Rangers notes: Jung, Foscue, Church

Rangers notes: Jung, Foscue, Church

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A pair of injuries have hit the Rangers’ infield mix at third base Jos Jung and former top prospect Justin Foscue will be out of action for at least the next ten days. Manager Skip Schumaker told reporters (including Kennedi Landry of MLB.com) that an MRI showed that Jung has a grade 1 adductor strain, while Foscue has a right hamstring strain.

Neither injury is considered particularly serious, and Schumaker felt Jung in particular would return to the field sooner than expected. In Foscue’s case, while his hamstring isn’t a major concern from a health perspective, the missed time is a setback in Foscue’s attempt to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster.

It doesn’t change anything as far as that [Foscue’s] chances“, said Schumaker. “He’s just going to lose at-bats, which sucks for him. But… he actually has two more weeks of camp left to try to build it up. He should get more at-bats.”

Jung is listed as the Rangers’ first choice at third base, and the former eighth overall pick is still looking to establish himself firmly as he enters his fifth major league season. After making the All-Star team and helping Texas win the World Series in his rookie season of 2023, Jung was limited to 46 games due to a right wrist fracture in 2024. He was healthy last year but struggled to a .251/.294/.390 slash line and 91 wRC+ over 511 plate appearances and was briefly demoted to Triple-A in July.

Now that Jung is eligible for salary arbitration, the clock may be ticking to some extent on his future in Texas. He’ll earn a modest salary of $2.9 million in 2026, but if Jung doesn’t take a significant step forward at the plate, he could be a non-tender candidate next season if the Rangers decide not to give him more opportunities at a higher price tag. Schumaker praised Jung’s development in camp and felt that the third baseman’s work “about to translate on the field.”

Foscue has just three hits over 53 PA at the big league level, which translates to a .192 OPS for his short MLB career. While the sample size is small, the rather extreme nature of this battle has already cast doubt on whether Foscue (also a former first-round draft pick, selected 14th overall in 2020) can ultimately hold his own against Major League pitching.

There have also been questions about Foscue’s ability to stick at second base, and the Rangers have experimented with Foscue as an outfielder this spring in an effort to increase his versatility. If he can handle a corner outfield spot as well as first or second base, it would increase Foscue’s chances of hanging on to the 26-man roster, but everything will be on hold until he heals from his hamstring injury.

In other injury news from Texas camp: Marc Kerk has been sidelined with a major strain, but the right-hander is set to throw some live bullpen sessions this week, Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News writes. Assuming his pitching progression goes as planned, Church should likely see some game action before Spring Training is over, and he could still have a chance to break camp as a member of the Rangers pen.

The teres major strain is another unwanted setback for Church, as he was limited to just 38 2/3 total innings in the 2024-25 seasons (33 in the minors, 5 2/3 in the majors). He missed much of the 2024 minor league season due to a rotator cuff injury, and in 2025 he dealt with elbow inflammation, lat issues and an oblique strain. If he can finally get healthy, Church is an intriguing candidate for a relief role, as he has a plus slider and splitter to go along with a fastball in the mid-90s.

#Rangers #notes #Jung #Foscue #Church

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