Here we go with a sampling of this month's questions:

Q: Explain this whole Erubiel Durazo thing -- when he can be brought up and why.
-- Jerry L., Arlington, Texas

A: The Rangers can bring Durazo up whenever they want. There was a little confusion about that when Texas re-signed the first baseman-DH to a minor league deal last week, part of which was probably generated when I mistakenly wrote that the club wouldn't be able to bring him to the big leagues before May 15. There's a class of players to whom that rule applies; Durazo isn't one of them.

Major League Rule 8(i)(2) provides that a player who is released after August 31 and before the following Opening Day cannot be re-signed to a big league contract by the team that released him until May 15 of that following season. Example: Texas released John Wasdin on March 29 (to avoid owing him his full guaranteed contract for 2006) and signed him three days later to a AAA contract. He won't be able to pitch in Arlington before May 15, pursuant to Rule 8(i)(2).

So why does the same rule apply in the case of Durazo, who was released on March 27 and re-signed on April 7, taking a AAA deal of his own?

Because Durazo, unlike Wasdin, was released from a minor league contract. Rule 8(i)(2) applies only to players who had big league contracts (that is, were on the 40-man roster) at the time they were released.

May 15 actually does factor in as far as Durazo is concerned, for a different reason. While it's not the earliest Texas can bring the 31-year-old up, it could be the latest. Durazo's deal stipulates that if he's not in the big leagues by May 15, he has the right to request and receive his release so he can hook on with another club.

Q: Who can be drafted in the Rule 4 draft in June and who cannot, including which countries are subject to the draft and which are not.
-- Rick L., Plano, Texas

A: Rule 4 defines the pool of June draft-eligibles as residents of the United States (including Puerto Rico and any other commonwealth, territory, or possession of the U.S.) or Canada who have never before contracted with a major league or minor league club, subject to the limitations of Rule 3.

According to Rule 3, players must fall within one of the following categories in order to be drafted (again, with a few other rare exceptions):

1. High school graduates (with some narrow exceptions for high school players who haven't yet graduated).
2. College graduates.
3. A college player who has completed his junior year.
4. A college player who is at least 21 years old.
5. A junior college player.

All of that is to say that, generally speaking, players in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico are eligible to be drafted at any time once they've completed high school, though those attending four-year schools are usually ineligible until they've finished their junior year.

Q: How about the rules on when free agents signing in the off-season can be traded? Thanks for all you do.
-- Terry L., Dallas, Texas

A: While it's not addressed in the Major League Rules, Section B(6) of Article XX of the current Basic Agreement provides that a team signing a major league free agent in the off-season may not trade him until June 15 of the following season. The player can waive the B(6) protection, however, by consenting to a pre-June 15 trade in writing.

One player who recently waived the pre-June 15 restriction is Placido Polanco, whom Philadelphia traded to Detroit with his permission on June 8, 2005 (for reliever Ugueth Urbina and infielder Ramon Martinez).

One other note: The rule applies only to service time free agents, not to players signed during their arbitration-eligibity years.