Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) - If the Texas Rangers win an American League West title in the next couple of seasons, 2008 may be looked at as the year that it all started to turn around.

After finishing third in the division for three straight seasons, the Rangers took a step back and wound up last in the West with a 75-87 mark a year ago. Injuries played a big part in that finish, as the team used 139 different starting lineups.

The Rangers added a couple of big bats for their outfield with the offseason acquisitions of Milton Bradley and Josh Hamilton, and strengthened their rotation as well with the free-agent signing of Jason Jennings.

Gone are the days of the home run-hitting Rangers, as this lineup is built more to manufacture runs with players such as Michael Young and Ian Kinsler.

Ron Washington's crew must stay healthy if it has any shot at competing, though. Things are already off to a shaky start with Texas, since pitcher Brandon McCarthy is slated to miss at least the first two months of the season with a forearm injury.

Below we take a capsule look at the 2008 edition of the Texas Rangers, with a personnel evaluation and prognosis included therein:

2007 FINISH (75-87) - Fourth Place (AL West)

KEY OFFSEASON ADDITIONS: Jason Jennings SP; Eddie Guardado RP; Josh Hamilton OF; Kazuo Fukumori RP; Milton Bradley OF; Ben Broussard 1B; Chris Shelton 1B; Edgardo Alfonzo IF

KEY OFFSEASON SUBTRACTIONS: Jerry Hairston Jr. 2B; Sammy Sosa OF; Akinori Otsuka RP; Edinson Volquez SP; Brad Wilkerson OF

PROJECTED LINEUP: Frank Catalanotto DH; Ian Kinsler 2B; Michael Young SS; Milton Bradley RF; Josh Hamilton CF; Hank Blalock 3B; Marlon Byrd LF; Ben Broussard 1B; Jarrod Saltalamacchia C

PROJECTED ROTATION: Kevin Millwood RHP; Vicente Padilla RHP; Jason Jennings RHP; Kason Gabbard LHP; Brandon McCarthy RHP

PROJECTED CLOSER: C.J. Wilson

MANAGER: Ron Washington

INFIELD

The strength of the 2008 Texas Rangers is their middle infield, specifically shortstop Young and second baseman Kinsler.

Young is about as consistent as it gets at short, as he played more than 150 games, hit at least .300 and smacked at least 200 hits for the fifth straight year in 2007. If there was one complaint about his performance, it was that Young's home run numbers dropped for the second year in a row, as he hit just nine after belting 24 in 2005 and 14 in 2006. Young also had just 47 extra- base hits last year after consecutive seasons of 69.

The 31-year-old Young was fourth among AL shortstops in fielding, but did commit 19 errors. He and Kinsler also led the league with 179 double plays.

Kinsler, who agreed to a five-year extension this offseason, belted 20 homers, drove in 61 runs and batted .263 last year. He also led the Rangers with 23 stolen bases and 96 runs scored.

If there is a knock on Kinsler, it is his inability to hit righties. He batted just .239 against right-handed pitching in 2007, compared to a .339 clip versus lefties.

Hank Blalock could be a wild card for this team this season. The third baseman missed a significant amount of time last season after undergoing surgery in May to remove a rib that was compressing an artery in his right arm. He didn't play the field after the procedure and hit .293 with 10 homers and 33 RBI in 58 games. If Blalock is right, he could be a force in the middle of the lineup.

That is exactly what the Rangers are hoping for from first baseman Ben Broussard, who the team acquired from Seattle in December. Broussard, known primarily for his glove, managed just seven home runs last season with Seattle, but his left-handed swing is tailor-made for Rangers Ballpark, which could mean career-best power numbers.

Behind the plate the Ranges will go with young Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who was one of the chips picked up from Atlanta in last summer's Mark Teixeira deal. Saltalamacchia can hit, but his work behind the plate leaves little to be desired. He threw out just 6-of-43 attempted base stealers last season, including 1-of-17 while with the Rangers.

OUTFIELD

The Rangers' outfield will have an entirely new look in 2007, with newcomers Bradley and Hamilton joining last year's holdover, Marlon Byrd.

Bradley split last season between the Oakland Athletics and San Diego Padres and hit .306 with 13 homers, 37 RBI and 37 runs scored in 61 games. Bradley, though, is coming off major knee surgery performed during the winter after a freak on-field incident late last season.

The 29-year-old Bradley, who is as volatile as he is talented, may start the season as the team's designated hitter, but he will be in right field once his knee is completely healed.

Another new face in the Rangers' outfield will be Hamilton, who was one of the feel-good stories of the 2007 season. Hamilton, who had dealt with drug and other off-the-field problems since being selected first overall by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 1999, finally was able to overcome his demons and produced a solid year for the Cincinnati Reds.

Hamilton, who will play center for Texas, hit .292 and belted 19 homers with 47 RBI and scored 52 runs for the hapless Reds. Due to a logjam in the Cincinnati outfield, Hamilton was considered expendable, so the Rangers dealt highly-regarded pitching prospect Edinson Volquez to get him.

Those two will be joined in left by Byrd, who appeared in 109 games for the Rangers last season, batting .307 with 10 homers and 70 RBI.

DESIGNATED HITTER

Frank Catalanotto will head into the season as the team's DH and leadoff man. Last season, after signing a three-year deal with the Rangers, Catalanotto batted a career-low .260 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI. He also scored 52 runs in his 103 games.

Catalanotto's .374 career on-base percentage as a leadoff hitter is the fourth highest among the 54 active players with at least 900 at-bats in the No. 1 spot. Only Derek Jeter (.390), Hanley Ramirez (.380) and Ichiro Suzuki (.379) have a higher career on-base percentage among active players.

Catalanotto may find himself in left field at the start of the year, since Bradley's knee is still on the mend, but the majority of his time will be spent in a DH role.

ROTATION

Kevin Millwood headlines the Rangers staff as he tries to bounce back from a miserable 2007 campaign. After winning a team-high 16 games in 2006, Millwood was 10-13 with a a career-high 5.16 ERA and missed most of May with a strained left hamstring.

Vicente Padilla slots in behind him, but he wasn't any better last season. He also battled through injuries and posted a 6-10 ledger to go along with a 5.76 ERA.

Jennings joins the mix this year, coming over from Houston after spending an injury-plagued 2007 with the Astros. Jennings spent most of the season on the disabled list with an elbow ailment. When he did pitch, though, he was horrendous, going 2-9 with a 6.45 ERA.

Kason Gabbard was acquired from the Red Sox as part of the Eric Gagne package at last year's trade deadline and had his moments, but he too had to shut it down in September because of a tired arm. Gabbard was 2-1 in his eight starts with the Rangers, but was 6-1 with a 4.65 ERA in 15 starts combined with the Rangers and Red Sox.

McCarthy, who was a bitter disappointment a year ago, will be the team's fifth starter at some point this season, but he will miss the first two months with elbow inflammation. In his absence, it looks as if righty Luis Mendoza will break camp with the team. Veteran Sidney Ponson is also a possibility.

BULLPEN

C.J. Wilson enters the year as the Rangers' closer. Wilson converted 12-of-14 save opportunities late in last season, but he averaged 17.6 pitches per inning in the role and pitched to a 7.56 ERA in September.

If Wilson falters, Texas does have another lefty in Eddie Guardado waiting in the wings. Guardado has pitched just 30 games over the last two seasons but has 183 saves for his career.

Setup men from the right side will include Joaquin Benoit, Kazuo Fukumori and Frank Francisco. Former starters Jamey Wright and Kameron Loe could also have a role on this team.

BENCH

The Rangers' bench is still a work in progress. Outfielders Jason Botts and Nelson Cruz are battling for one spot. Cruz is the more talented of the duo, but he has yet to prove it at the big league level. Botts is known more for his intangibles, but is below average in the field. Both players are also out of options.

Ramon Vazquez was valuable in is role as a utility player last season and will once again handle that job this year. Highly-touted youngster German Duran could also find his way onto the club.

Chris Shelton figures to be Washington's right-handed bat off the bench. Edgardo Alfonzo is trying to resurrect his career as well, but he is a longshot to make the team.

Catcher Gerald Laird will spell Saltalamacchia from time-to-time and will take over if the youngster struggles in the early going. Laird is by far the better defensive backstop, but hit just .224 a year ago.

OUTLOOK

The Rangers seem to be headed on the right track, but they are still a year or two away from competing in the AL West. A big problem they still have is the health of their starting rotation. Anyone of their top three starters can go down at any point. Things are already off to a shaky start with the McCarthy injury. A lot of things would have to break right for the Rangers to be contenders this season. Luckily for them the Oakland Athletics are in their division, so last place will probably not be an option.