Rangers Prioritize Pitching on MLB Draft Day 3
The Texas Rangers wrapped up the 2022 MLB Draft on Tuesday by selecting more arms for their farm system, with nine pitchers among the final 10 selections.
None of those pitches are likely to have the potential early impact that first-round pick Kumar Rocker could. The Rangers stunned the baseball world by taking the former Vanderbilt pitcher, selected 10th overall by the New York Mets in 2021, at No. 3 overall on Sunday.
The Rangers followed up the Rocker selection with another pitcher, right-hander Brock Porter out of St. Mary's Prep in Orchard Lake, Mich., who was the 2022 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year. MLB.com had Porter ranked as the No. 11 overall prospect and as the highest-ranked high-school arm in the draft.
Porter, like many of those picked on Tuesday, will likely need more time to develop.
The Rangers went with right-handed pitchers with their first four picks on Tuesday. Kohl Drake, a native of Sachse, Texas, went in the 11th round. The left-hander went 14-0 at Walters State Community College in Tennessee and was named NJCAA Division I Pitcher of the Year.
In the 12th round, the Rangers took Mercer pitcher Jackson Kelley, who was a finalist for National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association’s “Stopper of the Year” Award.
Caden Marcum of Paola (Kan.) High School was selected in the 13th round and was rated by Prep Baseball Report as the No. 2 player from the state of Kansas in 2022. He is committed to the Tennessee.
Andrew Owen of Grossmont College in El Cajon, Calif., was selected in the 14th round. He spent 2021 at Baylor before transferring and did not play in the spring of 2022.
The Rangers took their only position player of Day 3 in the 15th round with the selection of shortstop Jack Goodman out of Medfield (Mass.) High School. He was the Boston Globe’s Division III Player of the Year and the Tri-Valley League MVP after hitting .523 with seven home runs, 19 extra-base hits, 28 RBI, 39 runs, and a 1.515 OPS figure. He is committed to Pepperdine.
The remainders of the selections included right-handed pitcher Nick Bautista III (16th round), left-handed pitcher Carson Dorsey (17th), left-handed pitcher Justin Sanchez (18th), right-handed pitcher Grayson Saunier (19th) and right-handed pitcher Matt Scott (20th).
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