Could Jack Leiter's cousin be the Rangers' next draft gamble?

Sports love prestigious families. Whether its the Griffey's, James' or the Manning's, they usually turn out pretty good.

There is something in there about how growing up with people who have done it that can raise the percentage chance of making to almost 100. That leads us to the 2025 MLB Draft and an appearance of another member of the Leiter family.

Despite a college career littered with injuries, Cam Leiter's stuff is visually undeniable. There is a real case for him to be drafted on raw stuff with limited experience. It is some of the best raw stuff in the draft.

Another Leiter family member aiming to be a pro ballplayer

If you like Jack Leiter, you're gonna love Cam Leiter. They couldn't be more similar in terms of arsenal. It would even make you think they're related somehow.

After having a pretty good showing at Central Florida in his freshman season, Cam Leiter entered the transfer portal and decided to play for Link Jarrett at Florida State. To start 2024, he was even deemed the "Friday Night Guy" or what is known in college baseball as the "Ace" over Jamie Arnold.

There was a point in time where Leiter was on the path to being one of the most prolific names in college baseball. His college stats though do not blow you away in terms of raw numbers. He had a 4.83 ERA, 136 strikeouts to 63 walks in 91 2/3 innings. The context behind these numbers are where it gets confusing.

He has not logged a single competitive pitch since playing at Clemson on March 23rd, 2024 when he was 20 years old and this will cause teams to rightfully pause.

His stuff grades out incredibly high and he has been confirmed to be rehabbing an arm injury this spring but there is no way for the public to know what is going on with regarding that injury. Despite all of this, he is still the 114th ranked prospect in this draft.

Why should Chris Young take a shot on Cam Leiter?

There aren't many pitchers with better raw stuff in this class. He was given the Friday nod last year for a reason. He can get just under 100 mph with his fastball and throws three good off-speed offerings.

This is another chance to give a good prospect at a discount too. While he has leverage to go back to school, he also lacks the ability to know for certain he can be healthy for an entire season. This can make him an underslot mid round pick and allow for a deeper class.

His draft slot will be entirely dependent on undisclosed medicals. Some have speculated he could be a competitve balance first round pick while FSU writer Brett Nevitt has said he would expect him to bypass the draft if he didn't play this summer which he didn't do.

The draft is full of question marks. There are no slam dunks that have no problems. When it comes to the 3rd-10th round picks, it really is praying you got a toolsy guy that can work out.

A healthy Cam Leiter is a surefire first rounder. An unhealthy one like he is now could be a sixth round flyer such as Alejandro Rosario was. The risk is worth the reward.

Chris Young needs to add pitching depth in this system and drafting Cam Leiter can do just that as long as the medicals are good.