Guerrero, 35, a former five-tool player who won the AL MVP award in 2004 (Bill Menzel)

Bronx, New York - The idiom "One man's trash is another man's treasure" serves as an appropriate metaphor for the Texas Rangers' signing of Vladimir Guerrero, whose time with their AL West rivals, the LA Angels of Anaheim, came to an end when the team decided to move on by signing former New York Yankee DH Hideki Matsui to a one-year, $6.5 million deal. 

Guerrero, 35, a former five-tool player who won the AL MVP award in 2004 - his first season with the Angels after signing a five-year, $70 million deal - has been plagued by back problems, which has reduced him to being a full-time DH. Last year, he had a career-low 383 at-bats in 100 games, and finished hitting .295, with 15 homers and 50 runs batted in.  

Deciding the franchise's relationship with Guerrero had run its course, Angels GM Tony Reagins looked elsewhere, finally settling on 2009 World Series MVP Hideki Matsui, who had a .274 average, 28 HRs and 90 RBIs last season, as his replacement. 

Prior to '09, the Nizao, Peravia, Dominican Republic native averaged 30 HRs and 98 RBIs per season, topped with a .323 (now .321) career batting average, according to Sports-Reference.com.  

In last year's playoffs, Guerrero went 14 for 37 (.378), with a homer and 7 RBIs against the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees in the American League Division and Championship Series, respectively. A strong postseason performance always makes a good impression on potential suitors, but what also made Guerrero attractive to Texas was that in the 50 games he's played at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, the Rangers' home field, he hit .394 (76 for 193), with 14 HRs and 33 RBIs, all during his six years as an Angel.  

"Unfortunately that was against some of our mediocre pitching," Texas Rangers GM Jon Daniels quipped this afternoon on WFAN's "The Mike Francesa Show." "He had like a 45-game hitting streak against the Rangers at one point. To have a presence like his in our lineup is very important for us." 

Daniels' decision to sign Guerrero to a one-year, $5.5 million deal with incentives seems like a no-brainer on the surface, but Texas' return on that investment solely hinges on the durability of the 8-time All-Star's back, which the new Ranger said won't be a problem in 2010. 

"Thank God I feel good to be playing for another team," Guerrero told MLB.com through an interpreter on Monday, March 8. "I've felt good hitting in [Arlington], and it'll feel better to hit there as a member of the team. Last year, because of the knee surgery, I couldn't work out much to prepare myself.  

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites