Young talks bullpen battle, Walcott's skills at 18: 'It's not normal'
Rangers' top prospect leaves a strong impression at camp
Kennedi Landry
@kennlandrySURPRISE, Ariz. -- The Rangers' matchup with the Rockies was canceled on Friday night due to inclement weather, pushing back the Cactus League debuts of both ace Jacob deGrom and second-year outfielder Wyatt Langford.
The Rangers will return to the field on Saturday at 1:05 p.m. Arizona time against the Royals at Surprise Stadium.
Ahead of the cancellation, Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young met with the media for a quick session. Here are the highlights.
Bullpen competition tightens up
The Rangers rebuilt their bullpen this offseason, adding veteran arms like Chris Martin and Luke Jackson, as well as other experienced relievers such as Shawn Armstrong, Jacob Webb and Hoby Milner, along with a pair of guys with upside potential like Robert Garcia and Luis Curvelo.
There¡¯s a lot of bullpen competition in camp between those arms, players on non-roster invitee deals and internal prospects like Marc Church and Emiliano Teodo.
That said, it¡¯ll be hard for many of those guys to break camp with the big league club purely due to roster construction.
"There are six spoken-for bullpen jobs with two openings, one of which will definitely be a long guy, and the second one might be a long guy as well,¡± Young said. ¡°Without injury, some guys are going to get squeezed out independent of performance, but that's a great problem for us to have.¡±
Sebastian Walcott surging
Walcott, the Rangers¡¯ top prospect per MLB Pipeline, was recently sent back to Minor League camp, but he impressed in his first time around the big league club. The 18-year-old went 4-for-9 with a walk, a homer and three RBIs in his first taste of Cactus League play, clearly impressing the Rangers' coaching staff.
Walcott struggled early in 2024, but he ultimately finished the year with a .265/.344/.452 slash line between High-A Hickory (116 games) and Double-A Frisco (five games).
"I see him, it's just hard to believe that he just 18 years old,¡± Young said. ¡°I was a high school senior [at that age]. I think he¡¯s hit the hardest ball in camp, if I'm not mistaken. The growth he's made in a year, the strides he's taken, it's so impressive to see. It's not normal. You don't see 18 year olds have that ability to perform at this level like he has, and make the progress that he's made, with his aptitude and his willingness to learn. It's just so impressive. The sky's the limit for him. [He's] just great a player who continues to get better, because he's got the physical skill set and he's also the mental approach as well, which is going to help him realize his full potential.¡±
Jack Leiter rotation potential
Young also emphasized the development of Leiter, the Rangers¡¯ No. 3 prospect. The right-hander threw three scoreless innings against the Padres at Surprise Stadium on Thursday. He¡¯s allowed just two runs in eight innings this spring.
Leiter made his MLB debut last season, but he had some ups and downs, allowing 39 runs (35 earned) in 35 2/3 innings. He figures to be an important piece of the Rangers¡¯ rotation plans this season, no matter what happens this spring.
"Jack put himself in a great spot,¡± Young said. ¡°There's still a lot of Spring Training left, but he's performed unbelievably well. He has gotten better each outing. Yesterday was the best I've seen him. We¡¯d like to see him continue that. But he's put himself in a great spot.¡±