Oakland A’s Players to be Named Later already known

The Oakland A’s are sending two players to be named later to the Texas Rangers for Mike Minor. However, their identities are already known.

On Monday, the Oakland A’s sent two Players to be Named Later to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Mike Minor. Given the 60 man roster rules, teams are not able to trade players that are not a part of the pool. Any players outside of that group cannot be traded until later once the season has come to an end.

But that does not mean that the players are unknown. In the case of the A’s and Rangers trade, the two players to be named later have reportedly been identified.

Interestingly, both players were selected in the 2019 MLB Draft. Marcus Smith was a third round selection, while Dustin Harris had been taken in the 11th round.

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Smith, ranked as the A’s 22nd best prospect by MLB.com, had a strong showing in the Arizona League last season. He produced a .361/.466/.443 batting line in his 119 plate appearances with six doubles and a triple. Smith is considered to be an extremely athletic outfielder with excellent speed and a contact oriented profile who will likely never hit for power. He could, however, emerge as a solid leadoff option due to his surprising plate discipline and speed profile.

Harris is nominally listed as a third baseman, but 35 of his 40 games in the field came at first base, and is listed as a left fielder on MiLB.com. He started the season in the Arizona League, but moved up to the New York-Pennsylvania League partway through the year. He produced a combined .325/.403/.407 batting line with 12 doubles and a homer in his 238 plate appearances.

Both pieces could be useful for the Rangers down the line. Smith could be the Rangers leadoff hitter once he develops, while Harris has the potential to be an intriguing option at the corners. But it will likely take another four or five years, at minimum, before the Rangers can begin to reap the fruits of the trade.

The Oakland A’s sent two “players to be named later” to the Rangers for Mike Minor. It turns out that we did not have long to wait before they were named.