Texas Rangers: Top 10 Rookie-Eligible Prospects for 2018
10. Michael Matuella, RHP
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 6/3/1994 (23)
2017 teams/levels played for: low-A Hickory Crawdads
2017 Stats: 21 G, 20 GS, 75 IP, 4.20 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 7% BB, 18.2% K
Info: Coming into his draft year with Duke, Matuella was considered one of the top arms in the entire nation, then he was injured and found to need Tommy John surgery, plummeting his draft stock.
The Texas Rangers took the risk and drafted Matuella in the third round in 2015. He spent nearly the entire 2016 season rehabbing, throwing just 3 innings in one appearance for his entire workload on the season.
The top end projection for Matuella is a front of the rotation type of pitcher
Matuella has a diagnosed back condition on top of his return from Tommy John that has certainly led to many questioning his future path, but he showed very well once he was on the hill this season.
The top end projection for Matuella is a front of the rotation type of pitcher with a fastball that can touch upper 90s and sits mid-90s. He has a power curve and a slider that both get a ton of weak contact and swing and miss. His fastball’s incredible life was starting to find its way into his change this season as well.
Getting back on the hill after TJS usually brings back velocity in the first year and better feel in the second year, and the feel on his pitches was certainly not quite there for Matuella in 2017, as his control was solid, evidenced by his low walk rate, but he was often missing his spots with pitches, leaving them too much in the heart of the plate or up in the zone from where he would like.
Matuella will open in high-A in 2018 most likely with an opportunity to jump up the system in a hurry once his feel returns on his pitches.
9. Yanio Perez, 1B/3B/OF
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 8/10/1995 (22)
2017 teams/levels played for: low-A Hickory Crawdads, high-A Down East Wood Ducks
2017 Stats: .280/.343/.434, 516 PA, 14 HR, 6 SB, 38/100 BB/K
Info: The Texas Rangers signed Perez after the 2016 season out of Cuba. The Rangers have had good luck in Cuba to this point, though they’ve typically not been finding “elite” players in that market.
Perez likely will fall short of that mark, though he’s already shown himself to be much more than many thought of him coming over to the states. Known as a first baseman in Cuba, Perez was expected to offer solid power and a good eye at the plate.
Instead, the Texas Rangers got a very good athlete out of Perez. While Perez won’t likely win any stolen base crowns, he has excellent top end speed and very good hands, which allowed him to play well at third base and both outfield corners this season in the Rangers system.
He also showed much more over-the-fence power than he was expected to offer, and he flashed his top-end speed in racking up extra base hits. Perez even impressed many scouts at the Arizona Fall League with his work around the bag at third base.
Where Perez will fit long-term is still to be determined, but at this point, he’s certainly added to his future options and shown that he can handle the transition to hitting in pro ball. He’ll likely open with AA Frisco in 2018, and he could push forward quickly if he continues his impressive performances.
Next: #7 and #8