"Nelson Cruz began his rehab assignment on Thursday, going 1-for-5 for Frisco. Ian Kinsler is expected to begin his on Saturday. Within a week, the Rangers hope to have their lineup back at full strength, which raises this question: What exactly will the lineup look like when they do return?

Kinsler was hitting third at the time he landed on the DL with a strained groin on July 29 and Cruz was hitting sixth. It's very likely neither will return in his old spot.

Kinsler's injury forced the Rangers to finally move Josh Hamilton from fifth to third and now Hamilton looks like the ideal No. 3 hitter with a majors-leading .354 batting average, 30 homers and 92 RBIs.

"I think we'll leave Josh there until he shows he can't do it," manager Ron Washington said with a chuckle Friday. "About the others, we'll see when they get back."

Cruz's time has been split almost equally between the fifth and sixth spots. He hit fifth when Hamilton moved into the third spot to replace Kinsler and also hit there some early in the year. Kinsler spent 15 starts at fifth early in the year and then moved into the No. 3 hole where he has hit for 60 games. Kinsler hit .321 in the No. 5 spot; .291 in the third spot. What does seem certain, however, is the Rangers will have a trio of right-handed bats in the Nos. 4-6 spots in the order."