OAKLAND — The Texas Rangers left Arlington last Thursday with five starting pitchers on the active roster. They completed a successful road trip to Kansas City and Oakland and will be back with Colorado State on the horizon. Three and some changes are still going on.
It's that season. The latest episode of pain, tension, and contempt continued. Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Friday with a groin strain, and right-hander Dane Dunning joined him on Wednesday with a right rotator cuff strain. The bullpen won't be completely back at home, either, after Josh Sborz left Game 2 of Wednesday's 12-11 doubleheader win against the Athletics alongside trainer Matt Lucero. Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Sborz has shoulder soreness and will undergo testing once the team arrives in Colorado.
However, the starting rotation is in worse shape than the bullpen. Think about how Texas filled out its starting pitching staff two winters ago and how the relief corps struggled last season. But that's where the Rangers are now, just a month into the season, with right-hander Michael Lorenzen, right-hander Jon Gray and left-hander Andrew Heaney as the only healthy and experienced starting pitchers. ing.
The Rangers have an enviable arsenal of honors and awards on injured reserve. He won a combined five Cy Young Awards, courtesy of Max Scherzer (back surgery rehab/thumb inflammation) and Jacob deGrom (elbow surgery rehab). Nathan Eovaldi (minor groin strain) is among several All-Star candidates, but the current two-time club Pitcher of the Year is out with Dunning. Tyler Marr (Tommy John surgery) and Cody Bradford (rib stress fracture) don't necessarily have that honor, but the Rangers can't get greedy.
Bochy believes the Rangers have the ability to piece together their rotation until further notice.
“We'll talk about it,” Bochy said. “We're going to work through this until we get them back.”
The veteran Rangers manager has pieced together pitching staffs out of seemingly thin air before (see last year's playoffs), but the Texans' legitimate options are limited.
Jack Leiter: He has started more games this season (two games after Wednesday) than any other pitcher without a guaranteed rotation spot. This suggests that the 24-year-old may have an inside track for a long-term stay in the rotation, but he's no longer even on the major league roster and in terms of performance, Not blowing the doors off at all. Reiter was the “27th person” in Wednesday's doubleheader. do If they plan on using him in the rotation on more than a spot-start basis, they'll need to make a legitimate roster change.
He allowed six runs (four earned) on Wednesday with seven hits, three strikeouts and no walks. He was relatively efficient, but allowed two home runs on pitches left in the zone.
Reiter said, “It didn't go my way in the first two games. It's frustrating.'' “But starting two games with the Rangers in the win column is a positive aside from the negatives and frustrations.”
Jose Ureña: He has the most experience and given the way he pitched Tuesday, he might be the obvious choice for more starting opportunities. Ureña, who has primarily been a long reliever in the Rangers' bullpen this season, pitched five innings and two runs as a spot starter in place of Nathan Eovaldi against the Athletics on Tuesday. He also showed some really nasty stuff, including a sinker that reached 97.9 mph.
Ureña gave a much-needed performance for the Rangers before Wednesday's doubleheader. Maybe they should give him an extension in the rotation. Bochy was enthusiastic about Ureña, as if a worthy choice had already been made.
“He taught me a lot,” Bochy said. “That was the kind of effort he gave us. We were going to have him throw 60 pitches, but every time he got off the mound he said, 'Okay, okay.' … We're going to lose a guy like Dane Dunning, but it's good to see guys like this step up.”
Owen White: Well, maybe. This is more like a choice where there's a reason he should be here, but he may not be here for too long. The Rangers called up White in place of Dunning on Wednesday, and he pitched a scoreless ninth inning in his season debut. He allowed three consecutive singles to load the bases before Bochy was replaced by closer Kirby Yates.
White didn't attract much attention in spring training. He wasn't thrilled at all in his first month at Triple-A Round Rock.
“I feel stronger than I've ever been,” White said before Wednesday's doubleheader. “Both mentally and physically.”
That's a good thing because at some point they might need more innings from him. I'm sure at least someone needs more innings.
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