Texas Rangers' Jack Leiter Makes History as 4th Family Member to Reach MLB
Al and Mark Leiter enjoyed successful careers in the 1990s, and with Jack Leiter set to make his debut for the Texas Rangers, both have sons in the big leagues.
The Texas Rangers officially called up top pitching prospect Jack Leiter on Thursday, as was previously announced Tuesday, setting the stage for the young righty to make history for his family.
Leiter is the son of two-time All-Star pitcher Al Leiter, who played for the New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Florida Marlins and New York Mets from 1987 to 2005. He is also the nephew on Mark Leiter, who pitched for the Yankees, Detroit Tigers, California Angels, San Francisco Giants, Montreal Expos, Philadelphia Phillies, Seattle Mariners and Milwaukee Brewers between 1990 and 2001.
Mark Leiter already has a son of his own in the big leagues – Mark Leiter Jr., who made his debut with the Phillies in 2017 but now pitches for the Chicago Cubs.
So when Jack Leiter takes the mound against the Tigers on Thursday, he will carve out a spot in the baseball history books made exclusively for the Leiter family.
Per MLB.com's Sarah Langs, Al and Mark Leiter are set to become the first pair of MLB brothers to each have sons reach the MLB level in Jack and Mark Jr.
Of course, Jack Leiter carries plenty of prestige along with him, outside of his lineage.
Leiter was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, following a dominant season and trip to the College World Series with Vanderbilt. At the start of 2022, Leiter was ranked as Texas' No. 1 prospect and the No. 17 prospect in all of baseball.
The 23-year-old is now the Rangers' No. 8 prospect and No. 3 pitcher in their minor league system, thanks in large part to his struggles in Double-A the past two years, but he opened 2024 with a pair of solid starts in Triple-A. In three appearances this season, Leiter is 1-1 with a 3.77 ERA, 0.977 WHIP and 15.7 strikeouts per nine innings.
First pitch for Leiter's first MLB appearance is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. ET in Detroit.
Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media
Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.
You can also follow Sam Connon on Twitter @SamConnon.
