Chris Davis's Future - With the Rangers?

Let's take a look back at 2008. The Rangers were a searing hot offensive club with basically zero pitching. Kevin Millwood was the "ace" along with now Los Angeles Dodger, Vicente Padilla. Josh Hamilton was without question the comeback player of the year. You'll remember, 2008 was the year Hambone made a complete mockery of the home run derby at Old Yankee Stadium. The captain of the team was the captain of the infield, with Mike Young at short stop.

Ramon Vasquez and Hank Blalock were platooning at first and third with the occasional infield appearance by now Brew Crew utility man Frank Catalanotto. Enter Chris Davis, the big Texas kid out of Longview. Chris quickly became a fan favorite, Crush Davis, as he hit .285 with 17 home runs in just shy of 300 at bats.

Let's say your average everyday starter gets 600 at bats in a season, and a quick calculation tells you right away what Texas fans were so excited about. While Crush did start at 1st base on each of the next two opening days, he never quite lived up to the hype that he developed back in '08, and with Mitch Moreland as Ron Washington's main man in 2011, what will happen to Davis?

As of right now, I'd say the Rangers bench is full, especially with Wash planning on carrying three catchers in Yorvit Torrealba, Matt Treanor, and Mike Napoli. David Murphy is a sure thing off the bench year-in and year-out. Andres Blanco, who exploded last season filling in for Ian Kinsler will likely have a spot.

That leaves exactly zero room for Davis on the bench if the Rangers take a 7 man bullpen. I would think Chris Davis will start this season at Triple A for the first time since that 2008 season and maybe that's exactly what's needed: for Davis to duplicate that monster 2008 season. Surely at some point in the season poor performance or injuries will make room for a Triple A callup, and I'd personally love to see Crush get another chance. He has the talent to be a big league player, and his Hamilton-esque left handed power bat is certainly nothing to glance over, without even mentioning he's one of the best defensive first basemen in the league.

He's still young for the major leagues at 23, and it's great for the Rangers to have so much depth. Here's hoping that Davis finds that stroke again this season, and finds and maintains a spot on the Ranger's bench in 2011.