Colby Lewis ready to jump back into Rangers rotation

Colby Lewis could rejoin the Texas Rangers’ rotation as soon as this weekend, though maybe not as soon as he’d like.

“Saturday,” Lewis said. “Some time this weekend.”

However, manager Jeff Banister said that any pitching plans for this weekend at Anaheim are on hold until he knows how Lewis felt the day after throwing 66 pitches in his final rehab start and how Martin Perez fared Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners.

“I don’t have a designated day for Colby right now,” Banister said. “Saturday would be the first day he could be available.”

Saturday, though, seems unlikely barring Cole Hamels requesting an extra day before his next start. If the rotation holds against the Angels, Yu Darvish would pitch Friday and Hamels would pitch Saturday.

The Rangers would prefer to keep Darvish and Hamels pitching back to back. If Hamels is a go for Saturday, Lewis could be pushed to Sunday or even Monday at Houston. Lewis is 6-0 with a 3.21 ERA against the Astros since 2014.

He said that he felt like everything clicked Monday in a Short-Season A game. He surrendered four runs in five innings, but he didn’t walk a batter and said that he needed far less effort to get through his innings than in the first two rehab starts.

“This last one was really, really good,” Lewis said. “I felt good. I was a lot sharper. I felt like I got a lot out of it. I felt a lot freer and a lot easier, and it didn’t feel like I was working as hard.”

Gallo, Hoying return

Infielder Joey Gallo, the Rangers’ top prospect, and outfielder Jared Hoying were promoted from Triple A Round Rock after the minor league season ended Monday.

Both will likely have limited roles the rest of the season as the Rangers attempt to clinch the American League West. Gallo said that he wants to soak in as much as he can no matter how sparse his playing time might be.

“I think just being around this staff, the coaches and around these veteran guys just to see what a winning clubhouse is all about,” Gallo said. “I saw it last year, but this is a different team with a little more veteran leadership. I’m excited to be here and see where this road takes us.”

Scheppers activated

Right-hander Tanner Scheppers was activated from the 60-day disabled list after knee surgery in February, and said that his first game in the bullpen in almost a year felt like the start of a new season.

“I’ve gotten my spring training out of the way, and it feels like opening night for me,” said Scheppers, who allowed one run over eight appearances during his rehab assignment. “There were a lot of people involved who helped get here, and I’m grateful for that.”

Scheppers will likely be eased into duty as a middle reliever, unlike the prominent late-inning role he had in 2013 and to start 2015. The past three seasons have been wrecked by injuries, but he feels like his arm is young.

“I think that I’ve got a lot of bullets left in my arm,” he said.

Briefly

▪ Right fielder Shin-Soo Choo said that he will throw Wednesday and take dry swings with a fungo bat Thursday for the first time since having surgery Aug. 14 to repair a broken left forearm. He hopes to return by Oct. 7, which would be in the middle of a possible division series.

▪ Left-hander Cole Hamels is the Rangers’ nominee for the annual Roberto Clemente Award, given annually to the MLB player who best exemplifies philanthropy and character on and off the field.

▪ Wade Howell, who spent the past five seasons as the Rangers’ senior director of media sales, has been hired as the general manager of the new High A team in Kinston, N.C.

▪ Tim Purpura, the Rangers’ former farm director and former Astros general manager, has been hired as president of the Double A Texas League. He will assume his new role in February.

This story was originally published September 6, 2016 at 9:11 PM with the headline "Colby Lewis ready to jump back into Rangers rotation."