Texas Rangers GM Chris Young sees “talent” in hot newcomer Wyatt Langford

Texas Rangers General Manager Chris Young appeared on the GBag Nation show on 105.3 The Fan (KRLD-FM) to discuss the return of Max Scherzer, Josh Jung and others.

Here are some of the highlights, slightly edited for clarity.

What was your most important gain from the first series win of the season?

Chris Young: Most importantly, I think we showed signs of life on offense. We actually had four or five games in a row where we felt like we had really good hitting. We scored runs. We hit in time and our pitching this weekend with back-to-back shutouts was outstanding. So I love the way we played. I love the way we performed. I think we can build on that. We have a tough road trip this week in Milwaukee and Baltimore. But I think I’ve seen signs of what we need to be successful. I hope it continues like that.

What did you think about it Max Scherzer’s debut and how is he doing today? How will you manage his workload in the future?

Young: He said he feels good, normal. He said the next couple of days will tell how he recovers. He hasn’t had a normal spring training. He hasn’t even had a normal rehab, so to speak. We’re still learning a little bit about how he’s going to recover, how he’s going to bounce back. He’s still building strength and endurance, too. So we’ll be watching him closely this week to make sure he recovers well.

But yesterday he was outstanding. He was so much fun to watch. I know his skill level isn’t what it once was when he was at the peak of his career. But watching him pitch and compete yesterday, I felt like he was a step ahead of the hitters. It’s really a lost art in today’s game to see a guy who recognizes swings, sees what the opponent is trying to do, and makes adjustments on the fly. Despite the scouting report, it was pitching at the highest level.

The reality is (Max Scherzer) is 39 years old, about to turn 40. I know what my body felt like when I retired at 38 and every day was a challenge. He’s kept himself in phenomenal shape. He’s really a freak as far as his recovery, the way he’s recovered from surgery and the way he’s gone through his rehab. But we have to be conscious of age and that’s really why we’ve built the pitching staff the way we have. We have a surplus of starters at this point. We’re going to need them all. We have enough starter pitching, assuming we stay healthy. It gives us some flexibility to keep an eye on Max or the other guys and build in extra rest or bullpen days or even skip a start at some point to keep them fresh and healthy throughout the year.

What have you seen from Wyatt Langford, when he turned things around and figured things out?

Young: I saw a great gift from (Wyatt Langford) as far as his ability to adjust. He obviously had a great spring training and then had a cold start here. But I think that was to be expected to some extent given how quickly he went through the minor leagues and just got used to the quality of major league pitchers. We see it all over the league, the offense is faltering. The pitching in today’s game is so good, and considering he was in college baseball last year. Now he’s seeing the best pitchers in the world every night, and you see him starting to make adjustments and really feel confident at the plate. The performance this month has really reflected that. It just shows what a great gift Wyatt has to make adjustments, to recognize how talented he is, and how hard he works. I think the hitting coaches deserve some credit here too because they recognized a few things in his swing that put him in a better position to really handle major league pitchers. Collectively, they all did a great job and we’re seeing the results of that now.

Josh Smith was great for the Rangers at third base in Josh Jung’s absence. What is the plan when Jung returns from injury?

Young: First of all, Josh Jung probably won’t be able to play every day when he gets healthy. That’s a big surgery and it would be irresponsible to ask him to go out and play every day. I think Josh Smith is still going to get a lot of time at third base. I think Josh Smith is going to get time as a DH, he can play left field, center field, he can play shortstop, obviously we can replace (Corey Seager), DH Corey Seager while Josh Smith plays shortstop. Josh Smith has played so well. He’s going to be in the lineup daily. Where that is positionally, we’ll figure out. Bruce Bochy is brilliant at moving guys around and keeping guys fresh. We’ll figure out how to get all those guys in the lineup. But the reality is we’ve got to get them all working well together and then I think we’ll have a good run.

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