The Texas Rangers recalled left-hander Adam Macko from Triple-A Round Rock on Friday and optioned left-hander Robby Ahlstrom to the Express, the club announced in a pregame press release ahead of the Milwaukee series opener.
Macko wears No. 71 and was summoned as another lefty for a bullpen that the Dallas Morning News' Evan Grant wrote has been leaking oil in August. Ahlstrom, optioned after the Aug. 26 game, had allowed runs in four of his last six outings, including five earned runs in one inning Wednesday at the Chicago White Sox with a pair of home runs, according to the club release and Grant's report.
Deadline lefty, Slovakia first
Macko is 25. Texas acquired him from Toronto on Aug. 3 for infielder-outfielder Josh Smith. The club release, citing Baseball America, listed him as the Rangers' No. 23 prospect and said he was seeking his Rangers debut. The club said he is the first modern-day major leaguer born in Slovakia and would become the first Slovakia-born player to appear for the Rangers or Washington Senators. Seattle drafted him in the seventh round in 2019 out of Vauxhall High School in Vauxhall, Alberta.
With the Blue Jays this season he worked 22 games with one start, going 2-0 with three holds and a 4.91 ERA over 22 innings, walking 10 and striking out 23. His major league debut came May 18 at the Yankees, and he earned his first win May 21 at Yankee Stadium. Toronto had obtained him with Erik Swanson from Seattle for Teoscar Hernandez on Nov. 16, 2022.
At Round Rock he made five appearances, including one start, with a 5.63 ERA over eight innings, three walks and eight strikeouts. His last outing before the recall was a start Friday at El Paso: three scoreless innings, no walks and four strikeouts on 49 pitches. Grant noted the club left open that Macko, a starter for most of three minor league seasons, could start again later.
He also threw 2.1 scoreless innings for Team Canada in the 2026 World Baseball Classic across three relief appearances. One of his WBC teammates was Rangers right-hander Cal Quantrill.
Debut night, Quantrill next
Macko made his Rangers debut in relief Friday in a loss at American Family Field. ESPN's boxscore lists him for 1.1 innings, three hits, two earned runs, one walk and one strikeout. The 5.40 ERA shown in that box is after the Rangers outing, separate from the 4.91 mark he posted in Toronto.
Ahlstrom, selected June 1, had pitched 36 relief games for Texas at 3-1 with a 6.03 ERA over 31.1 innings. He strung together 13 consecutive scoreless outings from July 18 through Aug. 10 before the recent slide, the club said. Grant reported 10 runs allowed in five and one-third innings over the last two weeks, including three home runs.
