Jordan Montgomery’s return to the Texas Rangers came after nearly two years away from the Major Leagues.
The 33-year-old left-hander last appeared in an MLB game on Sept. 22, 2024, with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
His path back was complicated, beginning with Tommy John surgery in March 2025. While recovering, Montgomery was traded from Arizona to the Milwaukee Brewers at the 2025 Trade Deadline, although he never pitched for Milwaukee.
He later signed with the Rangers during Spring Training 2026 while continuing his rehabilitation from the elbow procedure.
After months of recovery and preparation, Montgomery finally returned to the mound Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles, making his second stint with Texas official.
The comeback did not go exactly as planned, as he surrendered three runs on six hits, a walk and two home runs over four innings of relief.
Still, Rangers manager Skip Schumaker viewed the outing as an important step forward and believes Montgomery’s velocity and overall arsenal can improve as he gets more comfortable pitching again.
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His return marked just the sixth relief appearance of his MLB career, while his 79 pitches represented the most he had ever thrown in a relief outing.
Montgomery admitted afterward that nerves played a role in his performance. He said he was trying to guide his pitches instead of simply trusting his delivery and felt his fastball was the biggest problem during the outing.
At the same time, he was encouraged by his slider and curveball and remained focused on building from the positives.
When Texas activated him from the injured list on Aug. 7, Schumaker had already indicated that Montgomery would initially work out of the bullpen while the club determined the best way to use him.
That bullpen role could now change quickly because the Rangers suddenly have a need in their starting rotation.
Nathan Eovaldi was placed on the injured list with right posterior elbow inflammation following his most recent start against Baltimore, opening a potential rotation spot.
Texas already has Jacob deGrom, MacKenzie Gore, Kumar Rocker and Cody Bradford available, while Jack Leiter continues to work his way back from ankle surgery.
Schumaker indicated that Montgomery and Cal Quantrill, who has also made seven starts this season, are among the internal candidates to replace Eovaldi.
The Rangers are expected to evaluate the next few games before deciding whether Montgomery gets another opportunity to start or remains in the bullpen.
