Round Rock RHP Jack Leiter Named PCL Pitcher of the Year

ROUND ROCK, Texas – Minor League Baseball announced league awards and All-Stars for the Pacific Coast League on Wednesday afternoon. Round Rock Express RHP Jack Leiter was named PCL Pitcher of the Year. Leiter was the lone member of the Express to be named a PCL All-Star.

Leiter joins LHP Cody Bradford (2023), RHP Bud Norris (2009) and RHP Jason Hirsh (2006) as the only players in E-Train history to win the award. The right-hander earns the honor after going 6-4 with a 3.51 ERA (30 ER/77.0 IP) with 35 walks and 110 strikeouts. Opponents hit just .217 against Leiter and he struck out 33.3 percent of the batters he faced.

He finished the season 10^th in the PCL in strikeouts despite pitching in just 77.0 innings. All nine pitchers in front of him went 104.2 innings or more. Among PCL pitchers with at least 60.0 innings, his 12.86 strikeouts per nine innings figure is first in the league.

Leiter opened the 2024 season with the E-Train. In his first outing of the year, he moved to a bullpen role as Texas Rangers RHP Michael Lorenzen was making a Major League rehab start for the Express. Leiter entered in the fourth inning and went 5.0 innings while allowing only two earned runs with two hits, zero walks and nine strikeouts. He retired the first 13 he faced and at one point struck out five consecutive batters.

He appeared in three games with two starts before making his Major League debut in a spot start on April 18 at Detroit. Upon returning to the Express, he took home PCL Pitcher of the Week honors from April 22-28. He earned a no-decision as he threw 6.0 shutout innings in his start against the Salt Lake Bees (Los Angeles Angels affiliate) on April 25. He allowed just one hit while walking three and striking out eight as he combined with RHP Aidan Anderson for a one-hitter.

The 24-year-old returned to the big leagues for two more starts on May 8 and May 14 before being optioned to the Express and spending May 15-August 28 in a Round Rock uniform. Leiter dazzled on August 15 against the Albuquerque Isotopes (Colorado Rockies affiliate) when he went 3.2 innings with one earned run, one walk and a career-high 11 strikeouts. All 11 of his outs came via the strikeout. Leiter threw 41 of 62 pitches for strikes while 15 of his 34 fastballs were clocked at 99 miles per hour or higher. He finished the 2024 season making five appearances and two starts with the Rangers.

Leiter was selected second overall in the 2021 MLB Draft out of Vanderbilt University. He grew up in Summit, New Jersey where he went on to win New Jersey Gatorade High School Player of the Year at Delbarton School. His father, Al, pitched 19 seasons in the Major Leagues and was a two-time World Series Champion.

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