Texas Rangers

Inches from World Series Glory: Texas Rangers Books

The Texas Rangers history is quite barren. With two World Series appearances, the Rangers were agonizingly close to clinching in 2011, save for a lead footed right fielder. Sadly that is the end of the Rangers heroics. Since their move to the Dallas area in the early ’70s they have literally coasted through time in a limbo of mediocrity. Besides signing Alex Rodriguez and ushering in an era of mega deals, rejuvenating the career of Josh Hamilton, and Rougned Odor landing a clean right straight on Jose Bautista, the Rangers have just kind of been there. Being second fiddle in Texas can be tough, and it will be interesting to see if a new stadium (to replace the still newish Ballpark at Arlington) can wake them out of the doldrums. Jon Daniels’s tenure as GM has been just like the club’s history to date, meh; and it will take meteoric rises from Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara to make the club relevant in the coming years.

Sadly the most prominent books about the Rangers highlight their woeful years upon moving to Texas:

Seasons in Hell: With Billy Martin, Whitey Herzog and “The Worst Baseball Team in History”―The 1973–1975 Texas Rangers by Mike Shropshire

The Team That Couldn’t Hit: The 1972 Texas Rangers by Steve West and Gregory H. Wolf

Baseball Town: The Fall and Rise of the Texas Rangers by Kevin Sutton