Another problem with taking Cruz out of the outfield and making him a DH is that puts Berkman on the bench or at 1st base

With Berkman's knees you want him at DH not in the field. The Rangers need his bat Notice Face had a -2.4 WAR last year. If Berkman can provide a fairly pedestrian +2.5 that is a 5.1 WAR swing. Hamilton was at 3.3 (I think) last year so replacing Face with Berkman makes up for Hamilton.

If I were the Rangers I would still look at another outfielder. Cruz was not that good last year and if he needed steroids to be mediocre then it may be time to replace him. Just not with Michael Bourne, they need more power. (Though an out field with Bourne Gentry and Martin might be fun to watch occasionally)

I've been saying this for weeks but I think this is the time to go to Maimi and say Profar and Olt and Perez and any three other players not on the 40 man roster for Stanton. If I am going to bet the farm I am going to bet it on him

A corollary to this question, assuming that Cruz is not suspended is does Moreland get a chance to be a full time guy at 1st? Defensively he is fine but can he hit lefties well enough? Unlike Murphy Moreland did not even show a n adjustment last year. Part of that could have been that he was on the bench too much to let Face and Napoli play first. I just don't know but the Rangers need Moreland to step it up a bit

They've said Moreland was gonna get a shot at full-time 1B whenever they came out and said Olt and Profar were starting the year at AAA. My money is on him making it until about June when they call up Olt and get some manner of platoon going. You're right, the man just can't hit lefties and he's about average defensively.

I'll take that bet.

Mitch putting in a lot of work hitting lefties before ST says to me he deserves a shot, especially considering the alternatives, which as I see it, are:
- having Berkman play 1B regularly, which increases the likelihood of recurring injury.
- having Ian play 1B regularly, which goes against their previous decision. It allows Profar into the lineup, but probably isn't the ideal fit for Ian, especially if he can rebound and provide elite defense again.
- having Olt play 1B out of the chute, when he has seen barely any MLB pitching and none at AAA and could, possibly, just flame out.
- having Snyder or Baker play 1B, which seem like worse options than any of the above.

No, I think the best strategy is to let Mitch play most days. If he continues to struggle against lefties, and Olt destroys AAA the way he did to AA, then maybe you consider bringing him up. Maybe.

Thank you, Andy.