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Texas Rangers 2015 MLB Draft Preview

By Jim McCormick |
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Aug 7, 2014; Frisco, TX, USA; Frisco Rough Riders third baseman Joey Gallo (24) bats during the game against the Springfield Cardinals at Dr Pepper Ballpark. Springfield beat Frisco 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

When the Texas Rangers finished the 2014 season with just 67 wins, there were few things that fans were excited about heading into the offseason. The one good thing to come out of a poor finish like the Rangers had is a high pick in the upcoming MLB draft. Baseball drafts are different from the NBA and the NFL where a draft takes place during the offseason and not long after the regular season ends. In the MLB, the draft takes place nearly seven months after the season ends and about two months into the season.
One effect of the timing of the draft is that fans tend to be already wrapped up in the current season and not as concerned about roster forming or the future as fans are during an NBA or NFL offseason. Many fans may not even know that the draft is less than three weeks away, lasting from June 8 to June 10 and that the Rangers have the fourth overall pick in the draft.

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Conventional wisdom in baseball is to take the best player available in the draft. While this is how fans view NFL and NBA drafts, in practice teams tend to take positional needs into account and may pass on a player that is the best on the draft board. In baseball, positional needs don’t factor in to many teams because the long time it could take a player to get to the majors means that by the time they are ready positional needs may have changed already.

One strategy that may result in a team passing on the best player available also has to do with the time it could take a player to reach the majors. Players coming out of college are older than those coming out of high school and tend to reach the majors in a shorter time than those drafted out of high school who have not had the same development time. The best example of this is Brandon Finnegan, a left-handed pitcher drafted 17th overall out of TCU, was drafted and eventually signed on June 28. Finnegan was brought up to the majors less than three months later and played a key role in the Kansas City Royals’ bullpen as they made their run to the World Series. On the other end, Tyler Kolek was drafted second overall by the Miami Marlins and is currently playing for the Class A Greensboro Grasshoppers and could be several years away from his MLB debut.

With the Rangers picking fourth overall in what is considered to be not a strong draft especially with the loss of Michael Matuella and Brady Aiken, there are many possibilities. The question the Rangers face is whether they are looking to add talent to help compete soon or whether they want to balance the current talent on their roster by adding a younger player who may have more potential to develop as a future piece. Let’s take a look at what two of the top mock drafts have set for the Rangers, starting with Kiley McDaniel from Fangraphs.

Next: Kiley McDaniel Mock Draft

Jun 14, 2014; Omaha, NE, USA; Louisville Cardinals pitcher Kyle Funkhouser (16) pitches against the Vanderbilt Commodores during game two of the 2014 College World Series at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

With the fourth overall pick, Kiley McDaniel selects starting pitcher Kyle Funkhouser of Louisville for the Rangers. With a string of injuries to starting pitchers and top prospects Jake Thompson and Chi Chi Gonzalez potentially a year away from contributing, the Rangers could look to add a college arm. So far this season for the Cardinals, Funkhouser has a 7-4 record with a 2.99 ERA in 93.1 innings. A major concern for Funkhouser that has affected his draft stock has been high walk rate he has had during this three years at Louisville. Funkhouser has a career 4.37 BB/9 over 268 innings but has shown improvement with a 3.86 BB/9 this season although that is still higher than you would like to see. Kiley adds that the Rangers have “checked in on [Tyler] Stephenson recently” and are targeting potential hitters such as outfielders Chad Smith and Daz Cameron.

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Funkhouser would be a great pickup at fourth overall if for no reason other than who wouldn’t want a pitcher with a last name Funkhouser in the starting rotation? While the control seems to be an issue, the improvement he had this year in reducing walks leads me to believe that this is a fixable issue that the Texas staff can work on with him to get his BB/9 well below his 3.86 mark. A future rotation featuring Funkhouser, Thompson, and Gonzalez could prove to be one of the better team rotations in the past few years if they are able to stay healthy.

Check out the rest of McDaniel’s mock draft here.

Next: John Manuel Mock Draft

With the fourth overall pick, John Manuel selects starting pitcher Dillon Tate of UC Santa Barbara for the Rangers. Manuel’s thinking is along the same lines as McDaniel as he also selects a college pitcher with three years of experience. In his first year as a starter, Tate has an 8-4 record with a 2.08 ERA in 95.1 innings. Tate has pitched over twice as many innings as he did in 2014 and has responded with more success than he has as a sophomore. While many pitchers are moved to the bullpen due to control problems, the opposite was true for Tate. After Tate moved to the rotation, his walk rate dropped by nearly a walk and struck out just 0.11 less batters per nine innings. Manuel notes that the Rangers could look to add a shortstop such as Brendan Rogers, a high school player from Florida.

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Like Funkhouser, Tate could prove to be a valuable piece to the rotation that could join the team within a short timeframe. While he likely would not be ready as quickly as Funkhouser due to less experience as a starter, this could work as an advantage for Tate. A common problem that teams see with college pitchers is that they are overused by their coaches and are worried they risk drafting a pitcher with a lot of innings under his belt with a higher risk of injury. If Tate falls to fourth overall, it will be tough for the Rangers to pass on the opportunity to draft him.

Check out the rest of Manuel’s mock draft here.

Next: Final Thoughts

Chi Chi Gonzalez: The Rangers 2014 first-round MLB draft selection has continued to show the same promise that led to his 23rd overall selection by the Rangers. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

There are many names at the top that the Rangers could look to target with the fourth pick but a common theme seen with these two mock drafts is getting a college arm that can help a struggling rotation sooner rather than later. The Rangers took this strategy last year when they chose Gonzalez 23rd overall from Oral Roberts University and has proven to be a strong pitcher and will be ready to make his debut sooner than many pitchers also drafted in the first round. Both the mock drafts by Manuel and McDaniel reflect this strategy for the upcoming year and it is hard to argue with either of these selections.

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The last time the Rangers selected in the top five of the draft, they took Mark Teixeira fifth overall and eventually traded him to the Atlanta Braves for Neftali Feliz, Elvis Andrus, and Matt Harrison among others. With the fourth overall pick, it is likely that one of these two will be available for the Rangers. If both are available, I would lean to Tate who has a higher upside and less mileage on his arm even though Funkhouser may be closer to MLB ready.

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