This is a big season for Wyatt Langford. Big as in important and, hopefully, big as in production.

Since breaking camp with the Rangers as a twenty-two-year-old fresh out of college ball in 2024, Langford has been heralded as the next big star. 

Truth be told, he’s had two good but not particularly stellar seasons. But, he basically went from playing in college to playing in a handful of minor league games after gradiuaton to being in the big leagues. There’s a learning curve for most players.

His rookie year showed a lot of promise, even though he started slowly, hitting just .222 by the end of May. He clicked in that June and showed flashes of promise the rest of the way, finishing seventh in A.L. Rookie of the Year voting on the stenghth of sixteen home runs and seventy-four RBIs. His OPS+ was 115, meaning his offensive production was fifteen percent better than the average major leaguer. His RBI total dipped a bit in 2025, but with a team around him that had no idea how to get on base, that’s understandable. He showed improvement in a lot of areas offensively. Defensively, Langford is top notch.

It’s time for him to grow into his reputation. New Rangers manager Skip Schumaker predicted Langford will win an MVP in his career. At his very first spring training, former pitching coach Mike Maddux said Langford was already the best player out there.

The Rangers could use the production of his promise. For this team to have a shot at the playoffs, they need a transfusion of offense. 

They need an all-star-caliber performance from Langford this year.

*****

Texas versus Cleveland, 2:05