Clubhouse Fire in Hickory Lands Rangers Top Prospect Promotion to Hub City

The Texas Rangers were probably going to promote one of their top pitching prospects from Class-A Hickory soon. An unusual situation forced them to accelerate the process.

The Hickory Crawdads, the Rangers’ Class A affiliate in North Carolina, reported that there was a fire in the visitors’ clubhouse after Friday’s game. The fire forced the Crawdads to cancel their games on Saturday and Sunday.

It's also not clear where Hickory will handle future home games. The Crawdads are on the road next week and the team’s released indicated it was determining next steps for the next homestand.

That presented a problem for Rangers Top 30 pitching prospect AJ Russell. He was supposed to start Saturday's game for Hickory. So, the Rangers came up with a novel solution. They promoted him to High-A Hub City and let him start on Saturday night.

AJ Russell’s First High-A Start

AJ Russell turns in an electric debut for the High-A @Spartanburgers_ ⛽️

The @Rangers’ No. 3 prospect punches out four in three perfect innings of relief: pic.twitter.com/ipt3cqF3fk
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 9, 2026

A promotion from one affiliate to the next can sometimes pose issues for young pitchers. Russell experienced no such speed bumps. In his first start with the Spartanburgers he threw three perfect innings. He didn't allow a hit, a run, or a walk and struck out four batters as he threw an efficient 42 pitches.

Contrast that against his work with Hickory. He started five games for the Crawdads, didn't factor in a decision and had a 5.00 ERA in nine innings. He gave up eight hits, six runs, five of which were earned, as he struck out 16 and walked five.

After the game he was optioned back to Hickory. The Crawdads are on the road next week.

The Rangers have taken a cautious approach with Russell, even though he was their second-round pick last year out of Tennessee, one of the best college programs in the country. His head coach was Tony Vitello, who is now the manager of the San Francisco Giants.

The Rangers had good reason for caution. As a sophomore for the Vols in 2024 he pitched in just three games before he suffered an elbow injury that led to Tommy John surgery. He returned in 2025 and was able to pitch in 12 games as he struck out 36 hitters in 25.1 innings. The Rangers opted to shut Russell down after his draft selection, so this is his first professional season.

After the Rangers traded Gavin Fein to the Washington Nationals as part of the return to acquire left-handed starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore, Russell represents the highest-selected player still in the Rangers organization from last year's draft. If he remains this effective, he could find himself at Double-A Frisco by the end of the season.

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