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Jack Leiter has Ankle Surgery, Rangers Expect him Back This Year
Texas Rangers right-hander Jack Leiter (ankle) underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle to remove a loose body on Tuesday morning, according to Kennedi Landry of MLB.com. The surgery was performed by Dr. Ned Amendola at Duke University. The Rangers expect Leiter to return before the end of the 2026 season, but his timeline for a return is fluid. It's an injury that Leiter had been pitching through for most of this year. The 26-year-old former second overall pick in 2021 out of Vanderbilt University struggled to a 3-7 record with a 5.29 ERA (4.76 FIP) and 1.44 WHIP with 83 strikeouts and 35 walks in 80 innings pitched across his 15 starts for Texas before landing on the 15-day injured list. With no timetable for a return in the second half of the season, fantasy managers in deep mixed leagues shouldn't feel compelled to hold onto him. Right now, Leiter is rostered in only 22% of Yahoo leagues. Considering his draft pedigree, Leiter has been a bust early in his MLB career with a 13-20 record, 4.95 ERA (4.53 FIP), 1.38 WHIP, 22.3% strikeout rate, and 10.1% walk rate in 267 1/3 innings over 53 appearances (50 starts) at the major-league level.
Source: MLB.com - Kennedi Landry
Source: MLB.com - Kennedi Landry
