Jorge Alfaro is on his way to the Philadelphia Phillies as part of the Cole Hamels trade. So are a lot of others. (Getty)
It appears the Texas Rangers have won the Cole Hamels Sweepstakes.
The 31-year-old left-handed starter has been the most sought-after player in the days (and weeks and months) leading up to the July 31 trade deadline. Seemingly every team in postseason contention has been rumored to be in on Hamels at some point, but the Rangers have reportedly offered the right price.
Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News has the final details on the monster trade:
FInal deal and its a doozy: Matt Harrison, Alec Asher, Jerad Eickhoff, Nick Williams, Jorge Alfaro & Jake Thompson for Hamels+Diekman+Cash.
It’s a huge reload for the Phillies, who were looking to jumpstart the rebuilding process.
Jake Thompson, who was selected in the second round of the 2012 draft by the Tigers and traded to Texas in the Joakim Soria deal, is the highest-rated prospect by MLB.com, coming in at No. 60. The 21-year-old right-hander is 6-6 at Double-A Frisco with 4.72 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 78 strikeouts in 87.2 innings.
Jorge Alfaro, a 22-year-old catcher ranked as the 69th best prospect, is hitting .253/.314/.432 with five home runs and 21 RBI at Double-A Frisco this season. He may be out for the rest of the season after undergoing ankle surgery in June, but not many catchers possess his combination of power and arm strength. He needs some refinement behind the plate, but his upside is obvious.
The third top-100 prospect is outfielder Nick Williams, who is ranked No. 64. Selected in the second round in 2012, the 21-year-old is also at Double-A, where he’s raking to the tune of .300/.357/.480 with 21 doubles, 13 home runs and 10 stolen bases.
It depends where you look as to where the trio are ranked among the top-100 around the league, but as Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal noted, it’s a huge sweep of Texas’ farm system:
Preseason Baseball America rankings: RHP Jake Thompson No. 2 #Rangers prospect, C Jorge Alfaro No. 3, OF Nick Williams No. 5. All to PHI.
Alec Asher is also up there:
A 6-foot-4 right-hander who was taken in the fourth round of the 2012 draft, Asher is currently at Triple-A, where he boasts a 4.73 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. His numbers aren’t mind-blowing, but he’s still young (23) and has moved through the minors fairly quickly.
Finally, Jerad Eickhof, a 25-year-old right-hander, is ranked by MLB.com as the No. 17 prospect in Texas’ farm system. In 17 appearances (16 starts) with Triple-A Round Rock this season, he is 8-4 with a 4.47 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 90 strikeouts in 96.2 innings.
