The Rangers flirted with .500 last year because their offense kept them in games. But DH Milton Bradley, who led the league in on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS), has departed. The Rangers can choose between having consecutive left-handed hitters at Nos. 3-4 by giving DH Hank Blalock the job this year or going with a player who has never started a game in the cleanup spot (outfielder Nelson Cruz).

The catching situation is unsettled. And the team is counting on a 20-year-old rookie at shortstop.

To say this team has some issues to sort through at spring training is an understatement.

And that's before getting to pitching or fielding. In addition to ranking last in the league in ERA, the Rangers also committed the most errors in baseball. The team is hoping the arrival of shortstop Elvis Andrus and the shifting of Michael Young from shortstop to third base will help shore up the infield defense.

As for pitching, well, that's an annual concern. Perhaps the most-watched aspect of camp will be the condition of right-hander Kevin Millwood. Club president Nolan Ryan challenged Millwood last September to lose 20 pounds and to work harder in spring training. Ryan told Millwood that if he's not fit, he won't open the season on the active roster.

There are questions in the back end of the rotation, particularly for the No. 5 spot. Right-hander Brandon McCarthy will be given the first look, but he is no longer guaranteed a spot on the staff.

In the bullpen, the Rangers must choose between left-hander C.J. Wilson and right-hander Frank Francisco as the team's closer. Neither has a full season in the majors in that role. Wilson started strong, faded and then underwent elbow surgery. Francisco came on strong at the end of the season after Wilson's injury.

WHERE, WHEN: Surprise Recreation Campus, Surprise, Ariz., First official exhibition is Feb. 26 vs. Kansas City.

TOP CANDIDATE TO SURPRISE: RHP Brandon McCarthy has done nothing but struggle with injury or ineffectiveness in the two seasons he's been with the Rangers. But he was full of promise when the team acquired him, is still only 25, and finally might be over the slew of injuries that plagued him. He might be a prime candidate to flourish under the tutelage of new pitching coach Mike Maddux.

TOP CANDIDATE TO DISAPPOINT: The Rangers are putting a lot on the 20-year-old shoulders of SS Elvis Andrus. They've moved INF Michael Young, who has done nothing but make All-Star teams in his five years at short, to third for Andrus. The club says it believes Andrus is ready for the task, but it also went out and signed 11-time Gold Glove winner SS Omar Vizquel as a backup/mentor. If Andrus looks overmatched in spring, will the club be tempted to go with Vizquel to start the year?

AUTHORITY FIGURES: Manager Ron Washington is 154-170 in his first two seasons with the Rangers and enters the season in the final year of his contract. He's done a good job in the second half of the last two seasons to get the club to rebound, but if the team gets off to a third horrible April start, he might not be around to get a third chance at rallying the Rangers. The Rangers are 20-33 over the first month of the season the last two years.