19 articles
TEX • Catcher • #11
about 2 months ago
Higashioka had drawn a walk in the game before bringing the Rangers to within a run with a solo homer off Calvin Faucher in the ninth inning. The 35-year-old backstop is up to 11 homers and 47 RBI while slashing .247/.297/.414 across 316 plate appearances.
TEX • Catcher • #11
3 months ago
Higashioka’s homer came off an Oswald Peraza eephus in the eight-run seventh. It gave the Rangers three different players with five RBI in Higashioka, Adolis García and Joc Pederson. That ties a record, having been done nine times before. It last happened in 2022, when the Jays had Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Danny Jansen and Raimel Tapia get there against the Red Sox.
TEX • Catcher • #11
3 months ago
Higashioka remains on the bench as he deals with a minor hamstring injury. It’ll be Jonah Heim continuing to handle the catching duties.
Source: MLB.com
TEX • Catcher • #11
3 months ago
Higashioka’s home run was his eighth of the season. The 35-year-old backup catcher hit a three-run home run off Chris Bassitt in the second inning to give the Rangers the early lead. Higashioka is hitting .259 with a .728 OPS and 33 RBI this year.
TEX • Catcher • #11
3 months ago
Higashioka launched a two-run homer off Luis Castillo to give Texas a 2-0 lead in the third inning. He drove in another run with an RBI single off Matt Brash in the 10th. Higashioka has put together a solid if unspectacular season in 2025 with a .269 average, .747 OPS, seven homers and 30 RBI.
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
Higashioka took Yusei Kikuchi deep for a solo homer in the fourth inning to put the Rangers on the board. He then singled and scored in the sixth before slugging his second home run of the game off Connor Brogdon in the eighth. The 35-year-old backstop is hitting .263/.310/.409 with six homers and 27 RBI across 200 plate appearances.
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
There was optimism Higashioka would be ready for Monday’s series opener after sitting out four straight contest. The 35-year-old veteran backstop was available to pinch-hit during Sunday’s game against Atlanta. It’ll be Jonah Heim continuing to handle the catching duties for now.
Source: MLB.com
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
Rangers manager Bruce Bochy told reporters Higashioka is available to pinch-hit, but the 35-year-old backstop remains out of the lineup for the fourth consecutive game as he works his way back from a mild hamstring strain that he suffered earlier this week. It’ll be Jonah Heim continuing to handle the catching duties with Cody Freeman serving as the emergency backup.
Source: MLB.com
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
No surprise here as the Rangers are trying to give Higashioka as much time as possible to recover from a low-grade hamstring strain. It doesn’t sound like he’ll require a trip to the injured list at this juncture. Jonah Heim will continue handling the catching duties with Cody Freeman as the emergency backup.
Source: MLB.com
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Wednesday that they’re going to give Higashioka a chance to avoid the injured list, but he’s not going to be available for at least a couple days. It’ll be rookie Cody Freeman pressed into emergency duty, if necessary. The positive news here is that it’s a relatively mild strain.
Source: Kennedi Landry
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
The 35-year-old backstop started a rally in the eighth inning with a one-out double into the right field corner off of Tommy Kahnle. He was then replaced by a pinch runner who ultimately scored the go-ahead run. With his two-hit attack, Higashioka is now slashing .249/.301/.373 with four homers, 25 RBI and a pair of stolen bases on the season.
TEX • Catcher • #11
4 months ago
Higashioka homered off Josh Hader in the ninth inning with two outs to keep the game going, but the Rangers were unable to complete the comeback. The 35-year-old has done a nice job behind the plate for Texas, but his .253/.290/.358 slash along with four homers and 25 RBI doesn’t do much from a fantasy perspective.
TEX • Catcher • #11
5 months ago
The 35-year-old backstop delivered a two-run single off of Simeon Woods Richardson in the fourth inning that extended the Rangers’ early advantage to 3-0. He then added a two-run double the following frame and scored on a run-scoring single off the bat of Josh Smith. Higashioka also plated the game’s final run with a ground out in the eighth inning. He has struggled in a reserve role for the Rangers, hitting .233/.282/.320 with one homer and 15 RBI in his first 110 plate appearances on the season.
TEX • Catcher • #11
6 months ago
Higashioka has been out of action since the start of May. The backstop will likely need a handful of rehab games, and if all goes well, there’s a good chance he’s back at some point next week with the Rangers.
TEX • Catcher • #11
7 months ago
Higashioka reported tightness in that intercostal area, and the Rangers won’t play shorthanded. There’s a decent chance he’ll be back in the early portion of May, but for now, catching duties belong to Jonah Heim and Tucker Barnhart.
TEX • Catcher • #11
7 months ago
MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry reports Higashioka may require a trip to the injured list, but that hasn’t happened yet. The Rangers are bringing veteran Tucker Barnhart up from the minors as emergency catching depth behind starter Jonah Heim.
Source: Kennedi Landry
TEX • Catcher • #11
7 months ago
Higashioka put the Rangers on the board against Roki Sasaki with a two-run blast in the third inning for his first home run of the season. He later added a base hit in the fifth. The two hits and home run bring the 34-year-old’s slash line to .278/.316/.444 with five RBI over 38 plate appearances.
TEX • Catcher • #11
7 months ago
It’s just the second time this season that’s happened. Jonah Heim is starting tonight, too, as he’s DHing against the lefty. While Heim and Higashioka split time pretty evenly over the first 10 days, Heim is getting more at-bats now; he’s started seven of eight games between catcher and DH.