Texas Rangers Opening Day roster projection. A 15th pitcher leads to difficult decisions

Carrying a 10th reliever would provide protection for a potential innings shortfall and help keep the staff healthy.

Jonah Heim was told Satuday he would be on the Opening Day roster. The trade of Jose Trevino cleared the way (The Associated Press/Elaine Thompson).

The word Saturday from manager Chris Woodward was that the Texas Rangers will have 15 pitchers on their 28-man Opening Day roster and 13 position players.

The thinking is that the starting rotation won’t be able to manage its normal workload for a few more weeks and some relievers won’t be allowed to pitch on back-to-back days.

A 10th reliever would help guard against an innings shortage and keep the Rangers from having to raid the bullpen at Triple A Round Rock in the season’s first few weeks.

With so many versatile players on the roster, there’s no real concern about being short at any position.

That means two position players in camp on minor-league deals could be squeezed to Triple A or back into the free-agent pool.

Here’s the Texas Rangers Newsletter’s second guess at the Opening Day roster.