Texas Rangers relief pitcher Caleb Boushley (70) pitches during the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Rangers Have Intriguing Half-Dozen Minor League Pitchers That Added Velocity

Originally posted on Texas Rangers on SI
By Matt Postins | Last updated Oct 26, 2025 8:00 PM ET

The Texas Rangers, like every other team in baseball, is hunting for velocity. That hunt typically starts in the minor leagues.

Teams work with young prospects to help them increase their velocity, most notably on their fastball. Some take to it better than others, as Baseball America (subscription required) reported earlier this week.

The site tracked every minor league pitcher that saw a two mile-per-hour increase in their fastball velocity from 2024 to 2025 and six Rangers made the list. The strange part is that two of the players listed have Major League experience. The other four are prospects. But all threw at least 100 fasttballs in the minor leagues as part of the sample size.

Rangers New Velocity Kings

Right-hander Wilian Bormie is not a name most Rangers fans are familiar with, but he added more fastball velocity than any other pitcher in the organization. His fastball went up from 92.3 mph in 2024 to 96.5 mph, a change of 4.2 mph.

Bormie is a 24-year-old from the Dominican Republic who pitched for High-A Hub City and Double-A Frisco in 2025. He went 4-6 with a 2.97 ERA in 45 games of relief, with 90 strikeouts and 37 walks in 63.2 innings.

Another right-hander, Jesus Lafalaise, pushed his velo from 92.5 mph to 95.7 mph, a change of 3.2 mph. The 20-year-old Dominican Republic native pitched in the Arizona Complex League and for Class-A Hickory as he went 5-3 with a 4.56 ERA in 20 games, with 49 strikeouts and 25 walks in 51.1 innings.

The next two pitchers have MLB experience. Joe Barlow, who at one time was the Rangers’ closer, spent the season at Triple-A Round Rock where his fastball went up from 91.6 mph to 94 mph, a change of 2.4 mph. Barlow went 5-3 with a 4.57 ERA with 50 games at Round Rock, with six holds and two saves in six chances. He struck out 73 and walked 26 in 65 innings.

Caleb Boushley played a role in the Texas bullpen this season and saw his fastball velo go up from 89.8 mph to 92.2 mph, a change of 2.4 mph. With the Rangers he had a 6.02 ERA in 25 games with 41 strikeouts and 14 walks in 43.1 innings. He was eventually designated for assignment and landed with Tampa Bay.

Left-hander Geury Rodriguez pushed his velo from 91.1 mph to 93.3 mph, a change of 2.3 mph. Another Dominican Republic native, the 21-year-old went 2-1 with a 4.15 ERA in the organization last season, as he reached Class-A Hickory.

Left-hander Michael Trausch was the last to make the list. His fastball went up from 89.5 mph to 91.8 mph, a change of 2.3 mph. The 21-year-old was a 15th round pick in 2023, and he ended the season with Hickory. He went 3-1 with a 3.05 ERA in 29 games, with 50 strikeouts and 29 walks in 41.1 innings.

This article first appeared on Texas Rangers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: