Evan

Carter

Carter took a seat to start Opening Day with Phillies ace Cristopher Sánchez on the bump and wound up going 0-for-2 off the bench. The 23-year-old center fielder is back in there to face righty Aaron Nola on Saturday afternoon.

The Rangers have said they wanted to get Carter in the lineup more against lefties, but it won’t be against Cristopher Sanchez on Opening Day. Instead, Wyatt Langford will shift over to center field, and Sam Haggerty will enter the lineup in left field. The Rangers’ full Opening Day lineup is: Brandon Nimmo RF, Wyatt Langford CF, Corey Seager SS, Jake Burger 1B, Andrew McCutchen DH, Josh Jung 3B, Josh Smith 2B, Danny Jansen C, and Sam Haggerty LF.

Carter has some post-hype sleeper to his profile after a few lost seasons to injuries and is widely available in shallow leagues. The idea that he might not be stuck in a pure platoon situation adds to his appeal. Carter has hit .222 with two homers and a steal in 27 Spring Training at-bats to date, managing a .909 OPS.

Carter’s first-inning blast against Angels starter Victor Mederos traveled 385 feet with a 108.3 mph exit velocity. The talent has never been in dispute — the bat speed, the athleticism, the power/speed blend all remain intact. The complication has been availability, as back, quad and wrist injuries have limited the 23-year-old former top prospect to just 108 combined games over the past two seasons. When he’s on the field, the skill set still hints at something dynamic. The question isn’t ability; it’s continuity. That tension keeps him in late-round flyer territory this spring — the kind of pick that can quietly outperform cost if the body finally cooperates.

No major concerns here on Carter’s availability for the regular season, as apparently whatever illness Corey Seager had is going around the clubhouse.

There’s little doubt the Rangers will go with an outfield of Langford, Brandon Nimmo and Evan Carter against righties (with Carter perhaps sitting against lefties), but the alignment is in question, what with both Langford and Nimmo being best suited for left. The Rangers might feel that Langford in center and Carter in right would be their best alignment, even though Carter would seem to be the stronger center fielder of the two.

It was already announced that Carter was going to miss the remainder of the season with his fractured wrist, so this move doesn’t come as a surprise. It was done as a procedural move to clear a spot for Dylan Moore on the team’s 40-man roster on Friday.

The dynamic 22-year-old outfielder suffered the injury when he was hit by a pitch during Thursday’s game against the Royals. He’ll unfortunately miss the remainder of the 2025 season. Carter finishes the year hitting .247/.336/.392 with five homers, 25 RBI and 14 stolen bases over 220 plate appearances.

It’s a brutal development for the Rangers, and fantasy managers, as Carter was in the midst of a strong season — when healthy. The 22-year-old former top prospect, who suffered the injury on Thursday when he was hit by a pitch, will likely miss the final five weeks of the season and finishes with a .728 OPS with five homers and 14 steals in 63 games. He’s shown flashes of immense fantasy potential over the last few years, but continues to be snake-bitten by injuries.

Carter remained in the game to run the bases for himself and swiped second base before being stranded there. He then singled and scored in the fifth inning before he was lifted for a defensive replacement in the eighth inning. He’ll likely head for precautionary X-rays to rule out any fractures. Look for the Rangers to have an update on his status as soon as more information becomes available.