Texas Rangers top 10 prospects for 2019

The Texas Rangers are entering into a rebuild process. Where do they start this rebuild as a farm system?

We are in our third offseason at Call to the Pen of putting together top 10 prospect lists for every organization in baseball. Today’s list is the Texas Rangers.

The Process

Our team prospect lists are compiled by Benjamin Chase, who has spent time doing plenty of watching via MiLB.tv of every organization in baseball along with talking to a very wide array of scouts who have seen players in person to hone his own opinion on players. That allows for a wide coverage on players from the Dominican Summer League all the way to the major leagues.

These lists are the opinion of Ben, and his process is heavily weighted on his own view, but also on trusted views of others. Typically, each system’s list of 10 is peeled down from a consideration list of 50-75 players. There will be some weight given to a player who is closer to the major leagues, but often these opinions will be different than some of the “major” lists out there. Feel free to comment at the end of the list with any questions you may have!

With that out of the way, let’s dig into today’s list:

Texas Rangers system review

Rangers list for 2017
Rangers list for 2018
Rangers 2018 minor league top performers

After a strong run of competition, including 5 trips to the playoffs over 7 seasons along with 2 trips to the World Series, the Texas Rangers are facing a time of extended rebuild. With their farm system in need of a major influx of talent, the Rangers could be making some big moves this winter.

Once a team that not only competed for the playoffs year after year, but also had one of the strongest farm systems in all of baseball, the Texas Rangers have fallen off in their depth and quality in their farm system over the last half-decade. The Rangers have been drafting premium athletes and premium velocity for years and signing the same. While those players frequently end up superstars when they succeed, they also fail much more frequently. That has been the case of late, and it’s left the Texas Rangers system in a place where a talent influx is needed.

That said, there are some excellent players at the low levels, and they could be the leaders of the next wave of talented players to lead the Rangers to competition.

Let’s start with the countdown, starting with a player that fell outside of the top 10, but was picked up in 2018 via the draft or international signing and is worthy of extra attention going into 2019…

10. Jonathan Hernandez, RHP

Birthday: 7/6/1996 (22)
Acquired: International Free Agent, January 2013
Level(s): high-A Down East, AA Frisco
Statistics: 8-6, 22 GS, 121 1/3 IP, 3.63 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 10.7% BB, 27% K

Long-armed and long-legged, though he’s only 6’2″, Jonathan Hernandez seemingly passed through the international market as a rare case where he was born in the United States in Memphis, but he moved to the Dominican and established residency to be signed as an international free agent at 16.

Hernandez has taken time to work his way up the system, spending two years in the DSL before coming stateside in 2015. He had a solid showing in 2017, but nothing like the impressive work he did in 2018 at high-A Down East, where he opened the 2018 season with a 2.20 ERA and 0.94 WHIP over the first 10 starts of his season, tossing 57 1/3 innings with a 17/77 BB/K ratio. After a rough beginning at AA, Hernandez settled in to finish that level on a hot streak.

Using a mid-90s fastball that can reach 99, Hernandez sets up hitters with tremendous spin and extension on his heater. The impressive movement that he gets on the pitch is a blessing and a curse at the same time, as he can see the pitch dance out of the zone if he’s off even a little in his mechanics.

Hernandez’s primary secondary pitch is a plus slider that generates plenty of swing and miss diving away from right-handed hitters. He saw significant strides in his change in 2018, though it’s still only flashing average. He also uses a curve rarely, but the velocity difference keeps hitters honest.

With his long limbs, Hernandez can get loose in his delivery and lose the zone, struggling more with control than command at those moments. When he’s right, he really orchestrates the ball exactly where he wants it throughout the zone on all of his pitches.

Taking a bit of time to adjust at each level leaves Hernandez turning 23 this season with just a half-season in the upper minors. He’ll likely open back at AA, and there’s definitely reliever risk with Hernandez, but if he can show well in 2019 as well and get a September look, he could make an impact in 2020.

9. Joe Palumbo, LHP

Birthday: 10/26/1994 (24)
Acquired: Draft, 30th round, 2013
Level(s): AZL Rangers, high-A Down East, AA Frisco
Statistics: 2-4, 11 GS, 45 1/3 IP, 2.78 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 5.4% BB, 31.7%

The Texas Rangers drafted a cold-weather lefty from New York high school in the 30th round in Joe Palumbo, expecting he’d likely head to a college instead, but they were pleased when he signed.

The only issue was, he didn’t really show the way that they expected for his first few years with the organization, making 16 starts as part of 40 appearances, throwing 121 innings with a 54/114 BB/K and a 3.12 ERA. Nothing bad, necessarily, but nothing eye-catching either.

Then Palumbo spent the entire 2016 season working as a swingman in low-A with Hickory, tossing 96 1/3 innings, with a 2.24 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and a 36/122 BB/K ratio, garnering a ton of attention. He moved up to high-A to open 2017, but after 3 dominant starts (0.66 ERA, 0.59 WHIP, and a 4/22 BB/K over 13 2/3 innings), he needed Tommy John surgery.

He came back in 2018, and he took time to get on the mound and pitch well, but once he did, he was dominant, finishing his year with two impressive starts in AA.

At his best, Palumbo has a mid-90s fastball with impressive life and deception in his delivery that allows the pitch to explode on hitters. He shows a change with good tumble that flashed above-average during the year, but his curve was more hit or miss in his feel for the pitch, which is fairly common for guys coming back on their first year after TJS.

Palumbo will open 2019 in AA, and if he can get the feel back for his once-plus curve to go with the rest of his stuff, he could work as a mid-rotation starter. Even with his curve not making it all the way back, he could be devastating out of the bullpen for the Texas Rangers.

8. Cole Ragans, LHP

Birthday: 12/12/1997 (20)
Acquired: Draft, 1st round, 2016
Level(s): Did not pitch
Statistics: Did not pitch

A late-riser in the 2016 draft, the Texas Rangers were happy to see Ragans last to the 30th overall selection out of high school in Florida. While he has a very high ceiling, concerns about his arm proved to be an issue in 2018 as he missed the entire year with Tommy John surgery.

While Ragans doesn’t feature a high-velocity fastball, the pitch is easily a plus offering, working in the low-90s with incredible spin that seems to allow the pitch to just continue rising up and over hitters’ bats. Ragans has natural deception in his delivery as well, so hitters don’t see the ball until its coming out of his 3/4 arm slot.

Ragans has a lean build on his 6’4″ frame, but he has the shoulders and hips to add to his frame, so there is a chance that he could add some velocity as he works with professional strength and conditioning.

Paired with his high-spin fastball is a change that seems to fall off the table in its path to the plate, leaving hitters completely baffled. That combination allowed for Ragans to blow away hitters in short-season Spokane to the tune of a 34.8% rate in 2017. He mixes in a curve that is more of a get-over pitch right now, but it flashes plus and could be an above-average offering down the line as well.

Many have compared Ragans to former Texas Rangers starter Cole Hamels, and there are some definite similarities. Ragans projects as a mid-rotation guy that could play up with pitchability and sequencing of his stuff on the mound. The Rangers will ease him back slowly in 2019.

7. Anderson Tejeda, SS

Birthday: 5/1/1998 (20)
Acquired: International free agent, September 2014
Level(s): high-A Down East
Statistics: .259/.331/.439, 121 G, 522 PA, 17 2B, 5 3B, 19 HR, 11 SB, 9.4% BB, 27.2% K

In talking with scouts on Anderson Tejeda in 2018, you get a very different answer depending on whether the scout had eyes on Tejeda in the first half or second half of the season. In video, it jumps out so strongly that you can nearly pick out the time of year a highlight on YouTube was filmed by the way Tejeda is playing simply by watching his game video throughout the year.

Tejeda’s went on the DL on July 9th. At that time, he was hitting .255/.320/.447 with 15 doubles, 3 triples, 14 home runs, and 8 steals, posting an 8.5% BB rate and a 28.1% K rate. When he returned, from July 20th through the end of the season, Tejeda hit .268/.358/.420 with 5 home runs and 3 steals, posting an 11.3% walk rate, and a 25.2% strikeout rate.

The second half of Tejeda was simply more focused both at the plate and in the field. He made 4 errors from July 20 on in 36 games after making 15 errors in 85 games before his DL time, cutting his errors in half. His walk rate was up by 3% while the strikeout rate was down by the same 3%.

If Tejeda can carry that play after his DL time into 2019, he could move quickly in 2019, likely starting in AA and possibly working his way up to AAA with some MLB time by the end of the year. That’s when he’ll run into the issue of being “blocked” at the MLB level.

If the Texas Rangers are fully in rebuild mode and Tejeda pushes forward with his 2018 end-of-year performance in 2019, the Rangers could begin exploring the market for Rougned Odor and Elvis Andrus.

6. Taylor Hearn, LHP

Birthday: 8/30/1994 (24)
Acquired: Trade with Pittsburgh Pirates, July 2018
Level(s): AA Altoona, AA Frisco
Statistics: 4-8, 24 GS, 129 IP, 3.49 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 8.8% BB, 26.2% K

When you have arm talent like Taylor Hearn from the left side, there will always be teams very interested in your services. Hearn was drafted in four consecutive drafts by four teams before finally signing as a 5th round selection by the Washington Nationals in 2015.

Hearn’s raw stuff has often been missed due to a lack of strikeout rate, but what was impressive early on in his career was that with a blazing fastball from the left side, Hearn was able to maintain a 15/45 BB/K over 48 innings in his draft season before posting a 23/75 BB/K over 51 2/3 innings in his second season.

Hearn was traded to the Pirates as part of the return for closer Mark Melancon at the 2016 trade deadline. The second piece of the deal alongside now-closer Felipe Vazquez, many overlooked Hearn in that finish to the 2016 season.

He came out in 2017 and while his ERA wasn’t great, at 4.12, he posted a 1.14 WHIP, and a 37/109 BB/K over 89 1/3 innings. This season, Hearn was in the midst of another impressive season when he was traded to the Texas Rangers for Keone Kela. Combined, he tossed 129 innings, with a 3.49 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and a 47/140 BB/K.

Hearn uses a mid-90s fastball that can reach 98-99 and appears even faster with his incredible extension from his 6’5″ height and long arms. He’s reworked his slider grip and the pitch now flashes plus and sits average while his change is also an average pitch, flashing above-average.

As Hearn improves his command, he can achieve his mid-rotation expectation. Hearn still could work for the Texas Rangers as an elite bullpen option or even achieve a higher ceiling as a potential #2. He’ll open in AAA in 2019.

5. Bubba Thompson, OF

Birthday: 6/9/1998 (20)
Acquired: Draft, 1st round, 2017
Level(s): low-A Hickory
Statistics: .289/.344/.446, 84 G, 363 PA, 18 2B, 5 3B, 8 HR, 32 SB, 6.3% BB, 28.7% K

Like many Texas Rangers draft picks, Bubba Thompson was drafted with extreme athleticism, a first-division athlete that had offers to play high-level Division I football as a quarterback out of high school in Alabama.

Thompson has absolutely flashed the athleticism, with 114 total games in his minor league career, hitting 43 extra base hits and stealing 37 bases. He’s also shown his lack of polish with a low walk rate.

While his polish on defense is not great, Thompson’s speed allows him to overcome that for now. He doesn’t have the greatest arm, but he does understand how to position and is accurate with his throws.

Thompson can put on a show in batting practice with his plus raw power, but he struggles with pitch and zone recognition currently. If he can work to polish his knowledge of the zone and his recognition of spin, he could tap into that power more frequently, and he could have 20 home run, 30 steal sort of upside.

The Texas Rangers are in no rush to push Thompson, so it would not surprise if he opened the season with Hickory. He should have a chance to work his way up through high-A in 2019, reaching the upper minors in 2020.

4. Cole Winn, RHP

Birthday: 11/25/1999 (19)
Acquired: Draft, 1st round, 2018
Level(s): Did not pitch
Statistics: Did not pitch

After turning heads in Colorado, Cole Winn looked to raise his profile by transferring to school in California. He certainly did exactly that, as the righty was viewed as a fringe first-round talent after the showcase season, but after he performed very strong against top competition in the California prep ranks and saw his stuff continue to tick up, he began hearing his name discussed among the top high school arms in the 2018 draft until he was drafted by the Texas Rangers 15th overall.

Winn did not pitch after being selected until fall instructs, but he showed very well at instructs, and he could be in line to at least open at short-season Spokane if not all the way to low-A Hickory to open 2019.

On the hill, Winn works with a mid-90s fastball that sits 93-94 and can touch 96-97 that he commands very well and gets some excellent late life. His primary secondary pitch is a curve with incredible spin rate that gets hitters looking silly as they swing around the pitch. He still struggles to locate the pitch, but as he builds that ability, he will rocket up the farm system.

Winn uses his slider and change infrequently, but both have flashed very well. The slider has potential to be above-average with short bite. His change has solid sink and could develop into a plus pitch with refinement.

This is an exciting young arm with an easy delivery that he repeats well. The Texas Rangers will handle him with care, but Winn could build into an elite pitcher in the end.

3. Hans Crouse, RHP

Birthday: 9/15/1998 (20)
Acquired: Draft, 1st round, 2017
Level(s): short-season A-ball Spokane, low-A Hickory
Statistics: 5-3, 13 GS, 54 2/3 IP, 2.47 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 8.4% BB, 27.3% K

After the summer of 2016, Hans Crouse had plenty of words written about him, both positive and negative, going into his senior year of high school. He performed very well, continuing the narrative that persisted from the summer that Crouse was a bulldog on the mound with tremendous stuff, but his delivery was quirky and could be a cause for concern.

The Texas Rangers jumped on Crouse in the second round of the 2017 draft and have been very glad they did. He completely dominated hitters in the Arizona Rookie League in his draft season.

The Rangers were cautious with Crouse, letting him start in extended spring before having him start with short-season Spokane. The Northwest League was not up to par with Crouse, however, as he dominated the league and moved up to low-A Hickory to finish his first pro season.

Crouse is a throwback pitcher in that he would prefer to complete every game he starts, and he has the type of stuff that he could come out with a win most of the time doing so. He leads off his repertoire with a fastball that has bumped triple digits but works best around 93-94 with incredible movement low and spin rate high, leading to plenty of feeble swings all around the zone.

He compliments the fastball with a plus slider with a late break that mimics the fastball well. He improved his change very well in 2018, and it now sits as an average offering and flashes above-average.

Crouse throws off hitters with a delivery that many have compared to Clayton Kershaw or Johnny Cueto, with some stops and starts along the way along with some twists and turns as well. He does, however, have impressive athleticism, and he repeats the delivery very well, showing impressive command and control for someone with an “abnormal” delivery.

The Texas Rangers will most likely open Crouse in low-A Hickory, but with his stuff, he could be on the move up the ladder quickly.

2. Julio Pablo Martinez, OF

Birthday: 3/21/1996 (22)
Acquired: International free agent, March 2018
Level(s): DSL Rangers 1, short-season A-ball Spokane
Statistics: .266/.378/.457, 67 G, 306 PA, 10 2B, 6 3B, 9 HR, 13 SB, 14.1% BB, 24.8% K

An elite player in Cuba on teenage traveling teams, Julio Pablo Martinez was highly-regarded by many teams in the game before defecting and becoming eligible to sign last spring. He signed with the Texas Rangers for $2.8 million.

The Rangers handled Martinez’s transition slowly, allowing him to work in the Dominican Summer League to acclimate him to pro ball before coming stateside and finishing the year with short-season Spokane.

Martinez stands just 5’9″ tall, but he knows how to use his frame to generate power out of that limited size. He can hit for raw power that grades out as plus. While he plays center field for now, he will likely move to left field as he is a plus runner, but he has an average arm and average reads off of the bat.

The Texas Rangers will likely push Martinez up to full-season ball in 2019, and he could end up moving quickly as he gets his feet under him in the pro game after hitting well in the Arizona Fall League, putting up a .327/.397/.519 line with 4 steals.

1. Leody Taveras, OF

Birthday: 9/8/1998 (20)
Acquired: International free agent, July 2015
Level(s): high-A Down East
Statistics: .246/.312/.332, 132 G, 580 PA, 16 2B, 7 3B, 5 HR, 19 SB, 8.8% BB, 16.6% K

As I mentioned previously, I can understand any of the top three ranked in any order, but for me, way too much of the response on Leody Taveras has been much too reactionary to me.

Taveras was originally signed by the Texas Rangers in 2015 with a big class for $2.1 million, and he has been pushed aggressively. He spent all of last season at high-A at just 19 years old.

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The top skill for Taveras overall comes with a glove on his hand. He has excellent instincts in center field, and he uses his plus speed to get to balls. Add in a plus arm as well, and he rates overall as a double-plus defender.

The plate is where the center fielder has been getting some mixed reviews, but much of that, at least in my eyes, can be traced to pushing him up the ladder before he’s really been able to grow into his body. Taveras does well with zone recognition, but he has an aggressive focus with contact, so he doesn’t always get the “best” pitch of a plate appearance, often going for the first one in the zone.

Taveras has the frame that could add another 10-15 pounds of muscle and still maintain his plus speed. His bat has already shown raw power that could translate to a guy who could hit 30 doubles and double-digit home runs as well as flying around the bases.

Most likely, the Texas Rangers will continue to push Leody Taveras in 2019, moving him up to AA, but he could use some time to get his body gathered underneath him or he may end up being a guy that disappoints in Texas and goes somewhere else and turns into an All-Star player.

The Texas Rangers are at the very beginning of a rebuild, and Rangers fans could have a long process ahead of them. There are some impressive young players, but they are multiple years away from the major leagues at this time.