Soriano Deep in the Heart of Texas

Alfonso Soriano will always be known as the player traded for Alex Rodriguez.

The unlucky guy who went from baseball’s most tradition-rich club to a franchise with only one postseason win since 1961.

The All-Star now on a last-place team instead of one that made the World Series twice in his first three seasons.

Instead of a clubhouse filled with All-Stars, he enters a room where his two appearances in the midsummer classic leads the pack.

The move even aged him by two years before he ever slipped on his new hat. He went from being listed as 26 in New York to 28 in Texas.

Still, Soriano’s infectious smile began to return after his biggest concern was settled: that he would remain at second base. He also started working with swing guru Rudy Jaramillo to help cut down on his strikeouts.

“I’m not thinking about New York any more because I’m here in Texas,” Soriano said. “I’m trying to be comfortable here with my new teammates and my new team.

“No matter if I’m playing for the Yankees, here or whatever, I like to play. That’s what I want to do.”

A shortstop in the minors, he became a two-time All-Star at second despite a high number of errors. There was even talk of moving him to the outfield.

The day before the first full-squad spring workout, Michael Young made it easy on the Rangers. Despite being one of the league’s best-fielding second basemen, he offered to move over to Rodriguez’s old spot at shortstop.

Since then, Soriano has heard rumors of a possible trade back to New York -- Mets, that is. Soriano said he’s ignored the reports, and the Rangers insist they aren’t true.

“This kid doesn’t have an ego,” Jaramillo said. “He fits in just perfect with the rest of these guys like he’s one of them. Coming from New York and winning those championships, that shows something about that kid.”

With his rare combination of power and speed, Soriano is one of the game’s most productive offensive players. The only reason New York let him go was to get A-Rod.

“To get arguably the best player in the game, you have to give up something good,” Yankee owner George Steinbrenner said. “He’s going to be a good one.”

Away from the New York spotlight, Soriano immediately became one of the most recognized names in Texas.

The Rangers had four of the last eight American League MVPs, but they all play elsewhere now. Texas has an up-and-coming infield with Young, Hank Blalock and Mark Teixeira, and all are younger than Soriano now that he’s 28 again.

His birth year initially was listed wrong when he played in Japan. That information carried over when he signed with New York. Soriano told the Yankees about it last summer and they told the Rangers when negotiating the trade.

Being a couple of years older doesn’t diminish what he’s accomplished.

Soriano hit .287 with 95 home runs, 226 RBIs, 319 runs scored and 119 stolen bases his three full seasons in New York. Barry Bonds and Willie Mays are the only other players with consecutive seasons of 35 homers and 35 stolen bases.

He played in 38 postseason games, 28 more than the Rangers have in their history.

“The sky is the limit for him,” Yankee captain Derek Jeter said. Soriano’s tendency to flail and miss caught up to him in October.

After fanning a career-low 125 times in the regular season, he set a playoff record with 26 strikeouts (in just 71 at-bats) and was benched in Game 5 of the World Series.

Jaramillo was ready for him. Having watched tape of those New York days, he already knew what adjustments he wanted to make when Soriano approached him.

“All I’m doing for him is just trying to teach him what he does when he does it right,” Jaramillo said. “We’re not changing his swing, but just getting back to what it was in New York when he was going good.”

His power numbers are likely to remain high now that he gets to play 81 times a year at The Ballpark in Arlington, widely considered a hitter’s paradise. As a visitor, Soriano hit .360 (18-50) with eight doubles, three home runs and eight RBIs there.

Soriano also is proving to have a good wit, a necessity on a young team where lighthearted verbal sparring is almost constant.

“Sori sort of threw a couple of jabs at me, and that’s when I knew he was starting to feel a little more comfortable,” Young said. “He’s going to fit right in. He laughs a lot with the guys. He plays hard.”