ARLINGTON, Texas — Texas Rangers third baseman Josh Jung ran the bases Saturday at Globe Life Field for the first time since going on the injured list with a left calf strain. A live batting practice comes next. A minor league rehab assignment would follow if there is no setback.
How hard Jung ran was not disclosed, according to Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News. Earlier in the week, his running had been limited to straight lines and arcs.
July 21 against the Chicago White Sox remains Jung’s most recent game. He singled and scored in the third inning of a 10-0 win before coming out. Texas placed him on the 10-day injured list July 25, retroactive to July 22.
Josh Jung’s Ramp-Up This Week
Before Monday’s series opener against the Athletics, Jung jogged on the field for the first time since the Rangers’ previous homestand. Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said that day a rehab assignment could come “right after that” if the week’s ramp-up went well, according to The Dallas Morning News.
On Thursday, Jung ran for a third straight day and described the work to Kennedi Landry of MLB.com as “linear with two arcs.” He also took live at-bats this week against left-hander Robert Garcia, who has been on the injured list since April 23 with left rotator cuff inflammation.
Garcia is likely to begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Round Rock on Saturday, according to Drew Davison of MLB.com.
Jung has strained the same calf before. A left calf strain cost him most of spring training in 2024, and another calf problem kept him out four games in 2025. Neither one put him on the injured list.
Ezequiel Durán, Cody Freeman Have Handled Third Base
Jung was hitting .294/.361/.441 with 9 home runs and 35 RBIs in 92 games when the calf sidelined him. His 104 hits and 23 doubles led the Rangers at the time.
Since then, most of the starts at third base have gone to Ezequiel Durán, and Cody Freeman has started there as well. Durán is hitting .276 with 17 home runs, 77 RBIs, and 128 hits this season. Freeman has hit .274 in 26 games.
Jung is playing on a one-year, $2.9 million contract and will be arbitration eligible again in 2027. Texas drafted him eighth overall out of Texas Tech in 2019. He was an American League All-Star in 2023 and started all 17 postseason games at third base during the Rangers’ World Series run that October.
Nathan Eovaldi Update, Texas Rangers Schedule
Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi threw a bullpen session Thursday. If he recovers well from it, his next step would be a live batting practice, and that could come as early as Monday, according to McFarland. The Rangers are off Monday. Eovaldi has been on the 15-day injured list since Aug. 10, retroactive to Aug. 9, with right posterior elbow inflammation.
Texas is 70-72 and second in the AL West. The Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-0 on Thursday and lost 7-6 on Friday.
Jacob deGrom starts Saturday against Drew Rasmussen, with first pitch at 6:05 p.m. CT at Globe Life Field on Rangers Sports Network. MacKenzie Gore starts Sunday’s finale at 1:35 p.m. CT. After Monday’s off day, Texas opens a six-game road trip Tuesday at the Seattle Mariners, followed by three games at the Arizona Diamondbacks from Sept. 11-13. The Rangers return home Sept. 15 against the Boston Red Sox.
