Rangers Spring Training Update: Jack Leiter, Corey Seager, Justin Foscue

On Sunday afternoon, the Texas Rangers officially ended spring training in Arizona. Their final game against the Kansas City Royals in the Cactus League was anticlimactic, and both teams only produced one run each, ending the contest in a tie.

The big news for the Rangers this weekend, however, was not their lack of offense but the return of their superstar shortstop and 2023 World Series MVP Corey Seager. Seager's first and final appearance of the spring occurred on Saturday, and he picked up right where he left off this fall, notching two singles in his two at-bats. 

Seager's return to action is a huge lift for Rangers fans due to speculation for months regarding whether or not he'd be in the starting lineup on Opening Day. Rangers fans had to deal with life without Seager last season when he was out for a little over a month after he was injured in the first few weeks of the season. He later returned to the IL for a couple of weeks once again after injuring himself in a game in late July. Even though the Rangers survived without Seager's presence, his absence was felt, especially on the offensive side.

Thankfully, Seager's return to the lineup this past weekend should give fans a good indication that he will be able to participate in the Opening Day festivities with the Rangers in a few days.

One player who will not be joining the Rangers for Opening Day is pitching prospect Jack Leiter, whose professional career has been heavily scrutinized so far. After being selected second overall in the 2021 MLB Draft, he has struggled through most of his time in the minors and finished last season in Double-A with a whopping 8.10 ERA.

After a pretty successful spring, however, the Rangers are hoping that Leiter has turned a corner and could soon be ready to make his major league debut. Leiter has spent most of spring coming out of the bullpen and has found success in that role, finishing the with a solid 3.60 ERA through 10 innings.

He did make headlines on Friday after a pretty good outing, during which he was able to pick up five strikeouts against the Rockies. However, he was responsible for the Rangers' loss after giving up two runs on four hits in 2.2 innings of play. 

Overall, Leiter completed the best spring of his career so far and hopes to translate that success into the minors this season. If Leiter is able to have success in the minors similar to his success this spring to start the season, there is a good chance he could be called up to the big league club at some point this season, especially with how shallow the pitching staff currently is.

Due to the recent news of Wyatt Langford being promoted to the majors to start the season his fellow minor league prospect Justin Foscue has been overshadowed this past week and most of camp for that matter.

Foscue completed a productive spring campaign this weekend finishing with a .286/.348/.452 line through 46 plate appearances. The numbers he put up this spring prove that he could be the additional bat in the lineup the Rangers have been looking for after losing Mitch Garver, who served as one of the Rangers' primary power hitters last season. 

It has not yet been announced whether Foscue will be on the Rangers' 26-man roster or not to start the season, but his odds are currently pretty good, especially with first baseman Nate Lowe out for at least another few weeks. Lowe's absence will likely allow Foscue to make his major league debut and possibly secure a spot with the team throughout the regular season.