The Rangers system takes another step forward.
September 23, 2008 by Josh Lile
Filed under Major League Baseball, Rangers
Baseball America has begun unleashing their top prospect lists. At years end Baseball America begins ranking each minor league’s top 20 prospects in anticipation for the eventual top 100 uber-prospect list. Three leagues with Rangers implications are done, and wow this system feels even more stacked than before.
The Arizona League led off the Baseball America list. Coming in at number 11 is 2008 4th rounder Joe Wieland. A SP with projection, Wieland apparently wowed his coaches after turning pro. 2008 5th rounder Clark Murphy snuck in at #18.
The Northwest League is where the fun began. The Spokane Indians dominated the NWL prospect list. Six pitchers made the top 20. Five of those pitchers were in the top 10. Four of those five pitchers are property of the Texas Rangers. #2 Martin Perez, #4 Neil Ramirez, #6 Wilfredo Boscon, and #8 Tim Murphy lead the Spokane contingent. 3B Matt West comes in at #16 also. BA absolutely loves Martin Perez. He was 3 years younger than his competition, making his stateside debut, and has the potential for 3 plus pitches. Oh yeah, he’s a left-hander too. BA considers these arms to be every bit as good as the upper echelon talent in the system.
The Midwest League was almost as dominating. In one of the largest leagues in the minors comprising 14 teams, the Rangers again had the 2nd best prospect, and the best pitching prospect. Neftali Feliz came in at #2. Engel Beltre came in at #6, and Derek Holland came in at #9. According to Jim Callis Blake Beavan almost came in at #20. Justin Smoak didn’t qualify, but would’ve been #2. Michael Main also didn’t qualify. If they had qualified they would’ve made the routing of the MWL even more impressive.
The California League, Texas League, and Pacific Coast League remain. The California League could yield some more riches, but the Texas League is where to focus attention. Chris Davis, Max Ramirez, Taylor Teagarden, Julio Borbon, Elvis Andrus, and Jose Vallejo should all qualify. If BA includes playoff innings pitched Derek Holland and Neftali Feliz could also qualify. The next couple of weeks should cement in the minds of the baseball world just how much of a resurgence the Rangers system has undergone. The future is coming, and it looks very bright. According to Jim Callis the Rangers just might have the #1 farm system in baseball. Imagine that.
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September 23rd, 2008 at 5:40 pm
Nice piece Josh! I love reading stuff on the soon to be stars. Baseball of all the major sports seems to get little of the attention for their up and coming studs. Junior hockey gets a ton of attention, college football and basketball is covered from top to bottom but baseball seems to get little love in terms of their prospects.
As for the Rangers, Texas is definitley a team to watch for in 2009!
September 23rd, 2008 at 7:02 pm
Tis pretty mind-boggling that it gets relatively little attention. The minor league structure in baseball is so complex, and the talent has so many entry points (Latin America, Draft - College/High School -, Asia) that I’ve always found it highly interesting. Hopefully some out there do as well.
September 24th, 2008 at 10:52 am
Josh, ironically he Rangers struggles these past few weeks are really beneficial to them in the long run. By dropping their record to 76-82 they have the 12th worst record in the league, which assures them of having their first round pick protected no matter who they sign this offseason.
While I’m not sure they will be big spenders (probably not), I think Ben Sheets if healthy would be a nice fit for them. Clearly the AL west is weak, and one big pitcher can really make them competitive, as well as the maturity of their young guys.
With their farm system as stacked as it currently is, I think the Rangers could be a potential powerhouse in 2-3 years, much like Tampa was this season.
Smoak and Main are my two favorites of the group you mentioned, while Beltre is really maturing (and to think you got him for Gagne!, lol). And who knows who the rangers will get for laird if they trade him to Boston (Possibly Bowden). Fun time to be a Rangers fan.
September 24th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
Not to steal my own thunder, but before long I’m going to look at what I want to see happen in the offseason which will include what free agent targets I’d like to see come in here.
Ben Sheets and Gerald Laird would not be involved in any Rangers transactions if I were in charge. There are only a handful of targets that I would go after, and starting pitching is a distant second on my priority list for the offseason.
September 24th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Looking forward to it Josh.