Rangers already have perfect in-house replacement for injured Jalen Beeks

On Thursday, word came from the Texas Rangers that left-handed middleman Jalen Beeks will be placed on the 10-day IL with a back injury. It leaves a vacancy in the bullpen that needs to be filled quickly, and there is a prime candidate already on the roster.

Luis Curvelo was recalled from Round Rock to take the vacated spot, but Robby Ahlstrom was also called up from the Express about 10 days ago, and should be able to step right in and give Skip Schumaker and the bullpen another left-hander that can take over Beeks' workload immediately.

Robby Ahlstrom could push Jalen Beeks off the Rangers' roster as the veteran lefty hits the IL

Beeks, who had struggled in the last several outings, has registered a 3.81 ERA with a 1.38 WHIP. He has struck out 21 hitters in 26 innings pitched. Under the surface, the veteran southpaw's performance has been much worse with a 5.41 FIP and 5.54 xERA, largely due to his astronomical 2.08 HR/9.

Before the injury, Beeks' name was already being tossed around as a possible DFA candidate after delivering mediocre results, so now that he has hit the IL, Ahlstrom should be viewing the next two weeks as an audition for a permanent place in the pen.

In 29.1 innings at Round Rock, the 26-year-old southpaw maintained a 2.76 ERA and was able to fan better than a batter per inning with 33 Ks and just eight walks. Since being called up, the hard-throwing reliever has continued to pitch well, not giving up a run in his first 5.2 innings. He came in and handled the Royals on Thursday, maintaining a 4-2 lead over 1.1 innings, which is a very good sign.

The Oregon product relies on a five-pitch arsenal using deceptive movement and excellent command to get outs. He can still bring the cheese with a four-seam fastball that averages 95.2 mph, but he will primarily employ a mid-90s hard sinker and a slider off-speed pitch, which he will dial down to the mid-80s.

Ahlstrom has put in a lot of work since coming over to the Rangers in the Jose Trevino trade years ago. Texas has worked with the lefty to change his position on the rubber and add the sinker to his arsenal. The result has been a dramatic reduction in walk rate in Triple-A, down to 6.9% from 14.7% last year.

As a high strikeout lefty with a stellar ground ball rate, he could prove to be a real asset, as he's shown in his limited MLB opportunities so far. Beeks injury opens the door for even more runway for Ahlstrom to prove himself, and the end result could be Texas finding a new lefty to handle tough spots in the middle innings and Beeks hitting the unemployment line once healthy.

The bullpen has been one of the strongest parts of the team thus far, and now it is time for the team to get a contribution from its farm system. Outside of Alejandro Osuna and Peyton Grey, the team hasn't needed much from their pipeline, so now is Ahlstrom's chance to show that he wants more than a cup of coffee with the professional club and prove that he can be a long-term solution as a middle reliever for the team as they push for the AL West lead and/or a wild-card berth.

In a small sample size, he has shown he is up for the task and ready to take the next step in his career as a Ranger. Particularly if Beeks is DFAd upon his return to health.

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