MINNEAPOLIS -- The candidates for Most Frustrating Ranger as the first half comes to a close are several, among them Jose Leclerc, Ronald Guzman, Asdrubal Cabrera, just about any catcher and three-fifths of the opening day rotation.

But the voting really isn't even close, is it? Roogie Odor, this one's on you.

Never mind that the fiery little second baseman has been better the last 10 games or so, because, well, it's hard not to look better when you're under the Mendoza Line for the season. Besides, 10 games do not a season make.

On Wednesday, the day before he hit a changeup and a 100 mph fastball a combined 900 feet, Roogie struck out four times.

Consider Chris Woodward's take on that wild 24-hour ride. Just as he said he wouldn't necessarily hold the four K's against Roogie, he's not giving him extra credit for his Fourth of July fireworks, either. He's not interested, he said, in a "one-game fix."

"I'm excited he hit two homers, because I know how important confidence is in these games," the Rangers' manager said.

"But it's not going to make him a Hall of Famer tomorrow."

Ouch.

The truth occasionally hurts, as the lovely wife consistently counsels. But what's hurting the Rangers is that this message isn't getting across to everyone who needs it.

Joey Gallo gets it. He bought in early, working to cut down on what might have been the biggest strike zone in ball. He still bears some of his bad traits, Woodward said, but they're contained in a manageable strike zone.

The result is one of the best slash lines in baseball and a coronation by Woodward as one of the five most talented players in the game.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have the Rangers' second baseman. Through work with Luis Ortiz, Roogie has corrected some flaws. His swing path, in particular, is better.

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But he's still chasing pitches out of the strike zone. Especially pitches way up in the zone. Pitches that even Gallo shouldn't swing at.

"He just needs to narrows his strike zone," Woodward said. "He does that, and he's swinging like he is right now, he'll do a lot of damage. He'll get a lot of hits and a lot of homers."

And if he doesn't get those pitches to hit, Ortiz and Woodward have told him that he simply needs to take them. Pass the torch to the next guy.

"He wants to be successful, right?" Woodward asked. "If he stays in the strike zone, he'll be fine."

Here's the problem: Roogie doesn't really think that's the problem. And he's not the only one.

Besides being Roogie's double-play partner, Elvis Andrus is also his mentor. Gives him advice all the time. He's told him not to worry too much about his awful first half.

"You have a great second half," he tells him, "nobody's gonna talk about the first half."

True enough. Plenty of games left to get it right. But there's more.

Don't forget what got you to the big leagues, Elvis tells him. You're an aggressive hitter. Be aggressive.

"Taking is hard," Elvis said Friday. "I don't know how [Shin-Soo] Choo does it. We're different kinds of players.

"When Roogie's good, he's an aggressive hitter."

This, safe to say, is not the message Woodward and Ortiz are preaching.

Speaking about players in general, Woodward said he expects a certain level of "pushback" to the information they're given. He wants them to think for themselves. Think on a higher level. Don't just blindly accept what they're being told.

Even in those moments, Woodward says, if what they're doing isn't working, then they have to make adjustments.

Why don't they do it?

"I think it's just pride," he said.

Pride certainly would seem to be a major character trait in Roogie, from his strut to his swing to the flip of his bat. He didn't get where he is today by being shy.

There's no question this first half has been difficult for him. Difficult to justify it, too. He struggles with the questions.

"I know I haven't been hitting like I know how to hit," he said before Friday's game. "But I'm doing everything I can to help my team win. I keep battling. I keep fighting.

"I don't get frustrated. I get mad sometimes because I want to play well. This is just part of the game.

"I have a lot of at bats left."

Maybe not as many as he thinks. Danny Santana, one of the Rangers' best stories this season, is playing well. He also plays second base.

Is he putting pressure on Roogie? Yes, Woodward says. Good pressure.

Enough to put Roogie on the bench? The manager isn't saying.

But from the tone of the message, it might be sooner than Roogie likes.

Twitter: @KSherringtonDMN