Former Trenton and University of Florida standout Wyatt Langford joined elite company in Sunday night’s Major League Baseball Draft.

The Texas Rangers selected Langford fourth overall, making him the second-highest Gator ever drafted and the 18th first-round pick in Florida baseball history.

“I’m super excited to be playing in Texas,” Langford said. “They have a new stadium, one of the nicest in baseball, and they have all the nice facilities. I’m just super excited.”

Langford wasn’t the only one excited. Dozens of friends and family joined him at a spirited watch party Sunday night in Trenton.

“This means everything to me personally,” Langford said. “I know it means a lot to the people of Trenton. To see someone coming from a small town, and just growing up like everyone else did and going out and performing and pursuing their dreams and making them come true.”

Langford, 21, was a unanimous preseason and postseason second team All-American this season, leading the Gators with a .373 batting average, .784 slugging percentage, 83 runs and 28 doubles. He also hammered 21 homers with 57 RBI, 88 hits and a .498 on-base percentage.

Langford added three home runs in Omaha as he led Florida to a second-place finish in last month’s College World Series.

Some draft projections showed Langford going as high as No. 1, but the Pittsburgh Pirates chose LSU ace Paul Skenes as the top pick. The Washington Nationals then took LSU outfielder Dylan Crews, and the Detroit Tigers surprisingly selected Indiana high schooler Max Clark at No. 3. Draft experts said the 2023 class was exceptionally strong.

Langford burst onto the national scene as a sophomore with a huge 2022 season, when he tied UF’s single-season record with 26. He was named a D1 Baseball First Team All American and a Baseball American Second Team All-American choice.

He also played for the USA Baseball College National Team last summer.

Langford was the first player from Trenton to ever play baseball for the Gators. He helped lead the Tigers to a state baseball title as a freshman in 2017, while also winning a football state title as an eighth grader in 2015 as the Tigers went a perfect 14-0. He also was named to the FHSAA Class 1A All-State second team as a freshman linebacker in 2016.

But his future was always in baseball. As an eighth grader in 2016 he led the Tigers in batting average (.359) and on-base percentage (.481). Then as a freshman the following season he helped lead Trenton to the state title, batting .391 with a .496 OBP. He tied for the team lead with 34 runs scored and was second with eight doubles.

Langford also won the 2019 Perfect Game National Home Run Derby Champion as well as the No. 144 overall prospect from Perfect Game in 2020.

Langford was the first of two first-round picks for the Gators Sunday night. Pitcher Hurston Waldrep went No. 24 to the Atlanta Braves, making him the 19^th UF player taken in the first round.