WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jacob deGrom is scheduled to play catch Sunday. The Texas Rangers have not moved him off his Wednesday start.
DeGrom will throw before Sunday’s series finale against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park, according to The Dallas Morning News. Texas will monitor him in the days after that.
DeGrom left Thursday’s start against the Los Angeles Angels after two innings. He said afterward that he felt like he could have kept going.
“Hopefully I’ll make my next [start], we’ll see,” deGrom said. “Tonight, it just — there in the second it was tight and just didn’t want to loosen up. I haven’t really had that before.”
DeGrom gave up 6 hits and 2 earned runs. He walked 1 and struck out 3 on 53 pitches. Five of the hits came in the second inning. He took the loss in a 7-0 defeat.
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said he found out about the tightness during the game. He did not send deGrom back out for the third inning.
“I wasn’t going to risk it,” Schumaker said.
The Rangers had imaging done Friday.
Jacob deGrom Still Scheduled To Pitch Wednesday
DeGrom’s spot comes up Wednesday against the Washington Nationals at Globe Life Field. Whether he makes the start depends on how the triceps feels.
Texas is off Monday. DeGrom would get an extra day between starts either way.
Jordan Montgomery is also available for length. Montgomery came back from Tommy John surgery earlier this month. He followed deGrom on Thursday and threw 2 innings. He gave up 6 hits and 4 earned runs and struck out 2 on 52 pitches. He threw 4 innings out of the bullpen against Baltimore on Aug. 9.
DeGrom is 8-8 with a 3.95 ERA in 23 starts. He has 147 strikeouts and 31 walks in 120 2/3 innings.
Texas Rangers Are Down Two Other Starters
Nathan Eovaldi went on the 15-day injured list on Aug. 10 with right posterior elbow inflammation. Range of motion in the elbow has improved. Some of the swelling has come down. The Rangers do not have a date for him to play catch.
Jack Leiter threw 2 2/3 scoreless innings for Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday. It was his first game action since ankle surgery in June. He threw 48 pitches, 32 of them for strikes. His four-seam fastball ran 96-97 mph.
Texas Rangers Lose Fourth Straight
Kumar Rocker gave up 3 runs in the first inning Friday. He went 5 innings and allowed 4 hits and 3 earned runs. He walked 5 and struck out 3 on 94 pitches.
Jake Burger tied the game with a three-run home run in the sixth. Texas did not score again. The Rangers finished with 4 hits.
Chase Silseth took the loss. The Athletics scored a run in the sixth, a run in the seventh, and 3 runs in the eighth. Jeff McNeil went 4-for-5 with 2 doubles, a home run, and 3 RBIs.
Texas lost 8-3. The Rangers have lost four in a row. They are 60-63 and sit three games behind the Houston Astros in the AL West.
First pitch Sunday is 3:05 p.m. CT. Cody Bradford is listed as the Texas starter.
