Ruben Sierra was one of the most popular players for the Texas Rangers and also one of the most prolific. The All-Star outfielder played in 1,190 games for the Rangers and is fourth all-time in club history with 180 home runs.

Now his son is part of the Rangers organization. Outfielder Ruben Sierra Jr. was drafted by the Rangers with 184th pick in the MLB Draft today.

The 18-year-old was sixth-round selection is a 6-2, 180-pound left-handed hitter and thrower.

The Rangers have a history drafting sons of former players more on that and the rest of the Rangers picks, in the official release from the team below.

From the Rangers:

Arlington, Texas - The Texas Rangers selected 27 players on Day Two of the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Rounds four through 30 of the draft were conducted today, with rounds 31-50 scheduled to conclude the draft tomorrow.

So far in the draft, Texas has selected 15 college and 15 high school players, along with one player, supplemental first rounder Tanner Scheppers, from independent baseball. Of the club's first 31 selections, 21 have been pitchers (16 right-handed, 5 left-handed). The other 10 draftees have been position players, 5 outfielders, 4 infielders, and one catcher.

Among today's selections for the Rangers was sixth rounder Ruben Sierra Jr. The 18-year-old Sierra, out of San Juan (Puerto Rico) Educational School, is the son of the former Rangers slugger. The elder Sierra still ranks among Rangers all-time leaders in several categories. This is believed to be the sixth time in Washington/Texas franchise history that the Rangers have drafted the son of a former player who appeared for the big league club. The team previously drafted Robb Nen (son of Dick) in the 32nd round in 1987, Mike Bell (son of Buddy) in the first round in 1993, Reid Ryan (son of Nolan) in the 17th round in 1994, Benjamin Petralli (son of Geno) in the 33rd round in 2008, and Jack Armstrong (son of Jack) in the 36th round in 2008.

The club's first two picks were both rated top 10 overall prospects by Baseball America prior to the draft, also ranked by that publication as among the top eight pitching prospects in this year's draft. Below is some information on the Rangers' selections over the first 10 rounds, along with some noteworthy items on picks beyond the 10th round:

LHP MATT PURKE (14th overall) - The 18-year-old Purke was selected in the first round (14th overall) out of Klein High School in Spring, Texas, outside of Houston...the 6-foot-3, 180-pound southpaw went 4-2 with a 1.18 ERA (8 ER/47.1 IP) during his senior season this year...allowed just 18 hits, as he totaled 91 strikeouts against just 7 walks this season for the Bearkats...Purke comes from the same high school that has produced major leaguers Chris George (1998), Josh Barfield (2001), and also current Rangers outfielder David Murphy (2000)...prior to the draft, Purke was rated by Baseball America as the 2nd-best left-handed pitching prospect...that publication also rated Purke as the 10th-best overall prospect in the draft, and ranked him as having the 3rd-best secondary pitch among high school pitchers...Baseball America rated Purke 3rd among high school prospects as far as players closest to reaching the big leagues...Purke is the 9th Texas native to be taken as the Rangers' first overall selection in the draft, first since Irving High School's Blake Beavan (RHP) went 17th overall in 2007.

RHP TANNER SCHEPPERS (44th overall) - The 22-year-old was selected in the supplemental first round by Texas...the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Scheppers has been pitching for the St. Paul Saints in the independent American Association, going 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA (7 ER/19.0 IP) in 4 games/starts this season...allowed one home run with 11 walks against 20 strikeouts, as opponents hit .243 (17-70)...earned a win in his last outing on June 7 vs. Sioux City (5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R-ER, 3 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR)...prior to the beginning of the St. Paul season, worked out at Golden West (Calif.) Junior College in Huntington Beach...was rated as the 9th-best overall prospect in the draft by Baseball America, 7th-best pitching prospect...was named by that publication as 4th-best right-handed pitcher in this year's draft...the Fresno State product suffered a shoulder injury prior to last year's draft, which dropped him to the 48th overall selection by Pittsburgh in the 2008 June draft...he did not sign with the Pirates...pitched at Fresno State from 2006-08, but did not return to school after last year's draft and signed with St. Paul...was injured prior to Fresno State's run to the College World Series title in 2008, but went 8-2, 2.93 (23 ER/70.2 IP) with one save and 109 strikeouts in 12 games/11 starts with Fresno State in his junior season last year...this is the third time Scheppers has been drafted, as he was also drafted out of Dana Hills (Calif.) High School in 2005 in the 29th round by Baltimore...was a shortstop and pitcher in high school, and was not converted to a full-time pitcher until after his arrival on campus...did not pitch until his senior season of high school.

3B TOMMY MENDONCA (62nd overall) - The 21-year-old junior out of Fresno State was the Rangers' second round selection...was the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year this season after batting .339 (79-233) with 27 home runs and 78 RBI in 62 games for the Bulldogs...had a .721 slugging pct. and a .447 on-base figure for an OPS of 1.168...was a semi-finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, given to college baseball's best player...he hit 56 home runs in his career at Fresno State, a school record...was named a mid-season All-American by Baseball America...was tabbed by that publication as the 86th-best prospect prior to the draft, the 42nd-best position player in the draft...rated by Baseball America as the best collegiate power hitter in the draft...was the 2008 College World Series Most Outstanding Player, and named to all-tournament team, after hitting 4 home runs with 11 RBI and notable defense in the Bulldogs' run to the CWS title...had an uncle that played in the Phillies organization...is a native of Turlock, Calif., between Fresno and Sacramento, near Modesto...had an uncle that played in the Phillies organization.

LHP ROBBIE ERLIN (93rd overall) - The 18-year-old left-hander out of Scotts Valley (Calif.) High School was the Rangers' 3rd round selection...Erlin, ranked #155 prior to the draft by Baseball America, went 9-1 with a 0.63 ERA, recording 125 strikeouts in 62.0 innings on his way to being named the 2009 Sentinel All-County Player of the Year...Erlin tossed 4 complete game shutouts, including a 15-strikeout no-hitter, and compiled a scoreless innings streak of 45 innings...he is committed to Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo.

RHP ANDREW DOYLE (124th Overall) - The 21-year-old junior out of the University of Oklahoma was selected in the 4th round by Texas...the 6-foot-3, 210-pound Doyle served as rotation ace for head coach Sunny Golloway in each of the last 2 seasons, after pitching out of the bullpen during his freshman campaign...he was named to the 2009 All-Big 12 second team after going 8-4, 4.21 (43 ER/92.0 IP) with 65 strikeouts and 23 walks over 15 games/14 starts for the Sooners... his 92.0 innings led the OU staff and ranked 7th in the conference, while he compiled the 2nd-highest strikeout total on the team...right-hander was also named to the All-Big 12 All-Tournament team for a second straight season, after going 5-3, 4.50 (27 ER/54.0 IP) in 8 games/starts...that run included a start against Texas Tech, in which he tossed 8.0 innings of 4-hit ball...led OU with 9 wins as a sophomore, tied for the 3rd-most victories in the Big 12...was the second Sooner taken in the 2009 draft (RHP Garrett Richards, 42nd overall by the Angels) and one of 6 OU players selected through the first 10 rounds of the 2009 draft, most since OU had 7 players taken in 1976...teammate of freshman third baseman Garrett Buechele, son of former Ranger and current Bakersfield Blaze manager Steve Buechele...was originally drafted by Washington in the 39th round of the 2006 June draft out of Alleman High School (Rock Island, IL), where he was a four-year letter-winner...set school records for both all-time wins and wins in a single season during his senior year, going 14-1 with a 0.88 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 79.0 innings on his way to earning Chicago Tribune All-State honors...finished his high school career at 24-6 with a 0.95 ERA.

RHP NICHOLAS McBRIDE (154th overall) - The 18-year-old out of Ragsdale (NC) High School was taken in the 5th round by Texas...the 6-foot-4, 180-pound right-hander is committed to East Carolina University...went 9-0 with a 0.78 ERA (5 ER/44.2 IP) in 10 games/9 starts in his senior season, posting 74 strikeouts against 14 walks as opponents hit just .116 (13-112)...also played outfield in high school...on April 8 against Randleman and opposing starter Danny Tuttle (selected 5 picks before McBride by Cincinnati, 149th overall), McBride tossed a 6.0-inning perfect game with 14 strikeouts...sat down 14 of 18 batters faced in that game via the strikeout as Ragsdale won 12-0...was one of 2 shutouts for McBride on the year.

OF RUBEN SIERRA JR. (184th overall) - The 18-year-old outfielder out of San Juan Educational High School in San Juan, Puerto Rico was the Rangers' 6th round selection...Sierra, the son of former Rangers outfielder Ruben Sierra, was rated the 124th-best prospect overall entering the draft according to Baseball America...a 6-2, 180-pound left-handed hitter and thrower, Sierra was also rated as the 22nd-best center field prospect by the same publication...Sierra's father played in 1,190 games with Texas as part of a 20-year big league career and ranks 4th on the Rangers' all-time home run list with 180.

CF BRAXTON LANE (214th overall) - The 18-year-old out of Sandy Creek High School in Tyrone, Georgia was selected in the 7th round by Texas...the 5-foot-10, 190-pound Lane was a two-sport athlete for the Patriots, playing both baseball and football...the switch-hitting outfielder was selected to play for the East squad in the 2008 Aflac All-American Game at Dodger Stadium after batting .413 with 21 stolen bases during his junior season...flew out in his lone plate appearance in a 4-2 win over high school standouts representing the West...at the time of his selection, Lane had been named to post-season All-County teams in each of his first 3 high school campaigns...signed a letter of intent with the University of Oregon football program, despite not playing that sport for Sandy Creek during his senior season...has several family ties to amateur and professional sports, as his father Carl was a running back for Oregon State, while his uncle MacArthur Lane played in the NFL with Green Bay and Kansas City in the early 1970's.

RHP BRADEN TULLIS (244th overall) - The 19-year-old out of Skagit Valley College (Mount Vernon, Washington) was selected in the 8th round by Texas...the 6-foot-2, 200-pound right-hander went 9-2 with a 1.56 ERA (13 ER/75.0 IP) over 12 starts during the 2009 season, helping the Cardinals to a North Region Titl...averaged 7.08 strikeouts-per-9 innings for a total of 59 K's, 2nd-most on the staff, while issuing 26 walks...also led the team in victories and ranked among leaders in starts (T1st) and innings pitched (2nd)...held opponents to a .176 (55-312) average and registered a 1.08 WHIP...at the plate, he also collected 3 singles and 3 RBI in 17 at-bats.

OF JABARI BLASH (274th overall) - The 19-year-old outfielder out of Miami Dade College was the Rangers' 9th round selection...the 6-5, 218-pound right-handed batter hit .330 (36-109) with 10 home runs and 33 RBI for Miami Dade this season...Blash, a native of the US Virgin Islands, was rated as the 121st-best overall prospect and 6th-best corner outfield prospect by Baseball America...was selected by the Chicago White Sox in 29th round (899th overall) of the 2007 June draft.

RHP TOM LEMKE (304th overall) - The 18-year-old pitcher out of Northwest Christian High School in Phoenix, Arizona was the Rangers' 10th round selection...a 6-8, 220-pound right-hander, Lemke recorded a state-high 108 strikeouts while going 10-1 and earning First Team All-State honors as a sophomore...garnered All-State recognition as an infielder in 2008, batting .515...he is committed to the University of Nebraska.

Riley Cooper, the Rangers' 25th round selection today, caught 18 passes for 261 yards and 3 touchdowns for the NCAA National Champion Florida Gators in 2008. Kevin Castner, the club's 26th round pick, was a 10th round selection by the Rangers in the last year's draft.

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