DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - The Rangers are adding some new prospects to the organization with the 2021 MLB Draft taking place this week.
After taking Vanderbilt pitcher Jack Leiter with the No. 2 overall pick, the Rangers will add several more players on Day 2 (Rounds 2-10).
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Here are their selections thus far:
RD 1: Jack Leiter - SP, Vanderbilt
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RD 2: Aaron Zavala - OF, Oregon
RD 3: Cameron Cauley - SS, Barbers Hill HS, (TX)
RD 4: Ian Moller - C, Wahlert Catholic HS, (Iowa)
Moller, 18, is a 6-foot, 190-pound catcher from Wahlert Catholic High School in Dubuque, Iowa. He did not play on the baseball team at Wahlert, instead opting to play on the showcase circuit. Moller, who has committed to Louisiana State University, was the first player from the state of Iowa selected in this year’s draft. Moller’s family owns and operates Built Not Born Baseball, a baseball training facility in Iowa. Ian is the great-grandson of former Negro League baseball player Hubert Ross Sr.
RD 5: Mitch Bratt - LHP, Newmarket HS (Ontario, Canada)
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Bratt spent his senior season at the Georgia Premier Academy in Statesboro, Ga., and has gone 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA (8 ER/28.0 IP) and 44 strikeouts in 7 starts for the West Virginia Black Bears of the newly-formed MLB Draft League this summer. The Canadian southpaw, who temporarily re-located to the United States from his hometown of Newmarket, Ontario in the spring, has previously pitched for both the Toronto Mets, an amateur team in the Canadian Premier Baseball League, and the Canadian Junior National Team. Bratt was rated as the third-best Canadian prospect in the 2021 draft class by Baseball America and has committed to play collegiately at Florida State University.
RD 6: Chase Lee - RHP, Alabama
The side-arming right-hander posted a 1.87 ERA (17 ER/82.0 IP) over 49 relief appearances across 3 seasons at the University of Alabama. He registered his best season with the Crimson Tide in 2021, finishing with a 7-0 record, 1.33 ERA (6 ER/40.2 IP), 7 saves, and 51 strikeouts against 14 walks after beginning the season with a 20.1-inning scoreless streak. Lee received third team All-America recognition from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association in 2021.
The Alabama native prepped at McAdory High School in McCalla, Ala., and earned his college degree in aerospace engineering in May 2021.
RD 7: Bradford Webb - RHP, Virginia Commonwealth University
Webb, 23, was an Atlantic 10 All-Championship team selection as a graduate student at Virginia Commonwealth University this spring, his lone season with the Rams following 3 campaigns at Division III Hampden-Sydney (Va.) College. The right-handed batter and thrower went 3-1 with a 3.16 ERA (20 ER/57.0 IP) and team-high 57 strikeouts across 17 games/14 starts in 2021, guiding VCU to an Atlantic 10 Championship and an appearance in the Starkville Regional of the NCAA Tournament. A native of Charlotte Court House, Va., Webb graduated cum laude with a degree in business and economics from Hampden-Sydney in 2020 and served as captain of the school’s baseball team from 2019-20.
RD 8: Larson Kindreich - LHP, Biola University
The 22-year-old left-hander went 5-2 with a 3.33 ERA (20 ER/54.0 IP) and 79 strikeouts over 9 starts this past season as a junior at Division II Biola University in La Mirada, Calif. He was named to the D2CCA All-West Region first team, All-PacWest first team, and NCBWA All-Region second team. The Oregon native prepped at Crater High School in Central Point, Ore., where he won a 5A state title with the Comets as a senior in 2018. During his final high school season, he had a streak of 37.0 no-hit innings and compiled a .505 batting average with 20 extra-base hits at the plate.
RD 9: Liam Hicks - C, Arkansas State University
The 22-year-old Hicks was named to the 2021 Buster Posey National Catcher of the Year Award watch list after batting .344 (54-157) with 7 home runs and 30 RBI as a junior at Arkansas State University. The left-handed batter and right-handed thrower paced the Sun Belt Conference with a .464 on-base pct. this season, reaching base via hit or walk in 39 of 41 games in which he appeared. He was ranked as the 23rd-best draft-eligible hitter in the 2021 class by D1Baseball.com.
Before transferring to ASU prior to the 2020 campaign, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Hicks spent 2 seasons (2018-19) at Mineral Area College in Park Hills, Mo., where he batted .440 with 14 home runs and 56 RBI as a sophomore in 2019. The Toronto, Ontario native was a four-year starter at catcher for Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute, and was rated as the no. 2 catcher in Ontario in the class of 2017 by Prep Baseball Report.
RD 10: C.J. Widger - LHP, Rowan College
Widger, a 6-foot-6, 170-pound left-hander, went 8-0 with a 1.26 ERA (8 ER/57.0 IP) in 12 games/6 starts this season Rowan College, a junior college in Gloucester County, N.J. near Philadelphia. His efforts earned him NJCAA Division III first team All-America honors. C.J. is the son of former Major League catcher Chris Widger, who played for the Chicago White Sox 2005 World Series champion club.
RD 11: Jojo Blackmon - CF, Escambia HS (Florida)
RD 12: Jackson Leath - RHP, Tennessee
RD 13: Thomas Ireland - LHP, Polk State College
RD 14: Tucker Mitchell - C, State College of Florida Manatee
RD 15: Evan Elliott - RHP, Lethbridge College (Alberta, Canada)
RD 16: Ryan Ure - P, Eaton HS (CO)
RD 17: Michael Alfonso - SS, Key West HS (FL)
RD 18: Kyle Larson - RHP, TNXL Academy (FL)
RD 19: Will Taylor - OF, Dutch Fork HS (SC)
RD 20: Joseph Montalvo - Central Pointe Christian Academy (FL)
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