How to Watch Rangers, Tigers End Motown Series: TV Channel, Stream, Radio

The Texas Rangers end their three-game road series at Detroit with a contest at Comerica Park on Sunday night.

Texas Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers end the first leg of their two-city road trip with a Sunday showdown against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.

The Rangers (16-17) fell on Saturday night in a game where starter Kumar Rocker left after two innings and the Rangers down five runs.

The Tigers (17-17) are back to .500 and trying to claim a series win and some momentum after losing the opening game of the series to Texas.

This the Rangers’ first game on Peacock, which snagged the Sunday Night Baseball contract from MLB after ESPN opted not to renew it. While the game is being streamed on Peacock, it will also be broadcast on NBC Sports Networks for those cable systems that carry that channel. NBC brought the channel out of mothballs last year and much of its Peacock coverage is also broadcast there.  

The Rangers will get a day off on Monday as they head to New York to take on the Yankees for the final time this season. That three-game series starts on Tuesday. If the Rangers stay on time with the rotation, they’ll throw Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and MacKenzie Gore at the Yankees.

Here is a breakdown of the game, including how to watch, the starting pitchers, injuries and other notes.

How to Watch Texas Rangers vs. Detroit Tigers

Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker (left). | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Time: 6:20 p.m. CT, Friday

Where: Comerica Park, Detroit

TV: Rangers and Tigers: NBCSN / Peacock

Radio: Rangers: KRLD 1080, KFLC 1270

Pitching Matchup

Texas: RHP Jack Leiter (1-2, 5.17) vs. Tigers: RHP Tyler Holton (0-1, 5.54)

Leiter is coming off an outing in which he was roughed up for eight hits and four earned runs in six innings against the New York Yankees on Monday. He struck out four and walked one. He hasn’t claimed a win since his season debut against Baltimore on March 30 and since his second start against Cincinnati his ERA has soared from 2.45 to 5.17. He finished April with a 5.68 ERA.

Both of Leiter’s losses have seen him allow two or more home runs. In his win and three no-decisions he’s given up one home run.

The Tigers are going to use a bullpen game, per Cody Stavehagen of The Athletic (subscription required). He quoted manager A.J. Hinch as saying, “pitching chaos is back.” So, the Rangers are likely to see several pitchers, with the starter liable to have less of an influence on the batting order and substitutions because of that.

This spot in the rotation belonged to Casey Mize, who was injured in his last start in Atlanta and went on the 15-day injured list with a right adductor strain. Tarik Skubal hasn’t had enough rest to be pushed up into the rotation. So the Rangers managed to avoid Mize, Skubal and left-hander Framber Valdez in this series, not to mention Justin Verlander, who is on the injured list.

Rangers Injuries

10-Day Injured List: INF Cody Freeman (lumbar stress reaction), OF Wyatt Langford (right forearm strain); 15-Day Injured List: RHP Luis Curvelo (right biceps strain), RHP Chris Martin (right shoulder impingement). RHP Carter Baumler (right intercostal strain), LHP Robert Garcia (left shoulder inflammation); 60-Day Injured List: LHP Jordan Montgomery (Tommy John surgery recovery), LHP Cody Bradford (left UCL surgery).