Per the Rangers themselves, top pick Kumar Rocker has signed.
As you’ve probably heard, Texas signed lefty Dallas Keuchel to a minor league deal and assigned him to Round Rock. On the whole, Keuchel has been formidably dire for the White Sox and Snakes, but there’s a handful of respectable outings mixed in with the five disaster starts (more runs than innings). To the extent he might provide replacement-level output down the stretch and alleviate the constant scrounging for starter innings, he’s worth a shot, I suppose, especially if Martin Perez is traded.
Toronto released lefty Derek Holland from AAA Buffalo. He’d posted a 5.53 ERA in 27.2 innings. Sad to say, Holland hasn’t pitched well since 2018 with the Giants, inclusive of various minor league stints, and this could be the end. If so, he finishes with a 4.35 ERA in 1,466 MLB innings and the best World Series start in Texas’s history. The gap between my first mention of him (simply listed on short-A Spokane’s roster as a draft-and-follow sign) and his MLB debut was only 22 months. Not bad for the 748th pick of the 2006 draft. Seeing him and Neftali Feliz pitch on consecutive days for Frisco in 2008 was a career highlight. (For me, not them.)
Texas released 1B/OF Jake Guenther, part of the Nate Lowe trade. The 25-year-old TCU alum batted .181/.279/.333 in 36 games for high-A Hickory.
Rookie Recap: Games of 19-23 July
Scores: 5-3 (SDG), 10-6 (LAD), 6-5 (KAN)
Record: 26-7, 9 G up
RHP Ivan Oviedo (19): 3.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 4 SO, 4.21 ERA
RHP Eury Rosado (21): 2.0 IP, 1 H, 2 BB, 4 SO, 6.16 ERA
RHP Aidan Curry (20): 3.0 IP, 2 H,1 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 3.33 ERA
LHP Brayan Mendoza (18): 2.0 IP 1 H, 4 SO, 1.80 ERA
RHP Dane Acker (23): 1.2 IP, 3 H (HR), 3 R, 3 SO, 2.45 ERA
OF Anthony Gutierrez (17): 6-13, 3B, SB (2), .345/.355/.586
IF Gleider Figuereo (18): 4-9, 3B, HR (6), 2 BB, .304/.418/.709
IF Andres Mesa (19): 5-12, 2B, BB, SB (9), .287/.339/.417
IF Danyer Cueva (18): 6-11, 2B, BB, HBP, .369/.425/.505
OF JoJo Blackmon (19): 2-9, 2B, 3B, SB (11), .269/.404/.538
The Rangers extended their winning streak to 16 on Saturday, definitely the longest in team history and quite possibly the longest by any Texas-affiliated squad. (I haven’t checked, but it stands to reason.) That streak ended with a 4-0 loss to the Dodgers last night, but the figures above are for last week’s games.
On the hitting side, all the youngsters I’ve mentioned previously were vital to the team’s continued amazing success. In Baseball America’s updated rankings, Gutierrez is listed 14th followed by Figuereo at 16 and Cueva 18th.
The staff is larded with rehabbers at present. Dane Dunning whiffed nine and allowed a run in five innings Saturday. Following him was Kyle Cody, who allowed a run in an inning. Cody was drafted back in 2016, so I believe he can walk at season’s end unless protected on the 40 or signed to a new minor deal. Next, James Jones fanned the side. Earlier in the week, Dane Acker had some trouble with the baby Dodgers, but I wouldn’t worry about anything statistically in a rehab outing other than perhaps control, which in this case was fine. My semi-educated guess is the Rangers have never had two Danes on the same roster.
18-year-old Brayan Mendoza, successful if walk-prone in the DSL, followed the three more experienced pitchers with a two-inning save.
Today’s Starters
AAA: Winn
Everyone else TBD