Anthony Gutierrez has become one of the more well-known prospects in the Rangers organization. It’s no secret that the Rangers are infatuated with the 18-year-old. They signed him in January 2022 after he was expected to sign with the Nationals. Gutierrez might have the highest ceiling of any players in the system, and is a potential five tool talent.
Upon the signing of Gutierrez, the Rangers sent him to the Dominican Summer League. In 23 games in the DSL, Gutierrez turned in a .352/.408/.538 line with just 18 strikeouts in 103 plate appearances. In early July, he was promoted to the Arizona Complex League at just 17 years old. He hit .259 with a .706 OPS.
Outside of another quick stop in the ACL after a stint on the Development List, Gutierrez has spent this season with the Down East Wood Ducks. At 18 years old and seven months, Gutierrez is the youngest hitter in the Carolina League. So far this season, he has struggled more than any of his other stops, which is to be expected for a player so young. He’s turned in a .589 OPS and a 23.3% strikeout rate.
Gutierrez has simply flown up prospect rankings since entering the organization. Even with the fact that, as you can probably tell, he has not played much professional baseball. All people need to do is watch him play, he absolutely catches the eye.
He truly has it all, as I mentioned, this is a five tool talent. It’s obvious why seemingly everyone who watches him believes that he’s the real deal. He stings the ball. There might not be Statcast technology in all levels of minor league ball yet, but you don’t need it to tell that his exit velocity is absolutely elite. The ball explodes off of his bat.
He just sees the game at an extremely advanced level already, the game seems slow for him. He navigates center field so easily, he makes great reads off the bat, and once he reaches his top speed he just glides. His arm is also seen as a plus tool, that could translate to the corner outfield positions as well.
The way that scouts and Ranger fans talk about him reminds me of the way people saw Jurickson Profar when he was coming up within the Rangers organization. He was extremely refined and advanced at a young age, but it obviously did not result in any type of edge in the show.
The moral of the story is that Gutierrez still has a lot of room to grow. His biggest struggle is chasing breaking pitches out of the zone, which explains the higher strikeout rate against stronger competition. Regardless, all the Rangers are looking for is improvement, an 18-year-old is not expected to dominate the Carolina League.
Gutierrez is a polished prospect at a young age, an elite young talent with all-encompassing tools to potentially propel him into superstardom. Don’t be surprised if Gutierrez makes his way into top 100 prospect lists next year, perhaps even the top spot for the Rangers. There’s a chance he could make his MLB debut before his 21st birthday, he is that good.
