Wyatt Langford didn’t really get to ease into his rookie year. He was thrust into it. He didn’t get the benefit of seasoning in the minor leagues. He had to come of age as a Ranger.

His rocket ship ride started in spring training when he hit more home runs than anyone else. He crushed six home runs, drove in twenty, and batted .365.

Oh, and the Rangers needed a DH because they decided not to spend money that previous offseason, not knowing their TV contract situation (which is, unfortunately, still fuzzy). 

Langford struggled out of the gate, hitting just .238 in April, and falling to .143 in May, with just one home run, and inside the parker, to show for his two months of major league service. 

Then, in June, he figured things out. He drive in twenty-two runs, batted .309 for the month, with an OPS of .894. 

He dipped again in July and August, hitting .217 and .215. But finished strong in September, batting in even .300 with eight homers and twenty runs knocked in. It was good enough to get him named American League Player of the Month, and Rookie of the Month, for September. 

That’s promising. In the oddity category, because that’s what baseball can be when it comes to some stats, Langford became only the first player since Jackie Robinson, and the first rookie ever (there have been a lot of rookies to play this game) to hit an inside the park home run, a grand slam, and hit for the cycle in the same season.

For his efforts, Langford finished seven in A.L.Rookie of the Year voting. Yankees pitcher Luis Gil won. 

While it wasn’t a spectacular rookie season from beginning to end, it was promising. Langford seems to be a drafting success story this franchise had been sorely lacking.