The Texas Rangers want to get younger and more athletic in 2027. Part of the equation will be prospects.

Texas doesn’t have the most fertile farm system in baseball, but it does have some talented players that are positioned to help them in 2027. Working for them is the potential for a work stoppage in the winter that might allow them to get a head start on the Major League players and be ready to help when the regular season begins.

Here are three prospects who could play big roles for the Rangers in 2027 under the right circumstances.

Sebastian Walcott

The Rangers appear keenly interested in getting their No. 1 prospect, Sebastian Walcott, to the Majors sometime in 2027. The Rangers added him to the Arizona Fall League roster after his impressive return from internal brace surgery for his right UCL. Texas is starting to ramp up his play in the AFL after committing to just three games a week. Now, per The Dallas Morning News (subscription required) the Rangers are starting to cross-train him in the outfield.

Texas is positioning Walcott to help them as soon as he’s ready. The Rangers won’t put him on the 40-man roster before the expected work stoppage. That will allow him to start the 2027 minor league season at Triple-A Round Rock, where he does need at-bats. Once the MLB season starts and when Walcott shows he’s mastered Triple-A pitching, he’s coming up. It’s only a matter of when and where. Buy coaching him in the outfield, it opens more options.

Dalton Pence

The left-hander’s rise has been swift. The Rangers selected Dalton Pence in the 11th round out of North Carolina in the 2024 MLB Draft. After an exceptional 2025 at Class-A Hickory and High-A Hub City, he was at Major League spring training on a non-roster invite. Last season he pitched at Hub City, Double-A Frisco and Triple-A Round Rock and finished 6-4 with a 2.51 ERA. He struck out 122, walked 49 and allowed batters to hit .206 against him.

The Rangers have two potential left-handed starters in MacKenzie Gore — who is a lock assuming he’s not traded — and Cody Bradford, who was put in the rotation when he returned in August. Pence will have an advantage of pitching during any work stoppage, which might allow him to be quickly promoted once the MLB season starts. He could be a long reliever in 2027 and then compete for a rotation spot in 2028 once Gore is a free agent.

Dylan Dreiling

The future outfield plan must include Dreiling now after what he did in 2026 at Double-A Frisco. He slashed .312/.380/.516 with 22 home runs and 84 RBI. That was a nearly 100-point jump in batting average. So, he needs at-bats at Round Rock, just like Walcott does.

The former Tennessee standout was a second-round pick in 2024 and had a great foundation in college to build from. He can play center field, which is starting to be a position of need with the stalling of Evan Carter’s development as a hitter. Moving Walcott into an outfield role complicates Dreiling’s path. But in a scenario where the Rangers have multiple outfield injuries and he gets off to a great start at Round Rock, he’s the guy Texas should call.