It's the Downbeat on ninety seven one, the Freak seven Am, the Dirty
down Beat from six to ten am each and every weekday morning. It's KT,
Danny, Mikey JJ. We had a texter who did your research project
for you. Probably would have saved you about five hours of work yesterday and
he can fill in the blanks. Did you say an astronaut for the Braves
win? I remember you saying that because he says twenty eleven Braves win astronaut
Shane kim Bro throughout the first pitch. Yeah, if it's the Braves didn't
win the twenty ten World Series twenty twenty one, I had Choper Jones.
God, but if it was Shane Wynn, that's I mean, and the
Ones you couldn't do Cardinals he got twenty eleven their idiot win. The next
year they had Bob Gibson, David Exstein, Jason Mott and Tony LaRussa throw
it out whatever, anyway, Appreciate the work Robert and Dallas. Thanks for
listening and thanks for doing a complete job. Kevin. Yeah, if it
was Chipper or whatever this guy texted into it's crazy how KT will find something
to complain about. No one cares about first pitch. We're World Series champs
and a new season of baseball starting. Love life, My guy, I'm
not complaining. I'm making radio content. I think Kevin does love life.
Let me have Kevio's back. I think I don't know. How do you
love life? Yeah? Absolutely, dude. I'm happy, man, Pretty
happy dude. And it's opening day. Everyone is glowing around here. The
shortest Ranger off season in history. Yeah, that's come to an end.
I saw this might be too much here. I saw a construction worker on
this side of the building a little too excited for opening day, described pumping
through a whole he drilled out. Weird deal and got a lot of sleep
last night. You know what, doctor Dingoo, snort the pill. We
recommend you get that pill in you as quick as possible. There he goes,
Boy, that's the earliest pill I've ever seen you take. He's back
on top. An hour from now, we have a very special guest joining
us from the Texas Rangers to tell us about some incredible promotions they're going to
have this upcoming season. They're embracing it. Man, all eyes on Texas.
We're the champs. Champ is here We're the John Cena of baseball.
It's going tonight and it's not all about who's throwing out the first pitch.
We got important stuff going on. We need to learn more about it,
and I think we're gonna right now at seven o'clock now smarts. The truth
is, when you're World Series champis there's a lot of things you can look
at be happy about with this team. But I don't think we have to
spend a lot of time talking about Marcus Simeon, who's missed one game in
his last two years. I don't think we need to spend a lot of
time with Corey Seeger. All Right, we know who these people are.
They're incredible. We don't need to talk much about Adoli Scarcia, but we
do need to talk about first is the whitt Langford story, and I think
Evan Carter should be a very big part of this. H So, why
at Langford? How many minor league games do you guys think he has played?
How old is he he is? Is he twenty twenty? I don't
think twenty one? And well he played for what the Florida Gators last year?
Yes, he's twenty two. Sorry, this is about as fast tracked
as you can get in the modern era. I have no idea. I
don't know when. Just take a guess. I'll give you a higher lower
forty. It's forty four forty four minor league games. So higher forty four
minor league Mikey guesses higher, higher, wait till late one point some higher
lower stuff. So they scouted him all the way back in twenty eighteen when
he was in high school. Now he went to high school in town called
Trenton, kind of like Gainesville, mic Florida one a school town of less
than two thousand people. Boy a little diamond grown in the middle of nowhere,
and he played some catcher, he played some corner infield. I bet
he played football and basketball player on his team, marching band. March he
had because you had to. He actually did one act play. He was
their whole thing, an apartment. He played Lenny and of mice and men.
His body was a little bad then, and then he by the time
he was a senior, he filled out a little bit. But he's a
senior in twenty twenty, which we all know what happened in twenty twenty.
So he played eight high school games as a senior in high school. Now,
by the way, Jamie Newbergh did a story and then The Athletic did
the story as well, so I kind of read them both and combined my
favorite parts of both of these stories. But what part of this is like
to eight games your high school year? Not a single college gave him a
shot besides Florida. That's weird that a high end school like that, But
I guess because he was so close, it was easy for them to scout
him, and it heard enough and had heard that maybe an MLB team or
two had given him a look, but he was not on big time list
for recruit and things like that. He was kind of just a guy whose
body hadn't filled out yet. Then you could hit. But eight games of
high school COVID year happens ends up going to Florida. So you get to
December of twenty twenty two, and that's when they changed the rules for the
MLB Draft. It was worst record straight down. Well, they did an
MLB draft lottery and the Rangers had the seventh worst record that year, but
because they changed the rules, they didn't have the seventh pick in the draft.
They won the lottery to jump up they had a twenty five percent chance
to jump up into the top four, and they did. They go to
four. Happened to another team as well, the Tigers, who had the
sixth worst record. They jumped to number three because of the new lottery rules
to incentivize not tanking. Basically, so the Rangers get into the top four
unexpectedly and then the Tigers getting to three. If it's another team that's not
the Tigers, maybe that team takes White Langford. All the big baseball names
had White Lakeford projected as the number one pick in the draft, but then
the Nationals and the Pirates took Schemes and Crews the LSU players. So there
they are at three and the Tigers take I think he was high squad for
the Max Clark and the Rangers are going, holy crap, he landed in
our lap, all of us as these like weird chain of events happened,
including COVID might have helped them here. Do you know what? Was he
just dominant at Florida? He was okay, but that I didn't know such
from such a small school and with such a short track record. I'm almost
more interested in how the hell why Florida did that because Florida a pretty powerhouse
program. I'm wondering if just because they were yeah, but twenty minutes away,
I don't know, you know, and they just send somebody out there
and they're like, dude, we have got a jewel. And he played
eight games his senior year because of COVID. Yeah. Wow. The high
school seasons were canceled, and so he in two seasons of real college baseball
because in twenty one he played a couple as he's a freshman and he's still
working on his body. He got yoked you know, well, Florida got
him on a good training program and he got yoked up. But in twenty
two and twenty three, two college seasons is the equivalent of about six hundred
and ten played appearances, which is about an MLB season if you played the
full thing. He hit three sixty three with forty seven home runs. Okay,
so that's pretty good. It's also college show. What happened in spring
training this year? Three sixty five led the MLB in total bases and RBIs
who cares about spring training stats? But it still says something. Yeah,
Okay, Now there's another story of the athletic that's about him, And this
story begins with he was playing a game in college and he fouled a ball
off of his testicles. I'm serious, both of them, just one?
Which one right? Is he right hand or left hand? He's right handed,
so he hit off his right test and his left one. Now I
think about it, stepped into it. I think he was still vulnerable because
when you step into it, you're leaving that crotch area open. Don't They
were cups like all the time. Do you think he followed it off the
ground and then up to his testicle or just from the back testicle like that
seems I heard the answer to that question. I don't have the highlight of
it either, but may maybe i'll find it, So google White Langford ruptured
testicle highlight ruptured. So that happens. He doesn't want to come out of
the game because he's tough, and they're like, dude, this is bad.
So they take him to the hospital. He gets diagnosed with a ruptured
test Now he's expected to miss a month. Over a month and he was
back within two weeks. War Daddy. He is a war daddy. The
other note about him in the article is something that Chris Young wrote down when
he was scouting him in college. This is a game in May, so
a couple of months before the draft. It's the game in May and he
popped up to the second baseman and before the second baseman had caught it.
The legend has it White Langford was standing on second base because he was busting
ass out of the gate. He cares rounding first guts a monster pop up.
If that's the case, yeah, story is just lightning fast. As
the story says that Chris Young wrote down, you know that's the kind of
guy we want. You know, I don't know. Did did the guy
catch it the second basement? He did? He pop out P four is
really bad at bad when you look at it. But he got the second
base. If you make it to the base before they catch it, you
should be awarded the bass. Okay, you really want to speed up the
game, That's how you do it. Extreme baseball, daddy is I mean,
it's worth workshopping. If they can do it, football go crazy.
Ken Rosenthal wrote that Rangers camp he had heard White compared to these three players.
Mookie Bets for the way he recognizes pitches, Ryan Zimmerman for his advanced
maturity, and Mike Trout for his physical resemblance Langford sixty one five, Trout
six two two thirty five. Okay, for those are really good dudes,
right this, zib I don't know if Zimman's a Hall of Famer, but
the other two are. Zimmerman probably is right. He was awesome for Yeah,
he was a long time so probably does he look like Mike Trout?
Is he a little brick s house? He's he is, he is and
he wasn't in twenty eighteen. He's a little tumpy so he can mash.
He hits for average, he's fast. Kenny Field, how's his day out
there? Well? No, no, so he lost lost, played mostly
left field at Florida. They think he has the athleticism and speed to play
center field if you needed to. You don't need that here because you have
Evan Carter and Leo who will get most of the starts in center field probably
unless he's traded or you know, I'm not replaced, because they're gonna be
able to d h Whaett and Adulis to ease him in and give all these
guys healthy share of time off because the roster you have, so the Raiders
bench coach right now is a guy named Donnie Ecker. He said that Langford,
Devin Carter, they act older than they are. So Evan Carter's I
think twenty. I think they're twenty two and twenty one or twenty one and
twenty like whatever. They're both early twenties, both are married. They're fresh
babbies. White Lady White Langford married to a former t ball teammate from his
hometown of Trenton, Florida. Her name is Halle Langford. She's a red
shirt junior on the softball team at Mercer University. That is sweet, broker
ankle. Can't play this year, but she'll be back. She'll be back.
She getting a red shirt this year. She'll be back next year.
No one sweated Evan Carter Mary do like, just two guys who probably only
give a crap about baseball and got married that young, So that's no wonder
they act like they're you know, oh why it's twenty two and Evan's twenty
one. Yeah, okay, yeah, it's pretty wild that while it's the
older of the two, okay, And he does look like Mike Trout,
like face, head, shape, strong head. So the things that we
saw about when Evan Carter got called up last year to give the Rangers a
spark and then ends up hitting number three in the e F and World Series,
you know, in the playoffs. But what was the thing that we
were all amazed by is the things we had heard. He's very advanced.
He was drafted out of high school too. They kind of found him second
round, and everyone's like, who Evan Carter? Second round? They're like,
no, we think we got some. They talk about recognizing pitches and
all that stuff. They're just talking about the same thing with Wyatt, but
he adds the extra power that Evan Carter didn't have. A Evan car could
probably still have a thirty home run year. At some point, White Langford
could go have a forty forty five home run year and it wouldn't surprise anyone.
I don't think I have it this year, but it's coming. White
Langford opens the years the clear favorite to win Rookie of the Year at three
to two odds. Damn okay, Evan Carter's number two, right five to
one odds? Is he number two, number two in the AL? That's
incredible. But this is what shocked me. American League MVP of course,
Seeker's up there. He's number five. I think at eleven to one.
White Langford is in there in the top twenty or twenty five or so at
thirty three to one odds. Is he really isn't that crazy? He's never
played, really, he's never seen a major league official pitch. I think
I think Jamie wrote this. It's about Carter was asked about like ushering along
White Langford. Evan's like, I haven't never played in open day either.
It was like, it's not how else? Just to help him? I
don't know what opening days like. That's true, but they're so calm,
you know. I think about a couple of those defensive plays Evan Carter made.
Was Carter he was a Was he part of the expansion expanded roster or
did they bring him up earlier? They called him up because they were struggling
to hit the baseball. That's September, remember, I mean, we thought
this thing would might not make the playoffs. He got called up in September.
Yeah, he was a September call up. He was chosen to get
called up. Okay, And if it was the end of August, I
apologize, but I think it was September because we were struggling to win games.
They didn't turn it on at the end of the year just to even
make the playoffs. So that was kind of crazy. Now you look at
like, what this team, Why does it seem like it was so long
ago? But it was just a few months. I know, it's crazy.
I Mean, on one hand, I think about us coming in here
and with the champagne that morning, you know, the day after, and
I am like, that doesn't seem long ago? Or us going to Game
seven? Does it seem long ago? But boy, I got drunk.
The games, the specifics of the games, and you know, you in
a cow uniform? Are you in a cow costume? Admit it made park
for game seventhing else because baseball there's just so much and the grind of it
is so much, and the playoffs for so many games. I mean,
it's hard to sit there to remember who they even played, now Race Oriol
Sastro's you know, and then Diamondbacks you know that. But like you sit
there because there's just so much to remember and so much happened. It just
eats up your brain. Here's the deal. Now starting pitching Sureser. They
want him back in June. Molly. They wanted him back in July.
They signed Molly's starting pitcher is good, but he had Tommy John uh de
Grom. The hope is August and that's according to Bocie. You've aldi pitched
a bunch in the last three years. The last time he pitched as much
as he did the last three years, he blew his arm out. They
need John Gray, and he evolved the eat innings. They've got Dunning in
there, if they've got Heene in there, and Cody Bradford's going to get
a chance to be the fifth And I I also didn't mention. I'm sorry
I forgot to mention John Gray. Now Nessard Jumper, Hey, John Gray
the other thing that they need. And I do think it's finally important because
they've been able to skate by without it. Jack Lider needs to be good
and triple A. Okay, that's what I was gonna say. I didn't
think he was with the big boys. He's not. Is he our hope
for a minor league pitcher that could be called up, a starter that could
be caught up or called up to impact things? Him? Owen White and
the other guy's Cole win. But cole Win needs to show a little more
too. My hord lighters very inconsistent in like control issues. So it's like,
okay, you got to be able to get the ball over the plate.
When he gets here, he's no longer seen as one two, you
know, he's seen as a But if you get up here, is that
a better option than Cody Bradford and Cody Bradford go to the bullpen? Absolutely,
but he's got to prove he's not a head case. Do you know
we haven't discussed so optimistic timeline for a Sureser return. Uh, June is
optimistic, okay, uh? And that's that's what Boachi said June July August
for the three guys, Sure'ser, Molly and de Grom. Oh for I
mean de Grom. I would think is August right? Yeah? Best?
But who knows? That could have been just and that was a month ago,
Sat And I know you don't have this answer, but I would think
the answer is yes. So the Rangers have more money allotted to starting pitching
than any other team, or maybe not the Dodgers. Well, the Dodgers
would probably have them beat now. Yeah, but but we're in the top
couple few. Right, there's a lot of dead money just kind of sitting
there. And if we weren't staring at our shiny rings, yeah, that'd
be It's so weird. It is weird. It's that they spend all that
money on those two guys, and then those two guys went down the ground
far earlier than chures are, but sures are you know, sures are contributed.
But yeah, and then they hauled off and won the World Series.
And that's why that's why Montgomery was so key. Yeah, so important to
at least giving you two bona fide badasses that can can I look, man,
that's the thing I'm concerned about, is that's great that they have these
you know, virtual timetables set up for these dudes to come back. But
you're talking about older players that have been injured, and de Gram's always injured.
I mean, there's no guarantees that when these guys get out there that
they're just gonna be their good old thirty one year old selves. Now there's
a guarantee that they're not or stay on the field at all. Well,
you know, we didn't even mention though, like we look at all these
things you're thinking about the pitching. This seems gonna have to mash at least
until you get help, right, you know, and you can make trades
to their minor league system. They've got tons of guys, so they can
make trades like they did last year to get Jordan Montgomery to come in and
pass it on. That's probably your philosophy. That was always the John Daniels
way, even when they were contenders. They always went for it, and
people were like, kind of they have They've done a terrible job of developing
pitching and getting it to the major leagues, you know, in all that
span. But it's like I had never had a problem with John Daniels for
a lot of reasons, but one of them is, like, dude,
Matt Garza was the best picture on the market. It's not John Daniel's fault.
Matt Garza sucked down the stretch. Ryan Dempster was the best picture on
the market. They traded for him, like they tried to get all these
dudes. But as they had a loaded minor league system, and that's why
they were able to make trades last year to get Cherdren and get some of
these guys. But if you tell what I can't get over because they're eighth
or ninth to win the World Series right in odds second. Yeah, say
it jumped somewhere five and ten. They're not disrespected, but they're not.
They're not on any experts AL World Series representative. Oh give me the Rangers.
I mean, no one most you're picking the Astros to win the division,
And fine, I get it. But if you tell me the defending
champion in any sport, but take fun baseball, you have the defending champion,
and tell you what I'm gonna throw in the top two candidates for AL
Rookie of the Year are being added, if you will to this team.
I'd say that's good for about seventh best. Yeah, that's weird. It
seems that feels very disrespecty. It does. And no one's even to talk
about Josh Young either, who started in the All Star Game last year,
because we're talking about White Langford right now to Josh Young might be ready to
break out even more than he ever has. I mean, it's it's a
really good team. Is a very mid rotation right now? Is that the
weakness of the team is the just depth of rotation? Yeah, and then
we'll see what the bullpen is they lost Will Smith rals Chapman for half year,
Chris Stratton and they traded for he was in the Jordan Montgomery trade.
And those guys are all gone, but we have Josh Spores and he wins
world's here. And then they signed thirty nine year old David Robertson from the
Yankees, remember him. And they signed thirty seven year old Kirby Yates who
might be good. And they had a couple other arms. Dude, they're
talking about like Kumar Rocker throwing like in the summer, like June in double
A and they think that'll happen fast if he gets back, and is he
a Tommy John. If he gets back and he's pitching one, they might
be able to add him in September to a bullpen type thing. There are
a lot of stuff going on that's good. Other World leagu championship caliber lineup,
mid rotation, probably mid bullpen, very good defense with Leodi and Evan
Carter playing center and left field. Like this team is going to win ninety
games, okay, And how about the X factor of Bruce Bochie, who
is just it's hard to believe, but he's clearly made of magic. It
worked he just wins the World Series. He wins him every other year.
Yeah, and I think he might be that might be for him, Like
I'll improve. I'm not just the only other year guy watch this. How
dare you think I went every other year? I'm better than that. But
the Astros are good and the Mariners are good, and that makes the division
tough. The Orioles are seen as maybe the best team in the American League,
all that stuff. I'm kind of geared up again, ready to go.
I hadn't cared much. I am now and I love I love it,
But it almost felt like that weird thinking like we did it. This
thing we always wanted, it happened, and I almost like got my mind
off of it, and now it's like, Okay, okay, that's exciting.
It's what Kevin just said has got me fired up to. But let's
put it all into perspective. When we're sitting here talking about, you know,
all of the ups and downs of last season and how there was no
way in the world that this team was going to even make the playoffs and
they get in on the very last day, and that wild ass ride through
the playoffs and everything that led up to it. Guys getting injured to Grom
going down, we got sureser, that's wild and how low that took.
The grind starts tonight, the first of six months of this every up and
down where we're just gonna be emotional about the good stuff and the bad stuff
and oh this team's done, this team sucked. Shirtser, can't pitch anymore.
All of the knee jerking and freaking out what we need right now on
day one, all year long, no matter what, steady, steady hand,
stress option, responsive, you don't panic, contained emotions. Yeah,
and it starts tonight, but it's a long trip, folks. If why
Langford goes over four, you don't just move them in the mornings. Yeah,
that's true, cause you can't win them all if you don't win the
first one. Rangers, Yeah, that's right tonight sixty five. If you're
going out to opening day to day, Texas Live will have the Ben and
Skin Show and the speed Easy hanging out thanks to in Touch Credit Union,
Addison Coffee Roasters, and Sunday Side Check. That's a great fun. Don't
miss eight o'clock. We'll have the Rangers Assistant VP of Marketing, well,
the assistant to the Assistant VP of Marketing, Marshall Moscato, calling in because
we took a look at those promotional items for the Rangers. Must discuss what
their mindset was on some of those hats. At eight o'clock, Tom Glavin
at nine. Coming up next in the scuttle butt, guys, I think
we've got a wild weekend in DFW with some things that we haven't even been
talking about. And I'll tell you what that is next. One nice,
I won the fre