Rangers prospect Ragans needs Tommy John surgery

Left-handed pitcher Cole Ragans, one of the top prospects in the Texas Rangers' system, will undergo Tommy John surgery in the next two weeks, the team announced.

Ragans, the No. 30 overall pick in 2016, will miss the entire 2018 season.

Ragans, 20, went 3-2 with a 3.61 ERA in 13 starts with Class A Spokane last season.

Fellow prospect Kyle Cody, a righty who was the Rangers' Minor League Pitcher of the Year last season, will also miss at least a month with elbow inflammation. He'll be re-evaluated at that point.

"They are two of our better ones," Texas farm director Jayce Tingler said, per MLB.com. "It's never easy. First, we feel for the young players. We know the work they put in and try to understand where they are emotionally. Secondly, for the organization's development, that's a pretty big body blow."

--Field Level Media