Hoping to shore up their third base platoon, the Rangers sent infielder German Duran back to Class AAA Oklahoma on Thursday and recalled third baseman Travis Metcalf.
Duran, 23, played at Class AA Frisco last year and had only two weeks at Class AAA before he was called up as an emergency extra infielder. Extenuating circumstances prolonged his stay to nearly six weeks. Those circumstances: Metcalf was recovering from surgery to remove a torn hamstring tendon. He missed virtually all of spring training while recovering from the surgery and had spent the last two weeks playing regularly at Oklahoma. The Rangers will now use a platoon of Metcalf vs. lefties and Ramon Vazquez against right-handers. Vazquez also will be the lone backup infielder for the middle infield spots.
Metcalf had a pair of hits Tuesday for Oklahoma and had reached base in six of his last 16 plate appearances.
"I think anybody would benefit from playing more often," Duran, who was hitting only .193 when sent down, said before the demotion. "But I'm learning plenty up here. I'm doing whatever is asked of me and working on getting better all the time.
"It's a challenge every day from the minute you wake up to stay mentally prepared. But that's how I'm looking at it. I'm looking to learn from the challenge and get better from it. I'm around guys. I'm asking questions. This is all a learning process for me."
