Rangers work out at Globe Life Field 

ARLINGTON -- The Rangers have a handful of players working out at Globe Life Field while the game remains shut down during the COVID-19 crisis.

General manager Jon Daniels said the workouts are informal and voluntary. While other players continue to work out at their homes across the country and beyond, Daniels said the Rangers have no formal workouts planned right now at Globe Life Field or in Arizona.

Daniels said the workouts at Globe Life Field involve strict protocols that include no more than two to three players in a specific area at a time.

“It is completely voluntary on the players' part,” Daniels said. “So far, it has been just working out in the weight room in those small groups with cleaning in between and hitting in the cages. Some light field activities, taking ground balls or shagging in the outfield. We haven’t hit on the field. We are considering that, but we have not done that yet.”

The position players working out there include Willie Calhoun, Elvis Andrus, Jose Trevino, Nick Solak and Danny Santana. Left-hander Taylor Hearn and right-hander José Leclerc have also been doing their bullpen sessions at Globe Life Field.

Outfielder Joey Gallo has been working out there when he is not preparing for the next round of MLB The Show Players League. Gallo has already clinched a spot in postseason.

The Rangers keep MLB informed about how Globe Life Field is being used. Player workouts last 90 minutes to two hours and the groups are spread out over four to five hours. Regular cleaning takes place between workouts. The workouts are permitted but can’t be mandatory or formal.

“Until MLB opens it up further, which will obviously be based on the public health situation, it’s not going to be a formal organized workout,” Daniels said. “If there are some other guys in the area who choose to work out, we would be open to that.”

Globe Life Field would seem to be a good place for pitchers to do their throwing. But Daniels said the Rangers have not asked any pitchers to begin migrating to Texas.

“Not right now,” Daniels said. “If we get further guidance on the health situation, and secondly, on any sort of restart plans with the league, then we might begin thinking about that. But these guys are where they chose to be. They are in good spots, they are safe, they are with their families. We have had regular check-ins with them.”

Pitchers have been forced to improvise. Kyle Gibson does his throwing in a backyard shed at his home outside St. Louis. Corey Kluber throws off a raised platform in the backyard of his suburban Boston home.

“I think [Kluber] is able to get what he needs for the time being,” Daniels said. “We’ll have to treat this like December or January rather than the day before the season starts. From that standpoint he is in a good spot and when we get a green light, we are confident he and the other guys will have enough time to get ready.”

The Rangers have received no indication from Major League Baseball when that “green light” will be coming.

“We’re continuing to do what we can from a distance to keep our players in some state of readiness, but we have not begun planning for any sort of restart,” Daniels said. “We’ll be ready. It won’t take us long to get ramped up because we have done a pretty good job of staying in touch and thinking through the possibilities.”

The Minor Leagues are also a concern. Those seasons remain on hold. Nothing has changed since Spring Training was shut down and clubs were told to send their Minor Leaguers home.

Daniels said the Rangers and other clubs have recognized the development of young players is paramount to the future of the game.

“There is a clear desire to find some way to develop that group,” Daniels said. “It may look very different, it may not. Those decisions haven’t been made yet. Everybody recognizes that having your best young talent sit at home for a year is not ideal. If there is an alternative, we’ll look into it and find one.”