AAA: Round Rock 1, at Tacoma (SEA) 3
Round Rock: 8 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 4 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 0-2, 2 GB
SP David Buchanan: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 68 P / 42 S, 1.80 ERA
RP Jacob Latz: 1 IP, 0 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
RP Dane Acker: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA
CF Evan Carter: 1-5
1B Justin Foscue: 3-5, 2B
LF Kellen Strahm: 1-3, 2B, BB
Carter laced a single and groundout at 106.6 MPH, and another lined out (with no data at present) was shipped about 340′ to the RF alley in a hurry. Last year, the average exit velo on a non-homer hit 335′ to 345′ was 96 MPH. Carter is 1-9 with a walk in two games but has four hard-hit balls.
Only one of Foscue’s hits was hard, but that’s okay too. Let the man have some fun after his rough intro to MLB in 2024.
Pitchers often share some responsibility for unearned runs, but the two off Jacob Latz belong almost entirely belongs to the fielders. Dane Acker’s AAA debut was successful.
Regarding the Jung and Smith situations, IF Jonathan Ornelas had yesterday off, probably by design, as the Express have found game action for all hitters except third catcher Konnor Piotto in the first two games. Non-40 utility man Sam Haggerty has played in left field and at second base.
Adrian Houser will start tonight.
Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
The 20th-best starting pitcher performance by a Texas Rangers minor leaguer was by Ariel Jurado in 2016:
Jurado entered the season in high regard after handling low-A as a 19-year-old. He finished as Texas’s best pitching prospect behind Yohander Mendez, although the state of the system after back-to-back postseason runs influenced that ranking. At the time, Jurado relied heavily on a formidable sinking fastball. The changeup was improving while his breakers lagged some. He was never a high-K type, and while the sinker generated plenty of grounders, at the highest levels anything airborne was a problem.
Jurado’s season included a 5.74 ERA in 31 innings at high-A High Desert’s Maverick Stadium, the most hitter-friendly MLB-affiliated park in the country. Outside that dreadful place, he posted a 1.96 ERA with 18 walks and 84 strikeouts in 91.2 IP. I saw his third and fifth AA starts in person.
Jurado has become a successful and durable starter in Korea, making 62 tarts and tossing nearly 400 innings since 2023.