Texas Rangers Pitcher Spencer Howard Sharp in First Injury Rehab Outing

Spencer Howard threw his first in-game pitches since early March during his debut with Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday.

Texas Rangers pitcher Spencer Howard threw two spotless innings in his first injury rehab assignment with Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday.

Howard was pitching for the first time since early March after suffering a right lat strain. The Rangers placed him on the 15-day injured list on March 30 and transferred him to the 60-day injured list on April 10.

He was eligible to be activated on Monday.

Howard entered the game in the seventh inning and faced the minimum six batters. He didn’t give up a hit and struck out four Sugar Land Space Cowboys.

Round Rock lost the game 5-4.

Howard made the Opening Day roster last season but battled injuries throughout the year.

He made eight starts and pitched in 10 games total, going 2-4 with a 7.41 ERA. He threw 37 2/3 innings, giving up 50 hits, 33 runs (31 earned) and 12 home runs. He walked 15 and struck out 32. Batters hit .309 against him and he had a 1.73 WHIP.

The Philadelphia Phillies drafted Howard in the second round in 2017 and he made his Major League debut during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Howard went back and forth between the Phillies and the minors until 2021 when Philadelphia traded Howard, Kevin Gowdy and Josh Gessner to Texas in exchange for Kyle Gibson, Ian Kennedy, and Hans Crouse.

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