Righty swinging catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez was an outstanding catcher for the Texas Rangers.  He had a rocket launcher attached to his right shoulder and he was a pretty solid hitter.  Rodriguez’ best season for the Rangers came in 1999 when he was the MVP of the American League.  Rodriguez played in 144 games for the Rangers in 1999 and he was 199 for 600 (.332 avg, .914 OPS) with 116 runs scored, 35 homers, 113 RBIs and 25 stolen bases.  He played in 1,507 games in his 13 years with the Rangers and he was 1,747 of 5,754 (.304 avg, .828 OPS) with 866 runs scored, 217 homers, 842 RBIs and 81 stolen bases.  Rodriguez is still #4 in games played (1,507) in Rangers’ history.  He is also #2 in hits (1,747), #2 in doubles (352), tied for 4th in triples (28), #7 in batting average (.307), #9 in OPS (.828), #4 in runs scored (866), #4 in homers (217) and #4 in RBIs (842) in Rangers’ history.  In his 13 years with the Rangers, Rodriguez was an All-Star 10 times, he won 10 Gold Gloves and he won 6 Silver Slugger Awards.

Righty swinging 2B Julio Franco was a hitting machine for the Rangers.  He played in 632 games in his five years with the Rangers and he was 725 of 2,358 (.307 avg, .822 OPS) with 388 runs scored, 55 homers, 331 RBIs and 98 stolen bases.  Franco’s best season with the Rangers came back in 1991, when he won the American League batting title with a .341 batting average.  Franco played in 146 games for the Rangers in 1991 and he was 201 of 589 (.341 avg, .882 OPS) with 108 runs scored, 15 homers, 78 RBIs and 36 stolen bases.  Franco was a 3-time American League All-Star in his five years with the Rangers and he also won 3 Silver Slugger Awards.  Franco is still has the #3 career batting average (.307) in Rangers’ history.

Righty swinging outfielder Billy Sample was a solid outfielder for the Rangers. He played in 675 games in his seven years with the Rangers and he was 587 of 2,177 (.270 avg, .710 OPS) with 330 runs scored, 39 homers, 201 RBIs and 92 stolen bases. That being said, Sample was only a full-time starter in 1983 for the Rangers and he played pretty well that year. Sample played in 147 games for the Rangers in 1983 and he was 152 of 554 (.274 avg, .732 OPS) with 80 runs scored, 12 homers, 57 RBIs and 44 stolen bases. Sample is still tied for 10th in Rangers/Senators’ history with Chuck Hinton in steals with 92 of them.

Righty reliever/starter Steve Comer hit the ground running as a rookie in 1978 for the Rangers. He pitched in 30 games (11 starts) for the Rangers in 1978 and he was 11-5 with a 2.30 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. Comer followed up a solid rookie season by pitching in 36 games (all starts) for the Rangers in 1979 and he was 17-12 with a 3.68 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Comer was never the same after 1979, as his career started to fade. Comer pitched in 151 games (62 starts) in his five years with the Rangers and he was 39-29 with 13 saves, a 3.80 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. Comer is #4 in win/loss percentage (57.4%) in Rangers’ history.

Lefty swinging OF/1B/DH Al Oliver was only with the Rangers for four seasons, but he left his mark. Oliver played in 534 games in his four years with the Rangers and he was 639 of 2,032 (.319 avg, .824 OPS) with 283 runs scored, 49 homers, 337 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. Oliver’s best season with the Rangers came in 1980. Oliver played in 163 games in 1980 for the Rangers and he was 209 of 656 (.319 avg, .838 OPS) with 96 runs scored, 19 homers, 117 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Oliver made it to 2 All Star teams and he won 2 Silver Slugger Awards in his four years with the Rangers. He is also the Rangers’ all-time leader in batting average with a .319 mark.

Switch-hitting outfieler Ruben Sierra was one of the best outfielders in Rangers’ history. Sierra’s best season with the Rangers came in 1989. Sierra played in 162 games for the Rangers in 1989 and he was 194 for 634 (.306 avg, .889 OPS) with 101 runs scored, 35 doubles, 14 triples (led the majors), 29 homers, 119 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. Sierra finished 2nd in the MVP Voting in the A.L. in 1989 while making the All-Star team and winning a Silver Slugger Award. Sierra played in 1,190 games in his 10 years with the Rangers and he was 1,281 of 4,580 (.280 avg, .796 OPS) with 645 runs scored, 180 homers, 742 RBIs and 90 stolen bases. Sierra is #7 in Rangers’ history in games played with 1,190. He is also #5 in hits (1,281), #5 in runs scored (645), #6 in doubles (257), #2 in triples (44), #5 in homers (180) and #5 in RBIs (742) in Rangers’ history. Sierra made is to 3 All-Star teams as a member of the Rangers and he also won 1 Silver Slugger Award.

Righty closer John Wetteland came to the Rangers as a free agent in 1997 as the Yankees had to clear way for their new closer, Mariano Rivera. Wetteland pitched the last four years of his major league career with the Rangers and he worked in 248 games (0 starts) in which he was 20-12 with 150 saves, a 2.95 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. He made it to 2 All-Star teams with the Rangers. His best work with the team came back in 1998. Wetteland pitched in 63 games (0 starts) for the Rangers in 1998 and he was 3-1 with 42 saves, a 2.03 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP. Wetteland retired on top as he was only 33 years old when he called it a career.

Nolan Ryan finished his Hall of Fame career with the Texas Rangers before stepping up eventually to being the team president. He was 42 years old when he got to Arlington, Texas in 1989 and he started off his Rangers’ career with a bang. He pitched in 32 games (all starts) for the Rangers in 1989 and he was 16-10 with a 3.20 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. He only gave up 162 hits in 239 1/3 innings in 1989 while he whiffed 301 batters which led the majors. He made it onto the All-Star team in 1989 and he also finished 5th in the voting for the Cy Young Award. Ryan pitched in 129 games (all starts) in his five years with the Rangers and he was 51-39 with a 3.43 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. Ryan is the Rangers’ all-time leader in WHIP (1.13). He is also #10 in games started (129), #4 in ERA (3.43), #4 in strikeouts (939) and he’s tied for 10th in shutouts (6) with three other guys. Ryan was elected in Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1999.

59-year old starting pitcher Bert Blyleven has been elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame. He pitched in 2 years for the Texas Rangers (1976 + 1977) working in 54 games (all starts) in which he was 23-23 with a 2.74 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Blyleven didn’t get much run support because he should have won a lot more games for the Rangers than he did, based on how well he pitched for them. Blyleven pitched in 692 games (685 starts) in his 22 years in the majors and he was 287-250 with a 3.31 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP.

Lefty swinging outfielder Rusty Greer was one of the better hitters in team history for the Texas Rangers despite his career getting cut short due to injuries. From 1996-1999, Greer played in 598 games for the Rangers in which he was 723 of 2,297 (.315 avg) with 422 runs scored, 80 homers, 396 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. Greer played in 1,027 games in nine years with the Rangers and he was 1,166 of 3,829 (.305 avg, .865 OPS) with 643 runs scored, 119 homers, 614 RBIs and 31 stolen bases. Greer is #10 all-time in games played (1,027) in Rangers’ history. He is also #8 in hits (1,166), #5 in batting average (.305), #7 in OPS (.865), #6 in runs scored (643), #7 in RBIs (614), #5 in doubles (258) and he is tied with Rafael Palmeiro for 7th in triples with 25. Greer was one of the most underrated hitters in baseball when he was with the Rangers.