CHICAGO -- Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter made his third appearance in a rehab game on Wednesday with Triple-A Round Rock, but it was his first coming out of the bullpen.
Leiter, who underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove a loose body in his right ankle area on June 23, was initially building up as a starter for obvious reasons, but as the Rangers enter the final stretch of the season in a postseason push, they thought it necessary to see if he could thrive out of the bullpen for the remainder of the year.
Leiter has three career relief appearances, all in his rookie season in 2024. Nothing is set in stone just yet, but Wednesday’s rehab appearance is just the start of the conversation.
How did he perform?
Leiter struck out one across an inning of relief, surrendering three runs on three hits and no walks. He threw 25 pitches, 17 of them for strikes.
What’s next?
The Rangers are still working through whether to use Leiter as a starter or reliever in his return to the big leagues. That will determine the next steps as it pertains to his rehab process.
What are they saying?
“This is the first time I've ever had any kind of surgery, and obviously, you want to be optimistic, and you want to think it's going to be smooth,” Leiter said during the last homestand. “It hasn't quite been, which is obviously frustrating. You want to be out there helping the team, and now it's just about them making a decision for where that works, where I can help out, and what that looks like.”
What else?
Nathan Eovaldi, another one of the Rangers’ injured pitchers, is still not throwing off a mound as he continues to battle through elbow inflammation. He began playing catch this week in Chicago, and it will be another 10-12 days before he takes that next step.
“Knowing Evo, he's going to want to push,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “That's also a fine line because he's the one guy that is not going to be just the status quo. He's going to try to do whatever he can to get back.”