Julio Borbon

Borbon never surfaced in Texas last season, having been given a chance to earn the center field gig in each of the past two seasons only to disappoint. He posted a decent season at Triple-A Round Rock (.304/.349/.433) but featured far too few walks and too many strikeouts (37:69 BB:K) to project the former first-round pick as anything more than a reserve outfielder at this point. With Leonys Martin on his heels and Craig Gentry filling the reserve role in Arlington, a change of scenery before the season begins seems likely.

Borbon began the year as Texas' center fielder (again), but a hamstring injury landed him on the DL and he never re-surfaced in the majors after that thanks to an ankle injury that sidelined him for the bulk of the second half of the minor league season. His .298/.376/.435 line at Triple-A Round Rock in limited playing time (131 at-bats) shows some promise (16 steals, 14 walks) as a leadoff hitter, though that job appears to be Ian Kinsler's. He'll enter spring training with a chance to regain his spot in center field, but the job doesn't appear to be his to lose any longer. Leonys Martin looms in the minors as well, so Borbon will need to hit the ground running if he wants much playing time in 2012.

Borbon was handed the everyday leadoff role to open the season only to come out of the gates flat (1-for-25 to start the season; .191/.214/.250 in 68 April at-bats), resulting in reduced playing time as the season wore on when David Murphy started hitting. His winter ball season in the Dominican Republic at press time (.250/.313/.303 and just four walks in 18 games) mirrored his season-long issues getting on base at even a decent clip. He's been anointed the center fielder this winter once again, with Josh Hamilton moving to left field, but he'll spend most of the year in the ninth spot in the order. There's nice stolen-base potential here as often as Texas runs under Ron Washington, but he'll be on thin ice again if Texas addresses the DH spot with a big bat again.

Borbon emerged as the leadoff hitter for Texas after being called up for good in August. He didn't show much power in the minors, slugging just .386 and hitting two homers, and the story was much the same once he reached Texas (four doubles, four homers in 157 at-bats). He's a fantasy asset on the bases, swiping 19 bases in 23 attempts with Texas on the heels of a 25-for-32 effort at Triple-A. He saw limited exposure against left-handed pitching with Texas, but his work in the winter leagues resulted in Texas pronouncing him as the everyday leadoff hitter and center fielder in December. He managed a .360 BABIP with Texas, making the chances of him posting a .300-plus batting average in full-time duty pretty unlikely, but he'll provide speed and regular at-bats at the top of the Rangers lineup and could approach 50 swipes if he stays healthy.

Borbon's power was questioned coming out of college after being a supplemental pick in the 2007 draft, and he did little to put those questions to rest by hitting just 32 doubles and seven homers in 546 at-bats split between High-A and Double-A. He drew just 29 walks as well, making his future as a leadoff hitter questionable despite good speed (53-for-71 on the bases this season). His AFL season showed improvement, however, drawing 17 walks in 24 games. He'll start the year at Double-A Frisco, but will be 23 years old when the season starts so he'll need to address the power and patience concerns quickly if he wants to emerge as a legit leadoff option in the majors.

Borbon signed just before the deadline after being a supplemental pick in the June draft by Texas. His pro debut consisted of a meaningless 37 at-bats. Coming out of college, there were questions about his power with the wood bat and his ability to get on-base so we'll need to see what a full season of pro ball does to answer those questions.