Martinez, Gamboa going all out for roster spots

PEORIA, Ariz. -- Nick Martinez and Eddie Gamboa have done their best to give the Rangers some options in the rotation and bullpen.
Now they must wait for the final roster moves, but at least they made it hard on the Rangers.
"I feel good where I'm at right now," Martinez said after the Rangers' 3-1 loss to the Mariners Saturday afternoon.
They are both in the same situation. Martinez and Gamboa are candidates for a fifth spot that may not exist or a middle-relief spot in the bullpen that may not be available. They could end up being the No. 1 and 2 starters at Triple-A Round Rock.
Much depends on how the Rangers want to configure their pitching staff going into the season.

"Same as last time," Martinez said. "I'm looking to make adjustments and building off any positive outings. I'm not adding any pressure to my outings."
Martinez and Gamboa both went four innings against the Mariners. Martinez started out with three scoreless innings before a throwing error by third baseman Drew Robinson set up a two-run double by Ben Gamel in the fourth.

Martinez ended up allowing three runs, two earned, over 9 1/3 innings in his final two starts in Arizona.
"I thought Nick threw the ball well," manager Jeff Banister said. "Good fastball, breaking ball was in play and the changeup. We didn't help him out when he gave up the two runs."
Martinez might be the leading candidate for the fifth starter's spot, but the Rangers may not need one until April 15 and Andrew Cashner may be ready by that date. He could go into the bullpen, but Banister made it clear Martinez is vital to the Rangers as starting pitching depth.
"We've got to look at our starting pitching depth," Banister said.

Gamboa, the knuckleballer acquired from the Rays just before Spring Training, went four innings and allowed just one run on a Taylor Motter home run. He gave up two hits, walked three on a windy day and struck out four.
Gamboa has a 2.12 ERA in five Cactus League appearances, covering 17 innings. The Rangers must decide if such a short span is enough to evaluate the potential effectiveness of his knuckleball in a Major League season.
"I've seen enough that the guy gets outs," Banister said. "It's a very interesting pitch and skill set. It's a challenge to evaluate him, so you evaluate him on the outs he gets."