Rangers to determine what's next for Lewis

BOSTON -- Rangers general manager Jon Daniels joined the team at Fenway Park on Monday night and will meet with manager Ron Washington, pitching coach Mike Maddux and others to determine what's next for pitcher Colby Lewis.

There is a possibility Lewis could rejoin the Rangers rotation as early as Saturday against the Astros to replace Joe Saunders, who went on the disabled list Monday with a bruised left ankle. But the Rangers have not announced their rotation beyond the Red Sox series and Yu Darvish pitching on Friday night against the Astros.

Lewis pitched five innings for Triple-A Round Rock on Sunday, allowing four runs (two earned) on four hits, three walks and two strikeouts. He threw 92 pitches on a wet, cold and windy day.

"The reports on Colby have been pretty positive," Daniels said. "He threw well for the first four innings. The fifth inning went a little long. It was not optimum conditions. We talked to him in Spring Training and he felt he was ready to go. We wanted him to make one or two starts [in the Minors] and now he's made two. We'll meet, make a decision and talk to Colby about it."

Lewis hasn't pitched in the Major Leagues since July 18, 2012. He had surgery in 2012 to repair a torn flexor tendon and had hip replacement last August. He came to Spring Training on a Minor League contract and has a provision that allows him to become a free agent if he's not added to the Major League roster by April 10. That is Thursday.

"That's something to consider, but we'll bring him back when he's ready to win games," Daniels said.

Maddux watched the video of Lewis' performance and talked to Round Rock pitching coach Brad Holman.

"Brad said there are some things that need to be tightened up but Colby is Colby," Maddux said. "The bright lights could tighten that up. I think if Colby is healthy, he's ready. My bet is on Colby."

Because the Rangers are off on Thursday, they could insert Lewis or another fifth starter into the rotation at any point between Saturday and Tuesday. They are looking for somebody to replace Saunders, who is still recovering from getting hit by a line drive in Friday's start against the Rays.

"I just tried to run on it and it hurts," Saunders said Monday afternoon. "It needs time to heal. It was getting better every day, but today I tried to push it and it bit me a little bit."