Should the Texas Rangers Extend Wyatt Langford?

It has felt like Oprah has been handing out contract extensions over the past couple of weeks. You get an extension, you get an extension, everyone gets an extension!

On Wednesday alone, the Padres’ Jackson Merrill (9-years/$135MM and can top at $204MM), the Red Sox’ Kristian Campbell (8-years/$60MM and can top at $100MM), and the Diamondbacks’ Ketel Marte (restructured his current contract to $116.5MM and can top at $149.5MM) all extended their current deals.

When even one young talent and their current team agree to an extension, it makes you think. But when several across the league make these moves, it forces you to look hard at other rosters to see who might make sense to lock down for an extended time. These types of extensions also allow the player to hedge their bet and ink some serious guaranteed money.

Does a Wyatt Langford Extension Make Sense for the Rangers?

For the Rangers, that obvious player is Wyatt Langford. The team’s fourth overall selection in the 2023 MLB Draft, Langford is quickly becoming one of the best players on the team, as well as one of the best in the league.

Despite a slow start to his rookie campaign last season, Langford blasted in September. He was not only the AL Rookie of the Month but also the AL Player of the Month. It wasn’t like he was chopped liver the rest of the season, but it did take him a while to settle into being a big leaguer.

Texas went out before the 2022 season and signed both Corey Seager and Marcus Semien to long-term deals. The front office brought them in to help change the culture and bring stability to a franchise that had been in a rut. Mission accomplished, as the team won its first World Series title in 2023.

Locking up Langford for a few extra prime years should be a no-brainer for the club. Sure, there are some risks associated with extending such a young player. Langford is still only 23 years old. But he has proven that he can not only field well and run the bases well, but more importantly can hit big league pitching well.

Having another face of the franchise that can share the role with Seager for the next several years before taking over on his own would be huge for the Rangers. From both an on-the-field performance and an off-the-field PR and merchandise sales standpoint, extending Langford would be a win for the Rangers. 

Does an Extension Make Sense for Wyatt Langford Himself?

It is kind of astounding to me how many people think that young players are being taken advantage of if they sign an extension early in their careers. Most of the time, the players are young enough that they will still reach free agency at a fairly young age.

Plus, last time I checked, playing baseball under a guaranteed $100+ million contract while in your early 20s is not bad. Simply using the most basic principles of time value of money and investment strategy will yield the players far more than the actual contract price tag.

Langford could easily rake under his current base salary and work his way through the arbitration process before becoming a free agent after the 2029 season. Including this season, that is five more under his rookie contract.

A guy like Langford will eventually get a large payday in arbitration, but why wouldn’t he want to go ahead and get that payday now? If he did sign an extension, yes, he could be leaving some money on the table. But a player of his caliber is going to fetch a pretty penny even now.

The peace of mind he would gain, knowing that not only he but his family would be taken care of financially for years to come, could be motivation enough to pull the trigger. I believe that the ol’ saying “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” comes into play here.

Injuries happen in baseball. Injuries happen in life. For Langford to be able to go ahead and guarantee a massive haul wouldn’t be a bad move on his part. And if things go the way that we all feel they will, he will still be able to cash in again as a free agent when the contract is up, even if it is at a reduced rate because he is a few years older than he otherwise would have been.   

Jackson Merrill Extension’s Could Be the Blueprint

Jackson Merrill is a beast. The kid has quickly become one of the best center fielders in MLB. Age-wise, Merrill will turn 21 in a few weeks, and Langford just turned 23 a few months ago. That puts Merrill roughly a year and a half younger than Langford.

As mentioned earlier, Merrill’s extension was for nine years and $135 million with a possible top out of $204 million. As with many of these extensions, some escalators can push the $15 million AAV even higher.

Merrill is slightly younger and has put up better raw numbers in the big leagues than Langford has. Still, I feel like if the Rangers truly want to keep Langford in Texas for as long as possible, and they should, an extension similar to Merrill’s would be in order.

Perhaps there would be different escalators, or such, but the overall length and value sure seems like a great conversation starter.

Typically, I am a little leary of these extensions from the team’s standpoint. In the case of Wyatt Langford, however, the sooner an extension can come together, the better. There are no signs of any weak spots in his game. The idea of him patrolling left field while anchoring the top of the Rangers’ batting order for the next eight or nine years is exciting, to say the least.