Wyatt Langford - you are officially a Texas Ranger.
The Rangers signed the No. 4 overall selection in the 2023 MLB Draft to his rookie contract on Tuesday. The deal includes an $8 million signing bonus, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.
“He’s a championship player,” Rangers general manager Chris Young said Tuesday at the press conference to introduce their newest prospect. “I think that’s what it boils down to. We’re trying to fill our organization with championship players, and certainly, we think Wyatt is that.”
Langford's over-slot bonus(the slot value for the No.4 overall pick this year was $7.69 million) is tied for the fifth largest in MLB history with former Pirates No. 1 selection and now Yankees ace Gerrit Cole. Only Detroit’s Spencer Torkelson ($8.42 million, 2020), Baltimore’s Jackson Holliday ($8.19 million, 2022), Arizona’s Druw Jones ($8.19 million, 2022) and Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman ($8.10 million, 2020) earned a larger bonus.
Langford is in Arlington and joined the GBag Nation to discuss how he thrilled he is to be apart of the Rangers.
"I'm just as excited to be here. … I'm super happy that this is where I ended up," Langford said.
listen to the entire podcast below
Langford, who turns 22 in November, slashed .373/.498/.784/1.282 this past season to help lead the Florida Gators to the College World Series. In 134 career games, Langford mashed .363/.471/.746/1.217 with 47 home runs and 120 RBI.
In 64 games in 2023, Langford slugged 21 home runs and posted 52 extra-base hits. What may be even more impressive is the fact that Langford had more walks (56) than strikeouts (44).
Baseball America has already named Langford the top prospect in the Rangers' farm system. On their latest rankings released after the draft, Langford slotted in as the No. 6 best prospect in all of MLB, ahead of the organization's former top prospect Evan Carter, who is No. 11 in the latest rankings.
Related
