Manager Skip Schumaker offered a third straight day of positive reports on Seager’s recovery from back inflammation after he ran the bases and took ground balls. Seager has also hit off a machine.
“He felt good today, which was good news because he ran a lot yesterday, so the fact he’s running again is a good sign,” Schumaker said. “We’ll see how he looks tomorrow, but he will probably do live [batting practice] Friday and Saturday and then we’ll see what that looks like.”
Schumaker said there is a “good chance he does a rehab assignment.”
If that’s the case, the Rangers would likely aim for a return for the series in Houston that begins July 31. The Rangers play three games at the Astros leading up to the trade deadline. It would give the team the chance to see how the lineup functions again with Seager before making any deadline acquisitions or give other clubs an opportunity to look at him before the Aug. 3 deadline.
Seager, 32, missed his 51st game of the season on Wednesday, meaning he has missed exactly half of the Rangers’ season to date. If he misses the upcoming Seattle and Tampa Bay series, as expected, that would run his games missed this season to 59. It would match the number he missed last year, the most he’s missed since joining the Rangers.