Off Season Stuff

The first batch of items for the off season have happened.
Marlon Byrd: On the first day of free-agent eligibility, Marlon Byrd filed. No surprise there, he probably deserves a decent paycheck. As we all know, there’s been a lot of noise about him wanting to stay, but whether he remains is unknown. It’s down to money, and the fact that there is a logjam coming behind him. Don’t know how long we’d want to commit. There’s just too many variables now. There’s some talk that should we not bring back Byrd, they might sign Jermaine Dye as a replacement. That would have to be a single year deal.
Omar Vizquel: Some talk that Vizquel might re-sign here to be a backup again in 2010. I have to say, he seriously surprised me. He never failed to produce as a backup, never complained about playing time, he was awesome. If he came back next year and produced the same way, I don’t think anyone would complain about that. Plus he’d probably be cheap, so I say do it.
Sale of Club: No updates that I’m aware of. Everyone’s been talked to. Not sure what the actual next move is.
Pudge: There was a lot of talk at the end of the season about there being interest on both sides for Pudge to come back, even if everyone is healthy, catching wise. The rangers article today says that they now want to see how Salty is doing. Bummer. I want Pudge back without thinking about other guys.
Starting Rotation: There’s also talk today that both CJ Wilson & Neftali Feliz are candidates for the starting rotation. Feliz is not a surprise,really – that’s what he was in the minors. CJ Wilson briefly started early in his career, but hasn’t done that for awhile. Is our starting 5 so weak that we’re looking at moving TWO relievers in there? Eek!
Guys not coming back: Hank Blalock & Andruw Jones are done. They’re not being pursued apparently. Eddie Guardado is likely retiring, and who knows about Joaquin Benoit. The major paper and web stories label him as “in limbo”. What the heck does that mean – really? His contract is technically up, I think. Benoit had figured it out before he got hurt, and he is by far the longest tenured Ranger. Not sure who that would be at the moment if he was let go.
UPDATE: Just as I was about to publish this on my site, I saw the story on the official Rangers site that the following Rangers have officially filed for free agency: Ivan Rodriguez, Hank Blalock, Marlon Byrd, Eddie Guardado, & Joaquin Benoit. None of these are surprises, and all are covered above, but the official announcement has been made.