballgame. It's only spring training, but there are a handful of other relievers who have been vastly more dominant. How far Leclerc could fall down the bullpen ladder remains to be seen, but it seems he's already down a rung or two.

Promo photo: Kelly Gavin / Courtesy of the Texas Rangers

Chris Halicke covers the Texas Rangers for InsideTheRangers.com. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisHalicke.
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