FRISCO, Texas>> Isiah Kiner-Falefa is in his fourth season in the Texas Rangers organization and the Mid-Pacific product is trying out a new position in 2016.
Kiner-Falefa, 21, a fourth-round pick of Texas in 2013, has spent much of this season with Double-A Frisco in familiar territory, the infield, playing 16 games at third base, 10 at shortstop and one at second. But he has also been behind the plate for six games at catcher, a significant shift for someone who has been at shortstop for as long as he can remember.
“Yeah, I’m very comfortable now (behind the plate),” Kiner-Falefa said. “(Six games) doesn’t seem like much, but squatting down nine innings for (six) games, that’s a lot of time. Especially for me starting off, it’s awesome getting the opportunity getting back there. I love getting the ball, so being a catcher is awesome for me.”
Through 32 games, he was hitting .286 with no home runs, 10 RBIs and an OPS of .710 for a RoughRiders team off to a 23-13 start, the best record in the Texas League.
Not only is Kiner-Falefa getting to showcase his versatility and play a new position for a winning team, but he has also benefited from being around three big-leaguers who have had rehab assignments in Frisco this season.
Kiner-Falefa has learned plenty from starting pitcher Yu Darvish; outfielder Josh Hamilton, the 2010 American League MVP; and catcher Chris Gimenez, but he especially bonded with Gimenez, who recently was traded to the Cleveland Indians.
“Just having the big league guys around is awesome. Gimenez is there as I’m switching over to catcher a little bit and he was here to help me,” Kiner-Falefa said. “Just being around those guys, you (can) ask them whatever you want. They’re very approachable, they’re there for you and they’re where you want to be. So hearing them talk about things, they’ve been through it all. It makes it a lot easier to listen to them, so it’s awesome.”
Darvish is the former Rangers ace currently recovering from Tommy John surgery who made his first rehab start on May 1, when 12,000 packed Dr Pepper Ballpark, a venue this Honolulu native is proud to call home.
“The ballpark’s awesome. Waking up every day, you want to come to the field. We probably have the most fans in Double-A, in the Texas League, I would say,” Kiner-Falefa said.
“Playing in front of that crowd (on May 1), that’s close to what some big league teams get. It’s just awesome — just waking up and knowing that you’re going to have a lot of people coming to the field is exciting.”
Frisco is only 40 miles from Arlington, where the Rangers play at Globe Life Park. Kiner-Falefa relished getting to play in Arlington during the Rangers’ spring training finale against the Cleveland Indians and realizes calling that venue home in the future remains the ultimate goal, so he can be the next Hawaii native to reach the big leagues.
“I love all of them (Hawaii guys who have reached the majors),” Kiner-Falefa said. “Kolten Wong’s a great player, Shane Victorino, too. Those are probably the two guys I looked up to. Seeing Kolten Wong play at UH and Shane being up in the big leagues when I’m coming up in high school, you want to be like them. It seems like every Hawaii guy is a scrappy guy. You want to take that out of them. The fire that those guys bring every day is awesome and that’s what you want to emulate.”
