The Texas Rangers’ opening day roster will be set on Wednesday as they travel to Philadelphia for opening day.
This year, the prospects found landing a spot on the roster hard to come by. Just one player without any previous Major League experience made the team — reliever Carter Baumler. The Rule 5 pick found out on Tuesday that he made the team. Had he not, he would have been offered back to his former team.
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker has said all season that the team is building a roster for the season, not just opening day.
Here are the five most likely prospects to be called up this season, ranked. To qualify the player should not have any MLB service time or, if they have MLB service time, they are among the Rangers’ Top 30 prospects.
The bullpen is where teams usually see the most churn. Gray made such an impression in spring training that there is little question he’ll get a chance to pitch in the Majors this season. He ranks first because bullpens tend to be volatile. It may only be two or three weeks before Texas must make a move.
When he arrives, expect plenty of first-day stories because the 30-year-old’s baseball story is hard to beat. This spring he went 1-0 with a 1.86 ERA in eight appearances, as he recorded a hold and converted two saves in two chances. He had 17 strikeouts, allowed no walks and gave up just four hits in 9.2 innings. Batters hit just .121 against him.
Written by: Matt Postins
Full article can be found at: https://www.si.com/mlb/rangers/onsi/news/most-likely-rangers-prospects-to-be-called-up-this-year-ranked