The over/under for Texas Rangers wins in 2012 is 91.5. The Rangers were 96-66 last year. The Rangers have the same outstanding offense that they had last year as their have been no changes to the starting lineup. They did make some changes in the pitching staff as they have signed Yu Darvish to pitch near the top of the rotation in 2012. The Rangers also signed Joe Nathan to take over as the closer, which will move Neftali Feliz into the starting rotation and Alexi Ogando to the pen. I tend to like those moves for the pitching staff. I like the over as far as Rangers’ wins are concerned in 2012.

The Rangers have lost two World Series’ in 59-year old manager Ron Washington’s first five years in charge. Washington led the Rangers to a 96-66 (59.3%) record during the regular season last year. He now has a 427-383 (52.7%) record in his first five years during the regular season as the Rangers’ manager. Washington is also 18-15 (54.5%) in the post-season for the Rangers. The Rangers have made some changes on the pitching staff with the signing of Yu Darvish and Joe Nathan over the winter. It will be up to Washington to manage the pitching staff, because the Rangers will go as far as the pitchers take them in 2012.

The Rangers are hoping this is the season that 31-year old righty swinging Nelson Cruz can stay healthy. Cruz played in 124 games for the Rangers last year and he was 125 of 475 (.263 avg, .821 OPS) with 64 runs scored, 29 homers, 87 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Cruz has now played in 528 games in his first six years with the Rangers and he is 511 of 1,888 (.271 avg, .834 OPS) with 268 runs scored, 106 homers, 323 RBIs and 52 stolen bases. Cruz has now played in 536 games in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 512 of 1,893 (.270 avg, .834 OPS) with 269 runs scored, 106 homers, 323 RBIs and 52 stolen bases. Cruz played in 109 games in RF last year and he had 5 errors and 5 assists while showing off excellent range.

29-year old Conor Jackson can handle playing RF if needed. Jackson played in 114 games for the Red Sox & A’s last year in which he was 86 of 352 (.244 avg, .651 OPS) with 32 runs scored, 5 homers, 43 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Jackson has now played in 685 games in his first seven years in the majors and he is 591 of 2,184 (.271 avg, .757 OPS) with 291 runs scored, 52 homers, 295 RBIs and 27 stolen bases. Jackson played in 31 games in RF last year and he had 1 error and 2 assists while showing off good range there.

David Murphy could also get in on the action in RF for the Rangers in 2012. He played in 32 error-free games in RF last year with 1 assist while showing off pretty awful range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RF IN 2012: A

26-year old lefty swinging Julio Borbon got hurt and he was also in the Dog House last year. He’s getting a new slate this spring and it’s up to him to take advantage of it. Borbon played in 32 games for the Rangers last year and he was 24 of 89 (.270 avg, .654 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 0 homers, 11 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. He has now played in 215 games in his first three years with the Rangers and he is 194 of 684 (.284 avg, .682 OPS) with 100 runs scored, 7 homers, 73 RBIs and 40 stolen bases. Borbon had 1 assist and 1 error in 32 games in CF last year while showing pretty good range.

28-year old righty swinging Craig Gentry is going to challenge Borbon for the CF job. He played in 64 games for the Rangers last year and he was 36 of 133 (.271 avg, .693 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 1 homer, 13 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. Gentry has now played in 95 games in his first three years in the majors and he is 45 of 183 (.246 avg, .620 OPS) with 34 runs scored, 1 homer, 17 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Gentry played in 55 games in CF for the Rangers last year and he had 1 error and 0 assists while showing out of this world range there.

24-year old lefty swinging Leonys Martin is coming into this season as the Rangers’ #4 prospect according to Baseball America. Martin played in 8 games for the Rangers last year and he was 3 for 8 (.375 avg, .875 OPS) with 2 runs scored. He also played in 73 games in Rookie+AA+AAA-ball last year in which he was 89 of 302 (.295 avg, .783 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 4 homers, 42 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. He has a huge upside and he could be the Rangers’ starting CF at some point in 2012.

Josh Hamilton and David Murphy could also get some P.T. in CF this year. Hamilton played in 35 games in CF for the Rangers last year and he had 1 assist and 1 error while showing off below average range. Murphy played in 13 error-free games in CF last year and he had 2 assists while showing off poor range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CF IN 2012: C

30-year old lefty Josh Hamilton will be starting in LF for the Texas Rangers in 2012. Hamilton played in 121 games for the Rangers last year and he was 145 of 487 (.298 avg, .882 OPS) with 80 runs scored, 25 homers, 94 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. He has now played in 499 games in his first four years with the Rangers and he is 611 of 1,965 (.311 avg, .907 OPS) with 316 runs scored, 99 homers, 378 RBIs and 33 stolen bases. Hamilton has played in 589 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 698 of 2,263 (.308 avg, .909 OPS) with 368 runs scored, 118 homers, 425 RBIs and 36 stolen bases. Hamilton played in 85 games in LF last year and he had 4 errors and 4 assists while showing average range. The Rangers hope that playing Hamilton in LF will keep him healthy in 2012.

30-year old lefty swinging David Murphy will back up Hamilton in 2012. He played in 120 games for the Rangers last year and he was 111 of 404 (.275 avg, .729 OPS) with 46 runs scored, 11 homers, 46 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. Murphy has played in 537 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 498 of 1,773 (.281 avg, .785 OPS) with 241 runs scored, 57 homers, 256 RBIs and 41 stolen bases. Murphy played in 78 games in LF last year for the Rangers and he had 2 assists and 4 errors there while showing good range. Murphy is one of the best #4 outfielders in all of baseball and I don’t look for that to change in 2012.

29-year old righty swinging Conor Jackson could also get some P.T. in LF if he makes the team this spring. Jackson played in 23 error-free games in LF last year and he had 2 assists while showing poor range there.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LF IN 2012: A

35-year old righty swinging DH Michael Young has taken to his new role with the Rangers. He played in 159 games for the Rangers last year and he was 213 of 631 (.338 avg, .854 OPS) with 88 runs scored, 11 homers, 106 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Young has now played in 1,667 games in his first 12 years in the majors and he is 2,061 of 6,788 (.304 avg, .801 OPS) with 1,006 runs scored, 169 homers, 917 RBIs and 87 stolen bases. Young can still fill in at 3B and 2B when needed, but he will spend most of his time at DH in 2012.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE DH IN 2012: A

The Texas Rangers are hoping for another big year out of 32-year old righty swinging Adrian Beltre in 2012. Beltre played in 124 games for the Rangers last year and he was 144 of 487 (.296 avg, .892 OPS) with 82 runs scored, 32 homers, 105 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 1,959 games in his first 14 years in the majors and he is 2,033 of 7,361 (.276 avg, .797 OPS) with 994 runs scored, 310 homers, 1,113 RBIs and 114 stolen bases. Beltre only had 11 errors in 112 games at 3B last year while showing off outstanding range. The Rangers hope that Beltre can stay healthy in 2012 as he is one of the best all-around players on the team.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 3B IN 2012: A

The Rangers have signed 27-year old righty reliever Jon Meloan to a minor league deal. Meloan pitched in 25 games (0 starts) in AA-ball for the A’s last year and he was 1-3 with 5 saves, a 4.67 ERA and a 1.78 WHIP. He last pitched in the majors back in 2009 for the A’s. He has pitched in 13 games (0 starts) in parts of three years in the majors and he is 0-0 with a 4.58 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. He will start the 2012 season likely in AAA-ball for the Rangers.

23-year old righty swinging shortstop Elvis Andrus has improved in each of his three years in the majors for the Rangers. They hope that continues in 2012. Andrus played in 150 games for the Rangers last year and he was 164 of 587 (.279 avg, .708 OPS) with 96 runs scored, 5 homers, 60 RBIs and 37 stolen bases. He has now played in 443 games in his first three years with the Rangers and he is 448 of 1,655 (.271 avg, .683 OPS) with 256 runs scored, 11 homers, 135 RBIs and 102 stolen bases. Andrus had 25 errors in 147 games at SS for the Rangers while showing really good range. He gets to a lot of balls that other SS only dream about getting to. Look for Andrus to maybe have a true breakout year in 2012.

27-year old switch-hitting Luis Hernandez will be competing for the utility infielder job this spring and his natural position is SS. Hernandez played in 121 games in AAA-ball for the Mets last year and he was 97 of 404 (.240 avg, .612 OPS) with 43 runs scored, 6 homers, 54 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. He last played in 2010 with the Mets. He has played in 120 games in his first four years with the Mets and he is 65 for 265 (.245 avg, .584 OPS) with 197 runs scored, 18 homers, 183 RBIs and 27 stolen bases. Hernandez can also handle 2B pretty adeptly.

24-year old switch-hitting Yangervis Solarte is trying to break into the majors this year. He played in 121 games in AA-ball last year and he was 151 of 459 (.329 avg, .834 OPS) with 64 runs scored, 7 homers, 49 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Solarte has now played in 409 games in his first six years in the minors and he is 431 of 1,495 (.288 avg, .732 OPS) with 197 runs scored, 18 homers, 183 RBIs and 27 stolen bases.

28-year old Alberto Gonzalez is also in the mix at SS. He played in 30 games for the Padres at SS last year and he had 1 error while showing pretty good range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SS IN 2012: B+

30-year old righty swinging 2B Ian Kinsler has been a 30/30 man in each of his two years that he has appeared in at least 144 games. The Rangers hope that Kinsler is three for three after 2012 is over. Kinsler played in 155 games for the Rangers last year and he was 158 for 620 (.255 avg, .832 OPS) with 121 runs scored, 32 homers, 77 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. He has now played in 773 games in his first six years with the Rangers and he is 826 of 3,001 (.275 avg, .824 OPS) with 558 runs scored, 124 homers, 395 RBIs and 136 stolen bases. Kinsler had 11 errors in 144 games at 2B last year while showing sub par range. The Rangers are happy if he just makes the plays he gets to as his bat is what he gets paid for.

28-year old righty swinging Alberto Gonzalez will try to win a backup job this spring for the Rangers. He played in 102 games for the Padres last year and he was 53 for 247 (.215 avg, .539 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 1 homer, 32 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Gonzalez has played in 378 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 203 for 839 (.242 avg, .598 OPS) with 84 runs scored, 3 homers, 81 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Gonzalez made 2 errors in 41 games at 2B for the Padres last year while showing pretty awful range. His versatility in the field gives him an edge in the competition for the utility man job as he can play any infield spot (including 1B) defensively.

33-year old switch-hitting Matt Kata is also on hand this spring to fight for a utility job. Kata played in 106 games in AAA-ball for the Rangers last year and he was 115 of 392 (.293 avg, .832 OPS) with 60 runs scored, 13 homers, 71 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He last played in the majors back in 2009 for the Astros. He has played in 278 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 166 of 695 (.239 avg, .660 OPS) with 89 runs scored, 12 homers, 63 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Kata can also handle 3B defensively.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2B IN 2012: A