Wyatt Langford goes 1-for-4 in return to lineup

Langford had a brief injury scare on Saturday as he exited after fouling multiple pitches off of his foot. Fortunately, X-rays came back negative for any fractures and he’s feeling improved enough to jump right back into the lineup on Sunday. The dynamic 24-year-old outfielder is in left field and batting second against Mariners’ right-hander Logan Gilbert.

Langford had X-rays, which were negative. He was 3-for-4 with two doubles and two runs scored before departing Saturday.

Langford was 3-for-4 with two doubles before coming out. It’s unlikely that there’s a significant injury here, but the Rangers were up 5-1 and had chance to give him a break after he struck out to end the sixth.

Langford will get a look atop Texas’ lineup with rookie southpaw Noah Schultz taking the ball for Chicago. It’s typically been Joc Pederson leading off against right-handed starters for the last couple weeks with Langford batting second. He’s out of the lineup to start this contest. The other notable change are Justin Foscue hitting second as he continues to emerge as a reliable lefty-mashing platoon option and rookie Cameron Cauley drawing a start in center field.

Langford also doubled and singled. The homer came off Raisel Iglesias in the ninth inning, but still left Texas trailing by three runs. The 24-year-old has put together a solid — but injury-shortened — campaign in 2026 with a slash of .283/.328/.508. It still feels like fantasy managers haven’t seen Langford at his absolute best just yet.

The dynamic 24-year-old outfielder rejoins the Rangers’ lineup for Thursday’s divisional matchup against the Angels. He’ll serve as the designated hitter and bat second against Halos’ left-hander Reid Detmers. The Rangers and fantasy managers are hopeful that he carries over his hot hitting from the few weeks before suffering a minor hamstring strain.

Rangers manager Skip Schumaker told reporters Langford has checked all the boxes to return before next week’s All-Star break and will be activated if he’s cleared by team doctors. The 24-year-old was in the midst of a sizzling-hot stretch at the plate before winding up back on the injured list with a hamstring strain last week. It sounds like there’s a strong possibility he’s back in the Rangers lineup later this week.

Langford has already progressed to high intensity running while working his way back from a hamstring strain that put him on the shelf last week. The 24-year-old’s rapid recovery gives him a real shot at making it back to Texas prior to next week’s Midsummer Classic. It sounds like he’ll skip a minor league rehab assignment, but that hasn’t been confirmed. He was on a roll at the dish prior to suffering the injury and his return would provide a significant lift for fantasy managers. There should be a definitive update on his timeline at some point this week.

The dynamic 24-year-old outfielder has had difficulty staying on the field for the Rangers in his young career. This time it’s a hamstring strain that’s going to cause him to miss a couple of weeks. It’s a tough break for fantasy managers as he has been sizzling at the dish with seven homers, 16 RBI and three solen bases in 82 at-bats since June 5. Evan Carter was activated from the injured list in a corresponding move on Sunday.

It’s not an ideal development. Langford has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball since returning from the injured list earlier this month, hitting .317 (26-for-82) with seven homers, 16 RBI and three steals over 20 games since June 5. The hope for the Rangers and fantasy managers is that the decision was made out of an abundance of caution. He’s likely to undergo further evaluation and possibly imaging to determine whether a trip to the injured list will be necessary. An update on his status should arrive before the end of the weekend.