Rangers top prospect Kumar Rocker puts on pitching masterclass in Triple-A debut

Texas Rangers fans should send a fruit basket to the New York Mets for failing to sign Kumar Rocker to a contract in 2021. This allowed Rocker to re-enter the MLB Draft the following year, and the Rangers drafted him with the third overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft. We didn't see much of Rocker last season because he needed Tommy John surgery. Some Rangers fans were wondering if the New York Mets were the smarter team for not signing him to a contract.

Ever since coming back from surgery, Rocker dominated with the Frisco RoughRiders. The RoughRiders started slowly by allowing him only to pitch two innings. As the weeks went by, they slowly gave Rocker more innings, and Rocker showed flashes of when he was at Vanderbilt. After putting up 29 strikeouts and a 0.46 ERA with the RoughRiders, Rocker was promoted to the Round Rock Express.

Last night, Rocker took the mound for the first time at Dell Diamond. There wasn't a big expectation for Rocker. Last night's outing was more of a "Is he ready for tougher competition" outing. Rocker took the ball and struck out the entire side in the first inning with 14 pitches. Rocker finished his outing four innings later, only allowing one hit and ten strikeouts. That was the most dominant outing the Rangers have seen from Rocker since drafting him back in 2022.

Between the two Vanderbilt pitching prospects, Rocker has been the more dominant pitcher this season. I have nothing against Leiter and his accomplishments with the Round Rock Express this season. A 0.46 ERA in the minor league system after Tommy John surgery is unheard of. Usually, there are setbacks with this type of surgery, and the pitcher might not be as dominant as he once was.

After last night's masterclass on the mound, Rocker should remain with the Express for the remainder of the season. It would do him some good to take on talent almost ready for the major leagues. I wouldn't expect him to pitch like he did last night, but he can still pitch some all-star quality outings for the Express.

I don't know what the offseason holds for Rocker. I'm sure he will take some time off before offseason workouts. I'm sure the Rangers will monitor those workouts because he could be ready for the major leagues after spring training. Rocker could be the next home-grown pitcher for the Texas Rangers. The years of trading for a quality starting pitcher instead of developing one could end next season. Rocker has been the brightest spot during this terrible summer for the Rangers.