Kumar Rocker MLB debut set. Texas Rangers bring Vanderbilt star up vs Seattle Mariners

Former Vanderbilt baseball star and Texas Rangers pitching prospect Kumar Rocker will make his major league debut on Thursday, the team confirmed on social media Monday.

Rocker had a 2.89 ERA in three seasons at Vanderbilt and was named an All-American in 2021 and the College World Series Most Outstanding Player in 2019. In 2021, he and teammate Jack Leiter co-led the nation with 179 strikeouts.

Rocker is perhaps best-known for throwing a 19-strikeout no-hitter in a super regional elimination game against Duke in 2019.

In the 2021 MLB Draft, Leiter was drafted second overall by the Rangers and Rocker was selected 10th overall by the Mets. However, Rocker failed to sign after a physical raised concerns. He had shoulder surgery that fall and then pitched in an independent league before being drafted again, No. 3 overall, by the Rangers in 2022.

Rocker made five minor league starts in 2022 and six in 2023 before going down with an injury that required Tommy John surgery. He finally returned to the mound in July and dazzled, putting up an 0.46 ERA in five starts in Double-A and a 1.80 ERA in two starts in Triple-A.

Although the Rangers originally said they would not call up Rocker in 2024, they later reversed the decision.

The Rangers will face the Mariners on Thursday when Rocker makes his debut. The game will be at 8:40 p.m. CT and shown on ROOT Sports in the Seattle area and Bally Sports Southwest in the Dallas area. Fans from outside either of those areas can watch on MLB.tv.

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Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X, formerly Twitter, @aria_gerson.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Kumar Rocker: Rangers pitcher makes MLB debut vs Mariners Thursday