OAKLAND, Calif. - Let’s see. Rangers young guys. OK, there’s Rougned Odor. He punched a guy. Nomar Mazara is the child prodigy. Jurickson Profar is comeback kid at 23 years old.

That about cover it?

Oh, yeah, there’s the other one. Ryan Rua.

“Hey, they are all younger than me,” said Rua, who at 26 is three years older than any of the other trio of prodigies. “But I’m fine not being the one who is the center of attention. I’m a quiet guy.”

Not so much anymore. Rua’s bat, at least, is making plenty of noise. And like Mazara and Odor, he’s forcing the Rangers to find ways to use him more regularly. On Tuesday, manager Jeff Banister opted to go with Rua against lefty Eric Surkamp rather than Mitch Moreland, who had four homers in the first four games of the road trip.

Sitting Moreland down against a lefty used to be more about unfavorable matchups for the first baseman. Now, it’s simply becoming more of an opportunity to play Rua. He entered Tuesday with a pair of homers on the road trip. Over a longer stretch dating to May 22, he was hitting .355 with a 1.077 OPS.

“Ryan has earned the right to be in there,” Banister said. “He’s been a good contributor all season. There have been plusses all the way around for him. It’s nothing Mitch hasn’t done.”

Rua’s first plate appearance as the cleanup hitter spoke to the kind of season he’s had: Stealthily productive. With a runner on first and one, he drove an 0-1 pitch from Surkamp to right field for a sacrifice fly.

His second time up, he drove a 1-0 pitch into the left field stands for a homer.

“Just like with [Profar], we are going to find spots and at-bats for him,” Banister said. “We want to keep him fresh and engaged.”

Case in point: The last three innings of Monday’s blowout loss to Oakland. Rua, who started the game in left, moved over to center to replace Ian Desmond. Rua spent some time last week learning the basics of center in anticipation of becoming the club’s backup center fielder to Desmond. Jared Hoying was optioned back to the minors on Monday, leaving Rua as the only option to backup Desmond up.

When he got in the game, it was the fifth different position he’s played in the field this year. He’s played all three outfield spots, first base and third base.

It’s a far cry from where he was at this point a year ago. Rua went into the 2015 season as the club’s starting left fielder, hurt his ankle a week in and was lost for two months. He returned on June 19 and never was the same. He batted .190 over the next seven weeks and was sent back to the minors when the Rangers added Mike Napoli.

Over the final month of the season, the Rangers were so desperate for a productive right-handed hitting outfielder, it abandoned defense and went with Napoli while Rua sat on the bench. He got three at-bats in September, was not a consideration for the playoff roster and crossed the organization by declining to participate in the Fall League or winter leagues.

When he came to camp this spring, he had to prove himself all over again.

He has.

His playing time is testament to that.

Twitter: @Evan_P_Grant