The Texas Rangers are close to getting back pitcher Matt Harrison and third baseman Adrian Beltre.
Harrison threw eight shutout innings at Double-A Frisco on Saturday and has apparently convinced the Rangers and general manager Jon Daniels that he is ready for a return to the big leagues. He has not made a start in the majors since last April and will be replacing Tanner Scheppers in the rotation.
In his rehab outing Harrison threw 86 pitches and spoke afterwards about being focused on getting outs.
“My head was in the right place, and I was just focused on competing and making a pitch at a time,” Harrison said. “I wasn’t worried about pitch counts or innings or anything. I was just worried about getting guys out.”
Appearing on SirusXM Daniels also spoke about the return of third baseman Adrian Beltre saying he would be ready for next weekends series against Seattle.
Jon Daniels told us that Adrian Beltre will be ready for the Seattle series this weekend Sirius209 XM89 #FrontOffice
— JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) April 20, 2014
Beltre had been replaced in the lineup during his rehab stint by Kevin Kouzmanoff. Whether the Rangers keep Kouzmanoff as a bench bat or send him back to the minors remains to be seen. Kouzmanoff
The veteran third baseman will wind up spending only the minimum amount of time on the disabled list. Kevin Kouzmanoff has done so well while filling in for Beltre that he might stick around in a bench role. Kouzmanoff is currently hitting a blistering .395/.439/.684 with two home runs and nine RBI in 10 games this season.
Prior to his injury Beltre was hitting .286/.394/.393 for the rangers with four RBI in eight games. He is coming off four straight seasons of 28 or more home runs.
