Introduction to the Texas Rangers’ Draft Picks
ARLINGTON — The Rangers feel like they got two first-rounders in the draft with Gavin Fien and pitcher AJ Russell. They paid them that way, too. A day after introducing the No. 12 overall pick, Fien, the Rangers concluded their draft business Wednesday signing Russell for a $2.6 million bonus, according to a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations.
Russell, from the University of Tennessee, was the 52nd overall pick and his draft slot had a $1.86 million bonus. The bonus he received was equivalent to that of the No. 38 pick, a first-round competitive balance compensation pick. The Rangers also signed third-rounder Josh Owens, a two-way high school player from Tennessee for $1.1 million, according to a person with direct knowledge of the talks.
Draft Picks and Signings
The Rangers, who had $10,991,300 available in bonus pool slots for their top 10 picks, signed each of their picks from the first 12 rounds and 17 of 20 picks overall. They did not reach agreements with 13th and 14th rounders Aiden Robertson and Landon Manzi, both pitchers, and 16th rounder Jaxon Grossman, a catcher. They are not expected to sign before Monday’s deadline, will return to school and the Rangers will lose their rights.
Russell, who came back from elbow surgery late in the 2025 season, is expected to receive a significantly above-slot deal closer to being in line with a first-round pick. He was considered a potential first-round talent before the injury. According to Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline, the deal is worth $2.6 million.
AJ Russell’s Background and Skills
In Russell, the Rangers get a strapping 6-6 right-hander, who has already pitched at Globe Life Field and whose four-seam fastball can be dialed up to 98 mph. According to Baseball America’s scouting report, his secondary pitches will need refinement for consistency, but grade out above average.
It is the fastball, which he ramped up at Tennessee that put him on the map. He was middle-tier velocity pitcher using a two-seam fastball before simple experimenting with a four-seamer out of frustration. A teammate showed him his four-seam grip. A star was born.
“There really was no development behind it,” Russell said. “It was one of those things that I kind of lucked into. I realized it was pretty good, pretty quickly in terms of missing barrels, got lot of swing and miss with it. The [velocity] ticked up immediately when I started throwing it. I liked how it felt. And I just kind of ran with it.”
Russell’s College Career and Stats
Russell, 21, went 2-1 with a 3.55 ERA and 36 strikeouts in 25⅓ innings this season after coming back from internal brace surgery to repair a partially torn elbow ligament. He had the surgery in June 2024.
He compiled a career collegiate record of 4-2 with a 2.70 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 42 appearances/11 starts. Russell earned Baseball America Freshman All-American honors in 2023, posting a 0.89 ERA (3 ER/30.1 IP) in his collegiate debut. During that strong freshman season he pitched at Globe Life Field against Texas Tech in an early season tournament.
Future Plans for Russell
Now the next question is whether he will pitch this year or not. He will go to Arizona with the rest of the draft picks for a mini-camp, but GM Ross Fenstermaker said the Rangers had not yet decided on a plan for him. The last two college pitchers the Rangers took in the first round, Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker, did not pitch in the regular season after they were drafted.
Leiter returned to school until the fall; Rocker, who had been out of school a year, pitched in the Instructional League and then the Arizona Fall League.
Texas Rangers Draft Picks
| Round | Overall Pick | Player selected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | SS Gavin Fien from Great Oak HS (Calif.) |
| 2 | 52 | RHP AJ Russell from Tennessee |
| 3 | 84 | Two-way player Josh Owens from Providence Academy (Tenn.) |
| 4 | 115 | RHP Mason McConnaughey from Nebraska |
| 5 | 146 | LHP Ben Abeldt from TCU |
| 6 | 175 | 3B Jack Wheeler from Morris HS (Ill.) |
| 7 | 205 | OF Paxton Kling from Penn State |
| 8 | 235 | RHP Evan Siary from Mississippi State |
| 9 | 265 | LHP Owen Proksch from Duke |
| 10 | 295 | RHP J.D. McReynolds from University of Central Missouri |
| 11 | 325 | RHP Jacob Johnson from Pearl River CC (Miss.) |
| 12 | 355 | RHP Jake Barbee from Jay M. Robinson HS (N.C.) |
| 13 | 385 | RHP Aiden Robertson from Walters State CC (Tenn.) |
| 14 | 415 | RHP Landon Manzi from Killingly HS (Conn.) |
| 15 | 445 | SS Luke Hanson from Virginia |
| 16 | 475 | RHP Jaxon Grossman from Salt Lake CC (Utah) |
| 17 | 505 | C Noah Franklin from
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