Baylor Professional Athletes

Langeliers Is Back — and He Looks Fine

The most important story for Baylor's MLB contingent this week had nothing to do with box scores. It had to do with a torn meniscus that, for a stretch, looked like it might end Shea Langeliers' season entirely.

The Athletics reinstated their All-Star catcher from the 15-day IL on Saturday, September 13, activating him ahead of a matchup against the Mariners after he'd been sidelined since late July with the knee injury. The feared worst-case scenario — season over — didn't materialize, and Langeliers wasted little time reminding Oakland why his absence hurt.

In his first game back against Seattle, Langeliers went 1-for-however-many with an RBI, then added another hit and two more RBI in the second half of an ugly doubleheader split. He kept the momentum going through the week: a hit and RBI against Tampa Bay on Wednesday, another knock on Tuesday, and a strong Saturday showing against Cleveland — 2 hits, a run scored, and a walk — pushing his average to .265. For a catcher returning from major knee surgery, the swing looks intact. Oakland, limping toward the finish line, at least has its backstop back.

Muncy Saves His Best for the Rivalry

Max Muncy's week with the Dodgers was a study in peaks and valleys — but the peak came at exactly the right moment. With Los Angeles surging late in the season, Muncy delivered in Saturday's rivalry matchup against the San Francisco Giants, going 1-for-the-game with a home run, an RBI, and a run scored as the Dodgers rolled to an 8-2 victory. He was part of a stunning four-homer eighth inning that also featured Kyle Tucker, Mookie Betts, and Will Smith — a statement sequence against a division rival.

Earlier in the week, Muncy had also contributed 2 hits and 2 RBI in a dominant 8-2 win over the Reds on Thursday, though he sat out multiple games mid-week as the Dodgers managed his workload. His .253 average by week's end reflects a consistent, if unspectacular, stretch run — but clutch contributions in high-leverage games are what postseason rosters are built around.

Loftin Quietly Steady in Kansas City

Royals infielder Nick Loftin had perhaps the quietest notable week of any Bear in the bigs. He played sparingly early, but broke out on Saturday against Pittsburgh, collecting 4 hits and an RBI in a 5-6 loss. It was the kind of performance that raises a manager's eyebrows in September, even if the Royals couldn't convert it into a win.

Bradford Grinds Through Boston

Rounding out the week, Rangers starter Cody Bradford took a tough-luck loss against the Red Sox on Friday, working 4.1 innings and striking out 3 in a 3-4 defeat. His ERA sits at 4.19, and he's given Texas innings when the rotation has needed them — a modest but real contribution down the stretch.

Between Langeliers' comeback, Muncy's rivalry heroics, and Loftin's breakout Saturday, it was a week that reminded anyone watching that the Bears have a genuine footprint across MLB rosters — even in a season already decided for some of their clubs.

With September baseball in full swing, Baylor's MLB alumni are providing some of the more compelling subplots heading into the final weeks of the season — led by a catcher making his long-awaited comeback and a third baseman who can't stop hitting.

Langeliers Steps Back Into the Box

Shea Langeliers has been one of the Athletics' most significant absences since he last played on July 24 — a stretch of nearly six weeks that left Oakland's already injury-battered lineup even thinner. That changed this week when the All-Star catcher kicked off a rehab stint with Triple-A Las Vegas, going 2-for-3 with a double as the designated hitter in his first game action. He was lifted for a pinch hitter after three plate appearances, a standard precaution for a player easing back from a lengthy shelf stay.

The A's have been navigating a brutal injury ledger all season, and Langeliers' potential return before the calendar flips to October carries real weight — both symbolically and practically. Whether he rejoins the big-league club before the season ends remains to be seen, but Tuesday's rehab outing was an encouraging first step.

Muncy Is on a Tear — Both of Them

The Baylor community has the unusual luxury of tracking two Max Muncys in the majors simultaneously, and both have been swinging hot bats this week.

The Dodgers' Max Muncy has been relentless. Over the stretch from September 6–12, he collected hits in multiple games, including a 3-for-3 effort against the Nationals on Monday and a 3-hit showing against the Marlins on Friday. He homered against the Reds on Thursday and finished a Dodgers blowout of Cincinnati with a hit, a home run, two RBI and a run scored. His average climbed to .257 on the week — a meaningful surge for a player trying to solidify his standing in a deep Los Angeles lineup down the stretch.

The week did include one hiccup: Muncy was scratched from Saturday's lineup against the Nationals due to illness, with the team confirming the move was not injury-related. He bounced back the following day, going 1-for-4 with an RBI against Miami.

The Athletics' Max Muncy has been quietly productive as well, posting hits in multiple appearances including a 2-homer, 2-RBI outing against the Mariners on September 6 and multi-hit games against the Blue Jays. He's hitting .232 on the year.

Bradford Struggles, Loftin Stays Steady

Cody Bradford drew the start for Texas against Seattle on September 9 but had a rough outing, lasting just four innings while allowing three earned runs to push his ERA to 4.72.

Nick Loftin continued to contribute in Kansas City's infield, posting hits in multiple games during the week. The Royals utility piece drew a lengthy at-bat against Zac Gallen on September 10 — working a 10-pitch sequence with one out — that helped chase the Diamondbacks starter from his outing in the fourth inning, per reports.

For Baylor fans, the story of the week is clear: Langeliers is back in the fold, and the Dodgers' Muncy is playing some of his best baseball of the second half. Both Bears worth watching closely as October approaches.

Max Muncy's Week to Remember

Two teams, one milestone, and a historic inning — Baylor's Max Muncy packed a lot into the first week of September.

The most eye-catching moment came Saturday, when Muncy's Athletics beat the Seattle Mariners 7-6 behind one of the more unusual power displays of the season. Muncy, Alika Williams, Jeff McNeil, and Zack Gelof all went deep in the third inning — four home runs in a single frame — powering Oakland past Seattle. Muncy finished the game 3-for-his-at-bats with a homer, an RBI, and a run scored, pushing his Athletics average to .224.

That came on the heels of an already significant week for the Baylor product. Muncy reached 10 years of MLB service time, a milestone the MLBPA describes as "the Holy Grail for Players." Fewer than 10% of players in the history of the sport have ever gotten there — a threshold that demands, in the union's own words, a combination of talent, health, resilience, perseverance, and good fortune. For Muncy, who had to grind his way into relevance before breaking out with the Dodgers, the milestone carries real weight.

The veteran infielder is uniquely listed on two rosters this period — carrying a .245 average with the Dodgers while also suiting up for the Athletics — and he remained productive across both assignments. He drew a walk in the Dodgers' Saturday game against Washington and was a factor throughout the week on both sides.

Cody Bradford and Nick Loftin Round Out the Week

Not every Baylor alum had Muncy's marquee moments, but there was other activity worth noting.

Rangers lefty Cody Bradford took the mound Wednesday against the Athletics and worked 4.0 innings, striking out three while allowing five earned runs. The outing lifted his ERA to 4.45 — a rough night, but Bradford eating innings for a Texas rotation managing a busy stretch of games.

Royals infielder Nick Loftin had a quietly solid week at the plate. He recorded hits in four of his appearances, including a home run Tuesday against the Marlins — a solo shot that drove in a run and scored one. He closed the week batting .238, holding steady as Kansas City's depth piece up the middle.

The Bottom Line

Muncy is the story this week, and it's not particularly close. The four-homer inning would be a headline on its own; layered on top of a legitimate career milestone, it's the kind of week that reminds fans why a decade of MLB service is worth celebrating. For Baylor alumni tracking the Bears across the majors, Muncy is currently the flagship — producing on the field and collecting hardware off it.

Baylor Alumni MLB Roundup | Aug. 23–29, 2026

It was a banner weekend for Baylor alums across the American League, with Nick Loftin and Max Muncy — two Bears playing for two different teams in two different games — both going deep on Sunday, Aug. 23 in performances that swung outcomes.

Loftin Erupts for Four RBI in Royals Rout

Nick Loftin was the biggest Baylor story of the week by a considerable margin. The Kansas City second baseman put together one of his best offensive performances of the season on Sunday, clubbing a three-run homer and finishing the day with four RBI as the Royals battered the Detroit Tigers, 11-7. John Rave added a two-run shot of his own, but it was Loftin's big swing that set the tone and gave Kansas City the cushion it needed to hold off a scrappy Tigers lineup.

The outburst lifted Loftin's average to .238 on the day, and he carried that momentum into the following week, logging hits in back-to-back games against the Blue Jays on Tuesday and Wednesday. He's a player Royals fans have been waiting to see put it all together at the plate, and the Aug. 23 effort was a compelling preview of what that looks like.

Muncy's Solo Shot Helps A's Edge Houston

Meanwhile, Max Muncy — the Athletics' Max Muncy — added his own punctuation mark to Sunday's slate. His solo home run was part of a 7-6 Oakland win over the Houston Astros, a victory that also featured a three-run blast from Brian Serven. Muncy's blast was his lone hit of the game but it counted when it mattered, contributing to one of the more satisfying wins of the week for an Athletics club that always has something to prove against their division rival.

Muncy continued to see action throughout the week, going 2-for-2 in Saturday's contest against the Orioles. His average sat at .221 as of Aug. 29 — modest, but with pop that makes him a threat in the middle of any lineup.

(A note for the uninitiated: there are indeed two Max Muncys active in MLB right now. The other, also a Baylor product, is on the Dodgers' roster and also saw action throughout the week, drawing walks in multiple games and driving in a run on Sunday against Pittsburgh.)

Bradford Solid in the Rotation

Cody Bradford, Baylor's representative in the Rangers' rotation, delivered a serviceable outing Friday against the Brewers — 5.2 innings, three earned runs — holding his ERA steady at 3.42. It wasn't a dominant start, but it was the kind of workmanlike performance a mid-rotation arm needs to provide down the stretch.

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For a program not typically mentioned in the same breath as college baseball powerhouses, Baylor has quietly built a reliable pipeline into professional baseball. This week was a reminder that when Loftin and Muncy get hot at the same time, Bears fans have reason to keep multiple box scores open on Sunday afternoon.