Normally when a player on your team wins an award, it's something to be celebrated. Teams are proud to know that their players have won a Cy Young, or an MVP, or a Gold Glove, as it's a positive reflection of the team. Well, sometimes having a player get recognition can throw a wrench in your plans, especially when you were hoping to ask a player to change positions next season and he goes and wins a Gold Glove.
That's what the Rangers are dealing with right now -- well aside from removing all of Jarrod Saltalamacchia's Jason Varitek posters from the clubhouse walls -- as they were hoping to move Michael Young to second base next season, and then he had to mess the whole thing up by being really good at playing short.
The Gold Glove American League managers and coaches bestowed upon Young on Thursday will likely entrench him even further at shortstop for the Rangers for the foreseeable future.
Young adamantly doesn't want to change positions anyway, but, with talented Elvis Andrus coming quickly in the minors, maybe by 2010, the Rangers have been trying to figure out how to get both in the lineup. Young's ability to make the routine play and turn the double play was what earned him his first Gold Glove. Andrus is more athletic with more range.
I don't see why the Rangers can't still ask Michael to move over to second base (Ian Kinsler would move to third) just because he won a Gold Glove. After all, they are still his boss and they do sign his paycheck. Besides, it's not like Young didn't move to second when the team signed Alex Rodriguez, and he didn't want to make the move then either.
Michael Young's Gold Glove Messes With The Rangers Plans For 2009 originally appeared on MLB FanHouse on Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:58:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.
