The 2010 Texas Rangers season was the 50th of the Texas Rangers franchise overall, their 39th in Arlington as the Rangers, and the 17th season at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The team, managed by Ron Washington, won their first American League West title since 1999 and finally won a playoff series, taking longer than any other North American professional sports franchise to accomplish the feat and making them the last of the 30 MLB clubs to advance past the division series. The club subsequently reached the World Series for the first time in only their fourth playoff appearance. Washington would become only the second manager in franchise history to lead the Rangers to the post season and the first to ever win a post season series. They would win the American League pennant by defeating the defending World Series champions, the New York Yankees, in six games in the ALCS. In the World Series, they lost to the San Francisco Giants in five games.
The 2010 season showed the results of a 5-year plan implemented by general manager Jon Daniels in 2007 with the Mark Teixeira trade. The 2007 trade deadline and the amateur draft a month prior would all be key pieces of the successful Rangers season. Dominant rookie of the year closer Neftalí Feliz, defensive All-Star Elvis Andrus, and platoon outfielder David Murphy were all acquired at the trade deadline, while starting pitcher Tommy Hunter, centerfielder Julio Borbon and first baseman Mitch Moreland were each selected in the June 2007 draft. And trades which resulted in Cliff Lee, Bengie Molina, and Jorge Cantú were each completed with a member of the Rangers 2007 draft class being sent in return.
Mirroring the 2009 revelation of Josh Hamilton getting drunk at a bar in Arizona prior to spring training, the Rangers' team members learned that manager Ron Washington failed an MLB drug test prior to the All-Star game in 2009. Instead of dividing the locker room or casting doubt with the players, the teammates stood behind their manager. "I've got Wash's back. He's my manager", third baseman Michael Young told teammates during a meeting where Washington informed the players of his failed drug test.
The pitching staff, looking to be a strength for one of the first times in recent history, would depend on the #3 and 4 starters, C. J. Wilson and Colby Lewis, due to a lack of expected production from Scott Feldman and free agent Rich Harden. Wilson, Lewis, and trade deadline ace Cliff Lee would each finish in the top 20 among American League pitchers in ERA, innings pitched, strikeouts, and WHIP.
A complicated team sale that would end up in bankruptcy court and possibly cost the team president Nolan Ryan and GM Jon Daniels would be an outside threat the team would have to ignore until it was resolved in August.
Thanks to utility infielder Esteban Germán the "claw and antlers" would become an active part of the Rangers in-game celebration. Following a play involving strength a Rangers' player would look to the bench and raise his right arm with fingers outstretched to make a claw. After a play involving speed a player would place his thumbs on each side of his head and outstretch his fingers to make antlers. The fans would embrace the "claws and antlers" and a "claw and antlers" T-shirt, designed by Rangers equipment manager Richard "Hoggy" Price, which would be the top selling MLB T-shirt sold in 2010, selling over 360,000, even though the design was not introduced until after the All-Star game. On the final day of the season fans would participate in a pre-game "claw and antlers" parade.
Offseason Rudy Jaramillo turned down a 1-year extension and took the hitting coach position with the Chicago Cubs.
The Rangers signed Clint Hurdle for the position of hitting coach.
Iván Rodríguez signed a 2-year deal with the Washington Nationals. The Rangers received a compensation draft pick for Rodriguez who was a type B free agent. The other type B free agent on the Rangers, Marlon Byrd, signed a 3-year deal with the Chicago Cubs, re-joining his hitting instructor Jaramillo.
Omar Vizquel signed with the Chicago White Sox, as well as Andruw Jones. Neither free agent met type A or B status so Texas received no compensation for their departures.
At the winter meetings Jon Daniels made headline moves when Texas traded Kevin Millwood and $3 million to the Baltimore Orioles for pitcher Chris Ray and a PTBNL. The Orioles later selected Ben Snyder in the rule 5 draft from the San Francisco Giants and sent Snyder to the Rangers to complete the trade.
Following the Millwood trade, the Rangers signed Rich Harden to a 1-year deal. The contract includes a mutual 2nd year option. Michael Young told the media his new teammate "... has the best stuff in the league. I didn't say some of the best stuff. I mean the best stuff I've seen." Harden was not offered arbitration by his former club, the Cubs, so Texas did not lose a draft pick to sign the type A free agent.
One trade that was not finalized would have sent Mike Lowell and approximately $9 million in cash to the Rangers and the Red Sox would have received AAA catcher Max Ramírez. The trade was cancelled after a physical discovered an injury to Lowell's thumb that would require surgery.
Vladimir Guerrero signed a 1-year contract with Texas with a mutual 2nd year option. Guerrero would be the DH and was planned to hit 4th behind Josh Hamilton.
The Rangers signed Khalil Greene to a 1-year contract. Greene would have been the utility infielder meeting a need for the team by being able to play 3B and SS, able to back up Michael Young and Elvis Andrus. On January 14 the Rangers and Colby Lewis agreed to a two-year deal. The former Rangers draft pick spent the previous 2 years pitching in Japan where he led the league in strikeouts both seasons and issued only 46 walks in a total of 354 innings pitched. On January 21 it was reported the Rangers designated OF Greg Golson for assignment. Newberg Report Update: Greene signing official, Golson DFA'd January 21, 2010 Golson was later traded to the New York Yankees for a minor league infielder. On January 25 Joe Inglett was designated for assignment to make room for Lewis on the 40-man roster. Inglett was claimed off waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers.
All-Star 2nd baseman Ian Kinsler had praise for the offseason moves made by the front office. He acknowledged hating to lose Millwood, but recognized how the moves made 2010 the year the Rangers could win the division.
Two final additions to the pitching depth came from an unexpected source. Ranger pitchers Omar Beltré and Alexi Ogando had been banned from receiving US visas after being involved in a marriage-visa scam 5 years ago. Since that time the Rangers, the players, and their agents have been requesting new visas for the players and they were finally approved by February. Both players were listed on the restricted list on the team's 40-man roster, meaning the Rangers retained rights to their MLB services if they ever returned to the United States, but they did not count towards total players allowed on the roster. Both players had to be removed from the restricted list at the completion of spring training.
Financial problems Rangers owner Tom Hicks' company, Hicks Sports Group (HSG), defaulted on loan payments in 2008 or 2009. Although Hicks had maintained the Rangers were not being affected by the financial transactions, the Rangers had been hampered by the financial troubles of HSG. Most notable was the Rangers inability to sign their 2009 1st round draft pick Matt Purke. After the deadline passed, it was reported the Rangers offered Purke a $4.0 million bonus, two million less than what Purke was reported to be demanding prior to the draft. However, a conflicting report by Randy Galloway said MLB rejected the Rangers contract offer and told Purke that the Rangers would only be allowed to offer a $2.4 million bonus. Hicks later told The Dallas Morning News that the Rangers did offer Purke a $4.0 million offer, and MLB had no influence over the dollar amounts. Ryan would later contradict this claim saying MLB and the commissioner's office had direct dealings with the Rangers in almost all aspects of their financial transactions including approval of bonus money and trade approvals. Ryan and Daniels both said the offer to Purke was "well above slot", but the exact details of the offer were not described, and there may have been other factors as to why Purke did not sign.
By September 2009, speculation had begun to build about MLB forcing the Rangers to shut down front rotation man Kevin Millwood before he surpassed his inning threshold that would vest his 2010 option for $12 million. Hicks did admit that the Rangers had received some advances from MLB, but that the money borrowed would be repaid out of future earnings due the team at the end of the year. In October 2009, MLB executive vice president Rob Manfred sent a letter to then potential buyers Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan informing them the Rangers had been in violation of the collective-bargaining agreement and owed around $40 million. Another major problem for the Rangers following the 2009 season was the refund for prepaid post season tickets. Some fans did not receive refunds from the Rangers until late December, even after the team failed to make the post season.
During the winter meetings, Daniels told the press that the financial problems the Rangers were under was much like operating under a salary cap. These problems were why the Rangers had to trade Millwood before being able to make the Harden signing official. An increase was made to the team budget after the new year when the ownership sale was preliminarily finalized between Hicks and Greenberg/Ryan. Ryan spoke about the financial constraints the team was under after the initial sale agreement was announced.
Hicks told reporters that from April 2007 to March 2009 he added an additional $85 million to HSG. According to Hicks, HSG took on too much debt because the teams were spending more than the budget allowed. However, according to Forbes, the revenue and operating net income of both the Rangers and the Dallas Stars went up from 2006 to 2008. Between the 2006 and 2007 seasons, the debt level for the Texas Rangers increased by approximately $100 million, the same time period when Hicks purchased Liverpool Football Club. From 2007 to 2009, Forbes reported the Rangers and the Stars were the third most leveraged franchises in their respective sports.
Ownership sale Hicks had been looking for someone to sell partial ownership of the club to since just prior to when the default on the loan was reported. By the 2009 season, Hicks was possibly forced to find a buyer for the team. Three known bids were put in for the ownership of the Rangers. Former agent Dennis Gilbert, Houston businessman Jim Crane, and a partnership of Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan placed bids believed to be around $500 million for the purchase of the team. Hicks offered exclusive negotiation rights to the Greenburg-Ryan group on December 15 with a purchase expected to be complete prior to or following the start of the 2010 season. During the bidding process, it was discovered that Ryan, as president of the club, was not under contract, but working only on a handshake deal with Hicks, and that he would step down from the front office if another bidder were to win. After talks with Gilbert, Ryan later said he would not step down unless asked by the new owner to do so.