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Rangers' manager Bruce Bochy says Wyatt Langford will likely miss three to four weeks

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Texas Rangers designated hitter Wyatt Langford (36) tosses his bat after hitting a sacrifice fly to centerfield to score third baseman Josh Jung during the fourth inning of the season opener against the Chicago Cubs, Thursday, March 28, 2024, in Arlington.(Elías Valverde II / Staff Photographer)

By Evan Grant

6:10 PM on May 5, 2024 CDT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The latest obstacle in Wyatt Langford's rookie season: A trip to the 10-day IL.

And it will ultimately cost him more time than that.

After the Rangers' 3-2, 10-inning win over Kansas City Sunday, manager Bruce Bochy confirmed that an MRI scan had shown a moderate right hamstring strain. Bochy said the strain was "slightly more than a Grade 1." He estimated Langford would likely miss three to four weeks. The Rangers will officially place him on the IL Monday ahead of their series with Oakland.

Related:Wyatt Langford is removed from the Texas Rangers game vs. Royals with hamstring tightness

While the injury is disappointing for Langford, who was not available in the Rangers' clubhouse after the game, there may be some hidden blessing to it. It may allow for him to work on fixing a swing that has seemed to get out of whack.

Related:Final thoughts from Rangers' win over Royals: A silver lining to Wyatt Langford's injury?

He was in a 3-for-28 (.107) skid when he exited Saturday's game after not running well on a tapper in front of the mound. It came a day after the Rangers had given him a day off against Kansas City to "rest." Langford, the fourth overall pick in the 2023 draft, is slashing .224/.295/.293/.588 in 116 at-bats. His only homer of the season was an inside-the-park job against Cincinnati last weekend.

"You always want to look for the silver lining," Bochy said. "It's fair to say [he is perhaps pressing], but it's the case for a few of our hitters. Guys aren't hitting now what they will be hitting. I don't want to point the finger at Langford as the only guy."

With Langford out, the Rangers will likely use a platoon arrangement to replace him. Right-handed hitting Ezequiel Duran was in the starting lineup against Kansas City lefty Daniel Lynch IV on Sunday. When the Royals went to a right-hander out of the bullpen, left-handed hitting Travis Jankowski replaced Duran.

Related:With Josh Smith's emergence, where does Ezequiel Duran fit on Texas Rangers roster?

The Rangers are likely to bring infielder Jonathan Ornelas to Oakland as a utility player and potential pinch runner. They have outfield coverage with Jankowski joining Evan Carter, Leody Taveras and Adolis García. The only other outfielder on the 40-man roster is left-handed hitting Dustin Harris, who has no major league experience. The Rangers have struggled against left-handed pitching to this point, so there might not be use for a left-handed bench option. The other option would be catcher Sam Huff, but the Rangers are already struggling to find at-bats for backup catcher Andrew Knizner.

Find more Rangers coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.

Evan Grant, Rangers beat writer/insider. Evan has covered the Rangers since 1997. He has twice been named one of the top 10 beat writers in the country by the AP Sports Editors. His passions outside of covering baseball are his wife, Gina, his two step kids, two crazy dogs & barbecue. Let's not discuss the cat. Evan graduated from Georgia State University, but oddly is a Georgia fan.

egrant@dallasnews.com @Evan_P_Grant

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