Prior to Friday’s game, the Rangers recalled pitcher Dane Dunning
Prior to Friday’s game, the Texas Rangers recalled pitcher Dane Dunning from AAA Round Rock. To make room for him on the active roster, the Rangers optioned pitcher Gerson Garabito to AAA Round Rock. In addition, earlier this week, the Rangers activated pitcher Jacob Latz from the injured list and optioned him to AAA Round Rock.
Dunning, the Rangers’ 2023 Pitcher of the Year, is finishing up what is a disappointing season, to say the least. He has had multiple stints on the injured list. When he has been healthy, he has put up a 5.38 ERA and 5.23 FIP in 90.1 innings over 14 starts and 10 relief appearances in the majors. In the minors, he has a 4.67 ERA in 17 innings over 5 appearances between AA and AAA.
Dunning was optioned at the beginning of the month, and was fine his first two outings, striking out 14 and walking three in 10 innings, allowing four runs (two earned). His last time out he got rocked, allowing 7 runs in 2.1 IP.
Dunning is making $3.33 million this year, and has two years of arbitration-eligibility remaining. He likely isn’t getting a big raise after this sort of disappointing year, and given his past performance and ability to pitch both as a starter and out of the pen, you’d think he would be worth bringing back at his likely $4-4.5 million salary, particularly if the Rangers not adding any starting pitchers, or dealing someone like Jon Gray if they do add a starter. Still, he’s mentioned as someone who could be either traded or non-tendered this offseason.
Garabito has been a long man/mop up man when he’s been up the last couple of months. After putting up zeroes in his first appearances this year, Garabito has had a 7.71 ERA and 6.31 FIP in 14 innings over his last ten appearances, including allowing six runs in 3.1 innings his last three times out. Whether Garabito stays on the 40 man roster this offseason likely depends on some decisions the Rangers make on some other guys, such as whether or not they keep Dunning around, and whether someone like Ryan Garcia or Dane Acker gets protected from the Rule 5 Draft.
As for Latz, he had been put on the injured list in early August, and spent the full 30 days on his rehab assignment before being activated and optioned. Since allowing five runs in his first rehab outing for Frisco on August 18, Latz has allowed just two runs in 9.2 innings over his past seven outings. He has continued to struggle with his control, however, walking nine batters in that stretch while striking out thirteen. He’s struggled in the second half of the season after a quality first half, and while he seems unlikely to be back in the bigs in 2024, he’ll presumably be in the mix for a bullpen role in 2025.
UPDATE — Dunning is starting tonight in place of Max Scherzer, which I guess helps explain why he’s been called up.