Roster Moves And Decisions And Changes ... Of Another Sort

I would throw up another concilatory message about my sporadic presence here over the last month, but you're all tired of that, and I get that you're tired of that, and I don't need to talk about that anymore, because it turns out that we have some roster moves coming down this afternoon to mark our official transition from the season that was into the off-season that is now.

Per John Blake, the Rangers have declined their 2013 options on Scott Feldman and Yoshinori Tateyama, have purchased the contract of right-hander Justin Miller from Triple-A Round Rock, and have activated Neftali Feliz from the 60-day disabled list. Shortly before that round of announcements, T.R. Sullivan noted on Twitter that Feldman's desire is to ply his craft elsewhere as a starting pitcher, and in light of that and his oddly disappointing season (a season where the defense-independent markers were quite sturdy, but the ERA was awful), it's hard to see much reason for believing that Feldman will even be back on a reduced-rate deal. We talked for the better part of the summer about how Feldman just had the look of someone who desperately needed a change of scenery, and now he's in line for exactly that.

Tateyama, meanwhile, sees his low-dollar 2013 option declined (the specific value of the option/buyout has not been disclosed, but it's generally believed that his 2013 option was worth around $1-1.5 million), and his future in Texas seems very much in doubt. He's the quintessential righty killer (141 PA, 38 K, 5 BB, 1 HR, .200/.234/.274 from 2011-12), but the problem is that, for one reason or another, he hasn't been utilized in that way, with the Rangers electing to utilize him in the lowest of low-leverage roles in 2012, and generally utilizing him far too often against lefties (116 PA, 23 K, 12 BB, 11 HR, .272/.353/.641 from 2011-12) for him to provide any sort of material value to the big league club. I harbor serious doubts as to whether he fits into the Rangers' plans going forward.

As far as the Feliz/Miller additions are concerned: Feliz was an expected procedural move, and Jason Cole shares a few thoughts on the Miller addition on Twitter: "Not too surprised the Rangers put RHP Justin Miller back on the 40-man. They've got some more roster flexibility this offseason, and Miller told me yesterday that his Tommy John rehab has gone well. He's aiming for a mid-to-late April 2013 return to game action." If all goes according to planned next year, Miller will again hit the developmental track in the hopes of eventually ascending to the majors in a relief role (most likely in 2014), and Feliz will made a clean return from Tommy John surgery and possibly -- not probably -- contribute out of the Rangers' bullpen down the stretch in 2013. Should we count on any of that happening? Who knows! Anything can happen!

And speaking of anything being able to happen, I have learned this afternoon that I will be joining the ranks of the gainfully employed beginning in January, after completing my Master of Science in Accounting Degree at SMU in December. I am thrilled beyond words, and cannot wait to begin my career ... and as for what that means for the future of Baseball Time in Arlington, it's going to mean that the new voices on the site that I've been promising for a while are finally going to materialize.

The reality is that I'm about to enter a phase of my life where my old 2010-11 workrate is going to be impossible to maintain (though by no means will I be dropping off the face of the earth, except perhaps during busy season), and my hope is that I will be able to bolster the roster to the point where BBTiA will still be at the cutting edge of Rangers analysis -- and, for that matter, where you'll never see a posting layoff again. To everyone who ever read a single word that I wrote, who ever cared one iota about what I had to say ... you all made this possible. Much love.