Call it bad luck, injury prone, or as Bruce Bochy described it “buzzard’s luck”, Josh Jung finds himself back on the Injured List. Last night Jung took an 87mph sinker from Phil Maton off his right wrist, causing a fracture that will leave him out for an extended period of time. It is still unknown the severity of the injury, but it’s safe to assume we won’t see the All-Star third basemen back on the field until late May at the earliest.
An all-too-familiar blow to the second year standout who missed over six weeks in 2023 with a fractured left thumb, along with nearly all of Spring Training this season due to a calf strain. None of which have slowed Jung down when he is on the field, but both have taken one of the hottest bats out of the Texas lineup.
So far in four games for the Rangers, Jung has been arguably the biggest offensive weapon. Jung is 7-for-17 with a double, triple, two home runs, and six total RBI’s (tied with Adolis Garcia for team lead). Defensively, Jung has produced outs in all 14 chances from the field, including some impressive short-hop snags thus far.
His thumb injury last season proved to hurt the Rangers most down the stretch in 2023, and will likely have a similar impact on the club in 2024. Though there is hope that help is on the way to keep the Rangers offense cruising. Insert, Justin Foscue.
Jeff Passan of ESPN is reporting that the Texas Rangers are expected to call up Justin Foscue, who ranks as the 5th ranked prospect in the organization’s farm system. Foscue is currently on the 40-man roster and is an offense minded player that the front office thinks very highly of. He was one of the last players to be assigned to AAA during Spring Training, and many Rangers fans wondered just how long it would take before we see the RH talent make his MLB debut.
During the 2023 season with the Round Rock Express, Foscue spent 70 games at second base, 35 games at third base and 9 games at first base. In 122 games with the Express last season, Foscue produced a .266/.394/.862 line (BA/OBP/OPS) with 18 HR and 84 RBI.
Besides being blocked by a plethora of All-Star infielders the Rangers currently possess, Foscue has been limited by his defenisve abilities. The Rangers began working him at first base this off-season and there’s a strong probability we see a platoon of Jared Walsh/Foscue take on first base at the MLB level with this call up.
Should the plan see Foscue taking over at third base, it makes sense to platoon him with Josh Smith who can be another solid left-handed bat in the bottom of the order. Personally, I’d vote for Foscue to see time at first base, sending Ezequiel Duran across the diamond where he can show off the canon that is his right arm. Perhaps he sees time at both corners of the infield, those are decisions I’ll leave to Bochy and his staff.
Regardless, Foscue has earned the opportunity to be at the MLB level. It will be must-see TV when he makes his official MLB debut, and my hope is that we see it take place before the Rangers return home to face the Astros this weekend.
Don’t forget about Josh Jung either. Once the end of May rolls around and he is back to full strength, look out for the “Jungle Cat” to make up for lost time.
