ALERT: Rangers' Leclerc To Miss 'Extended Time' With Injury
The Texas Rangers bullpen has taken yet another huge blow.
José Leclerc is dealing with elbow soreness, as announced by general manager Chris Young on Monday morning. He is back in Texas and will visit with Dr. Keith Meister to examine the injury.
The Rangers haven't jumped to any conclusions, but they expect him to miss an extended period of time. Young did say they haven't made a final decision regarding a potential stint on the 60-day Injured List, but this is definitely a situation they will carefully monitor.
A trip to the 60-day IL would keep Leclerc out until May 31 at the earliest.
Leclerc is already coming off a shoulder tear that forced him to miss almost all of the 2020 season. In addition, his velocity has been down this spring. However, according to Young, they aren't sure that the velo dip was an indicator of anything more severe going on in his elbow. They have monitored his velocity throughout the spring, and — according to Young — his velocity was in line with where he's been at this point in previous springs.
The Leclerc injury piles on top of the injury to Jonathan Hernández, another key figure in the Rangers bullpen. Hernández is dealing with a low-grade UCL strain, but the Rangers and their medical staff believe rest will allow that injury to heal. It's undetermined at this point how significant Leclerc's injury will be.
In the meantime, the Rangers need depth in the back end of the bullpen. The two leading candidates to pitch high-leverage innings are both non-roster invitees: Matt Bush and former Royals closer Ian Kennedy.
If Leclerc is ultimately put on the 60-day IL along with Hernández, the Rangers would not have to worry about designating anyone for assignment to add both Kennedy and Bush.
In addition to Leclerc's injury, two more Rangers relievers will not be ready for Opening Day.
- Brett Martin is recovering well from his minor back injury, but the Rangers expect him to be a week behind Opening Day.
- Joely Rodríguez is also progressing well in building up his arm after an ankle injury set him back at the beginning of camp. However, the team does not expect Rodríguez to be available to the big league club until mid-April.
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Chris Halicke covers the Texas Rangers for InsideTheRangers.com. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisHalicke.
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