Kumar Rocker Brings Fastball, Championship Pedigree To Rangers

Texas' newest first-round pick didn't go back to college baseball after failing to reach an agreement with the New York Mets last year.

The Texas Rangers’ newest prospect, Kumar Rocker, has something in common with their No. 1 overall prospect, Jack Leiter — both pitched at Vanderbilt.

Leiter was the No. 2 overall pick last year for the Rangers. Rocker went No. 10 overall to the New York Mets.

The Rangers deferred starting Leiter professionally until 2022. Rocker’s route was, well, rockier.

He might have had a better 2021 for the Commodores than Leiter. The unanimous First-Team All-America was a finalist for both the Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy, given to college baseball’s best player. He won 14 games and had 179 strikeouts, which led the NCAA in both categories. It was just the first time that happened since 1988.

Rocker went 28-10 with a 2.89 ERA over 42 games/39 starts across three seasons at Vanderbilt. He was a freshman on the Commodores' 2019 College World Series championship team, when he was selected winner of the CWS Most Outstanding Player.

He was good enough to be taken eight picks after Leiter, but he didn’t sign with the Mets due to his medicals. That came after the Mets had offered him a $6 million signing bonus. MLB.com reported that the Mets were unaware that Rocker had arm problems before they made the selection, which allowed them to walk away from the offer. This happened because Rocker didn’t participate in the pre-draft medical process.

His agent, Scott Boras, told reporters 10 months ago that Rocker did have surgery on his right elbow, but it had nothing to do with his pitching.

Rocker could not return to Vanderbilt, so he ended up playing professionally with the Tri-City Valley Cats of the Frontier League.

He made five starts with Tri-City Valley, going 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA (3 ER/20.0 IP) and four walks against 32 strikeouts for a rate of 14.4 strikeouts per 9 innings. He has posted a 0.750 WHIP figure for the team based in Troy, NY, a club managed by former Rangers slugger Pete Incaviglia.

At 6-foot-5, 245 pounds, Rocker poses an imposing figure on the mound. While with Tri-City his fastball has been clocked as fast as 99 mph.

Rocker told Yahoo! Sports that his experience with Tri-City has him ready for the minors.

“I think I have a better understanding of pro hitters, just growing up a little bit on the mound,” Rocker said.

This was a big selection for the Rangers. They do not have a second- or third-round pick due to free-agent signings in the offseason.

The Rangers have selected pitcher Cole Winn, infielder Josh Jung, infielder Davis Wendzel, infielder Justin Foscue and Leiter in the first round in the last five drafts.

The Rangers continue to draft on Monday with Rounds 3-10, and on Tuesday with the rest of the 20-round draft.

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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard

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