Rangers’ Dylan Dreiling Keeps Things Simple
Dylan Dreiling will never forget what he was doing in June 2024.
The outfielder won the College World Series with Tennessee and was voted the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player after hitting .541 with three home runs and 11 RBIs in six games.
Three weeks later was drafted in the second round by the reigning World Series-champion Rangers.
But professional baseball has a funny way of humbling players, even those seemingly without a worry in the world. Dreiling, it turns out, was too preoccupied with trying to prove the Rangers right by using the 67th overall pick on him, and his numbers at High-A cratered.
The lefthanded hitter batted just .198 in 24 games and finished with a .279 slugging percentage. He walked 19 times, one fewer than he struck out, so it wasn’t all negative.
His experience, though, proved invaluable as he prepared for his first full pro season. Back at High-A, Dreiling understands that he doesn’t need to do anything beyond what made the Rangers covet him.
“You’re around a bunch of new faces. It’s just like being a freshman in college,” Dreiling said. “It’s, ‘Let’s show these guys what I can do.’ It doesn’t work in baseball. It’s tough.
“I’m trying to focus more this year on trying to stay within myself and doing what I do and not doing too much at the plate.”
Dreiling uses his advanced strike-zone judgment to get into favorable counts and then uses his bat speed to generate power. He finished the first month with a .278/.384/.417 slash for Hub City, the Rangers’ new High-A affiliate in Spartanburg, S.C.
He did a little bit of everything well, from taking 13 walks to hitting three homers to stealing five bases. He said that’s him, an all-around player with a team-first mentality. He’s at his best when he keeps things simple.
“I really like dumbing it down to where it’s whatever I can do to help the team win,” Dreiling said. “I feel like it makes baseball easier and more fun. I’m not up there swinging for the fences and maybe connecting once every 15 times.”
RANGERS ROUNDUP
— Catcher Malcolm Moore is expected to be out until June with a broken finger on his right hand. He does not need surgery. The Rangers’ first-round pick out of Stanford last year, Moore had played nine games for High-A Hub City.
— Triple-A Round Rock righthander Emiliano Teodo was placed on the injured list because of shoulder fatigue, though the Rangers said that the move was geared toward preserving him for the long haul. He could be a candidate for the big league bullpen in the second half.
