Yet again, another injury occurs for the beleaguered Texas Rangers pitching staff. According to the Dallas News, John Rheinecker will undergo shoulder surgery that will be to alleviate symptoms of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, in which a rib bone is pinching a nerve and creates swelling and pain. Although last season the 28 year old lefty had more wins then losses (4-3), he had an awful 5.36 ERA that definitely didn’t help one of the worst pitching staffs in the MLB. Rangers third baseman Hank Blalock had the same surgery last year and was out from May 16 until September, but was not up to par to play third base when he recovered, limiting him to being the designated hitter. The Rangers’ pitchers were plagued with injuries all of last season (as I stated in my post on February 9th) and losing a left-hander in the bullpen is definitely not helping the cause, leaving the team shorthanded once again.
