Texas Rangers Sign Two Top International Prospects

The top player the Rangers signed yesterday was outfielder Leodys Taveras from the Dominican Republic for $2.1 million. The 16-year-old is the cousin of Willy Taveras who signed as an international free agent with the Cleveland Indians in 1999. He is 6’1″ and 165 pounds and is a switch hitter who trained with Beyrru.

Taveras was the third ranked international prospect according to Baseball America and the seventh ranked prospect according to FanGraphs. FanGraphs notes that he has “above average to plus speed to profile in center field, a smooth cut from both sides of the plate that shows up in games and the chance for at least average power.”

This skill set reminds me a lot of Leonys Martin who started with the Rangers when he was 17-years-old. If Taveras can develop into Martin with a better bat than the Rangers will be fortunate. Taveras will likely spend the next three to four years making his way through the low minor league levels before he starts moving up. If he follows a career path similar to Martin, he could make the mayors by the age of 23 which would be in 2022.

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