Texas Rangers Injured Slugger Slams Home Run to Being Rehab Assignment

There is no better way to tell the organization that you’re ready to return to the Majors than to hit a home run in the first game back from an injury.

That’s what injured Texas Rangers slugger Wyatt Langford did on Thursday night in his first rehab game with the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders.

Langford batted second in the game and went 1-for-3, with the one hit being a home run in the third inning. He played left field and left the game after seven innings, which is typical for a position player returning from injury in their first rehab game.

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The Riders shattered their home attendance record in the game, drawing 12,081 fans for their Texas League game with Arkansas.

Texas is starting its final road trip of the first half in San Diego on Friday evening. The trip will also take the Rangers to face the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros. The Rangers are hopeful that Langford can join them in San Diego this weekend and return to the lineup.

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The Rangers put Langford on the 10-day injured list on June 27 (retroactive to June 25) with a left oblique strain. He is eligible to be activated on Saturday. The Rangers called up infielder/outfielder Michael Helman to take his spot on the 26-man roster.

Langford spoke to reporters last week before he was moved to the IL. He said that the strain was not as serious as the one he experienced in spring training. He said it was not causing him pain and considered it more of an “annoyance.”

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He also said it wasn’t any one swing recently that led to the injury. He’s been dealing with it for a couple of weeks.

Langford was on the IL earlier this year with a right oblique strain from April 9-20.

He has a .232/.308/.421 slash with 13 home runs and 31 RBI in 67 games so far this season. The second-year pro was the Rangers’ first round pick (No. 4 overall) in the 2023 MLB draft and he made his MLB debut on opening day last year.  

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