Josh

Jung

Jung has progressed to jogging in addition to fielding ground balls and hitting as he makes his way back from a calf strain that put him on the shelf in late July. It’s taken much longer than originally anticipated for him to ramp up baseball activities. He’s at least a couple weeks away from making it back to the Rangers’ lineup.

Jung hasn’t resumed baseball activities in over a week as his progress from a left calf strain has been much slower than anticipated. It seems unlikely that he’ll be able to ramp up in time to make it back before the end of August.

Ten days away from rehab games would likely mean about three weeks away from returning to the Rangers. That’s a bit longer than was originally anticipated after he was put on the injured list with a left calf strain. There’s still hope that Jung will be back before the end of August, but the uncertainty makes it harder to hold onto him in fantasy leagues where you have no IL spots.

Jung is eligible to return Saturday, but “it looks like it will take longer than that.” The 28-year-old was described as “at a standstill” by his manager. If it drags on too long, Jung may require a rehab assignment. Jung, 28, was in the midst of his best year since 2023 this season by hitting .294/.361/.441 with nine homers.

Despite receiving some addition rest earlier this week, Jung’s left calf never improved to the point that the Rangers felt comfortable putting him back in a game situation. The 28-year-old will get a few extra days off to hopefully put the issue to bed. It doesn’t seem like he’ll require a lengthy absence and should be ready to return at some point in early August.

The Rangers thought Wednesday that Jung might be ready to play tonight, but now an IL stint seems possible. A decision on that will likely come Saturday. If Jung goes on the IL, the Rangers will likely bring back Josh Smith.

Jung was pulled from Tuesday’s battle against the White Sox due to tightness in his left calf and hasn’t played since. There haven’t been rumblings about the oft-injured third baseman requiring a trip to the injured list just yet, but if this lingers for another couple of days the Rangers may be forced to rethink that. Ezequiel Duran will start in his place at third base and bat third for the Rangers against Mariners’ right-hander Bryce Miller.

There’s zero reason for the Rangers to rush Jung back with Thursday’s off-day looming. It’ll be Ezequiel Duran taking over at the hot corner after Jung made a precautionary exit from Tuesday’s game with left calf tightness. He’s presumably day-to-day heading into Friday’s series opener against Seattle.

Jung didn’t look 100 percent while going from first-to-third on a third-inning single by Brandon Nimmo, which led to his early exit from the contest. It doesn’t sound like a potential injured list situation, but it might be too early to make that call. There should be some clarity on his status heading into Wednesday’s series finale.

Jung was replaced by Nicky Lopez at the hot corner shortly after coming around to score following a third-inning single. He finished 1-for-2 at the plate. There should be an update on his status shortly.