Pair of Texas Rangers Prospects Earn Carolina League All-Star Honors

The Texas Rangers’ robust farm system continues to rack up the postseason awards, this time at Class-A Down East.  
Jul 26, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The hat and glove of Texas Rangers fielder Leody Taveras (3) during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.
Jul 26, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The hat and glove of Texas Rangers fielder Leody Taveras (3) during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. / John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
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Texas Rangers prospects infielder Gleider Figuereo and right-handed pitcher David Davalillo were named to the Carolina League Postseason All-Star team in voting by league managers.

Both played for Class-A Down East.

Figuereo is the Rangers’ No. 20 prospect per MLB Pipeline.

The 20-year-old Dominican Republic native finished his time at Down East with a slash line of .244/.346/.474/.820 with 12 home runs, four triples, nine doubles and 32 RBI in 63 games.

Among Carolina League players with at least 200 at-bats he was second in slugging percentage, fourth in OPS and ninth in home runs.

Figuereo was later promoted to High-A Hickory, and for the season he had career highs with 20 home runs, 97 hits, 16 doubles and 52 RBI.

Davalillo, a native of Venezuela, earned his All-Star nod after going 6-1 with a 1.79 ERA, 79 strikeouts and 22 walks in 17 games, including 16 starts.

Among Carolina League pitchers with at least 80 innings, he was first in ERA, third in WHIP (1.01), third in opponent batting average (.199) and 11th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.59).

He also earned a promotion to Hickory and went a combined 8-2 with a 1.88 ERA, with 113 strikeouts in 22 games (21 starts). Among Rangers minor leagues that pitched at least 50 innings he had the lowest ERA of any prospect.

Earlier this week, Abimelec Ortiz was named the Texas League Player of the Week for Sept. 9-15. The Double-A Frisco first baseman batted .524 last week, going 11-for-21, with four home runs, a double, eight RBI and four walks against three strikeouts. He played in five games and hit his home runs in bunches, with two in back-to-back games against Amarillo.

The Rangers also announced the winners of their full-season minor league awards.

Outfielder Alejandro Osuna was named the Tom Grieve Player of the Year, pitcher Alejandro Rosario was named the Nolan Ryan Pitcher of the Year, Bryan Magdaleno was named the Reliever of the Year, Cody Freeman was named the Defender of the Year and Jax Biggers was given the True Ranger Award.


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Matthew Postins
MATTHEW POSTINS

Matthew Postins is an award-winning sports journalist who covers the Texas Rangers for Fan Nation/SI and also writes about the Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies. He also covers the Big 12 for HeartlandCollegeSports.com.