Jack Leiter Exceeds Initial Goal in First Injury Rehab Game with Round Rock

The Texas Rangers had a target for right-handed pitcher Jack Leiter in his first injury rehab start on Thursday. He exceeded it by just a bit.

Leiter started for Triple-A Round Rock, his first game action of any kind since June. He only threw 2.2 innings, but he faced 10 hitters and he exceeded the initial goal Texas had hoped for going into the outing. The Rangers wanted him to throw 40 to 45 pitches. He ended up throwing 48 — with 32 strikes.

While the pitch count was high for 2.2 innings, he only allowed one hit and one walk as he struck out three.

Next Up for Jack Leiter

Texas Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter throws the baseball to a hitter. — Texas Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter. Credit: Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Leiter had surgery on his ankle in June after doctors discovered an extraneous bone that required removal. That bone was aggravated during a game in April in which Leiter slipped in the visitor’s on-deck circle while backing up home plate. He said to reporters after the surgery that the pain became progressively worse. It also forced him to begin compensating his delivery since the bone was in his plant foot.

Before the injury he was 3-7 with a 5.29 ERA in 15 games, a far cry from the 10-10 record and 3.86 he posted last season as he claimed votes for American League rookie of the year.

By slightly exceeding the pitch count the Rangers had set for him, it puts into play a couple of potential scenarios for him to return to the Majors. The first would be a traditional build-up to get him back int the rotation.

To do that, he would need to throw 12-15 more pitches over two more starts, which would get him to 75 pitches, which is a number most MLB teams are comfortable with before activation. If that’s the path, then Leiter would reach that number by Aug. 25 or 26, depending on rest between starts, and return by September.

The other path is to move Leiter into a different role — the bullpen — something president of baseball operations Chris Young acknowledged earlier this week.

Theoretically, Leiter could make one more start next week, either Tuesday or Wednesday, reach 60 pitches and put himself in position to be a long reliever for a bullpen that could use additional depth. In that scenario, Leiter could be ready to help Texas before he could make a third rehab start.

But first things first. The Rangers need to debrief with Leiter after his start and make sure he recovers properly without setbacks.

Add us as a preferred source on Google