Rangers prospects learning and improving

Team name: Texas Rangers
Location: Surprise, Ariz.
Date: March 12, 2008

Burning Question

Has the Rangers' controversial selection of Kasey Kiker with their top pick in 2006 been proven worthwhile?

No one could blame the Rangers if they issued a press release saying, "We told you so." But the folks in Texas won't do that, so maybe we will.

When the Rangers grabbed Kiker with the 12th overall pick two years ago, some folks in baseball thought the hard-throwing left-hander was only worthy of being a second- or third-round selection. He's only 5-foot-10, weighs 170 soaking wet and questions about his durability were already cropping up.

That he went 0-7 with a 4.13 ERA in 52 innings with Spokane that summer only fueled the argument that Texas made a bad gamble. John Lombardo, however, urged detractors to look at the other numbers aside from Kiker's won-loss record. For instance, he struck out 51 batters and held the opposition to a .232 average.

In 2007, Kiker posted a 7-4 record with a 2.90 ERA in 20 starts for Clinton of the Midwest League. Though the Rangers are still monitoring him closely -- they kept him on a tight leash last season -- the results speak for themselves.

"He showed us why we took him where we did," Lombardo said. "I'm not going to say I told you so either. He's only a year and a half into his career, so let's tap the brakes a little. At the same time, he did go out and show the whole world, and us, what he's capable of doing.

"When he's on the mound in the seventh game of the World Series someday, that's when we'll say I told you so. We're not about that, though. I think Kasey has a little chip on his shoulder because of it, but we don't. If that helps drive him though, that's great. Look at his numbers as a high schooler vs. Eric Hurley or John Danks, who we've thrown in that league. If you like Danks and Hurley you have no reason not to like Kiker more because his numbers were so much better than those guys."

Hurley, the club's first-round pick in 2004, was 0-3 with a 4.40 ERA in 43 innings in the Arizona and Northwest Leagues during his first pro season. At Spokane he was 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA while allowing six homers in 28 innings.

Danks, the ninth overall pick in 2003 who has since been dealt to the White Sox, was 0-2 with an 8.53 ERA in five starts at Spokane. Overall during his first season, he was 1-2 with a 5.26 ERA in 10 games split between the Northwest and Arizona Leagues.

Kiker has a bit of a mustang in him, which he showed during an interview with MiLB.com down in Alabama about a month before he was drafted. That boldness will help him fend off the doubters now and in the future.

Other News of the Day

Catcher Taylor Teagarden, who has been out for about a week and a half after being hit on the wrist with a pitch, was still nursing the bone bruise Wednesday morning. The former third-rounder said he anticipates being back on the field by the weekend and is confident there's still enough time left to salvage his spring. "I haven't played in 10 days so things have been kind of slow," he said. "You know, I want to work with the pitchers and get behind the dish. It's kind of held me back and I'm missing my at-bats. I wanted to play a whole spring and be ready for Opening Day, but at this point I haven't played in a while. I have to make sure when Opening Day comes I'll be at full speed." The Rangers haven't yet told Teagarden where he'll play this season, but it wouldn't be surprising if he started the year in Oklahoma City (he split last year between Bakersfield and Frisco). With Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Gerald Laird ahead of him on the depth chart -- the Rangers said earlier this week they have no plans to deal Laird -- and Max Ramirez gaining steam behind him, Teagarden's future with the Rangers might appear a bit clouded. He's not giving it much thought, though. "I just want to continue to perform and be productive," he said. "I'm not thinking much about it. I'll let them make the decision, but obviously we have a lot of young talent here."

Gary Pettis, the Rangers' outfield coach, said he has seen improvement in several of the young outfielders in the Texas system, including John Mayberry. "I saw Mayberry first in the [Arizona] Fall League and I wasn't sure that he could play," Pettis said. "He didn't have the movement prior to the ball being put into play. Since he's been here [this spring], he's corrected that. His future in the outfield looks good. [He just needs] some more game experience and to work on technique and throwing. They still have a way to go, but now they have the information to speed up the process."

John Lombardo, the club's director of Minor League operations, said they had spoken to Mayberry about the situation though it wasn't a major concern. "You have to remember, he's only been playing outfield for a couple of years," he said. "It takes time. There's been a difference, though, and he continues to improve."

Lombardo also raves about infielder Jose Vallejo and the shape in which he showed up for camp this season. The 21-year-old stole 47 bases last year at Clinton and the club is expecting him to continue to develop into a top-of-the-order threat. "He's really matured physically from where he started," Lombardo said. "And he understands the type of player he's going to be. He's not going to be the guy who hits home runs. He understands that he's going to be a top-of-the order guy and steal bases."

Five Questions with Ben Henry

MiLB.com: What led you to seek an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy? What influenced your decision to pursue baseball rather than go to Annapolis?

BH: I was injured my junior year of high school and they were the only team that would constantly follow up on me. When my arm got injured everyone else -- USC, the College of Charleston, Clemson and South Carolina -- stopped talking to me. The Academy never stopped talking to me or lost interest.

I knew what I could do and that I was going to come back [after the forearm injury]. It made me feel like those other programs weren't the types of programs I wanted to be associated with anyway if they didn't want to give someone a chance.

And after visiting Annapolis, I wanted to go there not only for baseball, but for my education as well. I didn't have to go through my congressman. The head coach had come to watch me pitch one day and he said after the game he was going to get me in direct. He went through the superintendent, and after two days, I got accepted. I was extremely happy about that.

But I decided to pursue baseball because of the timing. I felt it was the right time to start my baseball career so I signed [after the Rangers selected him in the 30th round last year].

MiLB.com: Do you regret your decision at all and do you ever think you'll regret not going to Annapolis?

BH: I don't know. I've had some times that I've wondered what I'd be doing now if I wasn't here and I was at Annapolis. At the same time, such a select few people ever get the chance to play pro ball. I have to take in what I'm doing now and enjoy it.

MiLB.com: If you could have dinner with someone from history, living or dead, fictional or real, who would it be and why?

BH: I've always been a huge Cal Ripken guy, so I'd probably have to go out to eat with him. With his story and everything that surrounds him. I watched him growing up because I was originally from Baltimore.

MiLB.com: What is your greatest accomplishment on or off the field?

BH: Probably getting drafted. After coming back from an injury and not knowing if I would ever play baseball again after my junior year of high school to then get drafted after my senior year was my biggest accomplishment.

MiLB.com: What was it like playing in the Rookie League last year as opposed to pitching in a high school game?

BH: It was hot. Other than the heat, the level of competition was much higher. We only had four kids drafted last year in South Carolina and I didn't face any of them. It was a lot more of a learning experience for me.

Lasting Impression

Doug Mathis certainly made an impression on someone this spring. In an almost unheard-of move, the Rangers decided they liked what they saw from the young left-hander in Minor League camp and moved him over to the Major League side as a reward.

Mathis, a former 13th-rounder (2005) from the University of Missouri, was as surprised as anyone by the move. But after pitching 2 1/3 scoreless innings and earning a save in some spot big league game duty earlier this spring, it shouldn't have come as a total shock.

"I just kind of came in this spring and was sticking to the program, not expecting to do too much," Mathis said. "Whatever I was doing opened someone's eyes. When you get rewarded like that, you really appreciate it. I didn't expect this. I just came in one morning and they told me you're moving over there [to the Major League side].

"I never heard of this happening. But I intend to take advantage of it and pick up a few things while I'm here. This is a great learning experience being around the big league guys. It definitely lets me know that what I was doing was the right way to do it and that I was on track with what they want me to get done."

Mathis admits getting noticed will provide an extra boost of confidence heading into the season, which he'll likely start at Oklahoma City. He has no delusions of grandeur about making the parent club. Instead he's focused on performing as well as he can in the Pacific Coast League and putting forth a better effort than he did a year ago in a brief stint with the RedHawks.

The 2007 season didn't start well for Mathis, who was 0-3 with a 10.66 ERA in three games (two starts) for Oklahoma City. He was reassigned to Frisco and rebounded to go 11-7 with a 3.76 ERA in 22 starts, earning a place on the Texas League South Division All-Star team.

"The biggest thing for me is to stay consistent," he said. "I started out last year at Triple-A. It was an older team and I was trying to impress people. This year I'm staying within myself and not trying to do anything that I'm not capable of doing. I was just pushing too hard last year and trying to make everything perfect.

"I wasn't staying within myself. I was throwing too hard and it showed in my performance. I was trying to impress people and that wasn't the way to go about it. When they sent me down to Frisco, whether it was because I was playing with guys I knew and had come up with, my comfort level changed. I wasn't pressing at all. When I was in Oklahoma, I was second-guessing myself and, even if you don't belong there, you kind of need to fake it."

The Rangers obviously like what they've seen from him this spring and he's made the kind of impression he was looking to make last year without even trying.

"It certainly is rare, but he earned it," Lombardo said. "He belongs with those guys. He's more prepared for it. He learned a great deal from his experience last year. He found the confidence to know that he just has to be himself to be successful."

Parting Shots

The Rangers have some interesting talent in their system with catcher proving to be a position at which they are loaded. It will be very interesting to see how the backstop role unfolds, because from a defensive and leadership standpoint, Teagarden has what it takes to be an impact player in the Major Leagues. Whether he'll get there with Texas remains the big question. Smart money says he will.