SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Right-handed reliever Connor Sadzeck was of great interest to a dozen or so Major League scouts who sat behind home plate to watch the Rangers play the Rockies on Monday. One National League scout said he was there specifically to watch Sadzeck pitch.

This is the time of Spring Training when scouts focus on players who are out of options and are on the “bubble” as far as making an Opening Day roster. Sadzeck is a prime example of that but the Rangers aren’t ready to make him available after he delivered his third scoreless outing of the spring in a 4-4 tie with the Rockies.

This is a pitcher who has similar talent to Jose Leclerc and has gone through similar command issues early in his career. The Rangers want to see if he can make the same leap forward as Leclerc did a year ago to become one of the more dominant relievers in the American League.

“All it takes is something to sync up at a certain time and allows you to be more successful,” manager Chris Woodward said. “If he can execute, we have a chance.”

Monday’s outing wasn’t quite as clean as Sadzeck’s first two, in which he retired six straight hitters including four by strikeout. This time, Sadezck walked the first two batters, retired David Dahl on a fly to deep left and then, with runners at the corners, got Garrett Hampson to ground into an inning-ending double play.

“I didn’t come out attacking like I have been,” Sadzeck said. “I wasn’t quite as sharp.”

The outing was a snapshot of what Sadzeck did during his September callup for the Rangers last season. He pitched 9 1/3 innings over 13 appearances, allowing just one earned run despite walking 11. Opponents were 3-for-24 with runners on base and 2-for-13 in scoring position.

“You can’t make a living doing that over time, but I was proud of him,” Woodward said. “He made a pitch and got out of the inning. He needs to attack with strike one. He does that and he is so much better, his fastball plays up. If he doesn’t get ahead, it makes it harder.”

Sadzeck has a fastball that has come in as high as 100 mph, but he needs to command it for strikes and then put away hitters with secondary stuff. That’s what Leclerc did last season after frustrating the Rangers for so long with his lack of command.

Leclerc walked 7.9 batters per nine innings over parts of two seasons with the Rangers in 2016-17. He cut that to 3.9 last season and ended up being the Rangers' closer, finishing the year with a 1.56 ERA, a 0.85 WHIP and 13.3 strikeouts per nine innings.

“That was pretty impressive,” Sadzeck said. “We both have similar backgrounds. To see him make that transition and be able to have that success, everyone can learn from that.”

Leclerc heads a bullpen that should also include veteran right-handers Jesse Chavez, Chris Martin, Shawn Kelley and Zach McAllister. That leaves two and possibly three spots open, and the competition could be fierce.

There are others who are throwing the ball well early in camp including right-handers Jordan Romano, Ariel Hernandez, Nick Gardewine and Jeanmar Gomez. Rookie Brett Martin is also beginning to assert himself in a competitive left-handed race that includes Kyle Bird, Jeffrey Springs, Brady Feigl and C.D. Pelham.

“It’s encouraging,” Woodward said. “There are going to be a couple of tough decisions later, but that’s the beauty of having too many good arms.”