Rangers Name Starting Pitcher for Tuesday

Texas had few options for its Tuesday start, but it will be a familiar face for those that watched the Rangers in April

The Texas Rangers made it official after Monday’s 7-6 loss to Baltimore, as Spencer Howard will start Tuesday’s game against the Orioles.

The Rangers announced the move through the public relation staff’s Twitter account. The Rangers will have to make a move to put Howard on the roster.

Howard was added to the Rangers’ practice squad after his last minor-league start Thursday and threw a side session on Saturday when he joined the team during its weekend series at the New York Mets.

Howard made the Rangers’ starting rotation to begin this season, and he made one start and pitched in three games, going 0-1 with a 12.15 ERA. A blister put Howard on the injured list on April 14. He returned to the Rangers on April 24, and then on April 30 he was sent to Triple-A Round Rock.

Howard pitched his longest game of the season against Las Vegas on Thursday, going seven innings and giving up just one hit and one walk, while striking out 11. He didn’t give up a run.

That makes him a potential option for the Rangers, who need a fifth starter to wrap up the road trip. The Rangers’ only other option for Tuesday is a bullpen game. Martin Perez, Jon Gray and Dane Dunning are unavailable to pitch the rest of the road trip.

Glenn Otto is the Rangers’ other starter, but he pitched Friday against New York, giving up four runs in four innings. Otto will be the starter pitcher for Wednesday’s finale.

Howard will be pitching on five days’ rest.

The Rangers created this situation when they sent Taylor Hearn down to Triple-A on June 24. The Rangers were able to get around needing a fifth starter at the start of this road trip because they had an off-day on Thursday.

In 10 starts, Howard is now 3-2 with a 3.69 ERA with 60 strikeouts and 19 walks.

Howard was a second-round draft pick of the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2017 MLB Draft. Howard worked his way up through the Phillies organization to make his MLB debut on Aug. 9, 2020.

The Rangers acquired Howard in a deadline deal last season that saw the Rangers send Kyle Gibson and Ian Kennedy to the Phillies.

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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard

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