It is time fans. Time to salute the Texas Rangers! Yes the Rangers have won a divisional race and square off against the Yankees coming up on Friday and for Rangers fans it has been along time coming.
Time to reminisce a little about the Rangers.
It was 1960 when the original Washington Senators packed up and left the capital city for Minnesota to become the Twins. Major League Baseball had already decided to expand in fear of threats of losing their antitrust status. The brought in two new teams. The new Washington Senators along with the west coast team known as the California Angels.
While the Twins kept the old Senators roster, statistics, and history, the new Senators and Angels began filling their rosters via the expansion draft and the story began.
The new Senators opened play in 1961 at what was Griffin Stadium and frankly were below average. Frank Howard won two homerun titles in the stretch of two years but other than his towering shots it was a team that averaged 90 losses a season.
The owner at the time was Elwood Richard Quesada who led a ten-man group. He knew nearly nothing about the game and it would come back to haunt the early years of the franchise.
One of the biggest blunders was the DC Stadium lease. Quesada's group signed just a ten-year lease on the park on led to the future move of the team.
During the time in Washington, the Senators were sold to two stock brokers, James Johnson and James Lemon, before being sold again to the hotel and trucking tycoon Bob Short who outbid none other than Bob Hope for the team in 1967.
Short's first action as owner was hiring slugger and Hall of Famer Ted Williams as manager and it looked early as the answer to the Senators' prayers.
They stayed in contention for most of the 1967 season and collected their first winning season, but while the team appeared to be turning around, the financials were suffering.
Short had borrowed most of the money he paid for the team and with creditors knocking at the door, the team went through a number of questionable trades to bring in much needed operating money for Short and as a result the winning streak was short lived as the Senators again plunged into the American League cellar.
The Baltimore Orioles did not help matters. The longtime franchise located just 45 short miles northeast of Washington was a machine. The birds won four American League pennants and two World Series from 1966 through 1971 and it crippled the Senators attendance.
The rough times even spurned an old joke about the team. "Washington: first in war, first in peace and still last in the American League."
In 1970 Short issued the city an ultimatum. Sell the team for $12 million in cash, up from the $9.5 million he paid for the team, or he would not renew his stadium lease.
Many bids were made, and all fell short of the asking price, but Short had an alternate plan. Move.
In 1970, the mayor of Arlington Texas was Tom Vandergriff and he had an idea. Add a Major League Baseball team to the Metroplex.
The area nearly missed a team years early as Charles O. Finley, the owner of the Kansas City Athletics, looked into moving the team to Dallas but was turned down by the American League owners and stayed in Kansas City to become the future Royals.
The good news was Arlington and Mayor Vandergriff had a hole card. Turnpike Stadium was a 10,000 seat arena built in the 1965 for the AA Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs of the Texas League but in foresight by builders was built to current Major League specifications.
Vandergriff offered up a multi-million dollar up-front payment to get the team to Arlington and on September 21st of 1971, a vote of 10-to-two was cast by AL owners and the team relocated to Arlington in for the 1972 season.
Washington fans went ballistic when the move was announced. A giant banner appear in the stadium announcing that "Short Stinks" and on September 30th of 1971, thousands of fans walked into RFK Stadium free as security guards walked off the job. The attendance for that game grew to around 25,000 fans despite only 14,460 tickets being sold. The Senators led the game seven-to-five with two outs in the ninth inning when fans stormed the field and raided the park for souvenirs. With no security guards left at the park, a fan literally stole first base and umpire in chief Jim Honochick forfeited the final game to the New York Yankees nine-to-nothing.
While Washington closed down, Turnpike Stadium was growing and preparing for the change.
The stadium named was changed to Arlington Stadium and Bob Short announced that team would be known as the Texas Rangers.
April 15th, 1972 the Rangers opened with a loss to the California Angels one-to-nothing but bounced back for a five-to-one win in game two and the season was on.
Things were changing rapidly for the franchise. Manager Ted Williams kept no secrets and announced his retirement after the first season after expressing a dislike and distaste for Arlington.
Two soon to famous names showed up in 1973. Whitey Herzog, soon to win titles with the St. Louis Cardinals, started the 1973 season, but was released and replaced by future Yankee manager Billy Martin.
The Rangers began to show color in 1974 when they went 84-and-76 and finished second behind 1974 World Series Champion the Oakland A's. Mike Hargrove was named Rookie of the Year and Billy Martin named manager of the year and the sun looked like it would shine well on the new team.
It did not shine long as the Rangers came back for 1975 and opened 44-and-51 prompting the firing of Billy Martin and the hiring of Frank Lucchesi.
The next four years would be dismal but the Rangers resurfaced in 1977 and surged to 1981 and looked like a playoff team early. Then the strike hit baseball and the Rangers fell yet again to the Oakland A's.
Five years would go by before the Rangers would post another winning season. The off stretch included one of the most unpopular trades in Ranger history when Golden Glove catcher Jim Sundberg was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for Ned Yost.
Attendance fell as wins fell and fans began to notice the heat and humidity that soaked that stadium for nearly the entire season. They were even known as the hottest ballpark in the league until the Florida Marlins were added in 1993. Temperatures frequently clear 100 degrees forcing night games even over the weekends. Little did anyone know, that it would be in creation of ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball as the Rangers had to get a special deal with the sports network to get their games on tv.
Into the late 80's and early 90's the team began to stabilize under the direction of longest serving manager in Rangers' history Bobby Valentine.
He would go on to manage 1,186 games for the Texas team as fans saw names like Ruben Sierra, Pete Incaviglia, Mitch Williams, Bobby Witt and more.
In 1986 the Rangers were again in the hunt and after finishing 87-and-75, they fell just five games behind the west winning California Angels.
It would be a 25 game increase on wins since finishing dead last in the AL West in 1985.
Then along came Ryan. The most storied player in franchise history, Nolan Ryan was signed in 1989 at the ripe old age of 41. It created a buzz in the ballpark and so big results as well. Ryan reached 5,000 stikeouts, 300 wins and pitched his sixth and seventh no hitter in 89 and behind the big bats of Juan Gonzalez, Rubin Sierra, Juilo Franco, Harold Baines and Rafael Palmerio the offense looked to be in playoff condition. The pitching staff added names like Charile Hough, Bobby Witt, Kevin Brown, and Kenny Rodgers. The result was less than predicted. The Rangers again finished second place and Bobby Valentine was let go in 1992.
During the era, the teams changed hands yet again. Oil tycoon Eddie Chiles sold the team in April of 1989 to a group headlined by future President of the United States George W. Bush. The sticker price, a mere $89 million and Bush would remain as the Managing General Partner until being elected as Governor of Texas in 1994.
During the Bush years, the stadium was rebuilt to the tune of $193 million and all with public funds. Arlington residents picked up the tag with a sales tax increase. Ground was broken for the new park in October of 1991 and became Rangers Ballpark in Arlington to the common fan. The park was built on 13 acres of ground seized by the Arlington Sports Facilities Development Authority and in the process brought the future demise of the Rangers. Landowners filed lawsuits of over $22 million and the Rangers failed to pay the tab.
In 1993, the Rangers again saw success. With Kevin Kennedy at the helm the Rangers battled for playoff spots in 1993 and 1994. Again the strike struck. With the Rangers in the hunt Commissioner Bud Selig cancelled the balance of the 94 season leaving the Rangers again at the door step of the playoffs.
1995 the sun begin to again shine. With a brand new ballpark that hosted the 95 All-Star game, Manager Johnny Oates put the Rangers in the race. The Rangers would win the west but the celebration was short lived as after 24 years of playoff drought, the were beaten in the opening round of the playoffs by the New York Yankees three games-to-one. Despite one of the most powerful lineups in Ranger history that featured bats such as Will Clark, Ivan Rodriguez, Dean Palmer, Rusty Greer and Mickey Tettleton the Rangers pitching collapsed and after winning the west in 1995, 1998 and and 1999, the Rangers never won a playoff series and after finishing second in the west in 2000, Oates resigned 28 games into the 2001 season.
While the Rangers showed title shots, the team again was sold. Venture capital billionaire Tom Hicks bought the team for $250 million and even agreed to pay of the lawsuits from 1991.
Prior to the 2001 season, the Rangers set baseball history that ended badly. A 10-year $252 million offer was made to then Seattle Mariners shortstop Alex Rodriguez bring the slugger to Texas. While Hicks was scorned by fans and the press for focusing so much money on one player, the Rangers again sank into the tank.
After four years of cellar dwelling the Rangers management had a falling out with A-Rod and he went to the Yankees for Alfonso Soriano and Joaquin Arias at the end of 2003 and again the Rangers fell off the baseball map.
The Rangers did make noise in 2004 but fell short and while the team dwindled away with players coming and going, the financing for the team was falling away as well.
2005 was a train crash for the Rangers. Relief pitchers Frank Francisco and Carlos Almanzar went under the knife for Tommy John surgery while starter Kenny Rodgers was sidelined for a 20-game suspension after attacking a camera man in Arlington stadium and the Rangers sank further.
2006 the Rangers closed at a third place finish of 80-and-82 and the future looked bleak.
2007 brought a new effort to Arlington. The Rangers announced that they had terminated an agree with Ameriquest Mortgage Company on naming rights of the ballpark and while the stadium came back to the Ballpark at Arlington, the organization coughed up $2.5 million in advertising rates from Ameriquest leading to further financial turmoil.
2007 did look like a good year for the Rangers offense. Sammy Sosa hit his 600th career homerun in Rangers uniform and Hank Blalock, and Mark Teixeria showed promising starts. It was short lived. Blalock exited the lineup with Thoracic Outlet syndrome and Teixeira was traded along with Ron Mahay to the Atlanta Braves. At the time, the trade looked bad but has proved better than expected. It included Jarrod Saltalamacchias, Elvis Andrus, and Neftali Feliz. Eric Gagne also was traded away bringing in David Murphy and Engel Beltre.
It was a hot and cold year. So cold, the Rangers set a record by being struck out 19 times by the Minnesota Twins on August 19th but on the 22nd scored the most runs in modern history as they plated 30 runs against the Baltimore Orioles.
2008 again showed offense promise. Four Rangers showed up for the All-Star game. Josh Hamilton, Ian Kinsler, Milton Bradley and Michael Young all graced the mid summer classic and made noise. Hamilton crushed a record 35 homeruns in the Homerun Derby while Michael Young drove in the game winning run for the second time in two years.
Despite the offensive talent the Rangers again closed under 500 at 79-and-83 and the beginning of 2009 looked bleak. All-Star Michael Young asked to be traded when the team told him he would move from shortstop to third to make room for rookie Elvis Andrus. After speaking with club president Nolan Ryan he withdrew the request and made the move. Milton Bradley did leave via free agency but with all the adversity the team soared.
The Rangers led the west in 2009 until they were overtaken by the Angels in August and September and with a record of 87-and-75 they fell short yet again and finished second place.
While the Rangers looked good on the field in 2009, the team was in financial ruin. Owner Tom Hicks became the focus of several reports showing financial issues in his holding group, Hicks Sports Group,the Dallas Stars, the Frisco Roughriders, and Mesquite Championship Rodeo.
The group was in default on a loan of $525 million and the announcement of the Rangers for sale rang through out the league.
Hicks borrowed money from the MLB to make payroll in July of 2009 and the team sunk further in debt.
On January 22nd of 2010, Hicks reached an agreement with Nolan Ryan and Pittsburgh sports lawyer Chuck Greenburg for $570 million and the deal appear to be done. The group, to become Rangers Baseball Express, would retain minor partners including Hicks, and businessmen Ray Davis and Bob Simpson and MLB owners looked to be in line to approve the deal.
Trouble struck when Monarch Alternative Capital, an HSG creditor, blocked the sale stating that the sale of the land surrounding the park would not cover the outstanding debt against it.
The sale was blocked and the Rangers were forced into Chapter 11 Bankruptcy on May 24th, 2010.
Back salaries had piled up to players such as Rodriguez, Kevin Millwood, and Michael Young and the team was in deep trouble.
The team went to auction with just two parties bidding. The group of Ryan and Greenberg's only opposition was headed by only one other approved buyer, Radical Baseball LLC and Houston businessman Jim Crane. The only other player at the time was owner of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban who had recently fell short of buying the Chicago Cubs.
Baseball owners fell squarely behind Greenburg as Managing General Partner and Nolan Ryan as Club President and the group sealed the deal in the early morning hours of August 5th, 2010 with unanimous approval by MLB owners on August 12th.
The Rangers, on the field, looked to hover until a 21-and-six run in June vaulted them to the top of the AL West. Player moves followed as ace starter Cliff Lee showed up in Arlington followed by Mark Lowe, Justin Smoak, Cristian Guzman and Bengie Molina and the Rangers clinched the American League West for the fourth time in history with a win over Oakland on September 25th, 2010.
The Rangers went on into the AL Divisional Playoffs and after defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in back-to-back games in Tampa looked like the sure thing.
Fans drew a collective breath after the Rangers dropped a Saturday and Sunday game in Arlington forcing a game five for Tampa on Tuesday.
With the game, Cliff Lee returned to the mound and again dazzled the Rays. Lee threw a one-run, six hitter gem on Tuesday night while hanging 11 K's on the board to seal a spot for the Rangers in the 2010 AL Championship Series against the New York Yankees.
The series opens on Friday in Arlington as 15-game winner CJ Wilson squares off against Yankees ace CC Sabathia after a 21 win season for the 30-year-old.
This story is to be continued......................................
