Little Ditty 'Bout Jack and Kumar, Two Texas Rangers Prospects, Doing the Best They Can
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The Texas Rangers have very high hopes for Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker, two highly-drafted starting pitchers from Vanderbilt.
For the first time as members of the Rangers organization, both were on the mound Thursday night and flashing the type of stuff that had scouts drooling.
Leiter, 24, made his 16th minor league appearance with Triple-A Round Rock and was as dominating as never before. He allowed a run on one hit and a walk and recorded all 11 outs via strikeout over 62 pitches, including 41 strikes. Leiter hadn't pitched in nearly two weeks, as the organization pulled him back for some load management. Three spot starts for the Rangers earlier this season did not go well for Leiter but could prove to be warranted from an experience standpoint. The Rangers may want to see how Leiter and Rocer fare as relievers as the 2024 season winds down.
Rocker, who turns 25 in November, made his seventh appearance and fourth with Double-A Frisco on Thursday. He allowed a run on one hit and a walk and struck out five in four innings. It's his third consecutive four-inning outing, as the club wants to ensure he's safely ramping up the appropriate pressure on the surgical site.
Rocker is returning from May 2023 Tommy John surgery. The Rangers selected him No. 3 overall in the 2022 MLB Draft, a year after selecting his former Vanderbilt teammate Leiter No. 2 overall.
Our guy @jackleiter22 was DEALING tonight! 🤯
— Round Rock Express (@RRExpress) August 16, 2024
His final line: 3.2 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 11 K (career-high)#ItAllStartsHere | #RRExpress pic.twitter.com/m1Y6P5CBa8
Another 💎 from Kumar Rocker!
— Frisco RoughRiders (@RidersBaseball) August 16, 2024
4.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
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Rocker has 29 strikeouts and a 2.45 ERA over 22 innings across seven minor league appearances, including six starts. He has an 0.91 WHIP. He threw 52 pitches, including 36 strikes on Thursday.
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