The Rangers have signed 33-year old righty reliever Justin Miller to a minor league deal. Miller has pitched in 6 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball earlier this year for the Mariners and he was 0-0 with a 1.04 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. He last pitched in the majors back in 2010 with the Dodgers. Miller has pitched in 216 games (33 starts) in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 24-14 with a 4.82 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. If Miller gets off to a good start in the minors for the Rangers, they won’t likely waste much time before calling him up.

The Rangers have placed 28-year old righty reliever Darren O’Day on the 60-day disabled list due to surgery he’s going to have tomorrow to repair a torn labrum in his left hip. O’Day has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Rangers so far this year and he is 0-1 with a 2.45 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. O’Day will be out until at least late June at the earliest and the Rangers are going to miss him big time as he has been one of the most effective relievers on the team. The Rangers have recalled 24-year old righty reliever Ryan Tucker to replace O’Day in the bullpen. Tucker has pitched in 6 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 1-1 with 1 save, a 4.09 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP. His only major league experience game in 2008 with the Marlins, and it wasn’t pretty. Tucker pitched in 13 games (6 starts) for the Marlins in 2008 and he was 2-3 with a 8.27 ERA and a 1.87 WHIP. He has given up 46 hits (8 homers) and he has walked 23 batters in his first 37 innings in the majors. The Rangers hope that Tucker will help them in the pen as he was once one of the brightest prospects in the minors.

The Texas Rangers have placed 23-year old righty closer Neftali Feliz on the 15-day disabled list due to shoulder inflammation. Feliz has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) so far this year and he is 0-0 with 5 saves, a 1.08 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. The Rangers have called up 25-year old righty reliever Cody Eppley to replace Feliz in the bullpen. Eppley has pitched in 6 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 1-0 with 3 saves, a 0.00 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He has only given up 6 hits in his first 8 1/3 innings in the minors while whiffing 9 batters. 40-year old lefty Darren Oliver will likely get most of the save chances while Feliz is out of action. Oliver has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Rangers so far this year and he is 1-1 with a 2.16 ERA and a 0.60 WHIP. 28-year old Darren O’Day (0-1, 2.84 ERA and 1.58 WHIP) and 41-year old lefty Arthur Rhodes (0-1, 3.00 ERA and 1.17 WHIP) could also get some work in save situations.

34-year old righty swinging Michael Young is starting to accept his new role as the Rangers’ DH and he’s hitting the ball really well right now. Young has played in 19 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 28 for 78 (.359 avg, .870 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 0 homers, 11 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Young has been really solid near the top of the lineup along with Ian Kinsler which allows the Rangers to get off to fast starts offensively in games.

When the Rangers put Brandon Webb on the D.L. and they decided to go with Neftali Feliz as the closer rather than a starter, it left a couple of openings and question marks at the back end of the rotation. Lefty Matt Harrison won one of the spots in the rotation and he has been electric so far this year for the Rangers. Harrison has started 4 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 3-1 with a 1.88 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. Harrison has only give up 18 hits in his first 28 2/3 innings for the Rangers this year as he has been aggressive while still missing bats. Righty Alexi Ogando came to spring training with the idea that he would be the Rangers’ top set-up man in the pen. Then, when the Rangers started talking about using Neftali Feliz in the rotation, Ogando’s name was brought up to replace him as the closer. But, when the Rangers finally decided to use Feliz as the closer again, they decided to give Ogando a shot at the starting rotation and he has been electric so far this year. Ogando has started 3 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 2-0 with a 2.33 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP. He has only given up 10 hits while walking 4 batters in his first 19 1/3 innings of the year. If Harrison & Ogando keep pitching well the Rangers are again going to be the beast of the A.L. West in 2011.

The Texas Rangers have placed 23-year old righty reliever Mason Tobin on the 60-day D.L. with a case of right ulnar ligament inflammation. He has pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Rangers so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP. He had issues throwing strikes as he walked 5 batters in his first 5 1/3 innings with the Rangers without striking anyone out. Tobin had Tommy John Surgery a couple of years ago, so the Rangers are going to be careful with him. The Rangers have also sent down 24-year old lefty reliever Michael Kirkman after be got bombed in his first appearance of the year. He gave up 6 hits (1 homer) and 5 earned runs in only 1 2/3 innings in his only game this year with the Rangers. The Rangers have recalled 27-year old righty swinging catcher Taylor Teagarden and 37-year old righty reliever Brett Tomko to take Tobin and Kirkman’s spot on the Rangers’ active roster. Teagarden has played in 6 games in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 7 for 18 (.389 avg, 1.421 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 2 homers and 4 RBIs. I don’t think he’ll get much P.T. for the Rangers this time around as he will be behind Yorvit Torrealba and Mike Napoli on the depth chart. Tomko has pitched in 2 games (both starts) in AAA-ball this year and he is 0-2 with a 6.35 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. Tomko will likely serve as the long man in the pen for the Rangers.

29-year old lefty swinging LF Josh Hamilton will miss the next 6-8 weeks with a non-displaced fracture of the humerus bone in his right shoulder. Hamilton tried to score by tagging up on a fly ball behind the plate. He slide head first and that’s how he was injured. It was a stupid play and now the Rangers have to pay for it. Hamilton has played in 11 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 13 of 39 (.333 avg, .871 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 0 homers, 7 RBIs and 1 stolen base. 29-year old lefty David Murphy will take over as the new starting LF for the Rangers until Hamilton is ready to return to action. Murphy has played in 5 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 5 for 16 (.313 avg, .951 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer, 3 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Murphy is one of the very best #4 outfielders in all of baseball, so I expect him to do a good job until Hamilton is ready to return to action.

The Rangers need starting CF Julio Borbon to get his act together. He has played in 6 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 4 for 18 (.222 avg, .744 OPS) with 1 run scored, 2 triples and 3 RBIs. Borbon has outstanding speed but it doesn’t really matter if he can’t get on base. Borbon has also had issues on D as he has looked lost in CF since spring training. The Rangers need Borbon to pick up his game because they don’t want to have to use Josh Hamilton in CF. Still, with David Murphy playing as well as he is right now he is pushing Borbon for P.T. Murphy has played in 4 games for the Rangers so far this year and he is 5 for 12 (.417 avg, 1.250 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer, 3 RBIs and 2 stolen bases.

Starting DH Michael Young is trying to adjust to his new role. In his first six games so far this year for the Rangers, Young is 7 for 25 (.280 avg, .680 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 3 doubles and 2 RBIs. He has been very impatient at the plate as he hasn’t walked yet, but he’s also only whiffed 1 time. The Rangers would probably still like to deal Young so they will keep calling teams about his availability with Mike Napoli likely ready to replace him at DH. For now though, the Rangers just need Young to hit like he is capable of.

The Texas Rangers have claimed 26-year old righty reliever Ramon Aguero on waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates. Aguero pitched in 25 games (0 starts) in A+AA-ball last year and he was 2-5 with 3 saves, a 6.14 ERA and a 1.84 WHIP. He has now pitched in 103 games (30 starts) in his first five years in the minors and he is 11-22 with 7 saves, a 4.14 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. The Rangers are taking a chance on another pitcher with a big arm which is the kind of guys the Rangers collect.