The rookie right-hander struggled with his command in his home debut for the Texas Rangers.
ARLINGTON — The Kumar Rocker Show on Thursday afternoon was a short one. The stuff was fine in his Texas Rangers home debut, but the control wasn’t there as he labored through three innings on 71 pitches.
His fastball velocity was down from last week in his MLB debut, with more 94s and 95s than 96s, 97s and 98s. The curveball was inconsistent, and Blue Jays hitters seemed to be reading it well out of his hand.
Despite all of that, Rocker was good enough to limit Toronto to two runs (one earned). Even when he’s not at his best, he has the stuff to hold the other lineup in check and give his team a chance.
But, as the crowd of 30,384 was reminded in a 4-0 Rangers loss, things can get bumpy in the major leagues for even the best pitching prospects. In an effort to attempt to do less, Rocker went to far to correct some overthrowing in his debut.
“Going into this game, I tried to dial it down a little bit and get it the zone a little more,” he said. “Stepping off the gas put me on my heels a little bit. It’s not ideal, especially trying it in your second start. But it’s what I went out there to try to do, and I learned from it.”
Pitching coach Mike Maddux encouraged Rocker to pick things up during a first-inning mound visit, and he did for a few pitches. But as the four walks Rocker issued suggest, he couldn’t sustain.
The five strikeouts, though, suggest that his stuff is still good even when it isn’t where he would like it. His best slider might have been the one that froze to Joey Loperfido to end the third after Ezequiel Duran booted a grounder that led to the Blue Jays’ second tally.
“When he needed to make a pitch, he did,” catcher Carson Kelly said. “To give up only two runs, one earned, with him grinding out there, he’s got good stuff. He’s going to be fine. It’s just one of those days.”
Those will happen with young pitchers.
Two hits?
It was almost time to cue up Harry Doyle for the second time in a week.
The famed fictional announcer in Major League was shocked when reading the final numbers that Cleveland had been held to one hit. The Rangers were one-hit by Kevin Gausman and three relievers through eight innings, and the one hit turned into an out at second base.
Josh Smith started the seventh inning with a line drive into the gap in right-center field and was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double. One replay indicated that Smith might have been safe, but the Rangers didn’t challenge the call.
Jonah Heim collected another single in the ninth and, wisely, did not attempt to stretch it into a double.
The Rangers were limited Sunday at Seattle to a Duran single by George Kirby and two relievers.
“These are games, you’re going to them occasionally, but we’ve had them in four days now,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “That’s not a good thing. Let’s be honest here.”
The meager day at the plate came two days after the Rangers scored 13 times in the series-opening 13-8 win. They managed two runs Wednesday on an Adolis Garcia homer, and that was all they needed in a 2-0 victory.
Bochy spent a good deal of his pregame media session talking about how the Rangers need to be better on the fastball next season, something that will be a focus in the offseason. Garcia is at the top of the list and is making changes now in an effort to take something into the offseason.
With Garcia under contract for $9.25 million, the Rangers can get ample value from him if he continues to make swing changes. His swing needs to be shorter/quicker so that he hits more pull-side homers like the one Wednesday.
Chris Young, the president of baseball operations, said on Tuesday that the avenue for upgrading the offense for next season is internal improvement. There might be a couple of positions that are addressed via free agency or trade, but Garcia won’t be one of them.
Frisco survives
Double A Frisco was done to its final out, trailing by a run and their season almost over. Then, one of the hottest hitters in the minor leagues saved the day.
First baseman Abi Ortiz connected for the game-tying homer in the ninth, Rangers Minor League Player of the Year Alejandro Osuna tied the game with two outs in the 10th, and Ortiz delivered a sacrifice fly in the 11th to send Frisco to a 4-3 victory that evened the best-of-3 Texas League semifinals.
Game 3 is scheduled for tonight at Riders Field. A win would send Frisco to the league finals, with Game 1 scheduled for Sunday in Frisco. The RoughRiders have to get there first.
Dane Acker tossed the final three innings, allowing only one unearned run. He posted a 3.05 ERA this season in a career-high 97 1/3 innings and will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft. He’s an interesting case for being protected after not being added to the 40-man roster last year.
Card of the Week
The 2024 Bowman Chrome set is out, and the Rangers are featured heavily in the prospect set with eight players. Wow.
They are: Sebastian Walcott, Paulino Santana, Yolfran Castillo, Curley Martha, Echedry Vargas, Emiliano Teodo, Braylin Morel and one more whose brother was at Globe Life Field this week.
Pablo Guerrero is the youngest brother of Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and the Rangers are hoping his bloodlines turn him into a major-league player. Vladimir Guerrero Sr. had the last best season of his Hall of Fame career with the Rangers in 2010.
Without further ado, the Card of the Week is Pablo Guerrero’s 2024 Bowman Chrome 1st Bowman base auto.
Guerrero played a full season in the Arizona Complex League, where he batted .301 and connected for seven of his eight homers in 2024 before earning a bump to Low A Down East to finish the season.
He is not one of the Rangers’ top prospects, but at 18, he has plenty of time to continue his development. Guerrero will likely open next season at Low A Hickory after the Down East club was moved to Spartanburg, S.C., and will be the High A affiliate.
Santana, Martha and Castillo were the big three from the 2024 international signing class in January, and Castillo was the only one who made his way stateside.
He finished up in the ACL, where he batted .333 after a robust .417 average in the Dominican Summer League.
Doggy video!
We’ve got one of these. No idea of personal space. Enjoy.
Jeff Wilson, jwilson@alldlls.com
