Rangers Quietly Activate Former First-Round Pick at Triple-A Round Rock

The Texas Rangers have activated a reclamation project of sorts and assigned him to their Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock.

The Texas Rangers logo | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers made one of their more intriguing non-roster moves right before spring training.

In late January, the Rangers signed Nick Pratto to a minor league deal and brought him to spring training in Surprise, Ariz. Ironically, Texas shares its Surprise facility with Pratto’s former employer, the Kansas City Royals. After nearly a month the minor league development list, he was activated by Texas’ Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock on Tuesday, per his MLB.com page.

Pratto has not played in a minor league game yet but could see action on Thursday as the Express prepare for a doubleheader with the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, the top affiliate for the Houston Astros.

Nick Pratto’s Long Journey

Kansas City Royals first baseman Nick Pratto. | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

Pratto is 27 years old and is in many ways unfulfilled promise, a low-risk flyer at a position, first base, where the Rangers have a solid Major League option in Jake Burger.

He was seen as the future at that position for the Royals, who selected him in the first round of the 2017 MLB draft out of high school in Huntington Beach, Calif. He spent a long time percolating in the Kansas City system before he drew his Major League debut in 2022.

The bat didn’t respond for the Royals. He played in 49 games in 2022 and 95 games in 2023 and has a career MLB slash of .216/.295/.364 with 14 home runs and 55 RBI. He hasn’t hit in the Majors since 2023, though he pitched one scoreless inning of relief in a blowout during his only call-up in 2024.

There were no significant injuries for Pratto. He lost the job to Vinnie Pasquantino, who also came up in the Royals system and joined the franchise at the MLB level in 2022, the same year Pratto did.

Texas is rolling the dice in the hope there is something there. Pratto elected free agency after his bat took a tumble at Triple-A Omaha last year. He slashed .196/.289/.331 with nine home runs and 42 RBI.

Round Rock has a somewhat positionless infield. Justin Foscue, for instance, can play all four infield positions and is batting .300. The Express also have Jonah Bride, Cameron Cauley, Trevor Hauver and Richie Martin Jr. listed among the infielders. Hauver can also play outfield. Cauley was exceptional in Major League spring training and can play both middle infield positions.

Pratto should get a chance to prove himself in an organization that doesn’t have a lot of first base depth. Whether he capitalizes on it is up to him.