Slacker

Don't worry, I'm still alive.  You just wouldn't know it from the blog lately.  Let's catch up on a few things.

• Ian Kinsler will lead-off, Elvis Andrus will hit second, and Michael Young has been bumped down the order to sixth.

This move, to me, is more to suit Andrus than the other two guys.  We've already seen from the past that Kinsler is capable of the lead-off position, and to replace his production in the six spot Michael Young fits in nicely, and should drive in more runs than he normally does with Hamilton, Cruz, and Beltre hitting ahead of him.  His run total might take a hit, though, with Moreland, Torrealba, and Borbon behind him most days. 

Elvis is built perfectly for the two hole at this point in his career.  He can handle the bat well, bunt, runs well, and has a good eye for working deep counts.  He doesn't hit for power, but he should see plenty of good pitches to hit batting right in front of Hamilton.

It's an interesting move, considering how well this lineup performed last year, but I think it will work out well.  As long as Kinsler stays healthy, the top two-thirds of the order should rake this year.

• Adrian Beltre is out about another week with a calf strain.

Not a good way to begin a long term contract with a new team.  Sources say he should be ready for game action around the 10th, and that he is already doing most drills other than running outside, but you'd like to see this guy ready to go by the time April rolls around.  If not, there's a pretty good player on the squad who can handle third base, if necessary.

• Brandon Webb is ramping up his pitching workouts slowly.

Webb has thrown off a mound three times this spring, with a few workouts of long toss mixed in between to strengthen his arm.  He said his mechanics are still a little out of wack, but he's feeling good, which is important.  It's looking a little unrealistic that he'll start the season in the rotation, but could be healthy enough to go by mid-April or early May.  Until then, there are three rotation spots up for grabs behind Wilson and Lewis.

• 40-man roster is finally all signed for 2011.

Everybody is finally under contract for the upcoming year.  If you're curious how much each player is making, check out the Contracts page on this site.

Finally, I hope you've seen over the past week that I don't plan on being a news source of all Rangers happenings.  For the near future, you can expect more posts like this one that hit on a few topics, then I follow each with my reactions and interpretations, which is what the basis of the blog should be.  Thanks for sticking around.