Ian Kinsler To The DL, Jurickson Profar Called Up

As per every beat from the Metroplex, and Todd Willis, who wrote this for ESPNDallas, the Rangers placed 2B Ian Kinsler (ribs) on the disabled list and have purchased the contract of the top prospect in baseball, Jurickson Profar, from Triple-A Round Rock.

In conjunction with Alexi Ogando, Ian Kinsler’s placement on the DL smells potently like We [the Rangers] have a 6.0 game lead on the division so let’s be overly cautious, maybe even unnecessarily so. But I’m okay with that, because it’s May and we still have a full 3/4 of the season left. In Ogando and Kinsler’s case, we have 2014, 2015 and 2016 left.

From the perspective of a baseball fan, this news is exciting. Jurickson Profar has been stashed at Triple-A long enough for the Rangers to maintain 6 years of team control, and he’s fresh off a Saturday night hitting two home runs. Though he’s sitting tonight against the Tigers, he should log the majority of the innings at second base while Ian Kinsler is on the shelf.

Despite a slow start, Jurickson has generated a triple slash line of .278/.370/.438 (113 wRC+) at Round Rock, which includes 6 stolen bases and a 12.7% walk rate. Dude is ready.

The smart money is on Profar being sent down with only a taste of the big leagues once Kins is healthy, but if he exhibits a successful burst of production over the next couple weeks, it might not be long before the Rangers carve out a role for him in the 2nd half of the season.