Texas Rangers Hope Injured Star’s Return to Health Bolsters Rotation

The Texas Rangers made a bet on a veteran starting pitcher last year and they’re hoping it pays off this season.

Matthew Postins | Feb 15, 2025

Aug 12, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher Tyler Mahle (51) throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox in the first inning at Fenway Park. / David Butler II-Imagn Images

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Texas Rangers

The Texas Rangers signed Tyler Mahle to a two-year contract worth $22 million last offseason.

The deal was back-loaded — $5.5 million last season and $16.5 million this season. Texas did that knowing that Mahle likely wouldn’t pitch much in 2024 as he was recovering from Tommy John surgery.

The Rangers knew what they were getting last season, and they hope that pays off this season.

“We're counting on Tyler. We need him,” Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young said to MLB.com. “A healthy Tyler Mahle is a really good Major League player, so we need him. We're banking on him, and we're hopeful that we're going to see the good version of him.”

So what is the “good version?” That was probably in 2021 when he was with the Cincinnati Reds. Then, the right-hander started a Major League-high 33 games, as he went 13-6 with a 3.75 ERA. He struck out 210 and walked 64 in 180 innings.

It was a career-high season for him in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched. He hasn’t approached that since. Texas would love something resembling that.

Mahle is more focused on just getting back on the mound consistently.

“Now we're here, I threw enough innings to where it's not going to hold me back this year. We're in a great spot,” he said.

Mahle, like staff ace Jacob deGrom, needed the first half of the season to recover from his surgery, which he needed after suffering a right arm posterior impingement and flexor pronator strain while with the Minnesota Twins in 2023.

He returned in August after several rehab starts in the minor leagues. He slid into the rotation on Aug. 6 and made three turns, as he went 0-1 with a 4.97 ERA, with 10 strikeouts and four walks in just 12.2 innings.

After that, he had to deal with a new injury. On Aug. 20 he moved to the 15-day injured list with right shoulder tightness. Not wanting to push him, the Rangers later moved him to the 60-day injured list, ending his season.

Turns out, Mahle, said, it was a stress reaction, and that rest was all that he needed. That, along with mechanical adjustments to his delivery, have put him a position to contribute to Texas’ rotation.

A spot in the rotation isn’t a guarantee. The Rangers have at least eight starters with Major League experience to work through during camp. Mahle will be pushed, perhaps as hard as he’s been pushed in his career.

But at least he’s healthy. And that’s something that leaves Mahle and the Rangers optimistic.

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