Rangers Need to Keep Elvis In the Building

Elvis Andrus

The Rangers had a horrible season. Fine.

But let’s don’t make last season ruin this season, too.

Texas took a step in the right direction Friday via a three-year contract extension to general manager Jon Daniels. And the team should stick with continuity and immediately lose the idea of trading shortstop Elvis Andrus.

Unless the Rangers are committed to rebuilding, they should be committed to Andrus.

“There’s going to be speculation, that's the nature of the business and the nature of our side of the business,” Daniels told reporters at last week’s Winter Meetings in Phoenix. “Nothing you can really do about that. We are obviously committed to Elvis both figuratively and literally. He's 25, 26 years old, and this guy's best baseball is ahead of him.”

Agreed.

Elvis has a contract (eight years, $120 million) that anchors him in Arlington. Plus, do the Rangers have a suitable replacement for him in Rougned Odor or Jurickson Profar?

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Like his team, Andrus had a forgettable 2014. Career-lows in batting average and on-base percentage and his highlight-film defensive plays were sparse. But he remains a leader in the clubhouse and a foundation of the franchise.

Andrus hasn’t permanently lost “it”, but rather temporarily misplaced it.

I’ll be extremely disappointed if he’s not a Ranger on Opening Day. And the Rangers would be admitting that they’re willingly taking major steps backward.
 

A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He currently lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.

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