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Rangers star returns from IL to try and help team against a tough Braves team

One of Texas' most consistent bats is finally set to make his 2024 debut after missing the start of the season on the injured list.
Eric Cole
Eric Cole

Nolan Writin'

San Francisco Giants v Texas Rangers / Norm Hall/GettyImages

Through all of the injuries that the Texas Rangers have had to deal with so far in 2024, the team has somehow found a way to be in first place in the AL West through 21 games. Sure, an 11-10 record isn't ideal when you are coming off a World Series win, but it is still pretty amazing when you consider what Texas has had to put up with including rookies Evan Carter and Wyatt Langford underperforming so far.

However, this weekend has already proven to be a test of just how much the Rangers can really withstand as they visit the always tough Atlanta Braves. Friday's loss to the Braves highlighted what has plagued the Rangers all year: too many walks by the pitching staff and missed opportunities on offense. If the Rangers can't get on track quickly, they could find themselves under .500 soon with more questions than answers.

Luckily, the Rangers are finally getting some great injury news as the team announced that they are activating Nathaniel Lowe from the injured list which should hopefully give the offense a nice boost.

Rangers News: Nathaniel Lowe activated from the injured list

Lowe has been out going back to spring training when he suffered an oblique injury. Obliques are one of those soft tissue injuries that have just uncertain timelines, so it was difficult to figure out when Texas could get him back beyond "sometime kind of soon". However, we did get a clue on Saturday from the great Evan Grant that this move could be coming.

No disrespect to Jared Walsh who is done his best to fill in while Lowe was out, but this is obviously a big deal for a Texas team that needs some consistency. Having Lowe back certainly doesn't help their pitching woes which were unfortunately not helped by Jack Leiter's debut in the short-term, but Lowe is a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger level talent and getting him back gives the Rangers more options at other spots in the lineup with first base returning back to normal.

All of that said, Lowe instantly coming back and not showing any rust is going to be a big ask. He didn't have the usual spring training build-up and as much as some fans want to think that guys should be able to just slot right back in and be their normal selves given how much they get paid, that just isn't how things work. Texas has to hope that Lowe gets his feet under him pretty quick, however, before things get out of hand.

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Eric Cole

Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.