Young Rangers Reliever Preparing for Live Bullpens After Shoulder Injury

For the past two weeks Texas Rangers reliever Marc Church has watched his teammates participate in spring training workouts and games. On Tuesday, that changes.

Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said on Sunday that Church will participate in his first bullpen session in Surprise, Ariz., on Tuesday, which will be followed by another bullpen session on Friday. The right-hander is recovering from a teres major strain. The Dallas Morning News' Shawn McFarland posted the update on X (formerly Twitter).

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Former Texas right-hander Max Scherzer had a similar injury in September of 2023 as he strained his right teres major muscle in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays. He was initially ruled out of the playoffs but returned to pitch in both the American League Championship Series and the World Series.

The teres major is a thick muscle in the shoulder that stabilizes the joint.

Marc Church’s Path Back to Majors

Texas Rangers relief pitcher Marc Church throws a baseball. — Texas Rangers relief pitcher Marc Church. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Church broke spring training with the Rangers last year with the Rangers and pitched five games in relief before he was optioned back to Triple-A Round Rock. He was not involved in a decision and had a 3.86 ERA. He struck out five and walked six in 4.2 innings.

He spent the rest of the season at Round Rock, but he didn’t pitch much. He was placed on the injured list on April 22 and missed a month of action. He went back on the IL in June and didn’t return until a rehab assignment with High-A Hub City in September. He went 0-1 with a 9.82 ERA in eight games, with 10 strikeouts and nine walks in 7.1 innings.

With the slow ramp-up, Church is unlikely to break camp with the Rangers for opening day. But, Texas is hopeful that the 24-year-old can recover his standing as one of the most promising young pitchers in the organization.

Another shoulder injury limited him to 17 games for Round Rock in 2024, but he made his MLB debut the final weekend of the season. With the Express he went 1-1 with a 3.22 ERA in 17 games, with four holds and one save in three chances. He struck out 24 and walked seven in 22.1 innings.

That built off a breakthrough season in 2023 when he pitched for Round Rock and Double-A Frisco. He combined to go 9-4 with a 3.63 ERA in 43 games, with two starts. He had three holds and two saves in three chances. He struck out 79 and walked 38 in 62 innings.

Texas drafted Church out of North Atlanta High School in Atlanta, Ga., in the 18th round of the 2019 MLB draft, but he didn’t make his professional debut until 2021.