He's on again, he's off again, he's back on again?
Texas Rangers prospect Jurickson Profar is going back and forth on his decision on whether to take part in the World Baseball Classic for The Netherlands. The Curacao native, if he chose to play, would likely miss a week or two of spring training as the team will be playing its pool play in Taiwan at the beginning of March.
Profar said recently he wouldn't play, then tweeted that he is looking forward to playing for the Dutch team. Earlier this week, Rangers GM Jon Daniels said Profar, along with fellow prospects Mike Olt and Leury Garcia, would have an opportunity to compete for a spot on the Rangers' big-league roster and will work in the outfield in spring training.
Daniels went as far as to say that if Profar ends up being worthy of a spot on the 25-man roster, that he wouldn't hesitate to put him on it, even if it means not playing every day as opposed to being an everyday player in Triple-A Round Rock.
"Our stance on Jurickson is that if he demonstrates he's one of the best 25 or the best nine, and we're comfortable there's enough of an opportunity for him to play and that doesn't hurt his progress," Daniels told ESPN Dallas. "I see him in the long term as a shortstop or a middle infielder, but he may take some balls out there [in the outfield] as well. We'll see what happens."
The Rangers have said all along that they will leave it up to Profar on whether he plays in the WBC. Since he's not a pitcher, who are generally more closely guarded by organizations from playing in the tournament, Profar would have the club's blessing if he chose to play.
