The Rangers’ system has a lot of ceiling to it, but the majority of those high-ceiling guys are either far away from the majors or haven’t performed up to their abilities yet. The optimist would say they could make a big, system-wide jump at any moment.
The Top 10
1. Leody Taveras, OF (Top 100 rank: No. 37)
From the Top 100: Taveras was all potential but very little production before 2019, although he didn’t even turn 20 until the end of the 2018 season and had already spent a full year in High A. Last year, repeating that level, he started to convert all the contact he makes into performance, hitting .294/.368/.376 and earning a midyear promotion to Double A, where he hit .265/.320/.375 without any decrease in contact rate. Taveras is a plus defender in center field, potentially a 70, and a plus runner who stole 31 bases last year but needs to be more efficient at base stealing. He’s been young for every level where he’s played, spending a full year in Low A at age 18 in 2017, so the lack of power and mediocre BABIPs before last year were not surprising, but now he’s reached an age where he should be adding strength to drive the ball more. The progress in 2019, aided by some small adjustments the Rangers’ player development staff has helped Taveras make, restores much of the optimism that he’ll get to his ceiling as a top-of-the-order center fielder who hits for average and gets on base, without power, but with elite defense and value on the basepaths.
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2. Josh Jung, 3B (Top 100 rank: No. 85)
From the Top 100: Jung was the eighth overall pick in 2019 out of Texas Tech, with a strong track record of hitting for average with strong OBPs in college, all of which carried over into his first pro summer with the Rangers. Jung stays very balanced through contact with some loft in his finish for line-drive power and some rotation to gain power from his legs. He’s a third baseman now, capable of staying there in the long term with work, with good hands but without quickness or great lateral agility. He’s hit everywhere he’s played so far, and struck out just 16.2 percent of the time with Low-A Hickory, even though he’d come straight from hitting with composite bats all spring. His upside is really a function of his power; he seems very likely to hit and to at least be adequate defensively at third. At 15-20 homers, where he seems to be now, he’d be a solid regular; at 25+ homers, the Rangers would have an All-Star. Jung’s power potential is an unanswered question. He shows good plate discipline but struggles a bit against better-quality stuff.
3. Joe Palumbo, LHP (Just missed)
From the just-missed list: Palumbo missed a lot of bats last year — 33 percent of hitters he faced in Double A and Triple A, then 25 percent in the majors – but walked more guys, and in the majors had trouble throwing strikes. He averaged 94 mph on his fastball in the majors and has big action on his changeup, pairing it with a curveball that has depth but just average spin. He missed bats with the fastball more than his secondary stuff, although he gets a lot of foul balls off his change. Ultimately, it’s going to come down to command and control — he had more of it in 2018, coming back from Tommy John, than he did in 2019. Palumbo has filled out his frame well in the last three years and looks more durable now as a starter than he did before the injury. If he gets back to throwing more strikes, especially with his fastball, he’d be back to a fourth starter (or better) projection.
4. Hans Crouse, RHP
Crouse brings starter stuff but a high-effort, high-intensity delivery, and while he actually cut his walk rate from 2018 to 2019, his lack of a third pitch really got to him, as lefties tattooed him last year. He may never have the command to start anyway, but for developmental reasons he should stay in that role for the time being.
5. Cole Winn, RHP
Winn was a big command guy out of high school, so it was a shock that he struggled with walks in his pro debut in 2019 in Low A, giving up 39 free passes in 68.2 innings across 18 pitch-limited starts. He has the purest starter’s delivery of the Rangers’ main pitching prospects and the three solid-average to above-average pitches in his fastball, curve, and changeup.
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6. Sam Huff, C
Huff repeated Low A as a 21-year-old and mashed 15 homers in 30 games, so he moved up to High A where he was just okay, hitting .262/.326/.425 for Down East, with a 29 percent strikeout rate and just a 6.2 percent unintentional walk rate. He has 80 raw power and catches well enough, but there’s far too much swing-and-miss here to project an average regular.
7. Nick Solak, IF
If Solak could play a skill position he’d be a regular; instead, he’s more of a 400-500 at-bat, multi-position guy, making a lot of low line-drive contact, enough to hit for average and get him on base at a good clip. He’s not good at second or third but could play either on a part-time basis as well as either outfield corner.
8. Anderson Tejeda, SS
Tejeda started switch-hitting last year, and it seemed like it was helping him against left-handed pitchers. But he injured his non-throwing shoulder on a slide and didn’t come back after May 29th. He can really throw and has good instincts at short, along with plus raw power, although breaking ball recognition has always been a problem. He has everyday upside assuming he’s not restricted after the injury.
9. Jonathan Ornelas, SS/2B
Ornelas had a solid full-season debut at 19 last year for Hickory, with a good approach and some early signs of his power potential, although it’s mostly still projection at this point as the Rangers wait for him to fill out. He’s still primarily a shortstop but is likely to end up at another spot, with third base a good fit for his arm strength but second also a possibility.
10. Osleivis Basabe, SS
Basabe, whose cousins Luis Alexander and Luis Alejandro are also in pro ball, is a strong, athletic kid who already makes hard contact at age 18 and rarely strikes out. He’s at short now but probably moves to third base, although he’s played some second and has the speed to try center.
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The next 10
11. Davis Wendzel, 3B
The Rangers’ second pick in 2019 out of Baylor, Wendzel is a big power bat with a good idea at the plate, and has the arm and footwork to stay at third base. He barely played after signing due to a thumb injury.
12. Maximo Acosta, SS
Acosta signed in July for $1.65 million and has already earned comparisons to Gleyber Torres, another Venezuelan shortstop who took home a seven-figure bonus. He’s very gifted physically, a plus runner with a plus arm and possibly future-plus defense at short, but it’s his feel for the game that stands out and gives him every chance to be an above-average hitter as well.
13. Sherten Apostel, 3B
Apostel is a Three True Outcomes kind of guy, with a good walk rate, a lot of swing and miss and big power. He has an idea at the plate but not enough to know which pitches to attack yet. He’s got the arm for third but may be outgrowing the position.
14. Jonathan Hernandez, RHP
Hernandez has velocity and a power slider, but he doesn’t repeat his delivery and hasn’t shown close to average command or control, while his lack of a viable changeup meant lefties torched him in the majors. He has the size and arm strength to start and may have just been rushed to the majors at an age (22) when most kids are still in Double A.
15. Steele Walker, OF
Walker was the return for Nomar Mazara from the White Sox. He’s a contact hitter with fringe-average power who projects to move to a corner, making him more of a bench piece than a regular.
16. Bayron Lora, OF
Lora, who signed for $3.9 million with Texas in August, has 40-homer potential if he gets to it, posting huge exit velocities as an amateur, but his size and conditioning were concerns even before he signed. He has the arm and right now the athleticism to handle right field.
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17. Tyler Phillips, RHP
A 16th-round pick out of a New Jersey private school, Phillips has been extremely stingy with free passes while getting groundballs from his 6’5″ frame, with an average fastball and downer curveball. There’s effort in the delivery, with a stiff front leg, and he’s on the slight side for a starter, but he also doesn’t seem like his stuff will tick up in relief if he can’t stay in the rotation.
18. Yerry Rodriguez, RHP
Rodriguez had a breakout first half for low A Hickory, working up to 96-97 with good life and plenty of strikes, but sprained his UCL in July and was shut down for the year. It’s a reliever’s delivery with some stiffness at release and he doesn’t yet have an average breaking ball.
19. Josh Morgan, C
Morgan is a converted shortstop who’s looked good behind the plate, but missed all of 2019 except for one game due to a broken hamate bone and then a torn ligament in his wrist. He did rake in the Australian League this winter, and was the toughest hitter to strike out among those with at least 100 AB.
20. Ronny Henriquez, RHP
Henriques is 92-96 with good secondary characteristics and gets good spin on his curveball, filling the strike zone with both pitches. His delivery is free and easy, but at 5’10” and a listed weight of 155 pounds he’s really undersized for a starter.
Others of note
Brock Burke was on the original list, in the top ten, but will miss all of 2020 after labrum surgery, which has a lower success rate than the almost routine Tommy John surgery does. Burke needs a third pitch to get lefties out to be a starter, and his slider wasn’t as sharp in the majors in 2019 as it had been in 2018, before Texas traded for him as part of the Jurickson Profar three-team extravaganza. He fought some blisters last season, however, which might be why his breaking ball wasn’t as effective. With that he’s at least a good reliever, but he really needs to throw his changeup more in any role.
Right-hander Owen White was one of three major Rangers pitching prospects to undergo Tommy John surgery in 2019, along with Mason Englert and Cole Ragans (who had his second surgery before he was able to return from the first). White had been up to 93 as an amateur in 2018, and up to the mid-90s that fall in instructs, with a lot of projection and a promising curveball.
Injuries limited AJ Alexy to 19.1 awful innings in High A last year, but he didn’t have surgery; prior to the injury he was touching the upper 90s. Back in 2016, Twin Valley High School sent Alexy out for a 164-pitch outing. Draw your own conclusions.
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Keithron Moss doesn’t have a position and doesn’t run well, despite a great-looking body, but he makes very hard contact and has a good swing from either side of the plate.
Taylor Hearn has been up to 100 mph but missed most of the year with an elbow injury, never having surgery; when healthy he’d show a plus changeup but no average breaking ball and almost certainly has to go to the pen now.
Right-hander Ricky Vanasco has some of the best pure stuff in the system, hitting 99 last summer, but is just beginning to learn to pitch, with just 35-40 control right now.
Luisangel Acuña is Ronald’s younger brother, a 5’8″ shortstop with good zone control and very strong hands at the plate. Shortstop might be a reach but he could handle second and has the above-average speed for center.
Catcher David Garcia is a switch-hitter with plate discipline and a strong arm who held his own at age 19 in the advanced short-season Northwest League. He has a reasonable chance of becoming at least a big league backup; more would depend on his bat developing significantly from here.
2020 impact
Solak seems like the one player here likely to make an impact on the major-league roster this year. While Burke and Palumbo debuted last year, the Rangers have pushed them down the depth chart with the acquisitions of Corey Kluber, Kyle Gibson, and Jordan Lyles.
The fallen
Bubba Thompson was Texas’ first-round pick in 2017, a football and baseball star who was supposed to be more polished than the typical two-sport prospect, but he’s been completely befuddled by pro pitching, hitting .178/.261/.312. Because he was 19 at the draft, he’ll play at 22 already in 2019 and hasn’t performed in pro ball or reached Double A.
Sleeper
Ornelas may not have the flashy tools of some of their other prospects, but I like his swing and chance to hit while playing a skill position – and I still haven’t given up on Morgan’s chance to become an everyday catcher.
Photo of Josh Jung by Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
