SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Joe Saunders was the opposing pitcher who helped end the Texas Rangers last playoff appearance two seasons ago. Now the veteran left-hander will get a chance to earn a spot in the Texas rotation after finalizing a one-year contract that guarantees him the $500,000 minimum. Saunderss salary would increase to $1.5 million if he makes the team. He can earn performance bonuses in addition to his salary under the deal completed Tuesday. With injured lefty Derek Holland expected to be out at least half the season after knee surgery, Saunders joined the team in Arizona on Wednesday to provide another potential starting option. "I feel like Im right on track," said Saunders, who had been throwing bullpen sessions on his own. Saunders has an 89-81 career record with a 4.30 ERA in 221 games, all starts with the Los Angeles Angels (2005-10), Arizona (2010-12), Baltimore (2012) and Seattle (2013). The 32-year-old lefty was 11-16 with a career-high 5.26 ERA in 32 starts last season before Seattle declined his 2014 option. In the 2012 AL wild-card game at Texas, Saunders allowed one run over 5 2-3 innings in Baltimores 5-1 victory over Texas. Before that playoff victory, Saunders had lost his six previous starts and had a 9.38 ERA in games in Texas. He was 1-1 with a 6.35 ERA there in two starts for Seattle last season when he allowed 19 hits and nine runs in 11 1-3 innings. "I love the ballpark. I think it was more a factor of the lineup than the ballpark," Saunders said. "Its nice to be able to get on the good side of things." Infielder-outfielder Alex Castellanos was designated for assignment to make room on the Rangers major league roster. The Rangers have 10 days to trade, release or outright Castellanos to the minor leagues. He was claimed on waivers from Boston in December and was 3 for 9 in five games this spring training. Brian Dozier Nationals Jersey . Dallas also Monday recalled defenceman Aaron Rome from his conditioning assignment with the Texas Stars of the American Hockey League and assigned goaltender Jack Campbell to the AHL squad. Ryan Zimmerman Jersey . Juventus announced details of the deal Saturday, saying that Morata signed a five-year contract with the club. The deal also includes an option for Madrid to buy Morata back for up to (euro)30 million ($40. https://www.cheapnationals.com/967r-wand...ionals.html.com) - The Golden State Warriors have started another winning streak and theyll try to pad it Tuesday night when they head to Staples Center to face the Los Angeles Lakers. Roenis Elias Nationals Jersey .1 Sam Stosur will meet Germanys second-ranked player Andrea Petkovic in the opening match of the Fed Cup World Group semifinal. Spencer Kieboom Jersey . - After spending the morning in the hospital, Logan Couture gave the San Jose Sharks the spark they needed.ASHBURN, Va. -- The face was different, the words familiar. Like Mike Shanahan and nearly every recent Washington Redskins coach, Jay Gruden is anxious to declare an end to franchises days of dysfunction. "I dont know what happened last year," Gruden said. "I know that interviewing with Dan Snyder and Bruce Allen and everybody here that the passion for excellence is there. All they want to do is win, and theyre going to provide me with every avenue to win." Gruden was introduced Thursday as the man charged with ending the perpetual state of turmoil the team has endured under owner Snyder and recently under general manager Allen. Gruden was a given a five-year contact for his first NFL head coaching gig, taking over a 3-13 team that has finished last in the NFC East in five of the last six seasons. "We HAVE to get it right," said Allen, who led the search and interviewed six candidates. "We need to get the franchise back on track in a winning direction. ... We were looking for a new leader, somebody who can inspire our football team. We knew it was more than just X and Os, it was about finding the right person to build a team chemistry that we needed." Gruden is Snyders eighth coach in 16 seasons as an NFL owner. Unlike Shanahan, who was fired last week, Gruden will not have final say over all football matters. Hell report to Allen, who has taken charge of assembling the roster and other personnel decisions. Snyder attended the news conference but did not speak to reporters. The 46-year-old Gruden has spent the last three seasons as the offensive co-ordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals, where his skill in helping to develop Andy Dalton will no doubt be of use when he takes on the task of grooming another young franchise quarterback, Robert Griffin III. Gruden praised the talents of Griffin and spoke of the need to build a "genuine" trust with the quarterback, who regressed this season after winning the APs Offensive Rookie of the Year award in 2012. Griffin returned from major knee surgery to start 13 games, but he publicly disagreed with some of Shanahans decisions, struggled as a drop-back passer and was benched for the final three weeks. Asked to confirm that Griffin will be the starter, Gruden chuckled and said: "I dont see him as a backup." "I see every trait that a quarterback has to have to be successful, I see Robert having all of those," Gruden said. "So why wouldnt you want to coach a guy like that? ... Im going to let him know that Im a trustworthy guy. Hes also got to understand that I expect a lot from the starting quarterback. I expect him to come in and prepare and work hard, and I expectt him to take the blame on some throws.dddddddddddd I expect him to be a great leader." Griffin limited his comments to a quick post on his Facebook page: "Excited about the hiring of Coach Jay Gruden. Cant wait to get to work with him & the guys!" Gruden said he will call the plays himself and that he has yet to decide which members of Shanahans staff to retain. It seems a safe bet, however, that some combination of defensive co-ordinator Jim Haslett, defensive backs coach Raheem Morris and tight ends coach Sean McVay has a good chance of sticking around, based on the trios previous relationship with the new coach. Gruden also said hes a fan of the 3-4 defence that Haslett has used the last four years. "I know theres a lot of coaches here who can coach," Gruden said. Gruden has been largely overshadowed by his more famous brother, Jon Gruden, who won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is now an analyst on "Monday Night Football." But Jay Gruden has been a name on the rise based on his success with Dalton and the Bengals offence. Jay Gruden interviewed for multiple head coaching openings last year and had drawn interest from at least three other teams seeking to fill a head coaching vacancy this year. He interviewed with the Tennessee Titans on Tuesday. The Redskins had to wait until the Bengals played their first-round playoff game before Gruden could be courted. It took a bad day from Gruden and Dalton -- scoring only 10 points in a home loss to the San Diego Chargers -- to make Gruden free to be hired this week. "I told him it worked out well that Cincinnati lost," Allen said. "He still doesnt understand that." Gruden said his ties within the Washington organization played a "big role" in his decision. He was an assistant coach with Tampa Bay from 2002-08, where he worked at various times with Allen, Morris and McVay. Gruden also coached under Haslett with the UFLs Florida Tuskers in 2009. Theres no question Gruden has paid his dues. He was a quarterback in the long-defunct World League of American Football, then went to the Arena Football League and began a playing and coaching career that was so successful it landed him in the AFL Hall of Fame in 1999. Hes been a head coach both the AFL and UFL, including two stints with the AFLs Orlando Predators. In 2010, after Haslett left for the Redskins, Gruden was head coach and general manager of the Tuskers and led them to the UFL championship game. "Theres a lot of work to do," Gruden said. "When youre 3-13, theres not one particular player or reason, theres a lot of reasons and theres a lot of things that need to be fixed." ' ' '