Texas Rangers Boast Middle-of-Road Farm System With 'Volatile' Production

The Texas Rangers were on top of the baseball world when they won the World Series in 2023, defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Just as quickly as they reached the mountaintop, they plummeted and fell back down to Earth.

The Rangers weren’t able to defend their title as they won only 78 games during the 2024 campaign and missed the postseason.

They are hoping to get things back on track in 2025, as Texas was one of the more active teams this winter, seeking specific upgrades for their roster and revamping the bullpen. Better luck in the health department would go a long way as the team had several key players missing for chunks of the year.

Part of the game plan for improvement this upcoming season is the young players who are set to assume full-time roles.

Last year, outfield prospect Wyatt Langford made an immediate impact as one of the bright young stars in the game. The team is hopeful fellow outfielder Evan Carter can get on track after an injury-plagued 2024 and third baseman Josh Jung remains healthy as well.

Where the Rangers will be relying on youth is in the pitching staff, namely the starting rotation.

Kumar Rocker, Jack Leiter and Cody Bradford could all factor into the mix behind veterans Nathan Eovaldi, Jacob deGrom and Tyler Mahle.

Projecting what they will provide, however, is difficult given how much their production over the last few years has fluctuated despite their lofty prospect rankings.

“The Rangers' system has been one of baseball's most volatile recently: RHP Kumar Rocker's and RHP Jack Leiter's past few seasons have been a roller coaster, SS Sebastian Walcott went from interesting international signee to a top-20 prospect in the game pretty quickly, RHP Alejandro Rosario and RHP Winston Santos rose almost out of nowhere, and RHP Brock Porter, RHP Owen White and 1B Abimelec Ortiz have varied wildly in value year-to-year,” wrote Kiley McDaniel of ESPN in his most recent farm system rankings.

Their spot in the rankings reflects the volatility.

After being No. 12 with a value of $228 million in McDaniel’s previous edition, they come in at No. 16 this year as their value has dropped to $192 million.

Leiter’s fall from grace after being the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 MLB draft has certainly not helped. Despite retaining his rookie status, he is not a top 100-ranked prospect heading into 2025 after a disastrous MLB debut last year.

Can Rocker stay healthy enough to contribute throughout the entire campaign?

There is no doubt about his stuff, it is just a question of how consistently can he get on the mound.

With one of the deepest lineups in baseball, the top hitting prospects will get some time to develop in the minors, likely providing the most value to this farm system for the foreseeable future.

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