As we all know by now, Tommy Hunter's groin is a real thorn in the side of the Texas Rangers.
After injuring his groin in his final spring start and being put on the disabled list, Hunter was on his second rehab start Monday night in Triple-A Round Rock and had great stuff through six innings.
Then, bam! It happened again. On his final pitch of the night, he felt a familiar, unwelcomed pain and walked off the field to the trainer before returning to Arlington.
But he seems to be in pretty good spirits about returning sooner rather than later and helping out the Rangers pitching staff, whether it be in the rotation or in the bullpen.
"I just think it's one of those freak deals, it just happened again somehow," Hunter said. "Maybe I went a little too much too early, you never know. This training staff is unbelievable. They help you out as much as they can. You know, players try to push them, you know, it's their job to keep us back. You know, maybe I pushed too much, but we're gonna take a couple of days off and get back after it."
A return for Hunter would be great for the Rangers, but I wouldn't expect it any time soon. I think the Rangers will be happy to get Hunter back before the All-Star break. His return will help the Rangers, no matter where he goes, but Hunter is more of a rotation guy than a bullpen guy. It's hard to convince me that the best thing for this year's Rangers team, unfortunately, isn't to move Alexi Ogando back to the 8th inning and have a healthy, 13-win (last season) Tommy Hunter in the rotation. Time will tell.
