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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred speaks during the first round of the MLB baseball draft Sunday, July, 13, 2025 in Atlanta. (AP Photo\/Mike Stewart)<\/p>\n
Mike Stewart\/AP<\/p>\n
The Major League Baseball draft begins Saturday at noon and if you are very interested, very diligent and very handy with a remote, you might be able to watch it. \u00a0<\/p>\n
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MLB has shifted this year\u2019s draft to a Saturday afternoon start with the first four rounds and then the final 16 rounds on Sunday. The first 10 picks will be televised on NBC\/Peacock<\/a> and then it shifts to the MLB Network for picks 11-40 and finally to MLB.com\/MLB TV for the remainder of the day\u2019s proceedings, so if you are interested in seeing where Fort Worth Christian\u2019s Grady Emerson, the top high schooler in the country,<\/a> goes and have interest in the Rangers<\/a>\u2019 picks, you could be channel surfing three times. \u00a0<\/p>\n And next year, if MLB has its way, the format will change again, as\u00a0owners have proposed limiting the draft to 12 rounds and excluding high school players<\/a>. So, this might be your last chance to catch the draft in this format.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n That said, here\u2019s everything you need to know about the Rangers\u2019 draft situation heading into what scouting director Kip Fagg calls a \u201cvery deep draft.”<\/p>\n The picks<\/p>\n The Rangers\u2019 first-round pick is No. 16 overall, but they will also have picks No. 54, 89 and 117 on the first day. The first-round choice has an assigned bonus slot value of $5,051,000. \u00a0<\/p>\n The bonus pool\u00a0\n<\/p>\n The Rangers have up to $10,219,200 to spend on their first 10 picks. While there are assigned slot bonuses for each pick, teams are not required to spend that amount of money. Any money saved can be allotted for lower picks. Picks between rounds 11-20 have a $150,000 maximum with anything over that counting against the bonus pool.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The pool system creates a draft strategy that is not always about getting the single best talent, but about getting the most value. \u00a0<\/p>\n Historical fun fact<\/p>\n At some point this season, the Rangers\u2019 top draft choices from the 2018-23 drafts have appeared on the major league roster<\/a>: Cole Winn (2018), Josh Jung (2019), Justin Foscue (2020), Jack Leiter (2021), Kumar Rocker (2022) and Wyatt Langford (2023).\u00a0<\/p>\n The 2025 first-rounder<\/p>\n Texas Rangers first-round pick Gavin Fien poses for a photo with president of baseball operations Chris Young (left) and senior director of amateur scouting Kip Fagg during an introductory press conference at Globe Life Field on Tuesday, July 22, 2025.<\/p>\n Smiley N. Pool\/Staff Photographer<\/p>\n The Rangers selected California high school infielder Gavin Fien with the 12th overall pick last year<\/a>, but Fien appeared in just 10 games as a member of the organization before being traded to Washington as part of the package that landed MacKenzie Gore<\/a>. Fien, 19, has already been moved to the outfield and was slashing .240\/.328\/.406\/.734 at Class A Fredricksburg (Va.).\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The potential 2026 first-rounders<\/p>\n A look at five potential fits for the Rangers in this year\u2019s draft:\u00a0<\/p>\n The two-way talent<\/p>\n<\/p>\n