Rangers opting to sit Odor in favor of Rosales

ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rangers may have to make a decision soon on second baseman Rougned Odor. He was out of the lineup for the third straight game with Adam Rosales starting at second base on Sunday against the Rays.

Odor's playing time has been reduced while he tries to fight through his season-opening slump. Odor was hitting .144 in his first 29 games going into Sunday's series finale.

If Odor isn't going to play regularly, the Rangers may considering sending him to Triple-A Round Rock and calling up either Ed Lucas or Tommy Fields.

"Odor is going to be a winning player for us," manager Jeff Banister said. "I believe Odor is a second baseman with the capability and is going to be part of the winning equation for us. We felt like it was time to get Rosales in a few games, get some traction with his bat and get some offense from that spot. I believe Odor playing every day will help Rougie develop into a winning player."

Worth noting
• Mitch Moreland was 0-for-3 with a walk in his first game with Triple-A Round Rock on Saturday. On the 15-day disabled list while recovering from left elbow surgery, Moreland is slated to play again Sunday and Monday, take Tuesday off and then should be activated on Wednesday.

• Going into Sunday, the Rangers had 77 strikeouts in their last seven games. That was the most in the Major Leagues last week and Banister said: "That's not conducive to being a good offense. Strikeouts are going to happen, but we need to be better than that. Nine strikeouts allows the pitcher and the catcher to play catch for three innings. That's not what we want to happen."

• Pitcher Kyuji Fujikawa's 30-day medical rehabilitation assignment ends on Wednesday, but he does not appear to be Major League ready. He has a 4.32 ERA and a 1.68 WHIP at Round Rock. The Rangers could option him to Triple-A once the rehab assignment is up.