Rangers Will Call Up Al Leiter’s son, Jack Leiter, to Make MLB Debut vs. Tigers

Dan Gartland | Apr 16, 2024

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Texas Rangers will call up pitching prospect Jack Leiter to make his MLB debut on Thursday against the Detroit Tigers, the team announced Tuesday.

The Rangers had a hole to fill in their starting rotation after Cody Bradford was placed on the injured list with a back strain on Sunday. The team currently has eight pitchers on the injured list, including stars Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer.

Leiter, the son of former MLB pitcher Al Leiter, was taken with the second pick in 2021 MLB draft out of Vanderbilt and was regarded as one of the best pitching prospects in the game at the time, although his struggles early in his pro career dampened expectations somewhat. Leiter was ranked as one of the 25 best prospects in baseball before his first pro season in ’22 but went on to post a 5.54 ERA in 22 starts at Double A Frisco. He had a 5.19 ERA in 20 starts last season (19 at Double A and one at Triple A Round Rock).

Leiter was excellent in three appearances at Triple A this season, though, with a 3.77 ERA and 0.977 WHIP. He leads all minor leaguers with 25 strikeouts and has only walked three batters.

“I told him when he left [spring training], we’re going to need him,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy told reporters Tuesday. “I loved the way he was throwing. Fully expected him to be up at some point this year.”