ARLINGTON, Texas _ Shin-Soo Choo, who returned from a broken left arm only last week, was placed on the Texas Rangers' 25-man roster for the American League Division Series, but left-hander Derek Holland and speedy outfielder Delino DeShields were left off.
The Rangers opted for five bench players and seven relievers for the best-of-5 series against the Toronto Blue Jays. The most surprising pick is outfielder Jared Hoying, who's viewed as a better defender than DeShields. While not as fast as DeShields, Hoying has plus-speed.
Catcher Robinson Chirinos, outfielder Nomar Mazara and infielders Jurickson Profar and Ryan Rua joined Hoying on the bench.
Holland, a postseason roster mainstay for the Rangers since 2010, lost out on the last spot in the bullpen to fellow lefty Alex Claudio. The other six were fairly obvious selections _ Sam Dyson, Matt Bush, Jake Diekman, Keone Kela, Tony Barnette and Jeremy Jeffress.
Barnette and Jeffress had to show that they were healthy and effective over the final week. Barnette missed around two weeks with an oblique injury, and Jeffress didn't pitch for more than a month after seeking treatment following a late-August arrest for driving while intoxicated.
