It seems that Jon Daniels may be talking to Joe Crede about the Rangers 3B vacancy. No offer has been made, but the Rangers have looked over Crede's medical records. The fact that JD has seen the medical reports and maintains contact with Crede and his agent is encouraging. 

T.R. Sullivan had this to say about it earlier this afternoon: 

The Rangers are investigating the possibility of signing third baseman Joe Crede.

Crede has been dealing with back issues over the past two seasons and the Rangers have been studying his medical reports. A one-year deal might appeal to them.

The Rangers right now are looking at a lineup that includes Chris Davis at first, Hank Blalock at designated hitter and Travis Metcalf at third. The Rangers could still move Blalock to first, Davis to third and look for another bat to help out at DH.

But the Rangers want to upgrade defensively at third base and that's why they are not interested in Ty Wiggington.

I, personally, like the Rangers defensive mindset. It certainly would be a big help to the young pitchers to be able to rely on the infield to vacuum up whatever groundballs they coax. With an infield of Young, Kinsler, Davis and Metcalf/Duran, as it stands now, there is not much defensively there to be confidant in, even though MY just pulled down a Gold Glove. A Gold Glove-caliber 3B would be a great addition and bolster that confidence from the pitchers in the IF behind them. That alone seems worth a close look at Crede.

Crede has a good, but not great bat, and this lineup is not in need of another great bat. The lineup is lefty heavy and Crede's RH hitting would fit well in the 6th or 7th spot. His stats look good, but obviously the problem is staying on the field. 

Batting
Last 3 years	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
2006	CWS	150	544	76	154	31	0	30	94	28	58	0	2	.283	.323	.506	.828
2007	CWS	47	167	13	36	5	0	4	22	10	24	0	1	.216	.258	.317	.576
2008	CWS	97	335	41	83	18	1	17	55	30	45	0	3	.248	.314	.460	.773
Career		798	2768	350	712	143	4	125	422	170	403	4	12	.257	.306	.447	.753

He has proven to be a great post season player, and by all accounts would be snatched up in a market like this if not for injury concerns.  Joey Matschulat has a great article about 3B and Joe Crede here. 

Turnbow, Rangers in agreement

The Rangers moved to upgrade their bullpen Wednesday night by reaching a tentative agreement with free-agent right-hander Derrick Turnbow on a one-year contract.

Turnbow chose the Rangers over the Marlins and Pirates, in large part because of his familiarity with new pitching coach Mike Maddux, according to agent Damon Lapa. Maddux was Turnbow's pitching coach in Milwaukee.

The Minor League contract would pay Turnbow $925,000 if he makes the Major League club, with another $325,000 in performance incentives.

Turnbow has had shoulder issues and appeared in just eight games for the Brewers in 2008, but did not need surgery and is expected to be 100 percent healthy for the start of Spring Training, according to Lapa. Turnbow, 31 in January, was 7-1 with a 1.74 ERA and 39 saves in 2005 for the Brewers and appeared in 210 games from 2005-07. -- Ken Gurnick

I like it. Discuss.

In light of the new Baseball America rankings, in which they move Davis off 1st base to make way for Smoak in 2012, I would like to raise this question. What has Smoak proven to make us all so sure that he is our Future and not Davis?

Davis had a tremendous year last year and is a real power threat at 1b and from what I understand, he seems to have be a decent defender as well. Sure he strikes out a lot and isn't a complete hitter in the Teixera mold like Smoak, but his raw power makes him a great prospect. 

Smoak has just been drafted, hasn't proven he can live up to his potential and yet he is the savior to our infield. He is the next coming of Tex, even though we don't need him to be. I am aware that Chris Davis was not a 1st round talent and has never been a #3 ranked prospect in our org. but is he really the guy we should be moving over in 3 years? I know that this is an issue we shouldn't have to deal with this year and it will be a great issue to have when it comes along.

Morosi of the Detroit Free Press has this to report:

 The Tigers and Texas Rangers have agreed to a trade that will send catcher Gerald Laird to Detroit in exchange for right-hander Guillermo Moscoso and pitching prospect Carlos Melo.

Moscoso has struggled recently in the Venezuelan Winter League, where he has a 2-1 record and 8.36 ERA, but his performance there is believed to be a function of his role and not an indication that he is injured. He prefers to start but has made all but one of his eight appearances out of the bullpen.

He has had shoulder issues in the past – including surgery in 2005 – but the Tigers said recently that he is healthy.

Detroit officials had been reluctant to move Moscoso, because he’s believed to be close to reaching the majors, but their need for catching is great enough that they were willing to do so. Dusty Ryan, the only catcher on their 40-man roster, is currently batting .163 in the Puerto Rican Winter League.

Melo, a right hander from the Dominican Republic, has not pitched in the United States, but he is known for an electric fastball that averages well over 90 miles per hour.

If Melo turns out to be a nice young arm, then this could be a good deal for the Rangers. Think about it. We just traded an average to slightly above average catcher blocking two of our top young players way behind the plate, for a nice setup man type who is a year away and a potentially nice 17 year old prospect