Champions

History in the Making

In 1961, the Washington Senators established its team in D.C., but after seasons of poor play and low revenue being brought in as a result, the organization moved its operations to Arlington, TX and rebranded as the team we know today as the Texas Rangers. In the 50 years since its establishment in the Lone Star State, the Texas Rangers made nine playoff appearances, but it only takes one championship to change narrative for not only the franchise but for the loyal Texas Rangers fans who have been wanting a national title for a very long time.

1996

In its first debut, the Texas Rangers faced the New York Yankees. A new team manager for the Yankees by the name of Joe Torre would lead this team of young talent. Even though the Rangers won the first game, the Yankees came out swinging and won the next three games in a row with rookie Derek Jeter showing the world why he would soon be a hall of famer.

1998-99

The Rangers return with a much better team to face the Yankees two more times in back to back postseason appearances. Although the Rangers were led by star players Juan Gonzalez and Ivan Rodriguez, the Torre and Yankees dynasty were considered to be one of the greatest teams to be formed in the history of Major League Baseball. Both of these series would end in a three-game sweep, ending the Rangers championship hopes for a third time by the hands of the New York Yankees and the Rangers would not see another postseason appearance until a decade later.

2010-11

The Rangers make their return to the postseason and find more success than ever before. Snapping their nine-game losing streak in the playoffs, the franchise makes its first-ever World Series appearance and faces the San Francisco Giants. The Rangers had a great regular season and were seen as the favorites against Giants, but with Giants Pitcher Tim Lincecum outperforming Rangers Pitcher Cliff Lee, the Rangers couldn’t keep up and lost the series to the Giants in five games. The Rangers would make back-to-back World Series appearances, the second time facing the St. Louis Cardinals. This series ended up going down to the wire. In Game Six, the Rangers were one strike away from winning their first title in history; however, the Giants made a las second comeback to force a Game Seven where the Rangers franchise fell short of winning the national championship.

2015-16

The Texas Rangers faced their rivals the Toronto Blue Jays in a five-game series where the Blue Jays came out on top after Bautista’s three-run home run iced the game after critical mistakes by the Rangers led to the game-winner for the Blue Jays. Even though their first face-off was a somewhat close game, the two teams faced again a year later with a broom waiting for Toronto after defeating Texas in a three-game sweep.

Curses and Misfortune

On November 3, the Rangers fans cheer "Let's Go Rangers" as they inch closer to a win.

The Texas Rangers and the postseason were as close to meeting each other as Sisyphus was to meeting the top of a steep hill. It’s been a constant battle. The Rangers fan base have witnessed heartbreak at every turn.

Daxton Stewart, a professor from TCU and a homegrown Rangers fan, had little hope that the 2023 postseason would be any different from prior seasons. Stewart recounts about the World Series run back in 2011:

"I made the mistake of thinking [winning the World Series] was actually going to happen.”

He added this to push a point about the slow and cautious approach he took in showing excitement for the possibility of winning a championship this year. He says that due to past postseason performances and the lack of success that he’s “sort of jaded” as a Rangers fan and implying that what can go wrong will go wrong for the franchise. In 2011, the Rangers had done something that hadn’t been done before or since and that was to blow five separate leads in a game-clinching World Series match.

“It’s been hard to believe that the baseball gods just don’t like us,” Stewart added. With the championship run of this year, Stewart has kept his love and support for the team in check as to not emotionally hurt him from “sports sadness” as he puts it, but continued to show enthusiasm and belief.

Amado Farias, a Rangers fan of over 40 years who now lives in Midlothian, TX, puts the team’s misfortune in the hands of coaching and callmaking. In his eyes, the coaching staff over the course of the team’s playoff runs were being “outcoached” by the opposing team.

Joe Torre, the manager for the New York Yankees from 1996 to 2007, is a Hall of Fame member with the record to prove it. With 12 seasons under the Yankees franchise, Torre had a W-L record over 60 percent (1,173-767) and won a national title in four of the five first seasons he had on the Yankees with the 1998 team being the best team in MLB history.

“Funny enough it was Bruce Bochy who coached that Giants team and he just knows how to work the game and has lots of experience tactically,” Farias added. In 2010, The Rangers faced a lock-first ballot Hall of Fame manager Bochy who was at the verge of retirement and had two World Series titles when he managed the San Diego Padres with the experience and resume that could’ve outplayed the Rangers manager Ron Washington.

Joe Torre/AP Newsroom

Bruce Bochy/AP Newsroom

More Recognition = More Respect

Kam Thakoor, a 35-year Rangers fan born and raised in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, has a strong feeling about what the national title win will bring to the city: attention.

“If we’re not the Cowboys, we’re not gonna get the exposure,” Thakoor stated. He goes on to explain how it’s the name recognition of being a champion that drives more money flow and investment into a franchise, noting the other sports teams of the DFW metroplex: the Dallas Cowboys and the Dallas Mavericks.

The Dallas Cowboys have been known as “America’s Team” since the 1970s for having ever-lasting success in the regular season for over 20 years and making the playoffs consistently and winning two Super Bowls during that stretch, along with three more in the 90s. Today, the team’s success and marketing has led to a valuation worth approximately $9 billion.

The Dallas Mavericks had a long stretch of playoff appearances that experienced similar tribulations as the Texas Rangers did during their championship run hopes: showed promise first time out, lost in improbable fashion and then came out on top after many attempts.

Pearce shares a similar thought to the kind of attention that the championship will bring but from a more local point of view. He points out how in recent years attendance for games at Globe Life hadn’t been as popular, not being able to sell out tickets. As the 2023 postseason played out, the stadium started filling up the seats and Pearce states why he thinks that is:

“It’s hard for people to get on to Twitter and defend your team when you’re losing 100 games… it’s been fun to see the team getting more attention even from bigger media sites and platforms.”

He’s referring to the attention gained from the Rangers’ success throughout the season and how that success has translated to more TV time on major networks such as MLB Network and FOX

The attention the team is getting goes far beyond what is broadcasted as well. According to Stewart, the postseason served as a topic of conversation to reach out to old friends because he’s the only Rangers fan they knew, and they reached from across the country: St. Louis, Milwaukee, Minnesota and Chicago. The messages reaching out to Stewart were cheers and hopes for the Texas Rangers to take the first World Series title home to the city of Arlington and see the “worst bullpen in baseball” get the first championship in its history.

New Generation of Rangers

With a championship in the record books now, the Rangers fan base has never been more excited.

“This is the biggest sports event in DFW history,” Takhoor added, “Long time fans will cry… we’ve waited our whole lives for this.”

Similarly, Pearce shares that the increase in fan base can stretch much further than the city limits of Arlington.

He believes that even though the 2023 World Series would be one of the lowest watched World Series programs in history, it’s a “big deal” for the baseball community because it shows that teams around league are actually developing and getting better rather than “tanking” for better draft picks; therefore, true baseball fans would appreciate the Rangers’ development of players.

The Texas Rangers fan base have been holding their breath for a World Series title since their first time winning a division title in 1996.

Their first trophy after a history of uphill battles and unfortunate losses brought the Ranger fans a joy and excitement that will be enshrined by the record books and will hold expectations for future championship runs.

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