Projecting a future Texas Rangers rotation with Jack Leiter

Yeah, Texas Rangers fans, this is really happening!

With Vanderbilt righty Jack Leiter drafted by the team with the No. 2 overall pick Sunday night, we wouldn’t blame you if you started dreaming up scenarios of a future rotation headlined by him. Or is that just us?

Well, in any case, the Rangers’ farm system received an immediate boost with Leiter’s inclusion, and the future appears to be very bright. In fact, bright enough for a potential contention window opening in 2023.

That’s right, Chris Young and company wouldn’t have made the decision to draft Leiter over Marcelo Mayer if they didn’t think 2023 was the right time, as high school players take longer to develop.

Now that the draft is behind us, let’s conceive a possible big league rotation for the Texas Rangers with Leiter in the fold.

Texas Rangers Future Rotation: LHP Clayton Kershaw

Look, I know what you’re thinking: Clayton Kershaw is older and banged up, and probably wants to win. So why would he want to sign with the Texas Rangers?

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For starters, the Jack Leiter pick should indicate that the Rangers want to win sooner rather than later, and that they believe in their own process. That’s obviously crucial for any player looking at a team from the outside.

Secondly, Kershaw has expressed some interest in returning home to his native DFW area, to which the Rangers are the team in the area.

Thirdly, the former World Series champ and Cy Young winner could serve as a key cog and leader for a young team looking to take the next step. Working with Jack Leiter has got to have some appeal, right?

Max Scherzer was also considered for this spot, as the Rangers need a rotation upgrade either way. Kershaw does seem to fit, though.

Texas Rangers Future Rotation: RHP Cole Winn

Winn is one of the best pitching prospects in the Texas Rangers’ system and that’s evidenced by his domination of AA in 2021, as well as being selected to the 2021 All-Star Futures Game (as well as pitching in it).

The organization’s No. 3 prospect could be ready for the big leagues as soon as 2022, where hopefully he’ll reach his ceiling as a frontline starter.

With a veteran like Kershaw or Scherzer in tow, Winn could be eased into big league action, which would allow him to really get a feel for pitching at the game’s highest level. But he brings a plus fastball and improving breaking balls to the table as a prospect with multiple offerings, meaning that success doesn’t seem hard for Winn to eventually attain.

If he keeps pitching the way he’s been doing so at Frisco this season, Winn should get Texas Rangers fans super excited.

Texas Rangers Future Rotation: RHP Dane Dunning

With Winn and Leiter understandably making fans giddy, let’s not overlook another young pitcher who’s making his mark with the Rangers: Dane Dunning.

Acquired in the Lance Lynn trade this past off-season, Dunning has a 4.22 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 79 innings and 17 starts for Texas in 2021.

Those numbers are rock solid, and should only get better as more talent bubbles up to the surface from the farm system, enabling Dunning to move down in the rotation and become a really quality mid to back-end starter in the Texas Rangers’ rotation. Right now, of course, Dunning presents one of the team’s better big league starting options.

Expect the 26-year-old to be in this rotation for the foreseeable future, and a real good starter at that.

Texas Rangers Future Rotation: Cole Ragans, Hans Crouse, TK Roby, Ronny Henriquez, Ricky Vanasco or Jake Latz

This slide might feel like a cop-out answer, but the amount of names listed in the header really illustrates just how much hidden pitching talent is in the Rangers’ farm system.

Of course, not all of these guys will pan out, but you would hope at least a few of them will. And some like Ragans (who pitched in the Futures game Sunday), Crouse and Roby have real starting potential in the big leagues.

Even Latz, Vanasco, Henriquez and Roby have varying degrees of starting potential, and any one of them could blossom into solid back-end rotation options going forward.

The Rangers have undoubtedly had trouble developing pitchers throughout their franchise history, but with a second chance to rectify that trend, it looks like Texas will finally be able to correct it with all this burgeoning talent.