Texas Rangers right-handed pitcher Kumar Rocker classified the start to his spring training as, among other things, “unacceptable.” The team’s president of baseball operations Chris Young considers it a window into his own past.

Rocker pitched an intrasquad game in the backfields Saturday and tossed three hitless innings, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

It was a backfield game against his own teammates on the first day of the second week of March, sure, but Kumar Rocker’s unofficial third start of spring training could only be classified as progress.

Keep an eye on: Non-roster invitee Adrian Houser, who was scheduled to relieve Jacob deGrom Friday night against Colorado, has allowed only five baserunners and no runs in six innings. Houser has made 104 major league starts for Milwaukee and the New York Mets since 2019. He would be a depth option.

This story was excerpted from Kennedi Landry’s Rangers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

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