Make no mistake about it, the Rangers’ Major League team is bad. If you are a Rangers fan, what was even more discouraging is that their minor league system wasn’t very good either. You see, the Rangers’ development strategy has always been to draft and acquire athletic, high upside players and see if you can create stars. With few exceptions (Joey Gallo being one), the plan did not work. In reviewing the system, they have a better mix of high floor players that should help the Major League team quickly to complement their existing cadre of “go for broke and hope it works” players.
Jack Leiter is the perfect example. The Rangers could have selected one of several high-end high school middle infielders with the second overall pick last June, but instead, they selected Leiter. He’s going to be a fine Major Leaguer, a potential solid number two pitcher, but it’s doubtful he’ll compete for Cy Young awards. More importantly, the floor is a number three or four starter. Josh Jung, Justin Foscue, and Dustin Harris have a similar ceiling. Jung is ready for Texas and Leiter won’t take long. Of course, there is Ezekiel Duran, Evan Carter, LuisAngel Acuna, etc… who could turn out to be stars, and maybe one or two will, but history says that most will not.
If you’re a Rangers fan, you need to be patient as they are just getting things together. But, I do like the system much better than in previous years. From my POV, they are finally pointed in the right direction.
Prospect Quick Shot
- Top Prospect: Jack Leiter
- Biggest Mover: Dustin Harris
- Emerging Prospect: Maximo Acosta
