ANAHEIM, Calif. — Wyatt Langford is not in the Texas Rangers lineup for Wednesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium.
Jarred Kelenic, Evan Carter, and Brandon Nimmo will make up the Texas outfield.
Langford has struggled at the plate since the calendar turned to August. He is 3-for-32 across 10 games since Aug. 1, good for a .094 average, with 1 home run and 1 stolen base. He is 2-for-21 over his last seven games.
The 24-year-old is batting .255/.318/.468 for the season with 13 home runs, 31 RBIs, and 8 stolen bases in 68 games.
Wyatt Langford Has Worked Back From Two Injuries
Langford has already spent two stretches on the injured list this season. A right forearm strain cost him 39 games earlier in the year. He returned, then went back on the 10-day injured list June 28 with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain.
Texas activated Langford on July 9, and his bat came back with him. He hit .324 over his first nine games after returning, going 12-for-37 with 3 home runs.
The recent results have gone the other way, with Wednesday giving Langford a night out of the starting lineup against Angels right-hander George Klassen. Klassen is 0-1 with a 7.27 ERA in his rookie season.
Skip Schumaker Has Weighed Langford’s Health In Center Field
Monday’s series opener marked Langford’s first start in center field since returning from the hamstring injury. He had played only left field since being activated July 9, but Texas shifted him to center against Angels left-hander Reid Detmers.
The move allowed the Rangers to keep Carter out of the lineup against a left-hander and start Ezequiel Durán in left field. Carter is hitting .116/.208/.116 against left-handed pitching this season, while Durán is at .268/.371/.402 against lefties.
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said the club has considered Langford’s injury history when deciding how often to use him in center. The medical staff has cleared him to play there occasionally.
Schumaker told The Dallas Morning News that keeping Langford healthy remains the priority.
“Health is No. 1,” Schumaker said. “If we don’t have Wyatt for the next 50 games, then we’re in trouble, right? So we’re making sure that’s good, but also, these are games that we have to win. These games are important, every game is important, so what is our best lineup?”
“Today against Detmers, who’s tough against righties and lefties, our best lineup is with him in center field,” Schumaker continued.
Wednesday’s matchup comes against a right-hander, giving Carter a chance to return to center while Langford sits.
Texas Rangers Turn To Kelenic, Carter And Nimmo
Carter has appeared in 101 games this season and is batting .190/.302/.320 with 8 home runs, 31 RBIs, and 14 stolen bases. Nimmo has played 114 games in his first season with Texas and is hitting .278/.344/.448 with 13 home runs and 47 RBIs.
Kelenic joined the active roster this week. He has 11 plate appearances across 8 games with the Rangers, going 2-for-9 with 2 walks.
Texas enters Wednesday at 60-60 and second in the American League West, one game behind the Houston Astros. The Rangers won Monday’s series opener 4-1 in 10 innings before losing 3-2 on Tuesday.
Jacob deGrom is scheduled to start Thursday’s series finale at 9:07 p.m. CT. Texas then opens a three-game series against the Athletics on Friday at 8:40 p.m. CT.
