SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Milton Bradley joined the Rangers' workout on Tuesday, expressing confidence that he will be ready for Opening Day.

Bradley is coming off surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee but is able to do just about everything his teammates are doing except run full speed.

"I'll be out there on Opening Day in some capacity," Bradley said after his first workout.

Bradley was with the San Diego Padres at the end of last season when he suffered the knee injury during an argument with first-base umpire Mike Winters on Sept. 23. He underwent surgery four days later and was signed as a free agent by the Rangers in the offseason.

"I feel like I'm ahead of my schedule," Bradley said. "I've had no setbacks. I'm going to continue doing my program and whatever extra they want me to do. We're taking it with baby steps, but I'll be ready at the end of March. The big thing was having the surgery quickly and starting on the rehab right away. I'm doing better than what I thought I would be doing four months ago."

Manager Ron Washington watched Bradley do his outfield drills in the morning and liked what he saw.

"He was moving around nice and easy, the way we want him to," Washington said. "I believe he'll be ready for Opening Day, but we're still putting him on a slow pace and not have him champing at the bit. We want him ready April 1, not Feb. 27. We want to get him ready for the long haul."

The Rangers signed Bradley to be their right fielder, but he could open the season at designated hitter if he's not ready to play the field. Washington is also planning on batting him fourth.

"I have hit three, four and five," Bradley said. "I like being in the pressure situations and being the guy they depend on to get the job done. I'm all for taking on that role."

Rheinecker to have surgery: John Rheinecker is undergoing surgery on his left shoulder and is likely to be sidelined until the All-Star break.

Rheinecker is suffering from Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. A rib bone is pushing against a nerve, causing swelling, pain and tingling in his arm. Third baseman Hank Blalock had the surgery last year and former Rangers pitcher Kenny Rogers had it done in 2001.

"I think that's the step we have to take," Rheinecker said Tuesday morning. "I had a little bit of these symptoms last year. I don't want to have to deal with a nagging injury all year."

The date for the surgery has not been set.

"Hopefully we'll get it done as soon as possible, get back on the field, rehab this thing and be back by the All-Star break," Rheinecker said. "I'm going to do everything I can to get back as soon as possible."

Rheinecker, who was 4-3 with a 5.36 ERA in 23 games for the Rangers last year, came into camp as a strong candidate for the bullpen. He had a 2.84 ERA in his 16 relief appearances and had proven to be effective as a situational left-hander. But he also missed the first two months of the season with a back injury.

"It hurts," pitching coach Mark Connor said. "He was definitely high on the list for a spot in the bullpen after last year. It cuts into our depth by one. I feel for him as much as for us. He's had a couple of rough years for us."

That leaves the Rangers with two left-handers in the bullpen: Eddie Guardado and C.J. Wilson. A.J. Murray pitched in relief last year, but the Rangers still want to use him as a starter this season.

Rangers consider red: The Rangers will at least consider the possibility of going back to red uniforms, vice president Jim Sundberg said.

That's an item that will make its way onto Nolan Ryan's agenda at some point after he officially begins his new duties as club president on Thursday.

"We're on the front end of some branding issues that will be played out this year," Sundberg said. "One will probably be along the lines of the look of the uniform. That's a down-the-road issue, but everybody is aware of it. They wore the red uniforms when they were winning, so it has some connection."

The Rangers went to red uniforms when they moved into Rangers Ballpark in Arlington in 1994 and wore them during the division championship seasons of 1996 and 1998-99. But they went to blue uniforms in 2001. There is some sentiment among their fans to go back to red uniforms.

"We did a survey and there wasn't a strong feeling one way or the other," Sundberg said. "It was pretty neutral."

He said it: "I think they put the speed bumps in the parking lot for me. When you have the same rental car for a month, you start to get creative on how you park your car. I'd come in like a stunt man and the security guards got upset about it."
-- Wilson

Briefly: Legendary country music singer Charley Pride is back in camp working out with the Rangers. He has been doing this since 1974, when he appeared in a game against the Baltimore Orioles and had a single and a groundout against Hall of Famer Jim Palmer. ... Pitching coach Connor called pitcher Josh Rupe a serious contender for the bullpen, saying, "He has good arm strength, good delivery and his ball is moving all over the place. Rupe is a lot stronger. He's not as frail as he was." ... Josh Hamilton is battling a touch of the flu. General manager Jon Daniels has also been zapped with it. ... The Rangers' first full-squad workout is Wednesday, but everybody is already in camp except infielder Edgardo Alfonzo. He arrived Tuesday afternoon and will be ready to go on Wednesday.