Top Rangers Prospect Abimelec Ortiz Wins Texas League Player of Week

Abimelec Ortiz, considered a Top 30 Texas Rangers prospect, was name the Texas League player of the week for May 12-18.

Ortiz, who was the organization’s player of the year in 2023, is playing his second full season with Double-A Frisco in his fifth professional season.

Considered a first baseman and an outfielder, the 23-year-old is the No. 13 prospect in the organization, according to MLB Pipeline.

Why Abimelec Ortiz Won Texas League Player of Week

In five games against the Corpus Christi Hooks, Ortiz batted .450, going 9-for-20 from the plate. He had three home runs, two doubles and 11 RBI. That included a walk-off grand slam, part of a career-high six RBI game in a 12-9 victory.

Last week, Ortiz led the Texas League in RBI’s (11) and OPS (1.560) while ranking second in slugging percentage (1.000), tied for second in home runs (3) and fourth in batting average (.450).

Entering this week, he is among Texas League batting leaders in (tied for third, 26), doubles (tied for fourth, 9), home runs (tied for seventh, 6), extra-base hits (tied for seventh, 15), total bases (tied for seventh, 63), and slugging percentage (11th, .470).

The Bayamon, Puerto Rico, native, went to high school on the island and trained for professional baseball at the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy. He came stateside to play at Florida Southwestern State Junior College.

He wasn’t selected in the 2021 MLB draft, but the Rangers signed him to a $20,000 free agent deal after he slashed .349/.429/.596.

He had a breakthrough season in 2023, during which he was named the Tom Grieve Minor League Player of the Year after an incredible season, mostly for High-A Hickory. He finished with a slash of .294/.371/.619 with 20 doubles, four triples, 33 home runs and 101 RBI.

That earned him a promotion to Frisco in 2024, where his progress has slowed. Last season in 115 games he slashed .243/.328/.432 with 18 home runs and 64 RBI.

Through 34 games this season he’s slashed .269/.359/.470 with six home runs and 26 RBI. In 391 minor league games he’s slashed .256/.349/.492 with 79 home runs and 269 RBI.

He’s waiting for a spot to open up at Triple-A Round Rock, where Blaine Crim — who spent a week with the Rangers making his MLB debut earlier this month — is the everyday first baseman.