SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Rangers lefty Kolby Allard made progress Wednesday as he continues to audition for a job that doesn’t exist yet.

For now, there are no spots available in the Rangers’ starting rotation after the club acquired Corey Kluber, Kyle Gibson and Jordan Lyles in the offseason, so Allard is positioning himself to be the first reinforcement when someone inevitably misses a turn.

Allard pitched two scoreless innings Wednesday against the Rockies, allowing one hit and hitting a batter, but cruising through the other six hitters he faced. In the Cactus League opener against the Royals last Friday, Allard allowed two earned runs on a hit and a walk in one inning.

“Everything feels good,” Allard said after the Rangers’ 4-3 loss Wednesday. “Early in spring, you’re looking for that fastball command and I think that’s something that improved from the first time.

“It’s always nice to see zeros on the scoreboard, especially early in the spring. But pitch execution, and stuff like that, how you’re feeling bodywise … especially so early in spring, is a little more important.”

Allard threw 30 pitches, including 14 strikes, against Colorado. He got two quick ground-ball outs before allowing a double to Nolan Arenado, who was stranded at second when Allard induced another groundout.

“He was really good,” manager Chris Woodward said. “Similar to his first outing … he works quick and attacks the strike zone. His cutter was pretty sharp. He got a lot of easy outs, a lot of weak contact.”

As a rookie in 2019, Allard made nine starts for the Rangers, tied for fifth-most on the team with veterans Jesse Chavez and Drew Smyly. Allard was a regular member of the rotation in August and September, going 4-2 with a 4.96 ERA.

The 22-year-old looked to be on the margins of staying in the rotation until the significant offseason acquisitions. Now he’s vying to be the next man up.

“He’s right there,” Woodward said. “If something happens to one of our main guys, he’s going to be in heavy, heavy contention to fill a spot, if we need it. What we saw last year, the stuff itself was really good, but we felt like we actually got something better than we were anticipating. The mentality of the kid, he’s pretty competitive, able to make adjustments.”

Woodward said Allard’s worst game, statistically, was also one of his most impressive last season. Against the Angels on Aug. 19, Allard allowed five runs in the first inning and two in the second, but he finished with three scoreless frames.

“I remember he had a really rough outing [in the] first inning last year and didn’t give in,” Woodward said. “He ended up striking out [Mike] Trout twice. … He’s kind of relentless when it comes to the competitiveness and he can actually talk through a game. Even when he was getting beat up, he was able to come back, talk about it, make some adjustments and be able to go out and still compete. That’s pretty advanced for a young kid to feel that way.”

Allard understands he may be headed to the Minor Leagues, however temporarily, even if he has a strong spring.

“There’s things in your career that you can control and then there’s others that you can’t,” Allard said. “The only thing I’m trying to do every day is make it tough on Woody -- if he is going to leave you off that roster, make a very good impression to show that you can help the Texas Rangers win a lot of ballgames. That’s how I’m going about it right now, and that’s the best way to go about it in the future.”