Walcott is batting .339/.387/.554 over 14 games for High-A Hickory in June.
The Rangers pushed the 18-year-old prospect with an aggressive assignment at Hickory, and Walcott struggled early. He was batting .195 through the end of May, but his bat has come alive in June. The organization is also exposing the 6-foot-4 shortstop to third base, where he's made nine starts over the last 27 games.
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Rangers' Sebastian Walcott: Aggressive assignment to High-A
Rotowire
Walcott will begin the 2024 season with High-A Hickory, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.
While Walcott finished the 2023 season with four games at High-A, it's still surprising to see him assigned to that level less than a month after turning 18 years old, as he never played at Single-A and struck out a lot (32.5 K%) in the Arizona Complex League last season. Known for his extremely loud tools (plus-plus raw power, plus speed), the 6-foot-4 Walcott has superstar upside if he can keep the strikeouts in check, but that could prove difficult this season as the youngest player in the South Atlantic League.
The Rangers promoted Walcott from the rookie-level Arizona Complex League to High-A Hickory on Sunday.
At just 17 years and five months old, Walcott will become the youngest player in the South Atlantic League. Walcott received the green light to bypass an assignment to Single-A Down East after he slashed .273/.325/.524 with seven home runs and nine stolen bases across 157 plate appearances in the ACL.
