'It's a show': Rocker strives to fulfill ace potential

This story was excerpted from Kennedi Landry’s Rangers Beat newsletter on Aug. 28, 2024. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

ROUND ROCK, Texas -- Kumar Rocker sat in a rocking chair on the home run porch behind the left-field wall at Dell Diamond on Tuesday night. He was pondering the question he had just been asked.

The Rangers’ No. 2 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, Rocker returned to the mound in July for the first time since Tommy John surgery in May 2023 halted his debut pro season after just six starts at High-A Hickory. Now, after a lengthy pit stop in Arizona and a shorter one at Double-A Frisco, the 24-year-old is back with something to prove.

But no, Rocker doesn’t see it quite like that.

“I just try to be a good pitcher,” Rocker said. “I just try my best to be a good pitcher in the moment. … I was a hard worker and very internally motivated in college. I feel like my play showed that. So going through everything that I've gone through, I don't feel like I've changed much -- but I've also learned to handle adversity.

“I've also learned [how] to handle downtime, and also learned to handle myself a little bit better. I don’t take it for granted. I wouldn't change anything about it. I think that’s just the beauty of the game. The game spit me out back here in Triple-A, so, thank you, game.”

Rocker’s story is well documented. After all, he was once college baseball’s biggest star.

In his freshman season at Vanderbilt in 2019, Rocker threw a 19-strikeout no-hitter against Duke in the NCAA Super Regionals en route to a National Championship victory and College World Series Most Outstanding Player honors. He then led the NCAA in wins (14) and strikeouts (179) as a junior in 2021, with a shortened COVID season in between.

Rocker was initially drafted 10th overall by the Mets in 2021, when the Rangers selected college teammate Jack Leiter at No. 2 overall. But he didn't sign after New York’s review of his medical information raised concerns about his right shoulder and right elbow.

The Rangers selected Rocker the following season, this time No. 3 overall. He dominated High-A hitters to begin his professional career in 2023, posting a 3.86 ERA with 42 strikeouts and just seven walks across his first six starts before Texas announced he'd need Tommy John surgery on May 16.

“He's been dealt some challenging circumstances with things that were outside of his control,” said Rangers assistant general manager of player development Ross Fenstermaker. “But I think the biggest takeaway with Rock is he's just so strong-willed and determined to achieve what he wants to achieve. He's really built to handle adversity in a very high capacity. It's impressive what he does and how he goes about it. I’m glad he’s a Ranger.”

Looking back, Rocker believes the time off was good for him, even though nobody likes to have major surgery. He was able to spend time with his family. He finished up his degree at Vanderbilt, something he told his mom he would do. He got to be a normal student -- not a student-athlete -- for a semester.

“Tommy John being what it is, and it being a year, I think you learn a lot about yourself,” Rocker said. “I learned how to be myself off the field and also on the field, and almost to be able to separate the two at an age that I don't think a lot of people get to. It was really helpful.”

After spending the first half of the year in Arizona continuing his rehab, Rocker was promoted to Double-A Frisco on July 26, where he allowed one run over 19 2/3 innings (0.46 ERA) while racking up 29 strikeouts and just three walks. And he held opposing hitters to a .132 average with the RoughRiders.

It didn’t take too much longer to get Rocker up to Triple-A, where he is set to make his first start on Wednesday night. Fenstermaker emphasized -- multiple times -- that this is the best Rocker has looked since college. And he can only get better.

“He's been exciting,” Fenstermaker said. “He’s adding a little bit more each time out. It's been pretty electric. He’s throwing a lot of strikes with really good stuff, commanding the baseball well and overpowering hitters at Double-A. I think he has the same level of aura and presence and quality of stuff [that he had in college], the way that he's doing it is slightly different. He's a lot more mature, physically and mentally. It's a show.”

Rocker is unlikely to make his MLB debut this season. But if the developments and adjustments he’s made -- both on and off the field -- are of any real significance, he’ll be in Arlington sooner rather than later.

And the Rangers still believe in his ace potential, though Fenstermaker jokingly pointed out that some guy named Jacob deGrom is still with the club for the next five years, too.

“I think the only reason that maybe the industry had shied away from [his ace potential] was that there was an injury unknown with Kumar at the time,” Fenstermaker said. “I think that he's not only grown as a pitcher, but also as a person and is in a much better spot. Sometimes the rehab process, it's a physical and mental reset in a lot of ways. He's an elite competitor, so I definitely still think that [the] sky's the limit for him in terms of what he can ultimately become.”