Kumar (rhymes with “Lamar”) Rocker…nicknamed “thunder” and “Rock”…son of Tracy and Lalitha Rocker…father is a former college football star who played defensive tackle for Auburn University in the late 1980s… he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004 and is currently the defensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles…played with Washington in the NFL from 1989-90... mother is an instructional designer…the name “Kumar” translates to “prince” or “young child” in Hindi, and is a nod to his mother’s Indian heritage…went 28-10 with a 2.89 ERA over 42 games/39 starts across three standout seasons at Vanderbilt University from 2019-21, including 14-4 with a 3.17 ERA and 13.2 strikeouts per nine innings in 20 starts as a junior for his final collegiate campaign...unanimous first team All-American and finalist for both the Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy in 2021 when he led the nation with 14 wins and 179 strikeouts…was a freshman on the Commodores’ 2019 College World Series championship team, earning selection CWS Most Outstanding Player…prepped at North Oconee HS in Bogart, Ga., where he also lettered two years in football…was also drafted by Colorado in the 38th round of the 2018 MLB Draft…named 2017-18 Gatorade Georgia Baseball Player of the Year.
2024
Rocker made his Major League debut over three starts with Texas, posting an 0-2 record, 3.86 ERA (5 ER/11.2 IP), and 14 strikeouts/six walks after his contract was selected from Round Rock (AAA) in September…limited MLB opponents to a .267/.352/.333/.685 (12-45) line with just one extra base hit (Justin Turner HR on 9/12 at SEA)…yielded a .182 batting average to lefties and .105 (2-19) mark with runners in scoring position…logged 48.1 innings between the Major and Minor Leagues, his highest single-season innings total since his junior campaign at Vanderbilt University in 2021 (122.0 IP)…had his contract selected from Round Rock and made his Major League debut in a start on 9/12 at SEA (ND, 4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R-ER, 2 BB, 7 SO, 1 HR, 74 pitches/47 strikes)…made two additional starts on 9/19 vs. TOR (L, 3.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R-1 ER, 4 BB, 5 SO, 1 HBP, 71 pitches/41 strikes) and 9/26 at OAK (L, 4.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R-ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 73 pitches/50 strikes), taking losses in both outings… opposed OAK’s J.T. Ginn on 9/26 in what was the final game hosted at the Oakland Coliseum (TEX lost, 2-3)…struck out 14 of 55 (25.4%) batters faced during his three-game MLB stint, as his 14 SO thru his first three career outings were the T4th-most by a Ranger in club history over such a span, trailing only David Clyde (17 in 1973), Bobby Witt (16 in 1986), and Glenn Otto (16 in 2021)…was optioned to the ACL Rangers on 9/27…sported uniform no. 80 in his MLB debut on 9/12 vs. SEA, becoming the first Rangers player to don the numeral in a regular season game in club history (beg. 1972), according to Baseball-Reference.
DANDY DEBUT: Had his contract selected from Round Rock and made his Major League debut in a start on 9/12 at SEA (ND, 4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R-ER, 2 BB, 7 SO, 1 HR, 74 pitches/47 strikes)…was scoreless thru three frames before surrendering a game-tying solo home run to Justin Turner in the bottom of the fourth inning...his seven strikeouts were tied for the fourth-most ever by a Texas starting pitcher in a career debut, trailing only Don Stanhouse in 1972 (9), Paul Mirabella in 1978 (8), and David Clyde in 1973 (8)… induced 17 swing-and-miss strikes in the game (Statcast), tied with Max Scherzer on 7/30 at STL (also 17) for the most by a Ranger in the first four innings of an outing in 2024...13 of those 17 whiffs came against the slider, as MLB’s Sarah Langs noted that the 13 slider whiffs were tied for the 3rd-most on a single pitch type by a pitcher in his MLB debut in the pitch-tracking era (beg. 2008) behind only MIL’s Freddy Peralta 5/13/18 at COL (18, 4-seam fastball) and TB’s Alex Colomé on 5/30/13 at MIA (14, changeup)…Kumar’s father, Tracy, and mother, Lalitha, were in attendance for the game.
IN THE MINORS: Rocker began 2024 in the minors, totaling an 0-1 record, 1.96 ERA (8 ER/36.2 IP), and 55 strikeouts/5 walks over 10 appearances/9 starts for the ACL Rangers, Frisco, and Round Rock...ranked among all Minor League pitchers (min. 30.0 IP) in SO/BB ratio (fourth, 11.00) and WHIP (sixth, 0.79)... began season on minor league 60-day Injured List (recovery from right elbow surgery)...on 7/5 was sent to ACL Rangers on rehab assignment where he went 0-1, 6.43 ERA in three games/two starts...was transferred to Frisco on 7/26 and posted an 0.46 ERA (1 ER/19.2 IP) and 29 strikeouts/three walks over five starts for the RoughRiders...earned promotion to Round Rock on 8/28 and recorded a 1.80 ERA (2 ER/10.0 IP) in a pair of starts for the Express...named Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week for 8/26-9/1 after logging 5.0 SHO IP with 10 SO and one hit in Triple-A debut 8/28 vs. OKC.
2022
Did not see official game action after his selection in the MLB Draft…made five starts with the Tri-City Valley Cats of the Independent Frontier League over the summer, going 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA (3 ER/20.0 IP) and 32 SO/4 BB...club was managed by former Rangers slugger Pete Incaviglia…posted 14.4 strikeouts per nine innings and 0.750 WHIP figures...recorded seven SO in each of his final three starts, earning a win in his last outing on 7/1 vs. Empire State (5.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R-0 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO).
