No Room For Joaquin Arias

When Joaquin Arias came to Texas as the 'Player to be Named Later' in the deal that sent Alex Rodriguez to the Yaknees for Alfonso Soriano, he came with serious promise attach to him. At the time, it was thought Arias would be the player to eventually force either Soriano to the outfield, or Michael Young to third base but injuries prevented either from happening. And after injuring his throwing shoulder 2 years ago while trying to learn the outfield (a move thought to facilitate getting his bat to the big leagues) it was thought that Arias' time with Texas was about at it's end.

Then Arias showed up for Spring Training 2009 and hit .417, driving the ball with serious authority. While his arm is still not quite where it once was, Arias can flat out rake and can still fly.



Texas now finds itself in a difficult position in that they want Elvis Andrus to be 'the man' at shortstop, with Omar Vizquel backing him up and showing him the ropes this season. This seemingly leaves Arias to dangle as trade bait. It has been rumored that the Reds might have some interest in him.

Regardless of what happens, Arias has worked himself back into the talk as a bonafied major league caliber player and will be given a chance somewhere. With only one minor league option remaining, Arias will start the season with AAA Oklahoma City, presumably in the hopes that he'll either do so well that a team will make a serious trade offer for him or, that Texas will be forced to bring him up and keep him on the 25-man roster. The last option will be less likely should Andruw Jones continue to regain his old form, leaving no spot on the bench for Arias' bat.