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Texas Rangers minor league report: Emiliano Teodo continues to light it up

Teodo may not be the best pitching prospect in the Rangers’ organization, but he could be the most interesting. He could profile exceptionally well as a relief pitcher with a high-heat fastball and slider mix.

Welcome to the The Dallas Morning NewsTexas Rangers minor league report, a weekly update on the organization’s top prospects and players from Round Rock to the rookie league...

Emiliano Teodo continues to light it up: Teodo allowed two earned runs on six hits and two walks in his last six-inning start for Double-A Frisco on Saturday. He struck out a season-high eight batters and generated 17 swings-and-misses and reached 99 mph with his fastball.

The 23-year-old has a 3.78 ERA in four starts (16 and 2/3 innings pitched) and an 18 to 10 strikeout-to-walk rate this season with Frisco. He may not be the best pitching prospect in the Rangers’ organization, but he could be the most interesting. Teodo could profile exceptionally well as a relief pitcher with a high-heat fastball and slider mix, though the Rangers have worked him out largely as a starting pitcher in the last three seasons from Single-A to Double-A. Whether or not he remains a starter may be dependent on the development of his slider and changeup to go along with the blazing two-seamer.

He shined in the Arizona Fall League last year out of the bullpen and turned some head this spring as a reliever in major league exhibition games. The right-hander — who the Rangers signed for $10,000 on the international market four seasons ago — is the organization’s No. 20 prospect according to The Dallas Morning News’ rankings.

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“He’s got electric stuff,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said during the spring.

He does. If he continues to fare well in Double-A — and continues to harness his secondary pitches — he could be well on his way to playing for Bochy.

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Pitcher of the week: RHP Jack Leiter. The Pacific Coast League took this one out of our hands when they awarded him their pitcher of the week honor on Monday, but Leiter’s most recent Triple-A start is worthy. The 24-year-old pitched six shutout, one-hit innings vs. Salt Lake on Thursday in his first start for Round Rock since his major league debut. He struck out eight batters and walked three, generated 19 swings and misses and reached 98.1 mph with his fastball. The lone hit he allowed was a 85.6 mph single from former Ranger Willie Calhoun.

Leiter has a 2.66 ERA and a 33 to 6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first four Triple-A appearances. His April promotion to the major leagues suggests that if — and more realistically, when — the Rangers need an extra starting pitcher, the former second overall pick will be their first call.

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Player of the week: C Jesus Lopez. The organization’s No. 28 prospect, according to The News’ rankings, Lopez has hits in six of his last seven games for Single-A Down East and has gone 10 for 28 (.357) with two home runs and a double in that span. Lopez, 18, is the second-youngest prospect in The News’ top 30 and profiles as a strong hitter and defender behind the plate.

He’s slashed .276/.354/.431 in Down East this season after posting a 1.040 OPS in the Arizona Complex League last year. He’s young for his current classification and still a ways away from the majors, but given that Sam Huff (26) has been shuffled into a Quad-A kind of role in the organization, Lopez appears to be the club’s brightest catching prospect.

Non top-30 standout: 2B Erick Alvarez. At 19-year-old, there’s still plenty of time for Alvarez to play his way into a top-30 list at some point. He’s off to a good start at Single-A Down East with a .423/.448/.577 slash line in his first seven games this season. He’s posted three multi-hit games to begin the year, including a 4 for 4 day with a double and a triple on Sunday against Fayetteville.

The Rangers signed Alvarez to a $225,000 bonus out of Venezuela during the 2022 international signing cycle alongside Lopez and No. 4 prospect Anthony Gutierrez, an outfielder. Each are from Venezuela.

Stat of the week: Sebastian Walcott’s two first High-A home runs. The 18-year-old infielder — considered the top position player prospect in the Rangers’ organization behind Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter — had gotten off to a slow start in High-A Hickory as the youngest player in the South Atlantic League. He seems to be settling in. Walcott hit his first home run of the season on Friday vs. Asheville, then hit his second on Tuesday vs. Rome.

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