Wyatt Langford, an outfielder for the Florida Gators who is considered to be one of the top prospects in the upcoming Major League Baseball amateur draft, will miss action after suffering an undisclosed injury on Friday night that required surgery, according to Jacob Rudner of 247 Sports. Rudner added that Langford is in good spirits and is expected to make a full recovery.
"He was evaluated and treated by the doctors last night," Florida head coach Kevin O'Sullivan told Rudner. "It's going to take a little bit of time for him to get back."
Langford, 21, exited Friday's game having batted .431/.557/.931 with six home runs and six more walks (14) than strikeouts in 16 contests. He entered the spring ranked by CBS Sports as the No. 3 prospect in the class. Here's what we wrote as part of our preseason draft rankings:
The Gators have had five players drafted in the top 10 since 1990. They should add at least one more to that total come July. Langford is the total package offensively. He commands the zone; he strikes the ball with authority; and he makes contact at an above-average clip (his strikeout-to-walk ratio in SEC play was 1.28). Scouts project Langford to become at least a plus hitter with respect to his average and his slugging outputs, and if on-base chops were considered a tool, he'd fetch a plus grade there, too. Defensively, he played left field last year out of deference to a pair of top-70 picks in Sterlin Thompson (now of the Rockies) and Jud Fabian (Orioles). One veteran evaluator estimated Langford has a coin flip's chance of making center field his own for the long haul; should said coin land the wrong way, he has the arm for right. Langford is almost certain to go in the top five, and it shouldn't surprise anyone if he finds himself in the running for the top overall pick, depending on financial demands and how the Pirates want to divvy up their bonus pool.
The Gators, 14-3 on the season, will play their first series of the season against SEC competition come Thursday, when they begin a three-game set versus Alabama.