ARLINGTON -- Rangers starter Lance Lynn took the mound for the first time at Globe Life Field on Tuesday and looked like he is ready for Opening Day.
Lynn, facing the majority of the Rangers' A lineup, threw six scoreless innings in an intrasquad game. Lynn allowed just two hits, walked zero and struck out eight while throwing 83 pitches.
“It went well,” Lynn said. “To be able to get six innings pretty much at 82-83 pitches is good. It gets me ready for what I want to do to be ready for Opening Day and be full-go with no restrictions. I am right where I want to be.”
The only two hits Lynn surrendered were a pair of back-to-back singles by Todd Frazier and Greg Bird with two outs in the second. Lynn let his displeasure be known quite loudly after the second hit, but he was able to get Adolis Garcia on a popout for the final out of the inning.
Lynn said that it was not difficult to let out some emotion after being “cooped up” at his home in Tennessee for three months.
“Especially when you give up hits and make some pitches you don’t want to make,” Lynn said. “I’ll tell you what, this ballpark should have the ability to be loud. One good yell had some good carry, that’s for sure.”
Rangers manager Chris Woodward said that he enjoyed Lynn showing some emotion in the solitude of Tuesday's intrasquad game.
“He came out in game mode, that's for sure,” Woodward said. “You could see from the very beginning of the game. ... You could tell he had a little extra than the typical Lynn. He needed to get that out of his system. You usually don't hear those things. With no fans, you can hear everything.”
Lynn is scheduled to make two more starts in intrasquad games before taking the mound as the Opening Day starter on July 24 against the Rockies. It will be Lynn's first Opening Day assignment after pitching eight seasons with the Cardinals, Yankees and Twins.
“I had some years that I was capable of getting that call,” Lynn said. “But early on in my days in St. Louis, I had some guys that had a lot more season behind them and deserved it a lot more than I did. With the year Mike [Minor] and I had last year, we both deserved it. And Corey [Kluber] is a two-time Cy Young Award winner. To be able to be named that is an honor.”
Lynn just needs to get to Opening Day safely.
“With everything that’s going on, you just try to make sure you don’t get haircuts, you don’t shave, you don’t do anything,” Lynn said. “You make sure you’re ready to go. You've got to stay away from all that. You can’t trust anybody these days.”
Calhoun needs to see inside
Rangers left-hander Kolby Allard came inside with a couple of pitches to Willie Calhoun during Monday’s intrasquad game at Globe Life Field. Calhoun said that he needs to see more of that in the next few weeks.
Calhoun suffered a broken jaw in Spring Training and underwent surgery after he was hit with a pitch thrown by Dodgers left-hander Julio Urías. Calhoun is just about recovered, but he's still working his way back to feeling comfortable in the batter’s box.
Being able to hang tough on inside pitches, especially against left-handers, could be a test for Calhoun. He went up against Lynn on Tuesday and was hitless in three at-bats.
“I do need to see that, especially from a lefty,” Calhoun said. “I need to see inside pitches. They have been coming inside a little bit on me. I think I definitely need that, just because during the season, everybody is not going to stay away from me. People are going to come inside on me.”
Calhoun said that he still has some numbness in his cheek and down into his chin. The doctor told him that was to be expected and it could take up to six months for that to go away.
"Right now, everything feels good," Calhoun said. "The baseball process was a little bit of a slow start. I didn’t know how I was going to feel stepping into the box at first. My very first live BP, I faced [left-hander] Taylor Hearn, and of course, it was a lefty. I was trying to avoid that at first for a little bit until I was comfortable.
“Even right now, I am a little hesitant on inside pitches. I’m sure seeing live BP every day, it will come easier getting back into it.”
Rangers beat
• Right-hander Tyler Phillips and Hearn were on the opposite side pitching against Lynn. Phillips faced eight hitters and allowed two hits and two walks while striking out one. Hearn threw two scoreless innings, giving up one hit and two walks.
• Outfielder Eli White was scratched from Tuesday’s intrasquad game with tightness in his left oblique.
• Josh Jung, the Rangers' first-round pick in 2019, had a single and was hit by a pitch in his two plate appearances.
• Right-hander Jonathan Hernández is among the pitchers scheduled to take the mound for an intrasquad game on Wednesday. Kluber and Minor are scheduled to pitch Thursday.