Cashner looking forward to making Rangers debut

SEATTLE Within a week’s time, it’s become apparent that Andrew Cashner is an effective lobbyist.

Now, the Texas Rangers will learn if the right-hander can be an effective starting pitcher.

The biceps soreness that set Cashner back early in spring training has disappeared. His stuff and his command are sharp enough to compete against major-league hitters.

He didn’t want to make another rehab start and relayed to the coaching staff about 10 days ago that he needed only one rehab start and not two. But, being a team player, Cashner was prepared to do whatever he was told.

The news he received Friday, a week after the plan was for him to make an additional start in the minors, was what he wanted to hear. The native Texan can’t wait to get going.

“Anytime you get to put the Texas flag on your arm, it’s a big deal,” said Cashner, the former TCU All-America from Montgomery. “I take a lot of pride in being from Texas, and I’m looking forward to representing my state.”

Cashner threw 76 pitches Monday over five scoreless in an extended spring game in Peoria, Ariz., against San Diego Padres minor-leaguers. Facing the overaggressive inexperienced hitters isn’t as easy of a task as it might seem, as they don’t work counts like big-league hitters might.

But Cashner, who signed a one-year deal worth $10 million in November, could see that his stuff was there and was still there in his between-starts bullpen. He said that his two-seamer has good sink on it, that his slider is tight, and that his changeup will come into play this season.

The Rangers believe he could throw 95-100 pitches if needed against the Seattle Mariners. Cashner, 30, said that he hasn’t pushed anything since falling behind in spring training and opening the season on the 10-day disabled list.

“It was just like going through spring training,” Cashner said. “I was trying to get my pitch count up and working on my pitches and working on my delivery that I’ve been working on since I came here.”

“I’ve never been on a team that scores this many runs,” the former Chicago Cubs and Padres pitcher said.

Manager Jeff Banister said that Cashner is at his best when he’s commanding both sides of the plate with a fastball that he can pump into the mid- to upper-90s. The Rangers encouraged him to pitch inside more so that he can be more effective away with his slider.

That’s the mid-game adjustment Yu Darvish made Thursday to toss seven scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Angels.

“I’m commanding the ball on both sides of the plate,” Cashner said.

Cashner was the choice over Nick Martinez, Eddie Gamboa and Dillon Gee, members of the rotation at Triple A Round Rock and members of the Rangers’ 40-man roster. Martinez was recalled Wednesday to help reinforce the bullpen with Sam Dyson struggling and Matt Bush unavailable while dealing with shoulder soreness.

Martinez could be player optioned off the active roster to make room for Cashner.

“Overall, we feel like he’s healthy and we feel like he’s ready,” Banister said. “He’s put in the work. The rehab starts, the stuff has been sharp, and his bullpens and daily throwing program he’s come out healthy.”

The Rangers’ rotation entered Friday’s late game at Safeco Field with a 1.44 ERA in its past five games. The rotation’s 3.23 ERA ranked second in the league and third in the majors behind the Cubs and Kansas City Royals.

Cashner enters that mix Saturday.

“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “I’m looking forward to being there with my teammates and just going out there and having fun.”

This story was originally published April 14, 2017 at 9:32 PM with the headline "Cashner looking forward to making Rangers debut."