Texas Rangers
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- Texas Rangers is also the name of a statewide law enforcement agency in the state of Texas in the United States. See Texas Rangers (law enforcement).
The Texas Rangers are a Major League Baseball team based in Arlington, Texas, a suburb in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. They are in the Western Division of the American League.
- Founded: 1961 (American League expansion)
- Formerly known as: the Washington Senators, 1961-1971. (Not to be confused with the team that was the Washington Senators prior to 1961, which became the Minnesota Twins.)
- Home ballpark: Ameriquest Field in Arlington (known as The Ballpark in Arlington 1994-2004)
- Uniform colors: Blue, White, and Scarlet red
- Logo design: A "T" superimposed on a baseball, set inside a circle with "TEXAS" on the top half and "RANGERS" on the bottom
- Wild Card titles won (0): none
- Division titles won (4): 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999
- American League pennants won (0): none
- World Series championships won (0): none
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Franchise history
When the original Washington Senators moved to Minnesota in 1960, Major League Baseball awarded a team to Washington, D.C., giving it the name of the old franchise. Meanwhile, the American League decided in 1962 to entertain the idea of bringing a professional baseball team to the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Kansas City A's owner Charley Finley seeks to move his team to Dallas, but the idea is rebuffed by the other AL team owners.
In 1964, the 10,000-seat Turnpike Stadium is constructed in Arlington, Texas for the minor-league baseball team, the Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs. The stadium, later renamed Arlington Stadium, would eventually serve as the new Texas Rangers' first home stadium.
Meanwhile, the Washington Senators received new ownership in 1968 in the form of Bob Short, who was Treasurer of the Democratic National Committee. He sought to move the team from Washington, D.C. and on September 20, 1971 he got his wish, receiving approval from AL owners to move the franchise to Arlington for the 1972 season. Washington fans were outraged and in the team's final game in RFK Stadium on September 30 against the New York Yankees, the Senators were forced to forfeit the game after angry fans stormed the field and damaged much of the stadium and playing surface.
During the off-season, additions were made to Turnpike Stadium to increase its seating capacity and it was officially renamed Arlington Stadium. Bob Short also announced that the franchise would be called the Texas Rangers. The team played its first game on April 15, 1972, a 1-0 loss at the California Angels. The next day, the Rangers defeated the Angels, 5-1 for the team's first victory. The first home game was also against the Angels on April 21. Ted Williams, manager with the Senators for three seasons prior to the Rangers' first season, retires from the team after the season. Whitey Herzog is named manager but is eventually replaced by Billy Martin during the 1973 season.
In 1974, the Rangers began to come into their own as a team. They finished the season 84-76 and in second place behind the eventual World Series-champion Oakland Athletics. Mike Hargrove is named AL Rookie of the Year, Billy Martin is named Manager of the Year and Ferguson Jenkins is named the Comeback Player of the Year. However, the following season, after a 44-51 start, Martin was fired as the Rangers manager and was replaced by Frank Lucchesi.
The Rangers continued to struggle for many years, going through cycles of mostly poor seasons with losing records highlighted by occasional flashes of talent. After the 1977 and 1978 seasons, the Rangers would not have another winning season until 1986 under Bobby Valentine when the team finished in second in the AL West. During this time, the team had a host of talent including Bert Blyleven, Buddy Bell, Fergie Jenkins, Mike Hargrove, Jim Sundberg, Toby Harrah and Rick Honeycutt.
Bobby Valentine, who would eventually become the Rangers' longest-serving manager at 1,186 games, became steward over an influx of talent in the team in the late 1980s and 1990s. The signing of 41-year-old Nolan Ryan prior to the 1989 season allowed Ryan to reach his 5,000th strikeout, 300th win and throw his sixth and seventh no-hitters with the Rangers. Coupled with powerful batters like Juan Gonzalez, Ruben Sierra, Julio Franco, Harold Baines and Rafael Palmeiro and a pitching staff that also included Charlie Hough, Bobby Witt, Kevin Brown and Kenny Rogers, fans expected much from the team, but the team never improved past being average and Valentine was let go during the 1992 season.
Meanwhile, the team, along with the City of Arlington, decided to construct a new stadium to replace the aging Arlington Stadium. Ground was broken on October 30, 1991 on what would become The Ballpark in Arlington (later renamed Ameriquest Field in Arlington).
In 1993, Kevin Kennedy took over managerial duties, helming the team for two seasons but he was let go in 1994 despite leading the AL West prior to the players' strike that ended the season prematurely.
The year 1995 saw the beginnings of the most promise for the Rangers. With a brand new ballpark that hosted its first All-Star Game, Johnny Oates was hired as the Rangers' skipper and promptly led them to an AL West division title in 1996. The first Rangers' playoff series in history, 24 years after the franchise came to Texas, saw the Rangers lose to the New York Yankees. But the team had finally made the playoffs - Oates was named AL Manager of the Year and Juan Gonzalez was named AL MVP. The team again featured a powerful lineup of hitters with Ivan Rodriguez, Will Clark, Mark McLemore, Dean Palmer, Rusty Greer, Juan Gonzalez and Mickey Tettleton but continued to struggle with pitching - a reputation that would dog the Rangers for years - despite having Darren Oliver, Gil Heredia and later John Wetteland on their roster.
Oates again led the team to AL West championships in 1998 and 1999, but en route to a second straight last place finish, Oates was let go mid-way through the 2001 season. Off the field, the team assumed new ownership led by Dallas investor Tom Hicks in 1998 and watched as Nolan Ryan became the first player ever elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame to have a Ranger cap placed on his plaque.
Prior to the 2001 season, Alex Rodriguez was signed by the Rangers in the most lucrative deal in baseball history: a 10-year, US $252 million contract. The move was considered controversial and was frequently maligned by the media who thought that owner Hicks was placing too much emphasis on one player instead of spreading out money among many players, especially for a team that lacked significant pitching talent. Seasoned manager Buck Showalter was also hired by the club prior to the 2003 season.
During the 2003 season, the Rangers continued to struggle and following a post-season fallout between Rodriguez and team management, Rodriguez was traded to the New York Yankees for Alfonso Soriano and a player to be named later. Prior to the 2004 season, little hope was held out for the Rangers to improve on their losing ways, but behind a young team that gelled together well, the Rangers battled with the A's and Angels for first place in the AL West for much of the season. Mark Teixeira, Alfonso Soriano, Michael Young and Hank Blalock became one of the better tandems of batting infielders in the League and three of the four were named to the 2004 All-Star Game. Soriano was named the All-Star MVP after going 2 for 3 with a three-run home run. However, in the end, the Rangers began to fade in September and eventually finished third in the division behind the Anaheim Angels who went on to get swept by the Boston Red Sox.
Players of note
Baseball Hall of Famers
- Ferguson Jenkins
- Gaylord Perry
- Nolan Ryan
- Ted Williams (former manager; inducted for his playing career with the Boston Red Sox)
Current stars
- Carlos Almanzar (RP)
- Mike Bacsik (SP)
- Rod Barajas (C)
- Joaquin Benoit (RP)
- Hank Blalock (3B)
- Doug Brocail (RP)
- Francisco Cordero (RP)
- David Dellucci (LF)
- Ryan Drese (SP)
- Scott Erickson (SP)
- Orel Hershiser (pitching coach)
- Chan Ho Park (SP)
- Rudy Jaramillo (hitting coach)
- Gary Matthews, Jr. (RF)
- Ron Mahay (RP)
- Laynce Nix (CF)
- Nick Regilio (SP)
- Kenny Rogers (SP)
- Brian Shouse (RP)
- Buck Showalter (manager)
- Alfonso Soriano (2B)
- Mark Teixeira (1B)
- Michael Young (SS)
Not to be forgotten
- Buddy Bell
- Bert Blyleven
- Dick Bosman
- Jeff Burroughs (AL MVP, 1974)
- Juan Gonzalez (AL MVP, 1996, 1998)
- Charlie Hough
- Frank Howard
- Johnny Oates (Manager 1995-2001)
- Al Oliver
- Rafael Palmeiro
- Larry Parrish
- Mickey Rivers
- Alex Rodriguez (AL MVP, 2003)
- Ivan Rodriguez (AL MVP, 1999)
- Dave Stewart
- Jim Sundberg
- Frank Tanana
Retired numbers
- 34 Nolan Ryan
- 42 Jackie Robinson (retired throughout baseball)
Minor league affiliates
- Oklahoma RedHawks (AAA, Pacific Coast League)
- Frisco RoughRiders (AA, Texas League)
- Bakersfield Blaze (High-A, California League)
- Clinton LumberKings (A, Midwest League)
- Spokane Indians (Short-Season A, Northwest League)
- Arizona Rangers (Rookie, Arizona League)
External link
ja:テキサス・レンジャーズ
