Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager, who has been on the injured list since the beginning of the month, is expected to be activated tomorrow when the Rangers start their series in Houston against the Astros, per the beats. In addition, Jordan Montgomery, who has been on the injured list all season as he returns from Tommy John surgery, will make another rehab start on Sunday.
Seager has had a difficult season, going on the injured list in mid-May due to back spasms, returning in June, playing five
games, and then going on the concussion injured list and missing two weeks after a home plate collision. He returned and played four games before going back on the injured list due to more back issues. He has played shortstop the past two days for Frisco on a rehab assignment.
Seager is slashing just .182/.292/.374 on the season, but when he’s healthy, he’s one of the best players in baseball, and getting him back in the lineup would provide a shot in the arm for the Rangers — at least, if he can stay in the lineup. Josh Jung, who went on the injured list with a calf issue, is eligible to be activated on Saturday, August 1, though there’s no word yet on whether he’s expected to be ready to go.
As for Montgomery, there was some thought that he could be activated and start a game in the Houston series. The Rangers are instead leaving him out for another rehab outing, and are going with a bullpen game in today’s series finale in Tampa, allowing the team to go with Nathan Eovaldi, Jacob deGrom and Kumar Rocker in Houston. Rangers are 4-6 against Houston so far this season. The Rangers need to sweep Houston to have the tiebreaker over the Astros, who are currently just a game back in the division. Texas, by virtue of winning three of four against Seattle last weekend, hold the tiebreaker over Seattle.
Montgomery, one of the heroes of the 2023 championship team, signed a two year deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks on the eve of the 2024 season. He had an awful year, putting up a 6.23 ERA in 117 innings, and then needed Tommy John surgery early in 2025. He signed a one year deal with the Rangers for 2026, with the idea being he would be a major league option at some point in the second half of 2026.
Montgomery has made seven rehab appearances, most recently throwing 75 pitches in 4.1 innings for Round Rock on the 25th. His velocity has been down, which is a concern — in his most recent appearance, he averaged just 90.6 mph with both his fastball and his sinker, down a little over one mph from where he was in 2024, and down 2.5 mph from 2023. He has stated that he thinks the velocity will be back when he’s back in the majors and the adrenaline kicks in, but until he shows that, the loss in stuff has to be a concern.
