5 Crucial Rangers Observations From AL Wild Card Series Sweep of Rays

2. Evan Carter is Ready for the Big Stage

You tend to worry about a rookie making his playoff debut — especially when he's one of the youngest players in the majors.

But just over a month after his 21st birthday, Evan Carter has earned a drink or two. He proved that he's not only got the skills to hang in the postseason, but that he possesses maturity beyond his years to be able to handle the pressure that comes with the increased stakes of playoff baseball.

The Game 2 home run alone may well have been enough to get everyone excited about Carter, but it's the overall body of work he put together over the series that highlights how ready he is.

One homer can be a bit of a fluke.

Racking up 3 hits (1 home run), 3 walks, 2 RBI and 2 runs is no fluke.

Getting that production out of the nine hole is obviously pretty nice, but it's crystal clear that Carter should not be buried at the end of the order. We've gotta move him up in the ALDS.

And that ties into the first negative observation I have to bring up.