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Texas Rangers shortstop prospect Sebastian Walcott will have surgery to repair a torn UCL in his elbow, POBO Chris Young declared Thursday. He will miss most, if not all, of the 2026 season. Walcott’s stint in the Arizona Fall League last year was cut short by an elbow issue.

“The new diagnostics showed a signal different from where it was in the fall,” Young told reporters, including the Dallas Morning News. “And (Dr. Keith Meister) was pretty confident at that point that this is going the wrong direction.”

Walcott, 20 next month, authored a .255/.355/.386 line with 13 home runs and 32 stolen bases in 124 Double-A games last season. He was roughly five years younger than the average player in the Texas League. We ranked Walcott as the fourth-best prospect in baseball coming into spring training and pegged him for an MLB debut this summer.

Walcott continues to be one of the sport’s most exciting young players thanks to his top-end strength and his track record of performing well against older competition. He won’t celebrate his 20th birthday until closer to Opening Day, meaning that he spent last season as a 19-year-old in Double-A. His youth didn’t prevent him from hitting .255/.355/.386 with improved strikeout and walk rates. Walcott even recorded a 115 mph exit velocity in spring against an MLB-caliber pitcher. If there are negatives to be found here, they’re in the forms of his ground-ball rate (he hit nearly half his batted balls to the dirt) and his 24 errors at shortstop. Still, Walcott is an impressive prospect who, with a little more refinement, could make an impact at the big-league level for years to come beginning this summer.

Position players have a shorter rehab following UCL reconstruction than pitchers. Boston Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story had Tommy John surgery on Jan. 10, 2023, then returned to the team that Aug. 8. Story played his first minor league rehab game on July 21. A similar timeline would have Walcott returning to game action in mid-August.

The Marcus Semien-for-Brandon Nimmo trade opened a long-term middle infield spot that is earmarked for Walcott. That is still the case, but Walcott’s arrival will likely be delayed until 2027. On top of that, a 20-year-old player will miss a full season of development. That shouldn’t derail Walcott’s career. It’s just unfortunate. Missing a full year is never good.

Texas went 81-81 and missed the postseason by six games last year. Walcott is their only top 100 prospect. The Rangers traded away five prospects to get MacKenzie Gore last month.