TEMPE, Ariz. -- Rangers manager Chris Woodward described the competition for the starting first-base job as a ¡°battle,¡± but he is unlikely to be able to declare the victor between Ronald Guzmán and Greg Bird until another couple of weeks have passed.

Guzm¨¢n held the starting job out of camp last season, but he was demoted to Triple-A in late July; Bird, who signed as a non-roster invitee earlier this month, has been derailed by injuries in recent seasons, but he is healthy now. They have split playing time at first, with Guzm¨¢n playing in his fourth game on Friday, and Bird having played in three games entering the 7-2 loss to the Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium.

¡°Both these guys are pretty much neck-and-neck right now,¡± Woodward said. ¡°They equally have been impressive in different ways.¡±

In their brief Cactus League auditions thus far, neither player has had much success at the plate in games; Guzm¨¢n entered Friday 1-for-9 with five strikeouts, while Bird was 0-for-7 with four strikeouts. But Woodward has watched them work on the back fields enough to form some initial opinions.

¡°[Bird is] an intriguing guy," Woodward said. "Basically, everything I¡¯d heard about how he handles his at-bats, controls the strike zone, all those things, they¡¯re showing. A ton of power. ... I love the professionalism of his at-bats. The thing that¡¯s surprised me is his defense. He looks good over there. His footwork¡¯s really good, he gets off the ball really well.¡±

As for Guzm¨¢n? ¡°I¡¯m really proud of him,¡± Woodward said. ¡°He did everything in the offseason. He worked really hard. He looks better, his body looks better. We know he¡¯s a Gold Glove-caliber first baseman. He¡¯s worked on really hard on his swing. ... The first week has gone by and now we¡¯re starting to see a little more consistency, so now it¡¯s going to be important for him to show that consistency from here on out.¡±

Woodward hopes to make a decision before the last week of camp.

The two left-handed hitters are near the same age and they have similar career numbers. Bird, 27, appeared in 186 games for the Yankees over the previous five seasons, but he has had foot and shoulder surgeries. Bird is a career .211 hitter with 32 homers in 611 at-bats. Guzm¨¢n, 25, played in 210 games for the Rangers in 2018-19, hitting .219 with 26 homers in 643 at-bats.

A rough go for Palumbo
Lefty Joe Palumbo ran into trouble in his third inning of work against the Angels after getting the first out of the sixth. He didn't retire any of the next five Angels hitters -- issuing a walk, a homer and three consecutive singles before being pulled. Palumbo allowed five earned runs and six hits in 2 1/3 innings.??

Palumbo started four games for the Rangers in 2019, and although he is not going to be part of the rotation when the season begins, barring injury to a starter, he is competing to be one of the first spot starters when the club eventually needs one. He pitched two scoreless innings last Sunday in his only other outing this spring.

He said it
¡°We¡¯re in games now, so it¡¯s not new anymore. Guys feel a little more comfortable in their at-bats, the timing. We¡¯re always evaluating our guys, but I think it¡¯s a little more, you can get a sense for where they¡¯re truly at. You give them the benefit of the doubt the first couple outings, the first few at-bats. Now that they¡¯ve had a few, now we really start evaluation mode. They start to realize, this is for real.¡± -- Woodward, on the way Spring Training begins to change after the first week of games

Rangers beat
? Amid the national conversation regarding the coronavirus outbreak, MLB teams are aware of the risks and the league office sent out a memo on Thursday outlining best practices to mitigate potential issues. ¡°We¡¯ve got to make sure we know how to keep our guys safe and how to keep our stadium safe,¡± Woodward said.

? Closer Jos¨¦ Leclerc returned to the Rangers' clubhouse from paternity leave. Woodward said he will give Leclerc a day or two to ramp up to game action.

? Shin-Soo Choo returned to the lineup against the Angels after being scratched on Tuesday with oblique tightness.

? Last year¡¯s Opening Day starter, Mike Minor, is slated to pitch a simulated game on Saturday after missing time with left hamstring tightness.

? Lefty Brock Burke underwent left shoulder surgery on Friday morning and he will be out an entire year; the surgery to repair his labrum went as expected.

? Catcher Robinson Chirinos (right hamstring strain) is expected to DH as early as Monday.

Up next
Right-hander Jonathan Hern¨¢ndez will make his third appearance and first start of the spring at 2:05 p.m. CT on Saturday against the White Sox at Surprise Stadium. Hern¨¢ndez has allowed one earned run on two hits, striking out four, in two innings of Cactus League work. Listen live on Gameday Audio.