On Thursday afternoon, the Texas Rangers made another move geared toward their run for the postseason, trading for Marlins’ 1B/3B Jorge Cantu.
So far this season, Cantu is batting .262 with 10 home runs and 54 runs batted in. Those are pretty good numbers for someone who will likely end up batting seventh.
With second baseman Ian Kinsler recently going on the 15-day DL, Cantu will likely see a few games at second base. On other nights, he will be splitting time at first base with the recently promoted Mitch Moreland.
When Ian Kinsler comes back, imagine a lineup that looks like this:
1. SS Elvis Andrus
2. 3B Michael Young
3. 2B Ian Kinsler
4. DH Vladimir Guerrero
5. LF Josh Hamilton
6. RF Nelson Cruz
7. 1B Jorge Cantu
8. C Bengie Molina
9. CF Julio Borbon
You have loads of speed, with Elvis Andrus and Julio Borbon being the most obvious ones. Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, and Ian Kinsler are all excellent base runners and have great speed for their sizes.
Michael Young and Vladimir Guerrero are no slouches either. I have seen numerous times were Guerrero was very aggressive and took an extra base on a base hit.
Molina is quite a base clogger, but he isn’t being asked to do much with the bat, focusing rather on his defensive responsibilities.
Everyone knows how potent the top five hitters in the Rangers order can be.
Elvis Andrus gets on base often and is always a threat to run.
Michael Young is Michael Young. One of the most consistent hitters in the game.
Ian Kinsler is seventh in the American League in OBP.
Vladimir Guerrero is having an MVP caliber year with a .307 BA, 20 HR, and 80 RBI. The only reason he won’t win MVP is his own teammate.
Josh Hamilton is threatening for the American League triple crown.
Nelson Cruz has had two different stints on the disabled list, but he still has 14 HR and 57 RBI, and has a .330 batting average.
Cantu would slot in very nicely in the seventh spot in the batting order.
Cantu’s 54 RBI were good for second most on the Marlins, but on the Rangers, he would only be fifth.
Adding Cantu’s RBI total would give the Rangers five players in the top 29 in the RBI category, more than the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rays, three teams regarded as main challengers for the Rangers in the American League.
Though he isn’t having a great year batting average wise, he is a career .276 hitter and should see plenty of RBI opportunities batting behind Guerrero, Hamilton, and Cruz.
Cantu also has hit well in Arlington, with a .350 batting average in nine games, including six doubles.
Finishing the rest of the season playing in Arlington will do wonders for his numbers.
The lineup the Rangers can put out every day has an excellent blend of power and speed.
They have to be considered the best lineup in baseball.
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