Rangers Announce Seven Draft Signings
Texas Rangers first-round pick Kumar Rocker has officially signed, as the team announced his and six other signings on Tuesday.
The Rangers took 18 players in the 2022 MLB Draft and have until Aug. 1 to sign them all.
The Rangers made the announcement via tweet and didn’t indicate the terms. Rocker will be introduced at a press conference on Aug. 4.
Per several reports, Rocker had already agreed to a $5.2 million contract on draft night.
MLB.com’s reported that Rocker’s signing likely paves the way for the Rangers to sign fourth-round pick Brock Porter. Rocker’s agreement was reported by MLB.com last week.
The Rangers took Rocker No. 3 overall, a move that stunned some baseball observers because Rocker was the No. 10 overall pick of the New York Mets last season. But because the Mets weren’t fully aware of his medicals before they made the pick, Rocker remained unsigned and New York received a compensatory pick.
The official signing means the Rangers are confident about Rocker’s medicals.
Rocker went 28-10 with a 2.89 ERA over 42 games/39 starts across three seasons at Vanderbilt. He was a freshman on the Commodores' 2019 College World Series championship team, when he was selected winner of the CWS Most Outstanding Player.
After going unsigned, Rocker ended up playing professionally with the Tri-City Valley Cats of the Frontier League this season. He made five starts with Tri-City Valley, going 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA (3 ER/20.0 IP) and four walks against 32 strikeouts for a rate of 14.4 strikeouts per nine innings.
Rocker was the college teammate of Rangers No. 1 prospect Jack Leiter, who was taken No. 2 overall last July. Woodward said he believes Rocker is the closest prospect in the draft to the Majors.
The Rangers announced six other signings — RHP Matt Brosky (eighth round) SS Griffin Cheney (ninth), OF Josh Hatcher (10th), LHP Kohl Drake (11th), RHP Jackson Kelley (12th), and LHP Justin Sanchez (18th). Some of those agreements had been previously reported.
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