{"id":538896,"date":"2026-01-26T14:33:27","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T14:33:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/538896\/"},"modified":"2026-01-26T14:33:27","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T14:33:27","slug":"texas-rangers-breakout-mlb-prospects-for-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/538896\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas Rangers Breakout MLB Prospects For 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every year, a handful of players ranked outside the top 10 in their respective farm systems take meaningful steps forward to improve their stock and vault up prospect rankings. Part of the fun is trying to identify those breakouts before it happens. So today, we\u2019re identifying Rangers prospects who have the potential to make a jump in 2026.<\/p>\n

To qualify, a player must rank outside the organization\u2019s preseason Top 10 prospects.\u00a0All scouting reports are from Baseball America\u2019s 2026 Prospect handbook, which you can purchase here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You can find Top 30 prospect rankings\u00a0for all teams here<\/a>\u00a0and all breakout candidates here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Breakout Prospects<\/p>\n

Izack Tiger<\/a>, RHP<\/p>\n

BA Grade\/Risk: 50\/High
Adjusted Grade: 35<\/p>\n

Track Record: Tiger spent his entire college career in Kansas at Butler JC. He struck out 121 hitters in his final season before the draft, and the Rangers called his name in the seventh round in 2023. He signed for $180,000. He got his first pro experience during Low-A Down East\u2019s playoff run. In 2024, Tiger earned a spot in one of Texas\u2019 Spring Breakout games, then pitched at three levels in the regular season, peaking at High-A. He pitched 46 innings before a torn ulnar collateral ligament required Tommy John surgery and cost him all of 2025.<\/p>\n

Scouting Report: When healthy, Tiger has one of the most overwhelming pitch mixes in the Rangers\u2019 system. His four-seam fastball reached into the upper 90s with plenty of life through the zone. He backed it with a slider in the mid 80s and a split-changeup in the low 90s. The combination allows him to work the strike zone from the top down while drawing plenty of empty swings. At their peak, Tiger\u2019s fastball and slider are potential plus pitches. His changeup could get to above-average. He repeats his delivery well and should have fringe-average control once he reaches the big leagues.<\/p>\n

The Future: After a year to recover, Tiger should be ready for spring training. If his stuff returns intact, he has a chance to be a back-end starter or a live-armed force in the back of a bullpen.<\/p>\n

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 60 | Split: 55 | Control: 45<\/p>\n

Jack Wheeler<\/a>, 3B<\/p>\n

BA Grade\/Risk: 50\/High
Adjusted Grade: 35<\/p>\n

Track Record: Wheeler was a two-way player at Illinois\u2019 Morris High, where he also played basketball and football. He played with the varsity squad all four years in high school and was drafted by the Rangers in the sixth round in 2025. He signed for an above-slot bonus of $525,000 to keep him from landing on campus at Illinois. He did not play an official game after signing.<\/p>\n

Scouting Report: Despite his potential on the mound, Wheeler\u2019s path as a pro will come as a position player only. He\u2019s big and physical and moves well for his size. His natural strength and loose swing help him generate premier raw power that should be more than enough to profile at his position. His midwestern roots mean he\u2019s a little more raw than prep talents from amateur hotbeds in other parts of the country, and his reaction to spin during instructional league affirmed the idea that patience will be required as Wheeler climbs the ladder. Though he\u2019s lithe enough now to handle third base, there\u2019s a chance his body might push him to right field as he matures. If that\u2019s the case, his above-average arm strength should be more than enough for the position.<\/p>\n

The Future: Wheeler\u2019s first official pro reps will come in the Arizona Complex League. If he passes those tests, he has a chance to be a prototype hitter who can profile either at third base or in right field.<\/p>\n

Scouting Grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 60 | Run: 55 | Field: 40 | Arm: 55<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every year, a handful of players ranked outside the top 10 in their respective farm systems take meaningful…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":189874,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2393],"tags":[71247,5,4,149,1567,69,3240],"class_list":{"0":"post-538896","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-texas-rangers","8":"tag-2026-breakout-mlb-prospects","9":"tag-baseball","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-rangers","12":"tag-texas","13":"tag-texas-rangers","14":"tag-texasrangers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115961895726177355","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/538896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=538896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/538896\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/189874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=538896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=538896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=538896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}