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Rangers Notes: Ogando, Profar, International Signings

The Rangers made a minor trade earlier today, sending Kelvin De La Cruz to the Indians in exchange for cash considerations.  De La Cruz was a Ranger for less than a month, as he was originally acquired by Texas in another deal with Cleveland on February 21.

Some more news from the two-time defending AL champions...

• In an interview Ben & Skin of ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM radio, Jon Daniels said that the Rangers are better served by having Alexi Ogando in the bullpen, though the GM admitted that Ogando probably deserves a starting job after his solid performance in the rotation last year.  No firm decision has yet been made, however, about Ogando's status.  ESPN Dallas' Richard Durrett collects some of the notable topics in Daniels' interview.
• Shortstop prospect Jurickson Profar may see some time playing second base, Rangers director of minor league operations Jake Krug tells Bryan Dolgin of the Rangers Magazine radio show.  The 19-year-old Profar was ranked as the seventh-best prospect in the game by Baseball America's 2012 minor league rankings.  Giving him time at second base would give Texas a possible option if Ian Kinsler can't be signed to an extension, though it seem a waste of Profar's defensive skills to move him away from short.
• The Rangers spent the most on any team on international bonuses last year, according to a report by Baseball America.  The Rangers spent an estimated $12.83MM (not counting Japanese professionals or Cuban defectors) on international signings, more than $5MM ahead of the second-place team on the list, the Blue Jays. 
• Texas accounts for the top two spots (Nomar Mazara and Ronald Guzman) on another Baseball America list, chronicling the top 30 international bonuses from last year.
• Brad Hawpe and Conor Jackson are both trying to keep their Major League careers going in the Rangers camp, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.  Hawpe and Jackson are both signed to minor league deals and are fighting for jobs on the Rangers' bench.  "It's hard to imagine either player going to Triple-A," Sullivan writes, so Hawpe and/or Jackson could find themselves waived by March 30.

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