ARLINGTON – Texas Rangers pitching prospect Jack Leiter will make his third major league start and first at Globe Life Field on Tuesday against the Cleveland Guardians, the club announced Monday. Michael Lorenzen will start Monday's game against Cleveland, and Jon Gray will start Wednesday's series finale.
Reiter, 24, started the first two games and posted a 12.91 ERA with a 6-to-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 7 2/3 innings. He pitched in the second game of the Rangers' doubleheader against the Oakland Athletics last Wednesday, allowing four earned runs on seven hits in four innings. He made his debut against the Detroit Tigers in April, pitching 3 2/3 innings and allowing seven earned runs.
“I’m excited to be here and throw on the mound and be able to pitch in a real game,” Reiter said Monday. “I threw it off the mound. [at Globe Life Field] Although it is a raw BP and bullpen, the atmosphere is clearly very different. I'm excited to witness and be a part of it. ”
Reiter, the second overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, posted a 2.84 ERA in 25 1/3 innings pitched this season at Triple-A Round Rock. He was the “27th man” in the Rangers' doubleheader in Oakland, returned to Round Rock between last Wednesday's opener and Monday, and must be added to the Texans' active roster by Tuesday's opener.
We may not yet know what will happen in the future. “He's going to pitch tomorrow. That's where we are right now,” manager Bruce Bochy said when asked by a writer if he would remain in the rotation until further notice given the number of starting pitchers on the injured list. he said.
Reiter and Jose Ureña each got spot starts last week for the Rangers, with six starting pitchers missing, including Nathan Eovaldi, Dane Dunning and Cody Bradford. Ureña started his last outing against Oakland and Colorado, pitching 11 2/3 innings and allowing just three earned runs. He and Leiter will most likely join Jon Gray, Michael Lorenzen and Andrew Heaney in the rotation on an interim basis.
“We'll see where we are as we move forward,” Bochy said. “A lot depends on the health of the players. Eovaldi, who we talked about, is getting better. Bradford is starting to get back into form.”
Read more of the Dallas Morning News' Rangers coverage here.
