The Rangers announced that they have selected the contracts of right-handers David Davalillo and Leandro Lopez, as well as first baseman/outfielder Abimelec Ortiz. That protects those three from being selected in the Rule 5 draft next month. The club’s 40-man roster count climbs to 38.
Davalillo is the most highly-regarded prospect of the trio. FanGraphs had him at 11th in their midseason update. MLB.com had him at seventh by the end of the year. The Rangers signed Davalillo as an international free agent in 2022. He opened 2025 in High-A, but made the jump to Double-A by the end of the year. Davalillo tossed 56 innings with a 2.73 ERA after joining Frisco. His strikeout rate wasn’t as lofty as it has been at lower levels, but he kept the walks in check and limited hitters to a .195 batting average.
The 23-year-old Davalillo boasts a four-pitch mix, per FanGraphs. His fastball sits in the low to mid-90s, to go with two breaking balls and a splitter. Texas has a handful of other similarly-ranked pitching prospects around Davalillo’s age, so there will be some competition for a callup, but he could be in line to make his major-league debut as soon as 2026.
Lopez
More to come.
