Rangers place Evan Carter on IL, call up surprising replacement that may foreshadow future plans

When Evan Carter left the game yesterday with a sore oblique, we knew something might be afoot. The Texas Rangers wanted to wait a bit to evaluate him some more, but we didn't need to exercise much patience as the club added Carter to the 10-Day IL this afternoon. Coming back up from Round Rock in his stead is 25-year-old Cody Freeman.

Freeman, who missed significant time himself so far this year, has some limited outfield experience, but has overwhelmingly played the majority of his minor league games on the infield dirt. Alejandro Osuna, who had been leading the club in on-base percentage at the time of his surprising demotion, is a natural outfielder and would have seemed like the more natural option to replace Carter.

The Rangers calling up Cody Freeman over Alejandro Osuna in the wake of Evan Carter's injury suggests a greater plan

The likelihood of the oblique only costing Carter 10 days is almost nil, so the decisions in the wake of his injury matter, and might tell us some things about the team's future plans.

Part of what we learned about Osuna's demotion is that it was going to come with some first base reps for the 23-year-old. To date, he's only played one game at the cold corner since being sent down on June 6. However, during that time, he's hit .412 over the five games that he's played.

That would make him seem deserving of being recalled, unless, of course, the bigger priority was getting him comfortable at first base. There's a thread to pull here as Jake Burger has really struggled against right-handed pitching, and Texas has been investigating internal alternatives. Osuna's a lefty hitter and could be an option in a platoon with Burger, but only if he can prove that he can play the position first.

A second, tangentially related point has to do with the fact that the Rangers might feel like they need an extra infielder temporarily as they await Josh Smith's return from the IL. With Corey Seager still shaken up and missing his second straight game after Thursday's collision at home plate, Freeman got the start at second base while Nicky Lopez got the call at short.

Where did Skip Schumaker pencil in AL All-Star second baseman hopeful, Ezequiel "The Solution" Duran? Right field. Does that mean that will be the budding star's new "primary" position when Smith returns? Possibly.

There's an argument to be made that the Rangers are better off with Wyatt Langford in center field amid Carter's struggles. That would necessitate the need for another outfielder, though. With Carter on the IL, the Rangers could try Duran out as a primary outfielder and see if he can do more than simply play out there in a pinch occasionally.

If that happens, Smith could take over at the keystone when he's ready, and Nicky Lopez, who has been exceptional since getting plucked off the scrapheap but figured to be on the roster bubble, could receive a stay of execution.

For Carter, this injury could mean a one-way ticket back to Round Rock once he's healthy. The frustrating, yet electric outfielder hasn't lived up to his potential for far too long, and while it's pure speculation, this trip to the IL might result in the prolonged reset he desperately needs.

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