Texas will place Ivan Rodriguez on the DL on Tuesday. He has been out of the lineup since April 15th, but the team doesn't want to make a move until they return home from their road trip; they also haven't determined his replacement on the roster yet. Back spasms caused him to sit out the first part of the week, and when they did not improve, an MRI was performed on Friday that revealed a herniated disc.

Rodriguez will miss at least the next 4-6 weeks because of the injury. He won't begin intensive rehab until after the back begins to respond to treatment. Surgery hasn't been ruled out at this point, but doctors seem optimistic that it won't be necessary. Fortunately, doctors do not think the problem arose as the result of the stress of catching, his knee problems, or the extra weight he is carrying this spring. Provided IRod doesn't experience complications, he should be able to resume his catching duties when he returns.

Back-up catcher Bill Haselman has taken over the starting catching job while Rodriguez is injured. In 2000 when Rodriguez went down for the season with a broken thumb in late July, Haselman was only able to fill in until early September before he underwent season-ending shoulder surgery to repair his rotator cuff. He then missed the first few months of 2001 following elbow surgery to remove a bone spur on his right elbow. Hopefully, he will be able to stay healthy this season.

When the Rangers decided that Hank Blalock was going to break camp with the team, they sent Mike Lamb to the minors to reclaim his catching skills. Lamb was a catcher when Texas drafted him in the 7th round in 1997 out of Cal State-Fullerton, but they converted him to 3B because they didn't feel the need to develop another catcher at that point. Therefore, they may choose to make him the back-up to Haselman. However, Lamb didn't have much time to work on things in the minors before Texas called him up to take Juan Gonzalez's roster spot, so they will likely call up someone else as the back-up and occasionally use Lamb as a third catcher.

As previously mentioned the Rangers signed Carlos Hernandez to a minor league deal at the beginning of April. The 34-year-old Hernandez is primarily a defensive catcher without much of a bat, but right now Texas will likely be focusing on finding someone who can cover some innings without hurting them.

In addition to Hernandez they also have Julio Mosquera at AAA. They picked up Mosquera as a minor league free agent this off-season. He's merely a 30-year-old minor league veteran. I'm unaware of the quality of his defensive skills, but aside from a little power he doesn't have many offensive skills. I doubt the Rangers will call him up unless they suffer further injuries.

However, they do have another minor league catcher who might deserve a call-up. Brad King discovered the concept of plate discipline last year in his third season at AA and was able to convert some of his limited doubles power into home runs. He also has a decent defensive reputation. At 27, he's no longer a prospect but he could potentially make a surprising contribution to the major league club if given a chance. However, he's unlikely to receive a call-up before Texas at least tries an alternative, considering that the Rangers have left him in AA again this season.

Texas could also choose to address their need through a trade rather than with one of their internal options. The Rangers have invested considerable sums recently in an attempt to make it to the playoffs and are quite frustrated that a series of injuries have so far kept them from having much success this season, especially since their division forces them to perform exceptionally well even to have a shot at the post-season. As such they are an organization that I think would be highly disposed to trade for an extra boost even if they may only need to cover for IRod for a month.

Whenever a team is discussing possible catching trade targets, particularly those qualified to at least platoon if not start, Ramon Castro has to be at the top of the list. Florida may be a little more reluctant to trade Castro now than in the past due to Charles Johnson's thumb problems this spring, but after attempting to trade him for at least two years they'll probably take the bait if the Rangers make a good offer.

IRod is a free agent after the season and the Rangers have not yet negotiated an extension. With all of their other recent expenditures and the risks associated with Rodriguez's increasing age and recent injuries, Texas may seriously consider allowing him to leave as a free agent. Castro has been ready to start for over a year and would be able to step into IRod's shoes if not fill them.

Texas doesn't seem to be particularly enamored of starting second baseman Mike Young. They also have Frank Cattalanotto to play 2B now with Jason Romano set for the future. Romano was called up for RHP Colby Lewis on Wednesday. The 22-year-old Romano doesn't have outstanding defensive skills at 2B but can handle the position and has a fairly good bat with acceptable plate discipline. The Marlins could use an upgrade at shortstop, so the two sides might be able to work something out around Young for Castro.

The Rangers are also still thinking about adding a starting pitcher, so they may try to pick up a catcher as a part of a larger deal. Considering Baltimore and Texas were discussing various deals this off-season, the Rangers may now look to pick Brook Fordyce up in a deal, possibly with one of the Orioles' starters.

However, this is just speculation on my part right now; the Rangers haven't even said they plan to make a trade.