Systems Audit: Texas Rangers
November 18, 2006
Systems Audit:
Texas Rangers
1. John Danks, RHP, AAA. Danks has a plus curveball and a plus fastball with good movement and velocity. He gives up too many homeruns and can be eratic. He is a good strikeout pitcher who pounds the zone.
2. Eric Hurley, RHP, AA. Dominant strikeout pitcher who has made good progress in his professional career. Hurley has made great strides to improve his control and increase the downward motion on all his pitches and that causes his BAA to nose dive.
3. Joaquin Arias, SS, AAA. Arias is about defense. Although that doesn't help your fantasy team, it does help you know he's going to stick once he gets there. He doesn't strikeout a lot, but doesn't walk much either. He has a good ability to hit the ball and his tremendous speed turns many of those into hits when lesser players would be thrown out. He's capable of hitting .290-.300 in the majors but with little power.
4. Daniel Herrera, LHP, A+. I was mightily impressed with Herrera when I saw him this year in California. I saw him pitch his sophomore year of college, then again his junior year and finally this year as a pro. Between the first and second time I saw him he really changed his game. He stands just 5'7" tall and his fastball is no better than 85-86 but he makes the ball dart down like very few pitchers I've seen. I I hadn't seen him that first time he might be higher, but there is still an element of the sophomore he once was in him even today. His major weakness is an inability to effectively work in more than just a sinking fastball and a change.
5. Edinson Volquez, RHP, MLB. If you've seen Pedro Martinez pitch, you've seen the rock from which Volquez is cut. Pretty straightforward reportoire: fastball, changeup, curveball. Plus fastball, plus change. He's not Pedro-good, obviously, but he has a lot of potential.
6. John Mayberry Jr. OF, A. Mayberry has a long swing which means smart pitchers will continue to throw the ball inside on him. He must shorten the swing up quite a bit. But he does have plus power. When he gets a pitch outside and can really extend, he can crush the ball. My opinion is that he has struggled to adjust to wood bats.
7. Thomas Diamond, RHP, AA. Walks too many. Good strikeout rate but just can't issue that many free passes. Would be higher but he struggled to make improvement in 2006.
8. Josh Rupe, RHP, MLB. Rupe found a small role in the big leagues this year but his role should expand in the near future. He's suffered from some control problems. He compares favorably to Adam Eaton. He's a good fit in Texas because he keeps the ball on the ground and with their ballpark and infield, that's always a good thing.
9. Kasey Kiker, RHP, A-. I like this guy a lot but he I just don't think he has the potential to be great. He doesn't have great movement but he has sufficient control to make up for it.
10. Josh Wittleman, 3B, A-. Nothing too special here. He's a good athlete and has a plus arm and good range. Offensively there's something to be desired but he has plenty of potential to develop.
Flier. Taylor Teagarden, C, none. Teagarden sat out the 2006 campaign while recovoring from an elbow injury. He is strong defensively and good at the plate. Good on base skills and some power make him a strong candidate to move through the system very quickly.
Future Lineup (arrival date)
C: Taylor Teagarden (2009)
1B: Mark Teixeira
2B: Ian Kinsler
3B: Joaquin Arias (2007)
SS: Michael Young
LF: John Mayberry Jr (2008)
CF: FA signing
RF: Nelson Cruz
DH: Hank Blalock
Pitching Rotation
1. John Danks (2007)
2. Eric Hurley (2007)
3. Edinson Volquez (2007)
4. Jon Koronka
5. Adam Eaton
Bullpen
Closer: Akinori Otsuka
Setup: Antonio Alfonseca, Joaquin Benoit, Josh Rupe
Middle Relief: Daniel Herrera, Thomas Diamond, Kasey Kiker
The Rangers are loaded with pitching talent and have little offensive talent. That's alright since they have plenty of young talent in the bigs already. I intentionally left off Nelson Cruz because I do not believe he will retain his rookie status due to days on the 25 man roster. This season will tell a lot about the quality of Rangers prospects Danks, Volquez and Arias. The organization is really counting on these three guys to keep them competitive in the division. Look for them to trade one or more pitching prospects for an outfielder at some point this year.
System Grade: B
Posted by Koby Schellenger: Nov 18 at 7:01 AM
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