One of the top prospects in all of baseball is now expected to miss a majority of the 2026 season.
Sebastian Walcott, the Texas Rangers’ No. 1 prospect and MLB Pipeline‘s No. 7 overall prospect, has suffered an elbow injury that will require surgery and sideline him for most or all of the upcoming season, Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young announced on Thursday.
The 19-year-old from the Bahamas signed with Texas in 2023 for a reported $3.2 million bonus. The shortstop and third baseman spent all of 2025 in Double-A, posting a .255 batting average with 13 home runs, 59 RBIs, and 32 stolen bases in 124 games. It’s possible Walcott could have started the 2026 season in Triple-A as a result, but now the Rangers will likely focus on getting him healthy for 2027.
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How Walcott’s injury could impact his major league debut timeline
Feb 19, 2025; Surprise, AZ, USA; Texas Rangers player Sebastian Walcott poses for a photo during Media Day at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
Before this injury update, Walcott was expected to arrive in the big leagues as early as 2027. It’s technically possible, however, that he could have torn the cover off the ball to start this year and forced his way into the majors in 2026 at just 20 years old.
Now, though, the Rangers will likely take a safe approach with their top prospect and make sure he’s fully healthy for the start of the 2027 campaign. This would seemingly push his potential big league debut back a year to 2028, but there’s still a scenario where he comes back on fire in 2027 and is called up to the big league club as a 21-year-old.
Walcott is the only Texas prospect on MLB Pipeline’s top 100 list for 2026. He’s also the only non-pitcher among the Rangers’ top six prospects from 2025. Most notably, Walcott has a 70-rated arm and 65-rated power, according to MLB Pipeline‘s 20-80 scouting grades scale. Many Rangers fans will likely be curious to see if this elbow injury has any long-term effects on his overall arm strength and power.
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