José Ramón Leclerc (born December 19, 1993) is a Dominican professional baseball relief pitcher for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2016.

Early life

José Ramón Leclerc was born on December 19, 1993, in Esperanza, Dominican Republic.

Professional career

Minor leagues

Leclerc signed with the Texas Rangers as an international free agent on November 20, 2010. Leclerc made his professional debut in 2011 with the DSL Rangers, posting a 3–1 win–loss record with a 2.36 earned run average (ERA) and 27

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

. He returned to the DSL Rangers for the 2012 season, pitching to a 3–1 record, a 1.54 ERA, and 41 strikeouts in innings. In 2013, Leclerc pitched for the Hickory Crawdads of the Class A South Atlantic League. He had a 3–4 record with a 3.36 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 59 innings. He spent the 2014 season with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League and finished the season with a 4–1 record with a 3.30 ERA and 79 strikeouts in innings. Leclerc was worked as a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

for the Frisco RoughRiders of the Class AA Texas League in 2015. He struggled to a 6–8 record with 5.77 ERA and 98 strikeouts in 103 innings. The Rangers added Leclerc to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, and ...

after the 2015 season. He began the 2016 season with Frisco, posting a 0–5 record with a 3.52 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 23 innings. He received a midseason promotion to the Round Rock Express of the Class AAA

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

, where he posted a 2–2 record with a 2.72 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 43 innings.

Texas Rangers (2016–2020, 2022–present)

The Rangers promoted Leclerc to the major leagues on July 5, 2016. In all, Leclerc posted a 0–0 record with a 1.80 ERA, 15 strikeouts, and 13 walks in 15 innings (12 games) of major league action. Leclerc made the Texas Rangers' 2017

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

roster out of

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

. He earned his first career save April 12 vs. Los Angeles Angels, entering the game with one out and a runner on second in the 8th inning with a 6–3 lead before striking out

Mike Trout Michael Nelson Trout (born August 7, 1991) is an American professional baseball center fielder for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). Trout is a ten-time MLB All-Star, three-time American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) ...

and getting

Albert Pujols José Alberto Pujols Alcántara () (); born January 16, 1980) is a Dominican-American former professional baseball first baseman, designated hitter and third baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "The Machine", ...

to fly out. He appeared in ten games before going on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

on May 9 with a sprained right index finger. Before going on the disabled list, Leclerc recorded 18 strikeouts in innings pitched. Leclerc finished the 2017 season posting a 2–3 record with a 3.94 ERA and 60 strikeouts in innings. In 2018, Leclerc split the month of April between the Rangers bullpen and Round Rock, returning to the major league roster for good on April 30. In August, after the Rangers traded Keone Kela to the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

, Leclerc became the Rangers' closer. Leclerc produced his best season to date in 2018, producing a 2–3 record, 1.56 ERA, 85 strikeouts, and 12 saves in innings pitched. Leclerc was named the 2018 Rangers' Pitcher of the Year by the Dallas-Fort Worth chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. On March 6, 2019, the Rangers signed Leclerc to a four-year contract extension through the 2022 season, with club options for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. The deal was worth $14.75 million guaranteed over four years, with $12.25 million possible over the two option seasons. In 2019, Leclerc went 2–4 with a 4.33 ERA, 100 strikeouts, and 14 saves over innings. In 2020, Leclerc pitched in only 2 games due to the pandemic. On March 29, 2021, it was announced that Leclerc would undergo

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...

and miss the 2021 season. On March 30, Leclerc was placed on the 60-day injured list. After completing rehab, Leclerc returned to MLB action in June 2022. That season he went 0–3 with a 2.83 ERA, 54 strikeouts, and seven saves over innings. In the 2023 postseason, Leclerc set an MLB record by becoming the first pitcher to close his team's first seven games of the postseason. He threw innings, allowed just one run, and recorded three saves over that span. On October 28, Leclerc made his World Series debut, pitching two innings and earning the win as the Rangers defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks in extra innings. He won his first World Series with the 2023 Rangers.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leclerc, Jose 1993 births Living people People from Valverde Province Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Major League Baseball pitchers Texas Rangers players Dominican Summer League Rangers players Hickory Crawdads players Myrtle Beach Pelicans players Gigantes del Cibao players Frisco RoughRiders players Round Rock Express players