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Rangers DH Joc Pederson’s immediate NSFW reaction to slump-breaking home run
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- Rangers DH Joc Pederson’s immediate NSFW reaction to slump-breaking home run
Rangers DH Joc Pederson's immediate NSFW reaction to slump-breaking home run appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
To say that the Texas Rangers ' acquisition of Joc Pederson has been an all-out disaster would be a major understatement. Coming off a 2025 season in which he recorded a ghastly OPS of .613 and an fWAR tally of -0.8, Pederson has not done much throughout the start of the 2026 campaign to dispel the notion that he's entering washed-up territory.
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Heading into the Rangers' 2-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, Pederson has begun the season with no hits in 17 plate appearances, reaching base on just two occasions via walk. He then proceeded to pop out and strike out in his first two at-bats on Sunday, putting him at 0-16 to start 2026.
But then in the seventh inning, Pederson figured it out. Facing Chase Burns for the third time on the night, the Rangers DH uncorked a huge swing on a four-seamer in the middle of the plate — homering for his first hit of 2026. The 33-year-old was so pumped after going yard, reacting in NSFW fashion to push back against his detractors.
"Keep talkin' s**t! Keep talkin' s**t!" Pederson yelled, via Jomboy Media on X (formerly Twitter).
Until Pederson strings together a few games of consistent production, it will be hard to stop his detractors from clowning him, especially when he's in the middle of this extended slump dating back to last season.
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Can Joc Pederson turn it around for the Rangers?
Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
It's hard to fathom how Pederson lost it after signing with the Rangers last season. In 2024, he put up an OPS of .908 for the Arizona Diamondbacks to go along with 23 home runs and 64 runs batted in. Pederson is not a perfect hitter, but he's almost always been very productive when given chances.
Signed to a contract with an average annual value of $18.5 million, it's likely that this year is Pederson's last with the Rangers, as his contract for 2027 is a mutual option. The least Pederson could do is turn it around to make it seem as though Texas didn't totally fumble by signing him.
