Struggling Leclerc removed from closer role

ARLINGTON -- The Rangers are backing down on Jose Leclerc as their closer, manager Chris Woodward said Wednesday.

The Rangers will likely use Chris Martin and Shawn Kelley as their closer until Leclerc can get back to pitching the way he did last season.

"We are going to look at taking him out for a while for his sake," Woodward said. "We've talked. I told him there is going to come a time when we are pouring champagne on our heads and it will because of you closing it out.”

Leclerc came into Tuesday’s game in the ninth inning to protect a 3-0 lead and couldn’t hold it. He allowed three runs, and the Rangers ended up losing 6-4 in 11 innings.

"The guy works harder than anybody," Woodward said. "He cares. He's conscientious. It's beautiful. But to see this, it rips your heart out. In the end, he'll be better for it, but now it's a bad feeling because it feels like there is no way out."

After 13 appearances, Leclerc has an 8.44 ERA while averaging 11.8 hits and 7.6 walks per nine innings. He was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year in 2018 when he posted a 1.56 ERA. He signed a four-year, $14.75 million extension in the off-season.

"He feels a responsibility," Woodward said. "He feels like he has to do much more, but he doesn't. Nobody is Mariano Rivera, and I think that's where his expectations are. I'm all about high expectations, but not to the point where it crushes your soul."

Prospect White undergoes Tommy John surgery
Right-handed pitcher Owen White, who was the Rangers second-round pick in the June Draft, underwent Tommy John surgery on Wednesday in Arlington. The club's No. 13 prospect will be sidelined for 12-14 months.

White is the second Rangers pitcher from last year’s draft to undergo Tommy John surgery. Mason Englert, who was their fourth-round pick, underwent the procedure last month.

"As an industry we really struggle keeping the elbow healthy right now,” general manager Jon Daniels said. “It's definitely concerning. You've got multiple guys, multiple of our young guys the last few years having it. Some of it is workload and being a pro, but you want to look at everything we've been doing preventive care-wise."

White, Engler and other top Rangers' Draft picks from last year were put on a no-throwing program for the rest of the summer to preserve their arms and hopefully avoid serious injuries. It didn’t seem to make a difference.

Four other top pitching prospects -- Cole Ragans, Alex Speas, Kyle Cody and Joe Palumbo -- all underwent Tommy John surgery in the past few years, and the Rangers have put in much time and resources trying to find answers.

"Ultimately, the reason that we did put the program in place was both as an organization and an industry we're having too many elbow issues,” Daniels said. “I can't sit here with enough confidence to say definitely what led to it, other than it's an issue we have to get our arms around. And I say we, first as an organization and second as an industry. This latest rash makes us all sick. We're far from the only ones dealing with it."

Rangers beat
• Pitcher Drew Smyly threw a 37-pitch simulated game on Wednesday morning and reported no issues. Smyly is on the 10-day injured list with arm fatigue but could pitch on Sunday against the Blue Jays.

• Outfielder Joey Gallo was the Rangers Player of the Month for March/April. Gallo hit .264 with 10 home runs, 25 RBIs, a .404 on-base percentage and a .678 slugging percentage. The 10 home runs are the most by a Rangers player before May 1 in club history.