The Texas Rangers had a relatively quiet week. Wednesday was an off day for both the Major League and Minor League camps. Thursday was a big day for our prospects, as they played the first-ever Spring Breakout game against the Cincinnati Reds. The Major League guys also played against the Reds directly following the Breakout game. The prospects on both teams showed up and showed out, but ultimately, the Reds prospects came out on top with a score of 4-1. The big league game went the opposite way, with a score of 4-7 in favor of the Rangers. Friday was a rainy day in Scottsdale to face off against the Colorado Rockies. However, the team elected to scratch most of the big leaguers in favor of minor league players to avoid further injury to our Opening Day roster players. However, the game did ultimately get rained out. Saturday, the team played their first split-squad game of Spring Training against the Milwaukie Brewers and the Arizona Diamondbacks. Neither game went the Rangers way, resulting in two losses with scores of 5-4 Diamondbacks and 5-1 Brewers. Sunday’s St. Patrick’s Day Game against the Chicago Cubs was hard fought but also resulted in another L on the board with a score of 8-6. Tuesday, the Rangers faced off against the Oakland Athletics and came away with their third tie of Cactus League play. The Rangers have a current Cactus League record of 10-12-3.
Texas Rangers Top 10 Prospects Recap
OF – Evan Carter
Evan Carter appeared in five of the six games this week. He was 3-13 with three runs, one RBI, two walks, and no strikeouts. Carter has a spring slash line of .317/.396/.488 across 41 at-bats with nine runs, 13 hits, one double, two home runs, ten RBIs, four walks, seven strikeouts, two stolen bases, and an OPS of .884. According to MLB.com, he is tied for 7th in RBIs, 5th in runs, and 6th in hits.
OF – Wyatt Langford
Wyatt Langford had another stellar week, appearing in four of the six games. He went 5-13 with two runs, seven RBIs, no walks or strikeouts, and the very first grand slam of his entire career (per his father). His slash line for spring training is .378/.442/.756 thus far with 45 at-bats, twelve runs, 17 hits, two doubles, five home runs, 17 RBIs, five walks, thirteen strikeouts, and an OPS of 1.198. This week Langford reclaimed his position as 1st in OPS and is 2nd in batting average this week. He fell slightly in the rankings for home runs, falling from 1st to tied for 2nd. He also ranks 1st in RBIs, tied for 2nd in runs and hits.
INF – Sebastian Walcott
Sebastian Walcott made two appearances this week, earning three walks and one run. His spring slash line is .000/.571/.000, with a total of two runs, four walks, one strikeout, one stolen base, and an OPS of .571. He went 1-4 during the Spring Breakout game, collecting one run.
RHP – Brock Porter
Brock Porter is not currently present in the Major League camp in Surprise. During the Spring Breakout game, Porter pitched one inning, allowing one hit, one walk, and two strikeouts, with an ERA of 0.00.
INF – Justin Foscue
Justin Foscue played in only five of the six games this week. He went 3-12 with three runs, two RBIs, no walks, and three strikeouts. He also hit a home run in the loss to the Cubs. His spring slash line is .275/.341/.450 with six runs, eleven hits, four doubles, five RBIs, two walks, twelve strikeouts, and an OPS of .791.
INF – Abimelec Ortiz
Abimelec Ortiz has been reassigned to the minor league camp and did not appear in any Cactus League games this week. During the Spring Breakout game, he went 0-3 with one strikeout.
INF – Davis Wendzel
Davis Wendzel played in four of the six games this week, going 4-8 with three runs, two RBIs, one walk, and no strikeouts. He also racked up his first home run of the spring. This spring, Wendzel is hitting .368/.419/.553 with seven runs, fourteen hits, four doubles, one home run, ten RBIs, three walks, one stolen base, ten strikeouts, and an OPS of .972. He is tied for 7th in RBIs and 5th in hits. It was announced on March 19th that Davis Wendzel was being reassigned to the minor league camp.
OF – Jonathan Ornelas
Jonathan Ornelas has appeared in two of the six games. He went 2-3 with no strikeouts this week. This spring, he is hitting .261/.320/.348 with four runs, six hits, two doubles, no home runs, two RBIs, two walks, one stolen base, five strikeouts, and an OPS of .668. Ornelas went 0-1 during the Spring Breakout game with no strikeouts.
RHP – Jack Leiter
Jack Leiter (who now wishes to be called Jacob) appeared in one game this week. He pitched three innings, recording one hit, one earned run, one walk, and one home run. He has appeared in five games during spring training and has a recorded ERA of 3.60 across ten innings and a WHIP of 1.10. While on the roster for the Spring Breakout game, Leiter did not make an appearance.
INF – Cam Cauley
Cameron Cauley (who has begun going by Cam) appeared in only one of the six games this week and went 0-3 with one strikeout. This spring, he is hitting .375/.444/.750 with eight runs, six hits, one double, one triple, one home run, three RBIs, one walk, one stolen base, two strikeouts, and an OPS of 1.194. Cauley showed out during the Spring Breakout game, going 2-2 with one RBI, earning him the nod for second base on the MLB Spring Breakout All-Team roster.
Week Ahead:
This week, we will wrap up Cactus League play on Saturday. The defending Champions will return home to face the Boston Red Sox in two exhibition games before officially opening the 2024 regular season on March 28th. The schedule for the next week is:
Wednesday – @ Cincinnati Reds – 3:05 CT
Thursday – Off Day
Friday -@ Cleveland Guardians – 3:05 PM CT
Saturday – @ Kansas City Royals – 2:05 PM CT
Sunday – Travel Day – The Rangers are heading home!
Monday – vs Boston Red Sox – 7:05 PM CT
Tuesday – vs Boston Red Sox – 1:05 PM CT
Damn! Only one week away now!