Rangers turn to Tyler Mahle in near must-win situation vs. Marlins

Texas will get one of its best pitchers back from a long-term injury when it hosts the Miami Marlins on Friday in Arlington, but it may be too late to make a difference in the Rangers' attempt to mount a final run for the postseason.

Right hander Tyler Mahle (6-3, 2.34 ERA) will return to take the ball for Texas in the opener of the three-game series after being out with shoulder fatigue since June 10. Miami will counter with right-hander Janson Junk (6-3, 4.48).

The Rangers (79-74), who have nine games left, are on the ropes in the hunt for a wild-card spot. They head home for the first contest of their final homestand on a four-game losing streak capped by a sweep by the Astros in Houston.

Texas is five games behind first-place Houston and Seattle in the American League West; both of those teams, which play each other this weekend in a pivotal series in Houston, are tied for the second spot in the American League wild-card standings.

The Rangers have four teams above them in the wild-card race -- the New York Yankees, Boston, Cleveland and either the Astros or Mariners -- and would have to pass two of them to make the postseason.

"We know our backs are to the wall," Texas manager Bruce Bochy said. "Now we have to look at it like we have nothing to lose. Go out there and give it everything we got to find our way back in it. We still have a little time -- granted, not a lot. That margin of error has gotten real small."

After this six-game homestead with Miami and Minnesota, the Rangers will conclude the regular season with a three-game series at Cleveland.

"We kind of have to play perfect on the way out just to have a fighting chance," Rangers designated hitter Joc Pederson said. "It is what it is. We've got to move forward and learn from it. It sucks."

That's certainly quite a load to put on Mahle's shoulders. He allowed four runs in each of his final two starts covering 11 total innings in June before being shut down. Before that, Mahle had not given up more than three runs in any of his first 12 appearances of the season.

Mahle has 1-2 record with a 2.74 ERA in four career starts against the Marlins. Bochy said he will limit Mahle to 75 pitches on Friday.

Miami travels to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex after a three-game sweep in Denver against the hapless Rockies that concluded with a 9-7 win on Thursday afternoon. The Marlins (73-80) have captured seven of their past eight outings and could finish with a winning record for the year if they go undefeated the rest of the way.

That might be a lot to ask with series against three winning teams (Texas, Philadelphia and the New York Mets) in the offing.

Junk is looking for his first win since Aug. 6, after which he has an 0-1 record over five starts encompassing 28 innings of work. His most recent outing was on Saturday, when he allowed three runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out four over six innings in a no-decision that the Marlins won 6-4 over Detroit in 11 innings.

Junk's showing on Saturday was a great bounce back after he surrendered six runs on eight hits and two walks against Washington on Sept. 8 in his return from the 15-day IL.

"(Junk's) whole body of work has really been a great find for us," Miami manager Clayton McCullough said. "He's contributed a number of high-quality starts, and we can count on Janson to fill up the strike zone and give us a chance to get to the middle portion of the game in a good spot."

In two career starts against the Rangers, Junk is 0-1 with a 3.38 ERA across eight innings.

--Field Level Media