Wyatt Langford Challenging for Texas Rangers Opening Day Roster Spot
The Texas Rangers appear pretty set when it comes to the roster going into the opening of spring training in Surprise, Ariz. Pitchers and catchers officially report Wednesday, with the full squad by joining the party by Monday.
There are roster openings, with the number of hopefuls looking to make the team by Opening Day. The club has 24 non-roster invitees headed to big league camp, in addition to the 40-man roster.
Among the invitees are left-hander Blake Taylor, first baseman/outfielder Jared Walsh and infielder Matt Duffy. But the most intriguing hopeful is probably last season’s first-round draft pick.
In a collection of key storylines for all 30 clubs, MLB.com’s entry for the Rangers centered on Wyatt Langford’s chances of making the Opening Day roster. Per MLB.com:
Langford, the No. 4 overall pick out of the University of Florida in the 2023 MLB Draft, was playing in the College World Series less than a year ago and is already an option to contribute at the big league level. The 22-year-old rocketed through the Minors in 2023, slashing .360/.480/.677 as he finished the year with five games at Triple-A Round Rock. There’s not exactly an opening in the outfield, but if anything, Langford, who’s ranked No. 6 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects list, could crack the Opening Day lineup at designated hitter if he proves himself in big league camp.
Langford addressed his meteoric rise through the minors and the opportunity ahead in Surprise last month.
“Yeah, it’s definitely crazy. All of this is crazy, really. You can’t really think this up,” he said. “It’s awesome to have that opportunity. I’m not trying to do anything. I’m just going to go out there and just play the game and try taking a bunch of knowledge from those older guys.”
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