Rangers Using Arizona Fall League to Accelerate Development of Injured Trio

For these three Texas Rangers prospects, the Arizona Fall League is an opportunity to get extra playing time and position themselves for 2027.

Paxton Kling. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Many teams use the Arizona Fall League to get their top prospects additional playing time after the end of the minor league season.

That’s true for the Texas Rangers, who selected eight players to play for the Surprise Saguaros in the AFL, which starts next month.

But inside that desire to help those top prospects develop is an opportunity to help three of them who missed time due to injuries get the extra at-bats and the extra innings they need to position themselves as prospects next season and beyond.

Pitchers Mason McConnaughey and Jacob Johnson, along with outfielder Paxton Kling, all fit both categories.

The Injury Trio Headed to Surprise

Jacob Johnson put on a strikeout show in his ACL Rangers debut ⚡️

8 K over 3 IP for the 19-year-old righty. pic.twitter.com/Xd2TyVIKzD

— Rangers Player Development (@TEXPlayerDev) May 5, 2026

All three players are among the Rangers’ Top 30 prospects per MLB Pipeline. Johnson is No. 17, Kling is No. 20 and McConnaughey is No. 30. All three were also drafted by Texas in 2025 and were playing their first full professional seasons. This isn’t the time to fall behind.

Johnson is only 20 years old has the right-hander was selected in the 11th round out of Pearl River Community College in Mississippi. He missed time with a shoulder injury. He split time between the Arizona Complex League Rangers and Class A Hickory.

Even with the injury, he showed promise. He finished 2-0 with a 2.51 ERA in 14 games, 13 of which were starts. He struck out 48 and walked 25 in 43 innings. The most intriguing part was that batters hit just .193 against them, including .219 at Hickory. He’s showing good stuff for a young pitcher, which is part of the reason he was extended an AFL invite.

Kling Missed more than a month with a fractured wrist. He was Texas’ seventh-round pick out of Penn State in 2025. The injuries slowed him down, but only so much. He played in 89 games between High-A Hub City and Double-A Frisco with a slash of .243/.383/.361 with seven home runs and 34 RBI. He was a .301 hitter in 21 minor league games in 2025. He’s among a cadre of outfielders with Major League promise.

McConnaughey was selected the highest of the three, going in the fourth round out of Nebraska. He underwent Tommy John surgery last year so Texas knew when they drafted him that he would need time to recover in 2026. He spent time at the ACL and with Hickory and went a combined 1-1 with a 3.48 ERA. He struck out 16 and walked six in 20.2 innings. Like Johnson, hitters had trouble with him, batting .224 against him.

Texas saw enough out of all three in limited action to give all three the chance to get more playing time and impress the organization further in Arizona. They'll be among the players to watch in the organization next month.