ARLINGTON -- Evan Carter was one of many World Series heroes for the Rangers in 2023. At 21 years old, he appeared in all 17 of Texas' postseason games, hitting .300 with a .917 OPS. He was on a fast track to stardom.
Now, less than two years later, Carter won¡¯t even break camp with the Rangers¡¯ big league club, president of baseball operations Chris Young announced on Tuesday.
¡°We want to get the best version of Evan,¡± Young said. ¡°He's not swinging it at the level we know he's capable. We think he's going to be a big part of our team, and we need him to be the best version of himself to help us win. We want the best version of Evan, and if we get that, he's going to help us win a lot of games.¡±
Things have not gone smoothly for Carter since the World Series.
In 2024, he played just 45 games, slashing .188/.272/.361. A stress reaction in his back landed him on the injured list on May 28. After multiple attempts to ramp him back up, he was officially shut down for the year in August.
Carter had an ablation procedure performed on his back this offseason, and he felt like he entered camp healthy.
But things never quite looked right for Carter this spring. In 15 Cactus League games, he hit .154 (6-for-39) with a .419 OPS. He never looked comfortable at the plate, noting that the spring, in his own words, ¡°sucked.¡±
¡°As much as anything, to get to where he needs to be, he needs to get his confidence going,¡± said manager Bruce Bochy. ¡°He's missed so much time with the injuries, it's not that easy to hit Major League pitching. And I think he needs reps. I don't care who you are, you miss that much time, you're gonna have some rust there, particularly at his age.
¡°He's a smart guy. He knows what he needs to do. How he played in the postseason says a lot about his makeup, his toughness. He'll go down there and we'll get him right.¡±
Carter told reporters that he thinks going down to Triple-A Round Rock will help him in the long run. Getting away from the bright lights and stresses of the big leagues could allow him to get back to the hitter he knows he can be.
¡°At the end of the day, I've just got to prove that I can help the team win,¡± Carter said. ¡°I've got to get back to playing good baseball. I know I can do it. I've proven to myself and everybody else that I can do it, and I did it on the highest stage. I know that it's in there, and I've just got to get right back to feeling confident. I think that this is going to be the best opportunity for me to do that.¡±
Both Carter and Young noted that the fix will be as much mental as it is physical. So much of baseball is that way.
Going down to Round Rock will give Carter that stress-free environment to calm down mentally.
¡°Anytime you struggle in the game, you start thinking about mechanics and you start getting a little technical on the pitcher's mound or the batter's box,¡± Young said. ¡°When everything's in sync and you're in rhythm and your timing, the game's hard enough in those moments, much less when you're out of sync, out of rhythm and you're competing for a spot. It's just part of the game.
¡°He's a young player. He's going to be fine. This is not a signal of how we feel about Evan. We believe in this player immensely. It's our job to put him in positions to be successful. We feel like this is the right move for this moment today.¡±