Texas Rangers: Keep an eye on Cole Winn this Minor League season

After a year-long hiatus thanks to COVID-19, Minor League baseball is finally set to return this summer. Today (May 4th) is actually Opening Day, and prospects all around the Texas Rangers organization are getting ready for some much-needed developmental work.

While the Rangers’ main roster squad have quietly outperformed expectations this season, this is still a ball club that is counting on a number of prospects to help propel them through their rebuild, and back into playoff contention.

In a recent article for MLB.com, the trio of Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo and Sam Dykstra highlighted some prospects to keep an eye on during the 2021 Minor League season, and I’m happy to report that the Rangers’ player they mentioned was that of 2018 first-round pick Cole Winn:

The most polished high school right-hander in the 2018 Draft, Winn went 15th overall and made significant strides down the stretch when he made his pro debut the next year in Low A. Making the jump to Double-A this season, he possesses a solid four-pitch mix and could advance quickly in an organization that needs pitching.

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The organization’s top pitching prospect at the moment, Winn has had a rather unique path through the early stages of the Minor Leagues. He participated in the Rangers’ new “de-load” program in 2018 upon being drafted, a program designed to develop prospects without taxing their arms with excessive in-game action.

Following a year of the de-load program, Winn then debuted in single-A ball with the Hickory Crawdads. He went 4-4 with a 4.86 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP across 18 games started.

Not exactly the performance the team was hoping to see out of their 15th overall selection.

Keep an eye on Texas Rangers RHP Cole Winn during this year’s Minor League action.

Winn was then unable to pitch in 2020 due to the league-wide cancellation of Minor League ball, leaving him in a somewhat awkward position here in 2021.

With that said, it’s a rather good sign that people are still high on Winn as a prospect. The Texas Rangers top need at the moment is undoubtedly pitching, and Winn developing into a serviceable starter down the road would obviously provide a huge boost in that regards.

Definitely a prospect worth keeping an eye on during this year’s Minor League action.