World Series Champions, Texas Rangers 2024 Spring Training Thread

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Another misplay, but not an error, by Cauley cost Kelly a run in the 9th

 

[Kelleyman]

I like Jack Leiter as much as just about any Rangers fan, but I just don't understand this talk of him making the rotation out of Spring Training. That would seem to be a bigger mistake than starting his career in AA.

I think if Leiter does make the team, he will have a far worse record of results in the minors of any legitimate prospect making his big league debut for the Rangers. His career minor league numbers include a 5.37 ERA and a WHIP of 1.51.

Leiter has the MLB stuff so the consistency is the issue
He may not be a better pitcher than Bradford but his ceiling is higher

 

[Kelleyman]

Another misplay, but not an error, by Cauley cost Kelly a run in the 9th

Cauley is just not there defensively

 

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Leiter has the MLB stuff so the consistency is the issue
He may not be a better pitcher than Bradford but his ceiling is higher

To me it is about him needing to finish his development in the minors. They gave rushed him once before. Let's don't do that again. Now if he goes to Round Rock and pitches lights out for 5 or 6 starts, and they need him for an injury replacement in the latter part of May, that's fine.

 

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Cauley is just not there defensively

I have never understood what some see in him, myself. To me, he wasn't worth the third round pick.

 

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Full Count Carter and Long Ball Langford are going to keep us entertained for years.

 

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Here is Scott Lucas' report on Justin Foscue:

I want to focus on another possibility, Justin Foscue, because I’d been intending to write about him anyway. Foscue batted .268/.394/.468 in 122 games for AAA Round Rock last year. He hit 31 doubles and 18 homers, and even stole 14 bases. (He’s a slow but astute baserunner.) He turned 25 a few days ago and has a very mature plate approach. Of 245 AAA hitters with at least 300 plate appearances last year, Foscue was one of 11 with more walks than strikeouts. He was in the 92nd percentile in combined walk/HBP rate (18%) and 97th in strikeouts (12%).

So what’s not to like? Given Foscue’s 563 trips to the plate, an average AAA hitter would have 74 combined walks and HBPs. Foscue had 99, a huge difference. But an average hitter would also have 130 hits, and Foscue had 123. Foscue’s superior approach is translating into more walks and a better OBP, but not better results on contact.

Foscue’s exit velocity is okay. It’s fine at the median but tapers off toward the top. Several Round Rock regulars had a better 90th-percentile EV than Foscue’s 103.2 MPH: Blaine Crim, Sandro Fabian, Elier Hernandez, Sam Huff, Jonathan Ornelas, Yoshi Tsutsugo, and Davis Wendzel.

Foscue also tends to have a lot of vertical “spray” on his contact. Compared to the average Round Rock hitter, Foscue had more grounders and more high flies (at least 45 degrees, almost always an out).

Hitters can succeed without elite exit velocity. A good example is Marcus Semien, who doesn’t hit exceptionally hard but combines fewer strikeouts with a consistent line of attack, allowing him to pile up impressive numbers. I think that is what has yet to fully develop with Foscue. The difference between Semien and Foscue is an extra 35 balls hit at an angle more likely to cause damage.

I’m not suggesting Foscue can’t be a competent MLB hitter. He’s made steady progress every year since being drafted, and hopefully that trend continues. I’m just saying I wasn’t watching him and analyzing his data in 2023 and thinking “he’d be a competent MLB hitter right now.” Almost, but not quite. Maybe that year is 2024.

 

[Nightcrawler]

Full Count Carter and Long Ball Langford are going to keep us entertained for years.

So glad the tigers took Clark.

 

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So glad the tigers took Clark.

That is still unbelievable to me. I sure hope we would have taken Walker Jenkins instead of Clark. Jenkins is going to be a great player himself.

 

[Nightcrawler]

That is still unbelievable to me. I sure hope we would have taken Walker Jenkins instead of Clark. Jenkins is going to be a great player himself.

Langford was #2 on my board. I had crews #1

 

[Kelleyman]

Langford was #2 on my board. I had crews #1

I had Langford 1. To me the tipping point was his clutch performance in College WS

 

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