Wyatt Langford’s Solo Shot Seals 1-0 Victory over Reds..
Florida Gators baseball alumnus and fourth overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft Wyatt Langford had a monumental impact in the Texas Rangers’ 1-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds. Langford hit a solo shot off Carson Spiers, a pitcher who has struggled mightily to begin his career. The run ended up being the lone run scored throughout the game as Nathan Eovaldi pitched a nine inning shutout. To add to the special night, Langford also managed to record a multi-hit game, his second multi-hit effort of the 2025 campaign. Langford slashed .253/.325/.415/.740 in 134 games last season, hitting 16 home runs and driving in 74 runs. His plate discipline coupled with his power are a big reason why he was drafted fourth overall and is a focal point for the Rangers. Langford, hitting between prolific sluggers in Corey Seager, Joc Pederson, Jake Burger, and Adolis Garcia, should benefit from seeing high-quality pitches due to pitchers being unable to pitch around the potent Rangers lineup. Langford has now hit safely in five of the Rangers’ first six games, going 7-23 along with a walk and three runs. His performance against the Reds could be a kickstart to a dazzling sophomore campaign. The former Gator has looked every bit as good as advertised in his short 140 game stint in the MLB thus far. While he is far from hitting his ceiling in terms of production, Langford has displayed signs of brilliance and will only get better as he gets more reps in.
Opinion | How the Jays polished a glint of silver slugger in gold glover Andrés Giménez…
Andrés Giménez was a stranger to the cleanup spot when he found his name there on opening day, but he has started this season like he’s been hitting there his whole career.
The Blue Jays picked up the 26-year-old in a trade with Cleveland in December, excited about adding a second baseman who had won three straight gold gloves and was widely considered the best defensive infielder in the game.
What they didn’t count on was Giménez becoming the first Jay ever to hit three home runs in his first five games with the club.
“Thanks for giving me the news, I didn’t know that,” Giménez said in the Jays dugout during a conversation for the next episode of the Star’s baseball podcast, “Deep Left Field.”
“It’s been great. I’ve been having fun a lot since spring training. I feel like the guys treated me really (well), they welcomed me with open arms and I’m thankful for that.”
The torpedo bat is the talk of MLB and one Blue Jays player has been using it. Here’s what he has to say about it
Blue Jays
The torpedo bat is the talk of MLB and one Blue Jays player has been using it. Here’s what he has to say about it
The fun has definitely translated to the field.
While Giménez has already made at least a half-dozen dazzling defensive plays up the middle, his bat has come alive in a way it hadn’t in years.
He reached base safely four times in Monday’s 5-2 win over the Washington Nationals to raise his early-season on-base plus slugging mark to 1.399, more than double last year’s. No one expects it to stay there or even close (though a second-inning leadoff single Tuesday briefly pushed it to 1.425), but the Jays are confident there’s a strong hitter in there.
“I think when the season’s over, if he’s an .800-something OPS, I think that’s realistic, for sure,” manager John Schneider said, prior to Tuesday night’s 5-3 win over the Nationals at the Rogers Centre, about the player who hit fourth in the first six games of the season.
That would be a big jump, given that Giménez’s offence has declined mightily each of the past two years.
The Venezuelan, signed in the same international free-agent class as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in 2015, was not only an all-star with the Guardians in 2022, but finished sixth in American League MVP balloting. He posted career highs in batting average (.297), on-base (.371) and slugging (.466) as well as home runs (17) and RBIs (69).
After that great season, Giménez signed a seven-year contract worth $106.5 million (U.S.) and then hit just .252 with a .674 OPS over the next two years before the trade to Toronto.
His OPS dropped 125 points from 2022 to ‘23, then 74 from ‘23 to ‘24.
As much as the Jays say they knew Giménez had this in him, nobody thought he would hit 75 per cent of the team’s home runs in the first week (backup catcher Tyler Heineman with the other). After all, going into this season Giménez had just 49 homers in more than 2,100 plate appearances.
So, other than an especially hot first week, what’s going on?
“I learned a lot from last year,” said Giménez, looking back on a season in which he posted an OPS+ of 81, or 19 points below league average.
“This year, I wanted to try to stay consistent as long as I can. I’ve been working a lot in the cages, asking a lot of questions to Vladdy (Guerrero Jr.), Bo (Bichette), Anthony (Santander). I think they’re really helping me.”
What also has seemed to help is a radical change in how Giménez sets up at the plate. His stance is far more open than it was last season, with his right foot starting on the outside edge of the left-handed batter’s box, and yet his feet are eight inches closer together than last year.
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