The Texas Rangers have been looking forward to having Jack Leiter in the rotation since they made him the No. 2 pick of the 2021 draft.
That day has arrived. Leiter will make his major league debut against the Tigers in the finale of a four-game series at Detroit on Thursday afternoon.
Leiter earned the call-up from Triple-A Round Rock by posting a 3.77 ERA in 14 1/3 innings, striking out 25 and issuing only three walks.
“He’s been throwing the ball very well down there,” Texas manager Bruce Bochy said. “What a great time to call him up because he’s been throwing well, and again, he’s earned this.”
“I told him when he left (spring training) that we’re going to need him and I loved the way he was throwing. I don’t think anybody thought we’d make the changes we’ve made already pretty early in the season. But still, (Leiter) really came on at the end and was throwing strikes, the command, all that. I’m looking forward to watching him.”
Bochy was referring to some early-season injuries. Cody Bradford, who had won his first three starts, joined three other rotation members — Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Tyler Mahle — on the injured list.
Leiter, the son of former major league All-Star Al Leiter, joined the Rangers for a $7.9 million signing bonus after dominating in college at Vanderbilt. However, he didn’t exactly cruise through the minors.
The 23-year-old right-hander posted a 3-10 record and a 5.54 ERA in 23 appearances (22 starts) for Double-A Frisco in 2022. He went a combined 2-6 with a 5.19 ERA in 20 starts last season, mostly at the Double-A level.
“I had some shaky starts (at Vanderbilt) obviously, it’s pitching, but nothing like what I went through my first two years in the minor leagues,” Leiter said, per the Dallas Morning News. “I really am grateful for it. Even while I was going through it, people were telling me, ‘It’s going to make you better, it’s going to make you better.'”
Kenta Maeda (0-1, 6.00 ERA) will start the finale of an eight-game homestand for Detroit.
Maeda will be making his fourth start since joining the Tigers as a free agent during the offseason. His latest outing, against the Minnesota Twins on Saturday, was his best.
He held the Twins to two runs (one earned) and five hits in six innings. He didn’t issue a walk while recording five strikeouts.
Maeda is 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA in five career outings (four starts) against Texas.
The Tigers will be looking to salvage a split in the series after the Rangers pulled out a 5-4 victory on Wednesday afternoon. Josh Smith drove in the deciding run in the ninth inning with a pinch-hit double.
Detroit committed three errors, all of which proved costly.
“We didn’t play clean, which is obvious, but that’s not always recognizable on the scoreboard with errors,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “Today it was. And they took advantage of every error. They didn’t let us get away with it. That was the difference. They scored every time we made a mistake, and in a one-run game, everything matters.”
–Field Level Media
