Rangers Mt. Rushmore: Drafted In 30th Round Or Later
By Jared Sandler | @sandlerJ
105.3 THE FAN — MLB.com created a cool "Mt. Rushmore" campaign that asks fans to identify the people who'd make up their favorite team's Mt. Rushmore. The results will be unveiled as part of the All-Star festivities in Cincinnati.
Going along with the theme, each week I'll introduce a new Rangers themed Mt. Rushmore prompt and unveil the four faces who best demonstrate that prompt. Feel free to play along yourself.
Week 1 — Texas-Born Players
Week 2 — Best First-Round Picks
Week 3 — Best Rookie Years*
This week - Players drafted in the 30th round, or later.
*Their only two rules for eligibility beyond happening in the 30th round or later is that they had to have been drafted and signed by the Rangers. They didn't need to have their success with the Rangers, but had to have began their professional career with a contract from the Rangers.
Kenny Rogers (39th): He was drafted as an infielder and wrote quite the unlikely story to success as a MLB pitcher. The owner of the franchise's only perfect game, Rogers won 133 games in a Texas uniform, second most in franchise history. His infield skills made him a tremendous fielding pitcher, too--probably the best the franchise's seen. In 2011, he was inducted into the Texas Rangers Hall of Fame.
Robb Nen (32nd): His 314 career saves is 19th most all time, but Nen didn't save a game with Texas. Still, to find that gem in the 32nd round was impressive, even if he never amounted to much in nine appearances, including three starts, with the Rangers. In July of his first Major League season, he was traded to the Marlins for a few guys who never amounted to that much. Nen, however, helped lead the Marlins to their first ever World Series in 1997.
Travis Hafner (31st): "Pronk" was an easy guy to root for because of his home run hitting and his nickname. As he moved up the Rangers system, Hafner made his MLB debut in 2002, hitting just one home run with the Rangers before they shipped him away to Cleveland in the off-season for Einar Diaz and Ryan Drese. Hafner retired with 213 career HR, highlighted by a 2006 season in which he hit .308 with 42 HR and 117 RBI.
Scott Feldman (30th): He was on both World Series runner-up teams and the year before the team's first trek into deep October, 2009, he led the team with 17 wins. I always liked Feldman, who was generally regarded as one of the best guys in the clubhouse. Maybe there's some bias attached to this selection haha...
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