Texas Rangers Select Santa Clara Reliever, Six More on MLB Draft Day 2

The Texas Rangers further stocked their farm system with seven selections of the second day of the MLB Draft.

Santa Clara Athletics

The Texas Rangers followed up their one pick in the first three rounds – No. 4 overall selection Wyatt Langford – by taking seven players on Day 2 of the 2023 MLB Draft.

As much excitement as Langford generated as potential cornerstone piece for the franchise in the near future, the new crop of prospects added Monday add further depth to a farm system already considered among the best in baseball.

Day 2 featured rounds 3-10. The club forfeited its third round pick due to the signing of free agent Nathan Eovaldi. The third and final day of the draft (rounds 11-20) is Tuesday.

Day 2 Draft Picks

The Rangers selected seven players on Day 2 of the MLB Draft.<br>

RHP SKYLAR HALES

(4th round, 108th overall)

Hales, 21, was a Second Team All-West Coast Conference selection this season as a junior at Santa Clara University. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound right-hander posted a 6-5 record, 4 saves, 3.42 ERA (21 ER/55.1 IP), and 11.2 strikeouts per 9.0 innings figure over a team-leading 22 appearances/one start for the Broncos this spring. At the MLB Draft Combine in June, Hales registered the 7th-highest maximum pitch velocity (96.6 mph) among prospects who participated in bullpen sessions. He combined to go 9-10, 4.38 ERA (76 ER/156.1 IP) with 168 strikeouts (9.7 SO/9) in 51 games/13 starts spanning three seasons at Santa Clara, and spent the summer before his sophomore campaign with the Wenatchee AppleSox of the West Coast League. The Reno, Nev. native prepped at Reno High School, where he starred in both baseball and basketball.

RHP ALEJANDRO ROSARIO

(5th round, 144th overall)

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Rosario went 5-6 with a 7.11 ERA (59 ER/74.2 IP) and 91 strikeouts over 18 appearances/15 starts in his junior season at the University of Miami. He recorded a season-high 12 strikeouts twice this spring, once on April 2 vs. Florida State (8.0 IP, 4 R-ER, 1 BB, 12 SO) and again on May 6 vs. Presbyterian (6.0 IP, 0 R, 0 BB, 12 SO). The right-hander totaled a 13-13 record, 6.47 ERA (144 ER/200.1 IP), and 198 strikeouts in three seasons with the Hurricanes, earning 2021 Second-Team Perfect Game Freshman All-America honors after going 6-4, 5.21 ERA across 15 games/11 starts in his first collegiate season. A Miami native, Rosario was selected as a 2019 Under Armour and Perfect Game All-American following his senior season at Miami Christian School, where he was a member of state championship-winning teams in 2018 and 2019. He was ranked as the no. 212 overall prospect in the 2023 class by MLB Pipeline.

RHP CADEN SCARBOROUGH

(6th round, 171st overall)

Scarborough, 18, was named the Osceola News-Gazette Baseball Player of the Year this spring for Harmony (Fla.) High School after going 1-1 with a 2.19 ERA and 70 strikeouts across 38.1 innings. The 6-foot-5, 190-pound right-handed pitcher led the Longhorns to the 2023 Orange Belt Conference Championship and was named an Orlando Sentinel All-Area honorable mention. He appeared in 17 games across his junior and senior prep seasons, posting a 2.71 ERA and a 16.13 strikeouts per 9 innings figure. This month, he became the first Harmony player ever to be selected to the FACA State All-Star Classic, which will take place from July 12-13. He was also named the Osceola News-Gazette’s 2023 Basketball Player of the Year after averaging 7.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 2.5 blocks per game for the Harmony Boys Basketball team. The St. Cloud, Fla. native is committed to play collegiately at Dallas Baptist University.

RHP IZACK TIGER

(7th round, 201st overall)

The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Tiger was named the Kansas Jayhawk Community College West Division Pitcher of the Year and earned First Team All-KJCC West honors as a sophomore this spring at Butler County Community College in El Dorado, Kan. The 22-year-old right-hander struck out a conference-leading 121 batters in 2023, going 10-5 with a 3.93 ERA in 15 appearances/14 starts while ranking among KJCC pitching leaders in strikeouts (1st), innings pitched (2nd, 84.2), complete games (T2nd, 6), and wins (3rd). The Del City, Okla. fanned a career-high 15 batters in a complete game effort on May 17, 2023 vs. Fort Scott, and finished as the Butler program’s all-time leader in strikeouts (243). He is currently committed to continue his collegiate career at the University of Kansas.

C JULIAN BROCK

(8th round, 231th overall)

Brock, 22, was a 2023 Second Team All-Sun Belt Conference selection after batting .315/.435/.559/.994 (67-213) with 11 home runs and 65 RBI over 64 games in his junior season at the University of Louisiana. The right-handed batting and throwing backstop combined to hit .297 with 18 home runs, 30 doubles, and 104 RBI across 152 contests in his four-year career with the Ragin’ Cajuns, earning First Team All-SBC honors as a sophomore in 2022. He also appeared in three games with the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod League this summer, going hitless (0-for-9) in 9 plate appearances while throwing out one of 3 attempted base stealers from behind the plate. Brock prepped at Fulshear (Tex.) High School where he batted .434 with 6 home runs and 42 RBI as a senior in 2019, and became the first player in the program’s history (began play in 2018) to sign a National Letter of Intent. He was rated as the no.122 overall prospect and 7th-best catcher in the 2023 class according to MLB Pipeline.

OF QUINCY SCOTT

(9th round, 261st overall)

Scott, 21, was named to the Pacific Coast Athletic All-Conference team after batting .438/.522/.648 with 6 home runs and 52 RBI over 41 games in his junior season at Palomar College in San Marcos, Calif. The outfielder finished with the 3rd-highest batting average (.438) in the PCAC last season, leading the Comets to a 24-1 conference record and the program’s 18th-ever conference title. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound outfielder tallied hits in 35 of the 41 games, including a career-high 5 hits, including 2 home runs, in a 24-4 victory over on Feb. 16 vs. Orange Coast. The San Marcos, Calif. native is currently committed to continue his collegiate career at the University of California-Santa Barbara after finishing with 150 hits and 104 RBI across two seasons at Palomar.

RHP CASE MATTER

(10th round, 291st overall)

The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Matter earned Pac-12 Honorable Mention honors as a redshirt sophomore at the University of Washington last season. He went 4-1 with 5 saves, a 3.91 ERA (11 ER/25.1 IP), and 34 strikeouts across 19 appearances/one start this spring, holding opponents to a .191 batting average. The 21-year-old right-hander totaled a 6-4 record, 4.89 ERA, and 11.3 strikeouts per 9.0 innings figure in three seasons with the Huskies. A three-year letter winner and two-sport athlete (also basketball) at Jackson High School in Mill Creek, Wash., Matter was a First Team All-Wesco selection as both a pitcher and infielder following his junior campaign in 2019.

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