The Texas Rangers‘ pitching workforce took a first-rate hit on Friday, as starter Jon Gray sustained a right wrist fracture throughout a Cactus League matchup against the Colorado Rockies. The injury befell when Gray became struck by way of a 106.4 mph line drive off the bat of Michael Toglia, and manager Bruce Bochy did not mince words when discussing the situation.

“Not suitable news, no suitable news,” Bochy informed journalists. “It’s terrible. I feel awful for him, to be this close to getting the season going. It’s simply not desirable news. I’ll get back in there and find out more; however, right now, there is a fracture.” through Evan Grant on X, previously Twitter.

Gray, who is in the final years of a four-year, $56 million contract, has struggled with injuries in every one of his previous three seasons with Texas. In 2024, he became restricted to simply 102 2/3 innings due to a pair of groin strains and a foot neuroma that required offseason surgical procedure. Now, with Opening Day much less than two weeks away, Gray is expected to begin the season on the injured list, leaving the Rangers scrambling to modify their rotation plans.

The injury to Gray comes at a particularly bad time for Texas, as it adds to an already concerning trend of injuries to the beginning rotation. Earlier this week, Cody Bradford was scratched from a spring start due to elbow pain. While his MRI returned clean, the team announced that he will not be geared up for Opening Day and can be closed down for up to 10 days.

Additionally, Tyler Mahle was scratched from a scheduled start against the Angels with forearm pain. Like Bradford, Mahle’s MRI showed no structural damage; however, the Rangers stay careful. Mahle is about to resume throwing in the coming days, but his fate for Opening Day remains uncertain.

With these setbacks, the Rangers will probably flip to a mix of young arms and veteran depth portions to fill the gaps in their rotation. The most likely scenario is that former first-round picks Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker will each begin the season in the rotation. Both pitchers have inspired in camp and may be thrust into enormous roles much earlier than expected.

Veteran right-hander Adrian Houser, who is in camp on a minor league deal, is another candidate to step into the rotation. Houser has posted a 2.25 ERA over 8 innings this spring and could provide stability as the Rangers navigate their injury problems. Patrick Murphy, another non-roster invitee, is also being considered for a bulk-innings role.

The early-season rotation will now likely consist of Nathan Eovaldi, Jacob deGrom, Leiter, Rocker, and either Mahle or Houser. While Eovaldi and deGrom are tested veterans, both include substantial injury concerns of their own. DeGrom has made just 35 starts during the last 4 years, and Eovaldi has gone through Tommy John surgical treatment twice in his career.

For the maximum of spring training, the Rangers avoided vast injuries to their pitching staff; however, the closing week has absolutely changed the outlook. With Gray out for the foreseeable future, Bradford and Mahle struggling with their own troubles, and deGrom and Eovaldi carrying durability concerns, Texas’ rotation seems some distance more vulnerable than it did only some days ago.