Texas Rangers place RHP Josh Sborz on injured list due to right shoulder fatigue

NEW YORK (AP) — Josh Sborz, who made a save to secure the Texas Rangers’ first World Series title last season, was placed on the injured list Sunday because of fatigue in his right shoulder.

The move is retroactive to Thursday, and the Rangers said before Sunday’s game against the Yankees that Sborz would return to Dallas to be examined by Dr. Greg Pearl, a thoracic outlet specialist.

Sborz is 2-1 with a 3.38 ERA in 16 relief appearances this season, including two stints on the IL because of a strained right rotator cuff. The right-hander made three appearances before going on the IL from April 7-24, and then twice more before missing nearly two months.

In nine appearances since returning from his second appearance on July 4, Sborz had a 4.22 ERA.

Last season, Sborz was 6-7 with a 5.50 ERA in 44 appearances. He allowed one run in 10 postseason appearances and pitched the final 2 1/3 innings in the Rangers’ 5-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 5 of the World Series.

In addition to placing Sborz back on the injured list, the Rangers also called up Brock Burke a day after he allowed four runs in an 8-0 loss in the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader.

Burke has a 9.22 ERA in 13 appearances this season, and Texas has seven days to release him or send the left-hander directly to the minor leagues. Burke made eight appearances after missing two months with a broken right hand he suffered while breaking down a door in the visitors’ clubhouse in Houston.

Burke, who made his debut at Texas in 2019, was 5-3 with a 4.37 ERA in 53 appearances last season.

To replace Sborz and Burke, the Rangers recalled pitcher Walter Pennington from Triple-A Round Rock and selected the contract of pitcher Matt Festa from Round Rock.

Pennington was acquired from Kansas City on July 29 for Michael Lorenzen and made his Texas debut last Sunday against Boston. In the minor leagues this season, the left-hander has a record of 7-3 with a 2.13 ERA in 39 appearances.

Festa made one appearance for the Mets on June 30. The right-hander signed a minor league contract with Texas on July 8, was released on August 1 and re-signed a minor league contract with the team.

Festa has a 2-3 record with a 4.66 ERA and has made 89 of his 90 career appearances with the Seattle Mariners.

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