Spring Training 2011: Quick Notes from Surprise

With just a couple weeks left of Spring Training, things are starting to heat up in every aspect of the Rangers from changing roles to trade requests – and no, it has nothing to do with Michael Young although he is the one that has been blowing up our feeds and e-mails in trade talks. Here are a few things that have happened in the past day or so that you should know about – after the jump.

Now, heading into camp, Neftali Feliz moving from closer to starter was one the talk of the league. At first, Feliz didn’t want to start but now that he’s developed a new pitch, which is a cut fastball, he feels much more comfortable starting and will work towards that goal for the rest of the spring (we covered this here). Should Nefty make starting rotation, it seems that Ron Washington does not believe his replacement in the bullpen is already in the Rangers organization and is actually outside of such. However, he has no worries about Jon Daniels being able to find a suitable closer to replace Feliz if that should become the case.

Chris Davis, who has had a very impressive spring, is requesting a trade. Well, it’s not that simple. He is asking the Rangers to give him a spot in the Major Leagues or send him to a team that could use him where he belongs – in the bigs. I’d definitely say that he deserves a shot, despite looking at his past opportunities blowing up in his face, as he has been very solid this spring and could possibly be one of the best future players of the Rangers if allowed in.

Despite having a poor pitching performance, his worst during a Cactus League game this year, against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Derek Holland remains confident in earning a spot in the Rangers starting rotation. His outing consisted of four innings in which he allowed four earned runs. He says he was “inconsistent” but he still believes he’ll earn that spot as a starter.

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