The minor league season begins at 700pm CDT in Round Rock. The weekend rotation will be Cole Winn, Cody Bradford, and newly acquired Robert Dugger.
Minor League Roster Assignments
Weāll see some changes before tonight and next weekās commencement of AA and the A levels. For example, the Express have 31 players listed on a 28-man roster. That doesnāt mean three players have been assigned to AAA only to be cut two days later, but not all will be active tonight.
Red = new to the level, bold = on 40-man roster, numbers in parentheses = prospect ranking at MLB.com
AAA — ROUND ROCK EXPRESS
Location: Round Rock, Texas
Stadium: Dell Diamond (opened 2000)
Affiliate since: 2021 (also 2011-2018)
Pitchers
Grant Anderson
Joe Barlow
Jacob Barnes
Cody Bradford (27)
Kyle Cody
Robert Dugger
Bernardo Flores
Lucas Jacobsen
Zach Kent (22)
John King
Jake Latz
Chase Lee
Dominic Leone
Zack Littell
Fern Ozuna
Daniel Robert
Yerry RodriguezCole Winn (14)
The rotation has three top-30 prospects topped by Winn, whoāll try to rebound from a semi-lost 2022. Any of four homegrown relievers (Anderson, Jacobsen, Lee, Robertā¦ and maybe Ozuna as a fifth) has a shot at an Arlington debut, and four more (Barlow, Cody, King, Rodriguez on his last option) are looking to get back. The nature of relief pitching in the 2020s insists that a decent number of these pitchers will log some innings with the Rangers. Itās just a question of whoās hot and giving the appearance of consistency at the particular time of need. Iām stretched to find six starting pitchers in this group, but weāll see. Sometimes, Texasās AAA and AA squads would shift to a five-man rotation, but in general the weekly six-on, one-off schedule fosters a six-man rotation.
Catchers
Sam Huff
Sandy Leon
Matt Whatley
At some point, Texas will probably need a third catcher or injury replacement. Whether the Rangers call up Huff (already on the 40, on his final option) or the more experienced Leon may provide some insight into Huffās future with the club. Matt Whatley hasnāt hit enough to warrant a Major League debut but is well-regarded within the organization.
Infielders
Diosbel Arias
Blaine Crim
Justin Foscue (7)
Jonathan Ornelas (18)
Yoshi Tsutsugo
Davis Wendzel
On any given night, the right-to-left infield could be the quartet of Crim, Foscue, Ornelas, and Wendzel. None is banging on the MLB door as of Opening Day, not that the Rangers have a spot for them in any case. They and several other prospects are in the quirky situation of finding a home in Arlington only if they donāt develop into everyday players. If they do, theyāre blocked and become trade chips (excepting a move to the outfield, a major injury to a current Texas infielder, or something unfortunate like Jung failing to maintain his spot). Positional flexibility contributes to their possibility of actually playing for the Rangers. That especially favors Ornelas, who can play just about anywhere, and Wendzel, who can handle short. Foscue spotted at third last year (his most frequent college position) and could conceivably handle first as well.
Outfielders
Sandro Fabian
Clint Frazier
Elier Hernandez
Julio P. Martinez
Texas cleared an excess of potential AAA outfielders by adding Travis Jankowski to the Major League club, releasing Joe McCarthy, and placing Dustin Harris and Josh Sale in AA. Frazier is trying to rebound from a dismal 2022. Hernandez is likely the best of the group.
AA — FRISCO ROUGHRIDERS
Location: Frisco, TX
Stadium: Riders Field (opened 2003)
Affiliate since: 2003
Pitchers
Marc Church (20)
Ricky Devito
Ryan Garcia
Antoine Kelly (24)
Nick Krauth
Jack Leiter (5, 78th in MLB)
John Matthews
Theo McDowell
Triston Polley
Tekoah Roby (12)
Justin Slaten
Alex Speas
Nick Starr
Owen White (3, 66th in MLB)
Grant Wolfram
My guess at the rotation is Garcia, Krauth, Leiter, Roby, White, andā¦ Iām not sure. One among Devito, Kelly, Slaten, and Wolfram, all of whom have starting experience? A bullpen day? Leiterās second full season is a big one for him and organization. While thereās no rush to get him to Arlington, he does need to make forward progress after an occasionally disquieting 2022. White just needs to stay healthy. Up from high-A, TK Roby pitched better than his 4.64 ERA and in particular has better control than the average starter, but homers sometimes troubled him.
Church is the marquee reliever. The slider is a Major League pitch, and the fastball works well, too. Kelly will try to improve last yearās woeful control. Nick Starr was Friscoās go-to in high-leverage situations last year.
Catchers
David Garcia
Ryan Gold
Scott Kapers
Garcia is repeating a level for the first time. In the past, heās acclimated to a new level slowly and shown second-half improvement, but that didnāt quite happen in 2022. Heās still just 23.
Catcher is not a position of strength in the system. No list Iāve seen has a Texas catcher among the top 30, and I donāt disagree. Offhand, I thought āIan Mollerās probably somewhere around 40th,ā and found him ranked 36th by Jamey Newberg.
Infielders
Luisangel Acuna (4, 71st in MLB)
Jax Biggers
Frainyer Chavez
Thomas Saggese (16)
Josh Sale
Chris Seise
Nick Tanielu
Acuna survived two months in AA as a 20-year-old (.224/.302/.349) and impressed enough to hop into top-100 lists. He should earn the majority of starts at short. Like Evan Carter, Saggese hit exceptionally well after a late-season promotion. I expect heāll wander among third, second, and short as in past years. Biggers, Chavez, Sale, and Tanielu have experience in AAA, albeit in brief, need-filling roles for Biggers and Chavez. The 31-year-old Sale spent most of 2022 in Round Rockās outfield.
Outfielders
Evan Carter (2, 41st in MLB)
Dustin Harris (7)
Trevor Hauver
Kellen Strahm
Carter joined late last year and batted .295/.479/.432 across ten regular and playoff games. Harris was transferred to AA after originally being optioned to Round Rock. Donāt be disappointed. Heās still working on his outfield proficiency and played only 85 games last year because of a wrist injury. Hauverās path to the bigs runs through his bat, His ability to walk is without peer, but the challenge is handling pitchers with improved command. An AAA assignment for Strahm wouldnāt have bothered me. Heās mature and was solid in Frisco last year. Hopefully he wonāt spend too long here. ā
HIGH-A ā HICKORY CRAWDADS
Location: Hickory, NC
Stadium: L.P. Frans Stadium (opened 1993)
Affiliate since: 2003
Pitchers
Robby Ahlstrom
Mitch Bratt (17)
Michael Brewer
Gavin Collyer
Larson Kindreich
Eudrys Manon
Yohanse Morel
Spencer Mraz
Kumar Rocker (10)
Andy Rodriguez
Winston Santos
Josh Stephan (30)
Leury Tejada
Emiliano Teodo (21)
Bradford Webb
Bratt, Kindreich, Rocker, Santos, Stephan, and Teodo would appear to be the rotation, although several others have experience and could be used in tandems. They would also appear to be the deepest rotation of the four squads, with four top-30 prospects, another who probably should be (Santos), and yet another on the cusp (Kindreich). Rockerās assignment feels right, and not just as a cautious response to Leiterās 2022. He had a lot of down time, and heās kind of a two-pitch guy right now, at least based on what I saw from the AFL and in Surprise last week. Ramping up at a lower level and in a more isolated environment makes sense.
Catchers
Cody Freeman
Liam Hicks
Cooper Johnson
Still relatively new to catching, Cody Freeman repeats the level but will be in Frisco before long with a good showing. Hicks has the bat to play first and DH when not catching.
Infielders
Maximo Acosta (26)
Griffin Cheney
Jayce Easley
Josh Hatcher
Yenci Pena
Keyber Rodriguez
Acosta had a respectable showing in low-A last year, batting .261/.341/.361 with 26 doubles and 44 steals. Cheney (2B, 3B, SS) and Hatcher (1B, OF) were 5th-year college seniors drafted and signed at steep discounts last year to free money for other picks. Easley is a speedy super-utility type who has spent most of his time in the outfield.
Outfielders
Angel Aponte
Geisel Cepeda
Daniel Mateo
Alejandro Osuna (25)
Marcus Smith
Osuna appeared larger than his listed 185 pounds last week, borderline burly. He was Down Eastās best hitter last year. Osuna has played some center, but Iād expect Daniel Mateo to receive the majority of those starts. Smith received promotion despite an absurd 42% strikeout rate. Smith still reached at a .336 clip because heās very patient, and he can steal at will. Cepeda, 25, is a recent Cuban signing. ā
LOW-A ā DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS
Location: Kinston, NC
Stadium: Grainger Stadium (opened 1949)
Affiliate since: 2017
Pitchers
Matt Brosky
Seth Clark
Jose Corniell
Aidan Curry
Josh Gessner
Jackson Kelley
Jackson Leath
Dylan MacLean
DJ McCarty
Damian Mendoza
Joseph Montalvo
Ivan Oviedo
Brock Porter (6, 94th in MLB)
Luis Ramirez
Adrian Rodriguez
Kai Wynyard
Four 2022 picks will make their pro debuts in low-A: Brock Porter (4th), Luis Ramirez (5th), Matt Brosky (a money-saver 8th-round pick), and Jackson Kelley (12th). Undrafted Seth Clark out of Georgia State is also new to the pros.
Catchers
Tucker Mitchell
Ian Moller
Konner Piotto
My earlier mention of Moller wasnāt a criticism. Iām actually quite fond of him, but a lot has to happen.
Infielders
Cam Cauley
Danyer Cueva (29)
Gleider Figuereo (19)
Andres Mesa
Abimelec Ortiz
Miguel Villarroel
Down East has a highly entertaining collection of position players. Will it win a bunch of games? I donāt know. Itās greener than it appears, as so-called repeaters Cueva, Figuereo, Blackmon, and Morrobel collected only a handful of low-A games last year as the season ended. Cauley and Cueva both play up the middle, and in fact they swapped positions mid-game in the outing I saw last Thursday. Figuereo will handle third.
Outfielders
JoJo Blackmon
Jeferson Espinal
Yosy Galan
Anthony Gutierrez (11)
Yeison Morrobel (13)
I didnāt get enough of a look to form an opinion, but Gutierrezās #11 ranking may be selling him short. Morrobel (along with infielders Figuereo, Cueva, and Villarroel) lorded over complex-league pitchers last year before making a late-season jump to Kinston. Galan repeats the level but stands a good chance of being the first position player to reach Hickory.
Also
A large handful of additional players didnāt receive assignments. Some I saw in Surprise, some I didnāt, and some might be injured. Iāll keep an eye on their whereabouts.
Texas released infielder Hunter Bryan (2019, 31st round).
Mason Englert allowed a full-count homer to Wander Franco in his debut MLB appearance. No shame in that. He retired the next three, Randy Arozerena among them.
The White Sox released OF Leury Garcia.
For a lengthy reflection on what the pending minor league CBA means, for good and ill, read Michael Baumann at Fangraphs.com. Minor leaguers overwhelmingly voted to approve the contract.