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Rangers Announce Injury Move to AL Cy Young Candidate

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Eric W. Bolin | Last updated Jun 15, 2025 1:24 PM ET

The Texas Rangers announced Saturday that starting pitcher Tyler Mahle would skip his start on Sunday because of shoulder trouble.

The team took things a step further Sunday morning.

Texas placed Mahle, 30, on the injured list with shoulder with shoulder fatigue. The right-hander is in the midst of the best season of his career as he holds a 2.34 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over 77 innings 14 starts.

Mahle had the worst start of his season last week in a 16-4 win over the Twins. He allowed four runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings. In the start before that, against the Tampa Bay Rays, he allowed four runs on five hits. In all, eight of the 20 earned runs Mahle has given up this season have come in his last two games.

It's possible, too, that the righty is suffering from regression. His strikeout rate is just 18.8% and his walk rate is 8.8%. Mahle, though, does not give up home runs, having allowed just four in those 77 innings, leading his FIP to a still-meager 3.30.

The Rangers recalled right-hander Kumar Rocker in a response move. Rocker, the No. 3 in the 2022 draft, has yet to find his groove at the major-league level. Through six starts with the Rangers this season, Rocker is 1-4 with a 8.77 ERA and 1.843 WHIP. Walks aren't a major problem as he gives up just 2.7 per nine innings.

Rocker's issue is that he is just getting, well, rocked. His hard-hit percentage (51.2) is in the 2nd percentile and his barrel percentage is in the 3rd percentile (14.3).

Texas entered Sunday's game against against the Chicago White Sox at 35-36, five games behind the American League West-leading Houston Astros.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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