Rising from Ashes: The Texas Rangers' Revival

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The Texas Rangers were absolutely abysmal last year, garnering the worst record in the AL, and in no way looking like a postseason team. Rangers manager had two options, and neither looked like a winning situation. He could blow up the team and try and rebuild it over the course of a couple years. But that wasn’t good enough for Daniels, he trusted his work years and years before, and he knew he had something with this bunch. So he stuck it out, made some minor moves, and boy has it paid off. Many Rangers analysts, including myself, thought that once Nolan Ryan left, this organization was going to be in a world of hurt. He left in 2013 and the Rangers followed that up with an awfully forgettable season. So the pressure was on for Jon Daniels, …show more content…

In 2013 he had an out of this world .423 OBP for the Cleveland Indians, a mark that is simply unheard of in this day in age. But he struggled in 2014 for the Rangers, not at all living up to the expectations that his big contract brought. Rangers fans were incredibly upset, and felt that they were spending their money in the wrong places. Daniels faith never waivered in the Korean, and that faith is being repaid in 2015. Choo is getting on base at an impressive rate, tallying an on base percentage of .374. But those numbers don’t tell half the story; the real story is his numbers after the All-Star break, when this team has been scorching hot. Choo has a batting average of .343 and an OBP of .457! That is what Daniels saw, that is what he knew Choo could be in this Rangers lineup, and because of that the Rangers are 4th in the MLB in runs scored this …show more content…

Daniels wants to win, and he knew that Hamilton could help him do that. So Daniels went out and got him, for virtually nothing, and even has the Angels paying for most of his contract. So you can’t tell me Daniels didn’t have a little smirk when he saw his much questioned acquisition making all sorts of plays to lock up a postseason berth. Hamilton smashed a double, made a sensational catch to keep the Angels from a big inning, and drove in an insurance run to let the Rangers breathe easy. Hamilton has been a productive player for the Rangers all season, and Daniels was the only GM who saw that. Daniels then accessed the situation at the trade deadline, and realized something that no one else in the MLB did. He had the upmost faith in his ball club, and realized that his club was just an ace away from making a serious run. So he went out and got the big fish at the deadline, a veteran left hander who has some serious post-season experience. Cole Hamels was a Ranger, in a move many believed was to set them up for a run in 2016. But here the Rangers are, in the playoffs in 2015, and Cole Hamels is a big reason

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