DETROIT -- Rangers right-hander Jack Leiter lost a perfect game when he walked Riley Greene to begin the fifth inning Sunday night. Then he lost the no-hitter the next batter, when Spencer Torkelson drilled a two-run homer on a hanging slider over the left-field wall. And it was all downhill from there, as Leiter ended up surrendering five runs in 6 2/3 innings during a 7-1 loss to the Tigers at Comerica Park.
Texas manager Skip Schumaker said Leiter’s pitching line “doesn’t give Jack justice for how he really pitched.” Leiter matched a career high in strikeouts (10) and was dealing early, but that abrupt turnaround decided the game.
“It’s frustrating, yeah,” Leiter said.
Leiter did save the bullpen, though, which had to throw 12 2/3 innings over three games at Comerica Park.
Although they gave up a pair of runs Sunday night, Texas still has an MLB-best 2.74 bullpen ERA despite having zero former All-Stars, two rookies and a number of well-traveled arms. The only pitchers in the bullpen to pitch for Texas in 2025 are Jacob Latz and Cole Winn. And yet, the eight Rangers in the ‘pen all pitched and surrendered only three total earned runs in Detroit, tallying a 2.13 ERA in the series.
“I think what they feed off each other is the strike-throwing, and they don’t beat themselves with walks," Schumaker said. "They really do pitch to contact. And you need that out of your bullpen. It’s been showing up this year so far.”
The manager credited pitching coach Jordan Tiegs and his coaching staff for putting their relievers in the right spots to succeed.
“I’ve said this before -- guys surprise you,” Schumacher said. “You don’t always know in Spring Training what you’ve going to get coming into the season. It can be completely different. You should never fall in or out of love with someone in spring.
“You have to get to the season to figure out what's real and what’s not. There’s guys that have stepped up and shown -- [Jakob] Junis and Latz and some of these guys -- that were maybe not thought of in the eighth or ninth inning that are now thought about in the eighth and ninth inning. Guys will tell you what they’re ready for and earn different roles.”
Cal Quantrill, who threw three scoreless innings during Saturday’s 5-1 loss, said, “I think we’re throwing the ball really well right now. It’s kind of all-hands-on-deck. Roles will become more and more defined. I think we can settle in and be even better.”
Latz said they feed off one another, which has helped fuel competition in the bullpen.
“Hitting’s contagious, but so is pitching,” Latz said. “When you see your guys go out there and do a good job, it kind of rubs off on you and you want to do the same thing. So, I think everyone’s picking each other up, and so they want to one-up each other in a good way, right? It’s friendly competition.
“That’s the best part of it.”
Quantrill, 31, said of the bullpen: “It’s an easygoing environment out there. We’re well-prepared for the game. We’ve got a lot of guys out there who take a lot of pride in being available as often as possible. We do our best to complain as little as we can and perform as much as we can.”
The personalities in the bullpen have also made a difference, as the group has bonded with each other.
“I mean, you’ve got a mix of older and younger guys,” Schumaker said. “All good personalities, all good guys. The one thing we don’t have is a weirdo back there.
“We’ve got a guy who got to the league for the first time at 30 years old [Peyton Gray] and you’ve got [Gavin] Collyer, who was fighting for his life at Double-A [Frisco] last year. And all of a sudden he’s a big leaguer in high-leverage situations.
“And then you’ve got Chris Martin, who’s been here forever.”
Martin, who turns 40 years old on June 2, has pitched 11 seasons for seven teams and is expected to return from the injured list (right shoulder impingement) later in May. He could be another weapon in the bullpen after pitching to a 2.98 ERA in 42 1/3 innings last season.
They are definitely a motley crew. But make no mistake about it, no bullpen in the game has a lower earned run average a little over a month into the season.
That’s something to behold.