Ezequiel

Duran

Duran added to his family, and now will have a chance to add some hits to his final stats over the final three games against the Angels.

Duran will be away from the team for a maximum of three days while he deals with things more important than baseball. He’s hitting .253 with three home runs and 20 RBI on the season.

Duran is getting some extra playing time for the Rangers with Corey Seager hurt, but he’s not taking advantage of the opportunity. He’s currently at .242/.285/.320 in 260 plate appearances. He’s still just 25, he’s versatile and he was pretty good in hitting .276/.324/.423 in 439 plate appearances last year, but it’s easy to imagine him getting tossed into a trade this winter.

The Rangers placed Corey Seager on the injured list with a hip injury Wednesday, so Texas will be without both of their star middle infielders for this contest. Semien’s day off appears to be just a day of rest, and Ezequiel Duran will be the starting second baseman in his absence.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy told reporters that Jung has issues throwing the baseball right now because of the cut, so the Rangers will have Ezequiel Duran play third and move Robbie Grossman from DH to left field. Bochy also said that he expects Jung to be able to return to the hot corner in the coming days.

That makes back-to-back days off for Langford. The rookie outfielder will sit for the series finale with the Josh Jung operating as the designated hitter and Ezequiel Duran starting in left field.

García is back in right field and batting fifth after sitting out Friday’s series opener. Meanwhile, rookie sensation Wyatt Langford is getting a rare day off on Saturday afternoon with Ezequiel Duran drawing a start in left field.

Duran will return to a bench role with the Rangers after hitting .256/.284/.387 with four homers and five steals in 18 games for Round Rock. He has just two homers and one steal in 58 games for the Rangers this season.

We thought this might happen when Josh Jung came off the IL, but the Rangers declined to wait that long. Duran was hitting .256/.294/.324 in 187 plate appearances this season, and with Josh Smith thriving, he wasn’t going to play much following Jung’s return. A stint in Triple-A shouldn’t hurt.

Smith did appear as a pinch-hitter against the Mariners in the Rangers’ loss to Seattle on Saturday, but he’ll begin Sunday’s game on the bench with Ezequiel Duran getting the start at third base. Smith should still be considered day-to-day.