Texas loses Higashioka (flexor strain) to IL, summons catcher Wynns
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ARLINGTON -- The Rangers opened the season with two catchers on the active roster: Danny Jansen and Kyle Higashioka.
Both are now on the injured list as Higashioka (right flexor strain) joined Jansen (right forearm strain) on the 10-day injured list on Tuesday ahead of Texas' 10-0 win over the White Sox. Austin Wynns was selected from Triple-A Round Rock for further catching depth behind Elias Díaz.
“I mean, it’s definitely not what you want to happen, especially when we're trying to make a push for the playoffs,” said Higashioka, who had Tommy John surgery in Triple-A with the Yankees in 2013. “Right now, the one thing we can do is let it heal and try to come back as soon as possible.”
Higashioka -- who is in the last of a two-year deal with the Rangers -- started in two of the first four games out of the break entering Tuesday, collecting a single, double, walk and HBP in the Braves series. He said he first felt something in his elbow midgame on Sunday in Atlanta.
“At the time, it didn't really alarm me that much, but then it kind of progressed and got a little worse as the game went on,” Higashioka said. “By the end of the game, it was pretty sore. Previously, having had Tommy John, it's not really an area you want to start hurting, so I was a little concerned. I woke up the next day feeling about the same as I was after the game.”
For the season, he’s hit .218 with seven home runs and 18 RBIs in 58 games. He’s posted a .785 OPS over his last 35 games dating back to May 17.
Jansen landed on the injured list on June 6 and the Rangers immediately signed Díaz as a short-term solution. He’s contributed more offensively than Texas could have hoped, slashing .267/.273/.400 in 31 games with Texas.
Wynns has big league experience, but not to the same extent as Díaz when the Rangers signed him. Wynns has hit .228 with 19 home runs and 84 RBIs in 299 games for the Orioles (2018-19, 2021), Giants (2022-23), Dodgers (2023), Rockies (2023), Reds (2024-25), Athletics (2025-26) and Braves (2026).
The Rangers signed Wynns to a Minor League deal on June 23.
He may be here for the foreseeable future, with Higashioka down for some time.
“As of right now, it’s going to be more of an unspecified amount of time off of throwing,” Higashioka said. “I don't know, hopefully it's sooner rather than later. I just don't want to put a timetable on it, because you just never know how these are going to go.”