
The Rangers farm has moved up to the top half of Keith Law’s rankings of MLB farm systems
Keith Law has his 2022 farm system organizational rankings out this morning, and the Texas Rangers have jumped up significantly in the rankings, checking in at #11 overall. That’s a significant jump from where had them ranked last time around (at 24).
Law specifically has praise for the Rangers choosing to immediately be aggressive in the free agent market this past offseason after dealing players with limited team control remaining over the summer. What Texas has done is pretty unique — and I understand why folks questioned when the offseason started whether the Rangers would really spend big after having just sold off, given that most teams wait before making that kind of big splash. It isn’t unheard of — the Chicago Cubs added Jon Lester after winning just 73 games in 2014, the Philadelphia Phillies splurged on Jake Arrieta after a 66-96 season campaign in 2017, and the San Diego Padres grabbed Eric Hosmer and Manny Machado in back-to-back losing seasons then went 70-92 with the pair in 2019 before making the playoffs in 2020. But it is not the norm, particularly to the degree that the Rangers went big.
This ranking is consistent with where BA had the Rangers ranked, and am guessing this is generally how most folks look at the Rangers’ system. There are a few guys — Owen White and Evan Carter in particular — who I think are seen as potential impact prospects who, if healthy in 2022, could bump the system up a few notches. That said, it wouldn’t be completely out of the question for the consensus top three guys in the system — Josh Jung, Jack Leiter and Cole Winn — to no longer be prospect eligible by this time next year. Jung, in particular, seems almost certain to graduate, while Leiter and Winn have a shot at getting major league innings in the second half.