Texas Rangers right-hander Jonathan Hernandez (shoulder) was left off the roster for the wild-card series against the Tampa Bay Rays this week due to a shoulder injury. The 27-year-old reliever finished the 2023 regular season strong out of Texas' bullpen, but he was very inconsistent all year and finished with a 1-2 record, 5.40 ERA (4.55 FIP), 1.58 WHIP, 15 walks and 34 strikeouts in 31 2/3 relief innings in his fourth big-league season. The 27-year-old could be ready to return to the team's bullpen if they advance past the Rays and to the American League Division Series.

Texas Rangers relief pitcher Jonathan Hernandez didn't make it easy but did earn his fourth save of the season in Monday's 2-1 win over the Athletics. Hernandez entered to pitch the ninth inning up by one. He got the first out on a groundout, allowed a walk, got the second out on a steal attempt of second base, allowed another walk, and got the final out on a strikeout. Three Rangers have seen save opportunities in the last seven days, but Hernandez has seen the most in that time and has yet to blow a save opportunity this season. He seems to be the lead for save opportunities for the Rangers at the moment and has a solid 2.45 ERA and 8.18 K/9 rate over 11 innings pitched. He is currently rostered in just 16 percent of leagues and is worth a look in all roto leagues for fantasy managers trying to catch up in saves.

Texas Rangers reliever Jonathan Hernandez pitched a clean ninth inning on Saturday to close out the team's 7-4 win over the Mariners. The right-hander needed just 10 pitches to retire the side as he's now collected his third save of the season after missing the first half of the year recovering from Tommy-John Surgery that he underwent last April. He's allowed three earned runs over 10 frames so far in 2022 (2.70 ERA) to go along with a fine 1.10 WHIP while lighting up the radar gun with a fastball that can touch triple-digits. Hernandez appears to be the favored closing option in Texas, and should be scooped up for anyone looking to catch up in the save column.

Texas Rangers relief pitcher Jonathan Hernandez (elbow) threw off a mound on Friday for the first time since having Tommy John surgery last April. Hernandez appeared in relief 27 times for the Rangers in the shortened 2020 season and posted a very nice 2.90 ERA and 1.03 WHIP with 31 K's and eight walks in 31 innings. The 25-year-old won't be ready for the start of the 2022 season, whenever that will be, but he should be ready around midseason, barring any setbacks with his elbow. Joe Barlow is projected to be the Rangers closer as of now, but there is plenty of opportunity in the back end of Texas' bullpen heading into the 2022 campaign.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Texas Rangers right-hander Jonathan Hernandez had ligament reconstruction surgery on his right elbow Monday, just less than two weeks after fellow reliever José Leclerc had the same procedure, and their bullpen will also be without hard-throwing Matt Bush until at least July. Rangers president of baseball operations Jon Daniels said the Tommy John surgery on Hernandez was performed by team physician Dr. Keith Meister and went as expected. Both Hernandez and Leclerc will be sidelined until at least early in the 2022 season. Meister did Leclerc's surgery on March 31. Bush has a flexor strain in his right arm and will get an injection Tuesday, then wait six weeks before a follow-up MRI to determine if the right-hander is ready to start throwing again. Daniels said Bush would then need about six weeks — or about the same length of time he is unable to throw — before being able to pitch again in a game. After missing 2 1/2 seasons because of a pair of elbow operations,... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Rangers reliever José Leclerc had ligament reconstruction surgery on his right elbow Wednesday. The Rangers said the surgery was performed by team physician Dr. Keith Meister. Leclerc will be sidelined up to 14 months. Leclerc began the 2019 season as the Texas closer before he was demoted after a rough opening month. He made only two appearances last year before getting sidelined for the rest of the 60-game season by a shoulder injury. The elbow started bothering him during spring training in Arizona. The 27-year-old right-hander is 6-10 with 29 saves and a 3.19 ERA in 190 games for the Rangers over the past five seasons. Texas also goes into its season opener Thursday in Kansas City without hard-throwing reliever Jonathan Hernandez, who like Leclerc was placed on the 60-day injured list. Hernandez was shut down during spring training because of a ligament sprain in his right elbow. An MRI revealed a low-grade ulnar collateral ligament sprain after the right-hander felt something when throwing his last batting practice session. Hernandez had a breakout season last year, when he was 5-1 with a 2.90 ERA in 27 appearances. He had 31 strikeouts and eight walks in 31 innings, relying heavily on a sinker that averaged nearly 98 mph. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Veteran pitchers Ian Kennedy and Matt Bush will break from the Texas Rangers spring training camp as top options in the back end of the bullpen. The 36-year-old Kennedy went to camp on a minor league deal after playing for four different teams over 14 big league seasons. Bush has had surgery twice on his right elbow since his last big league appearance in 2018. Manager Chris Woodward didn't specify their exact roles yet, but said Sunday that both were officially on the team. He said they fit nicely in the role of pitching late innings since they have done it before. One-time closer José Leclerc and Jonathan Hernandez, who had a breakthrough season last year, will both miss the start of this season with potential long-term elbow issues. The 35-year-old Bush was the 2004 No. 1 overall draft pick as a shortstop whose career was derailed by alcohol abuse before a big league debut as a reliever with Texas in 2016. The hard-throwing right-hander saved 11 games in a three-year... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — The Texas Rangers are expecting to be without one-time closer José Leclerc for an extended time because of right elbow soreness, the latest setback for a bullpen already missing another key late-inning arm for at least two months. General manager Chris Young said Monday that Leclerc reported soreness after a recent outing, and the right-hander has returned to Texas to be evaluated by team physician Dr. Keith Meister. Young said the length of Leclerc's absence will depend on the diagnosis. Leclerc missed all but the first week of the 2020 season because of a shoulder injury that limited him to two outings. His latest setback occurred with the Rangers already planning to put Jonathan Hernandez on the 60-day injured list when the season starts. The right-hander was diagnosed during spring training with an elbow ligament sprain. Hernandez led the Rangers with 27 appearances last season, going 5-1 with a 2.90 ERA. While the Rangers haven't specified how long Hernandez will be out, president of baseball operations Jon Daniels has said the club planned to put him on the 60-day injiured list when the season starts. Leclerc began the 2019 season as the closer before getting demoted after a rough first month. He had 14 saves in 2019 after recording 12 the previous season. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports