Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week: 2011 Topps Pro Debut #115 Cody Buckel

It's Minor League Monday!!! Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2011 Topps Pro Debut #115.
• Player Name, position, team: Cody Buckel, pitcher, Arizona League Rangers.
• Level-League, Team Affiliation: Rookie-Arizona League, Texas Rangers.
  
• Minor League Stats (stats with team depicted only): 4 G, 5.0 IP, 0-0, 0 R, 0 ER, 9 SO, 1 BB, 0 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 0.600 WHIP, 0.00 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Brewers #2nd, June 2010. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Major League Debut: n/a.
• Baseball America Organizational Ranking After Season with Team: Texas Rangers #28 prospect after the 2010 season.
• Blurb on the back: "Buckel deferred his aspirations to become a professional actor/singer to sign with the Rangers in 2010. He looks to be entertaining fans for years to come after going unscored upon in his four Arizona League outings, fanning nine of the 17 hitters he faced."
• Official Topps Rookie Card: n/a.
• Commentary: Up until 2013, Cody James Buckel's rise up the Rangers' organizational ladder was running extremely smoothly. Stops with the Hickory Crawdads (A-South Atlantic League), the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (A-Carolina League), and Frisco Roughriders (AA-Texas League) in two seasons earned him a combined 18-11 record with a 2.54 ERA, 279 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 1.089 in 49 games, 40 of them as a starter. Heading into the 2013 campaign, he was MLB.com's #87 prospect. But something happened in 2013. Any control he had, he lost. The ability to keep hitters from getting to him disappeared. In his first 5 games with the Roughriders in 2013, he never got past the third inning. In five starts, he would only last a combined 9 innings, allow 9 hits, 18 earned runs, and 25 walks to contribute to a ridiculously high 18.00 ERA and 3.778 WHIP. In his final start, allowed one hit, three walks, and hit two batters without recording an out. He would be assigned to extended spring training to figure out where things went wrong. In August, he returned to the Arizona League Rangers. In his first game back, he pitched an inning without allowing a hit, but did draw two walks. The next one was a disaster. In 1/3rd of an inning, he allowed five walks, and four runs would eventually score. He is only 21 years old heading into the 2014 season, so he is still young yet,. It is too early to say he has "Steve Blass" disease. Rangers fans can only hope that he can regain his form and get his career back on track.

Next week's featured card will be: 2011 Topps Pro Debut #88. Post will arrive at 9:00 AM CST. Hope you enjoyed this week's installment of Minor League Monday.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama