it was announced Tuesday that Jack Leiter had been named the 2024 PCL Pitcher of the Year and made the PCL All-Star team as well.
It’s been no cakewalk for the 2021 2nd overall pick as he has struggled with command early and often since making his pro debut for the Frisco Roughriders in 2022. However, 2024 would shine some light for the first time on the 24-year-old showcasing what he could potentially become and be an intricate part of the future of the Rangers like they’d hoped when they drafted him in 2021.
Leiter this year posted a 3.51 ERA this season striking out 110 batters in 77 innings across 17 appearances on the bump for the Express\, which was 33.3% of all the batters he faced. Even his walk totals went down this year totaling just 35, which is his lowest number yet, while holding batters to a respectable .217 BAA.
Another thing Leiter showcased this year was his fastball which topped out at 100.1 mph this August showcasing just how much of a fireballer he can truly be.
This year was as close to a make or break year as it gets for the righter and really impressed everyone in taking significant strides and will surely look to improve even more this offseason and into the 2025 season.
It remains to be known just what role he will have with the club in 2025 as he was coming out of the Rangers bullpen at the end of the season but will Max Scherzer’s time in a Rangers uniform seemingly done and the uncertainty of the future of Nathan Eovaldi and Andrew Heaney as Rangers, there could be room in the rotation for Leiter and give him a chance to prove himself a viable starter for the club as they look to get back to October next year and the years after that.
2024 was certainly a huge year for Leiter and his development into a big league pitcher and was culminated with this award and honors as PCL Pitcher of the year as well as making the All-Star team. We’re very excited to continue to watch Leiter’s journey into next year and to see how he works off this substantial year the young righty had.
Once more, congrats to Rangers RHP Jack Leiter on making the PCL All-Star team and being named the PCL Pitcher of the Year!
