CHICAGO \u2014 They\u2019ll need to designated someone to hit. It\u2019s just a matter of who, and more importantly, how. <\/p>\n
The Rangers<\/a> placed designated hitter Joc Pederson on the 10-day injured list Sunday with a right hand fracture<\/a> and expect him to miss a minimum of six weeks. Pederson, who\u2019s fifth metacarpal bone was broken by a Bryse Wilson cutter in Saturday\u2019s loss<\/a>, had started 36 of the Rangers\u2019 first 53 games at designated hitter. <\/p>\n It was the most that any Ranger had played at designated hitter in a single season since Mitch Garver started 56 games at designated hitter two years ago. The Rangers opted for a designated-hitter-by-committee system of sorts last season and may now return to that approach with Pederson potentially out until the All-Star break. <\/p>\n Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Sunday morning that the club doesn\u2019t \u201chave any real plan right now\u201d at the designated hitter position for the foreseeable future but acknowledged it could be used as an opportunity to give players days off of their feet. The Rangers played outfielder Sam Haggerty at designated hitter in Sunday\u2019s game because Bochy thought that he could use a break. <\/p>\n Rangers<\/p>\n Related:How soon will Corey Seager return from injury, rejoin the Texas Rangers? <\/a><\/p>\n The quartet of Adolis Garc\u00eda, Wyatt Langford, Jonah Heim and Kyle Higashioka have each also seen time at designated hitter and could likely find their way into this rotation if the Rangers do choose to play it by committee. <\/p>\n There is, of course, the Corey Seager route. Seager, an All-Star shortstop, could return to the Rangers next weeken<\/a>d after his second hamstring strain-related injured list trip of the season. He\u2019s only started 25 games at designated hitter in his three-plus seasons with the Rangers but is a logical option to see more time there to both continue his recovery from a hamstring strain and potentially prevent further soft tissue injuries. <\/p>\n \u201cCould [he] give us a pretty good option there? Yeah,\u201d Bochy said. \u201c[We could] maybe bring him back a tad sooner and get him off his legs more.\u201d<\/p>\n The Rangers have gotten a league-worst .478 OPS out of the designated hitter position this season almost entirely due to Pederson\u2019s abysmal start to the year. <\/p>\n Texas Rangers plan to call up outfielder Alejandro Osuna from Triple-A Round Rock<\/a>Rangers\u2019 disastrous inning in loss vs. White Sox just might be a new low point in 2025<\/a><\/p>\n