Hitting isn’t supposed to be easy, but Rafe Perich sure made it look that way this season.
The Rangers’ No. 19 prospect, who has earned the nickname “Rake” as both a play on his first name and a nod to his hitting prowess, littered his name atop the systems leaderboards during a breakout 2026 campaign, which culminated in the corner infielder earning the Tom Grieve Player of the Year Award, which honors the organization's best-performing Minor League position player each season.
Perich’s 2026 season originally started as a slow burn, as he slashed just .236/.300/.382 over his first 15 games with High-A Hub City. However, he rebounded with a monster month of May, mashing 11 homers and posting a .714 slugging percentage. The switch-hitting Perich went from generating solid exit velocities to hitting the ball consistently harder than most Minor Leaguers.
“Train hard every day," said Perich about the growth. "It [the power] just came with more repetition. Now, as soon as I found what worked and what didn't work, I just tried to repeat [what worked] every day.”
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After an impressive power surge at High-A, Texas decided it was time to give Perich a bigger challenge, promoting the 24-year-old to Double-A Frisco on May 29. While some hitters need time to adjust to a new level, Perich hit the ground running, posting a .988 OPS and tallying 14 extra-base hits during his first full month on the circuit.
By the conclusion of the 2026 regular season, Perich proved to be one of the best hitters at the Double-A level, batting .321 with 16 homers and 58 RBIs for the RoughRiders. After arriving in Frisco, his average and .981 OPS both ranked fourth among qualified Double-A hitters.
“His path has flattened out, but he hasn't been over aggressive and forward as much," Rangers farm director Josh Bonifay told MLB.com's Kennedi Landry on Saturday. "He's staying behind the baseball. That allows you to get elevated instead of hitting it into the ground. And man, he's been unbelievable.”
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Along with spraying the ball around the yard, Perich continued to showcase strong plate discipline skills in 2026, posting a 11.5 percent walk rate and 20.4 percent strikeout rate. He was one of just 25 Double-A hitters to post a better-than-11 percent walk rate and a sub-21 percent strikeout rate (minimum 300 plate appearances), per FanGraphs.
“He's got a really good eye, so he's able to walk and and do damage," said Bonifay of Perich.
A seventh-round pick in the 2024 Draft, Perich is the second-highest drafted position player in Lehigh history, behind 2006 supplemental second-rounder Matt McBride. After struggling offensively in his first full professional season in the Rangers organization, Perich undoubtedly put himself on the map with his play in 2026.
“Honestly, if there was anything that changed, it was a mental change," said Perich. “I mean, I would say last year was more of an adjustment, trying to get used to everything. And then this year, I came in a lot more comfortable.”
Among qualified hitters in the Texas system, Perich finished the regular season ranked top three in home runs (27, first), extra-base hits (62, first), total bases (260, first), runs (105, first) and RBIs (92, second).