Rangers Unranked Prospect Has Incredible Debut in Arizona Fall League

The Texas Rangers have several top prospects in the Arizona Fall League. But there are other unranked prospects that are trying to build a reputation.

Venezuelan right-hander Alejandro Chiquillo is one of those pitchers. He’s 23 years old and is in his third pro season. After an uneven 2026 in the lower rungs of the Rangers’ system, Texas wanted to get him more innings before 2027.

He’s off to a great start.

On Sunday for the Surprise Saguaros, Chiquillo entered the game in the third inning to relieve a Rangers Top 30 prospect, Jacob Johnson, and pitched better than Johnson. Considering Johnson gave up one hit and struck out two in two innings, that’s saying something. But it could be indicative of Chiquillo’s future with the organization.

Alejandro Chiquillo’s Stunning AFL Debut

Alejandro Chiquillo with a strong start for @HickoryCrawdads

Chiquillo threw 5 shutout innings giving up 0 hits and striking out 6 pic.twitter.com/RFkUBCNGKv
— Rangers Player Development (@TEXPlayerDev) July 1, 2026

Chiquillo logged three innings and not only didn’t allow a hit or run but he struck out four batters. He retired the side in order in the third with a fly out and two ground outs. In the fourth inning he retired two hitters via ground out and recorded his first strikeouts of the game.

In the fifth inning, he struck out the side on 14 pitches before leaving the game. After four games he has more innings than any other Surprise pitcher this season.

Chiquillo is pitching in the AFL after a 2026 season in which he started in the ACL again and then earned a promotion to Class-A Hickory. He spent time on the 7-day injured list and spent time on the developmental list. His numbers were reflective of that. He went 1-3 with a 4.79 ERA in 17 games (13 starts) with 56 strikeouts and 26 walks in 56.1 innings. But he did much better against hitters with a .217 opponent batting average.

The Rangers signed Chiquillo in February of 2024 out of Venezuela and assigned him to one of their Dominican Summer League teams to get his feet wet in professional baseball. He had a terrific summer, as he went 3-0 with a 0.67 ERA in seven games (six starts). He struck out 30 and walked 10 in 27 innings as batters hit just .167 against him.

Texas felt comfortable bringing him stateside in 2025 and playing him in the Arizona Complex League and he took a step back. He went 1-2 with a 6.75 ERA in nine games (four starts). The strikeout rate and walk rates remained consistent over 29.1 innings — 37 strikeouts and 12 walks — but batters hit .317 against him. He was giving up too much contact.

The other Rangers prospects invited to the AFL are outfielder Paxton Cling, catcher Julian Brock, infielder Casey Cook, shortstop Sebastian Walcott and right-handed pitchers J'Briell Easley, Jesus Gamez, Jacob Johnson and Mason McConnaughey.

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