Rangers Notes: Kumar Rocker’s Road Woes Continue in Short Outing vs. Tigers

The Texas Rangers were hoping Kumar Rocker could start to turn things around in his road starts. Things went south fast.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Kumar Rocker. | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

DETROIT — For Kumar Rocker the road is not his friend.

Rocker went just two innings in Saturday’s 5-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers. He threw just 43 pitchers, which led to Texas falling behind, 5-0. An exit that early usually leads to injury questions. There were none surrounding Rocker. He was lifted in the third inning for Cal Quantrill.

But it wasn’t an injury. It was Rangers manager Skip Schumaker’s decision to remove Rocker from the game. Why?

“I didn’t want the game to get away,” he said. “I thought that was the time to get Cal [Quantrill] in there.”

Between Quantrill, Peyton Gray and Gavin Collyer, the Rangers threw six shutout innings of relief.

Rocker gave up five runs and six hits in two innings. He didn’t allow a walk and struck out two hitters. He gave up a three-run home run to Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler in the first inning. A Josh Jung error at third base that inning didn’t help. But neither did Rocker giving up two stolen bases in a two-run second inning.

Schumaker acknowledged there were nuances to the game, but he said that Rocker must clean that part of the game up.

Rocker felt he paid for making bat pitches, especially the home run to Dingler. He would have liked to have pitched another inning.

“As a player, you wanna go back out there,” Rocker said. “You feel like things are picking up, maybe the energy’s changing a little bit. But I’m just going to have to live with it and try to bounce back next week.”

Rocker’s splits, home and road, have been significantly different. Entering Saturday’s game, he had a 4.66 ERA in two road starts and a 2.65 ERA at home. The road ERA was even worst last year at 9.29. Saturday’s woes only exacerbated it.

The Challenge Evolution

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Lost in the Rangers’ three-run third inning in Friday’s game was Corey Seager’s challenge of a called ball on the first pitch of his at-bat.

The Rangers already had two runners on base when Seager took the pitch from Tigers starter Jack Flaherty, called a strike, and immediately challenged. The ABS challenge determined the pitch was about an inch under the strike zone and it was overturned. An 0-1 count turned into a 1-0 count and Seager eventually walked.

That loaded the bases for Josh Jung, who singled home a run.

That might not have been a challenge the Rangers would have made a month ago.

“We’ve completely changed the thought of the challenge system since the start of the season,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “Leaving spring training we were thinking high leverage only. Most teams were, quite honestly. Now it’s like, ‘Use it. Don’t hoard it.’ And then maybe you save one for late in the game. I think we were a little tentative using it early on. And I can absolutely be the reason behind it. But I think opening it up to the guys and [saying] don’t worry about results, if it was or wasn’t the right time. I think using it, and having one later, is a big deal.”

Evan Carter’s Walk Rate

Texas Rangers center fielder Evan Carter. | Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

Evan Carter has always been respected for his eye at the plate. But he’s pacing well ahead of where he was for walks a year ago.

Carter drew 19 walks in 63 games last year, which was a single-season high for the oft-injured slugger, who hasn’t played more than 63 games in a season. Through his first 31 games of 2026 he already has 17 walks. It’s part of the reason is on-base percentage is above .300 while his batting average is below .200.

It doesn’t sound like Carter has changed his approach. But more reps appear to be helping.

“The more playing time he has, and he’s getting it now, I think you’ll see better plate discipline, I think you’ll see more power,” Schumaker said. “I think he’ll continue to get better because he’s getting the at-bats that he might have missed here and in the minor leagues. I think he’s going to continue to be that on-base, plus-slug threat for the majority of his career.”

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