Fresh off eye-opening first pro season, Porter is having 'a blast'

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Brock Porter had a decorated high school career with St. Mary's Prep at Orchard Lake, Mich. He won three state titles, was named Michigan’s Gatorade Player of the Year twice and took home Gatorade's national award in his senior season.

Now ranked as the Rangers’ No. 4 prospect, Porter has much different competition in Minor League ball than he did while at his Michigan prep school.

In his professional-debut season in 2023, the 20-year-old right-hander logged a 2.47 ERA with a .160 opponent average and 95 strikeouts in 69 1/3 with Single-A Down East, though he struggled a bit with his command, walking 42 batters.

Porter admitted the biggest adjustment was the competition, and how much talent truly exists in the Minor Leagues. But he added that it was good to be able to see it early on and adjust throughout the season. Now, Porter will get a chance to face the best of that talent, headlining the Rangers’ team of prospects for their inaugural Spring Breakout game, scheduled for Thursday at 6:05 p.m. ET/5:05 p.m. CT/3:05 p.m. MT.

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“It's definitely a process,” Porter said of his season. “I think the Minor Leagues can be tough, but it's something you have to go through and work through some struggle to get to the top. I think it was good for me to go through that a little bit just to see what it was all like, but it's definitely really fun working through this system.

“It was different. I didn't know exactly, going into it, what it was going to be like, but after I got a few starts under my belt, I think I kind of took off and understood what the competition was like. I finished the season strong, so I was happy.”

Porter was MLB Pipeline’s top-ranked pitching prospect in the 2022 Draft, with clubs convinced that he would honor his commitment to Clemson, but the Rangers ultimately selected Porter with the 109th pick in the fourth round, signing him to an above-slot $3.7 million.

Despite how much he loved Clemson's program and staff, Porter emphasized that he believes he made the right decision.

“It's been amazing,” Porter said. “Coming here, it's a great opportunity, and I think it's a great organization to be in. It's been a blast, you know? It's a dream come true, being a kid right out of high school, coming here and playing with this organization, it’s just been unreal.”

He’s not the biggest name in the Rangers system -- that would be Jack Leiter -- or even the one closest to the big leagues -- that’s likely Owen White, who made two big league relief appearances in 2023.

But Porter, MLB Pipeline’s No. 88 overall prospect, may have the highest ceiling of them all.

“I like a lot of things about him,” Rangers assistant general manager for player development Ross Fenstermaker said of Porter. “I mean, he's big, he's physical. He's got great pitches. He's got aptitude. He's a great worker, with a really good work ethic. He has a desire to be great. He competes. He has physical gifts that a lot of others don't. We have a lot of confidence that he's going to get the most out of them.”

Fenstermaker wasn’t lying when he said Porter -- who’s listed at 6-foot-4 and 208 pounds -- has the physical tools to be successful. So far, Porter has lived up to his previous billing.

What matters now is putting those attributes to use.

Fenstermaker said Porter’s fastball velocity -- which ranked as one of the best in the 2022 Draft class -- has been up this spring, and the mid-80s slider has continued to develop throughout the offseason. The changeup, Porter’s best pitch, has “excellent velocity separation from his heater and confounds hitters with its tumble and fade,” according to MLB Pipeline.

The tools are all there, but command and control will likely be the separator for Porter going forward.

“We’re looking for consistency in all aspects -- more consistency with the shapes of his pitches, more consistency attacking the strike zone, consistency staying ahead and finishing,” Fesntermaker said. “Consistency especially in repeating his delivery. Overall consistency is really what we're looking for from him.”

After a fairly successful season in Single-A, Porter is set up for a promotion going into the 2024 season. Whether that’s to High-A Hickory or all the way to Double-A Frisco remains to be seen, but either way he’s more than prepared to make his way through the system.

“I'm pumped,” Porter said. “I think last year, it was a little bit of getting my feet wet. This year, I'm going forward with a little bit more confidence, knowing what's out there, what the competition's like. Now that I got my feet wet, but I'm excited to kind of make a push and hopefully see where my talent can take me.”