Franchise Timeline
2010
Jan. 11, 2010: Rangers sign veteran outfielder Vladimir Guerrero to a one-year contract with a mutual option for 2011.
June 16, 2010: Rangers third baseman Michael Young hits a bases-loaded, two-out single against the Marlins, marking his 1,748th hit as a Ranger and making him the franchise's new All-Time Hits Leader.
July 1, 2010: Rangers acquire catcher Bengie Molina in a trade with the San Francisco Giants.
July 9, 2010: Rangers acquire left-handed pitcher Cliff Lee and right-handed reliever Mark Lowe from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for first baseman Justin Smoak and Minor Leaguers Blake Beavan, Josh Lueke and Matt Lawson.
July 16, 2010: Bengie Molina becomes the fifth player in Rangers history to hit for the cycle in an 8-4 win over the Red Sox. Molina has a single in the second inning, a double in the fourth, a grand slam in the fifth and completes the cycle with a triple in the eighth. He becomes just the eighth player in baseball history to hit a grand slam and hit for the cycle in the same game.
August 12, 2010: Major League Baseball unanimously approves the sale of the Texas Rangers from Thomas O. Hicks to the group led by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan. The new Texas ownership group is called Rangers Baseball Express.
September 23, 2010: Michael Young becomes the fourth player in Rangers history to play 1,500 games with the club. Previous Rangers include Rafael Palmeiro (1,573), Jim Sundberg (1,512) and Ivan Rodriguez (1,507).
September 25, 2010: The Rangers defeat the Oakland A's, 4-3, to clinch the AL West Division title and secure a playoff berth for the first time since 1999.
October 12, 2010: On the shoulders of an 11-strikeout complete game from Cliff Lee, the Rangers defeat the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-1, in Game 5 of the ALDS to earn a berth in the 2010 American League Championship Series. It is the first ALCS appearance in Texas Rangers franchise history.
October 22, 2010: The Rangers defeat the New York Yankees, 6-1, in Game 6 of the ALCS to win the series and advance to the 2010 World Series. Josh Hamilton is named ALCS MVP.
November 1, 2010: The Rangers fall to the Giants, 3-1, at Rangers Ballpark in Game 5 of the World Series. The loss gives the San Francisco Giants their fourth win and the 2010 World Series title.
November 4, 2010: The Rangers sign manager Ron Washington to a two-year extension through 2012.
November 11, 2010: Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton and designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero are named winners of the 2010 American League Silver Slugger Award at their respective positions. It is the second Silver Slugger Award for Hamilton, and the eighth for Guerrero.
November 15, 2010: Closer Neftali Feliz is named 2010 American League Rookie of the Year.
November 23, 2010: Outfielder Josh Hamilton is named 2010 American League Most Valuable Player. Hamilton receives 22 out of a possible 28 first-place votes to earn his first MVP Award.
2011
The Rangers won their second straight division title and set a club record with 96 wins. They defeated the Rays in four games in the American League Division Series and the Tigers in the AL Championship Series to advance to the World Series for the second straight year. Nelson Cruz set a Major League record with six home runs in the ALCS. The Rangers lost to the Cardinals in seven games in the World Series.
Michael Young set career highs with a .338 batting average and 106 RBI while playing multiple positions. He was named to the All-Star team for the seventh time in eight years and was joined by third baseman Adrian Beltre, outfielder Josh Hamilton and pitchers C.J. Wilson and Alexi Ogando. Beltre won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Award for his play at third base.
Wilson and Derek Holland both won 16 games. The Rangers had five starters with at least 13 wins, the first A.L. team to do so since the Orioles in 1977. The staff had a 3.79 ERA that was the lowest for the Rangers since 1983. The Rangers set a single-season home attendance record.
Jan. 3, 2011: Rangers officially announce that they have signed RHP Brandon Webb and LHP Arthur Rhodes to one-year deals.
Jan. 5, 2011: Rangers agree to terms with third baseman Adrian Beltre on a six-year contract. In 2010, the two-time Gold Glove winner was named to the All-Star team for the first time in his career and received a Silver Slugger Award.
Jan. 25, 2011: Catcher Mike Napoli is acquired from the Blue Jays for pitcher Frank Francisco.
March 11, 2011: Club president Nolan Ryan adds the title of CEO.
April 1, 2011: The Rangers open the season with a 9-5 victory over the Red Sox in front of 50,146 at the Ballpark in Arlington, the start of a six-game winning streak.
June 8, 2011: Scott Coolbaugh is named hitting coach, replacing Thad Bosley.
June 21, 2011: Mitch Moreland hits a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th to give the Rangers a 5-4 victory over the Astros.
July 19, 2011: Alexi Ogando pitches the Rangers to a 7-0 victory over the Angels to extend their winning streak to 12 games, the second longest in club history.
July 30, 2011: Pitcher Koji Uehara is acquired from the Orioles for first baseman Chris Davis and pitcher Tommy Hunter.
July 31, 2011: Pitcher Mike Adams is acquired from the Padres for two Minor Leagues pitchers.
Sept. 23, 2011: With a victory over the Mariners, the Rangers clinch the A.L. West title for the second straight year.
Sept. 28, 2011: With a 3-1 victory over the Angels on Sept. 28, the Rangers set a club record with 96 wins on the season.
Oct. 4, 2011: Rangers clinch ALDS with a 4-3 victory over the Rays, winning the series in four games. It's the second straight year they beat the Rays in the first round of the playoffs.
Oct. 10, 2011: Rangers beat the Tigers, 7-3, in 11 innings to take a 2-0 lead in the ALCS. Nelson Cruz hit a walk-off grand slam, the first ever in Major League postseason history.
Oct. 15, 2011: Rangers beat the Tigers, 15-5, in Game 6 of the ALCS to advance to the World Series for the second straight year. Cruz was named the MVP of the Series after hitting a record six home runs and 13 RBI.
Oct. 20, 2011: The Rangers rally for two runs in the top of the ninth for a 2-1 victory over the Cardinals to even the World Series at one game each.
Oct. 27, 2011: The Rangers lose Game 6 of the World Series, 10-9, in 11 innings. The Rangers had a two-run lead in the ninth and the 10th but couldn't hold it.
Oct. 28, 2011: The Rangers lose Game 7, 6-2.
Nov. 22, 2011: Reliever Joe Nathan agrees to a two-year deal with the Rangers to be their closer.
Dec. 19, 2011: The Hokkaido Ham Fighters announce that the Rangers have won posting rights for pitcher Yu Darvish.
2012
The Rangers led the American League West for almost the entire season but then lost three straight to the Athletics at the end of the year. They ended up in second place in the division and lost to the Orioles, 5-1, in the Wildcard Playoff Game. The Rangers finished with 93 wins, the third straight year they finished with at least 90.
The Rangers sent eight players to the All-Star Game: pitchers Matt Harrison, Yu Darvish and Joe Nathan, catcher Mike Napoli, infielders Adrian Beltre, Elvis Adrus and Ian Kinsler and outfielder Josh Hamilton.
Darvish, signed as a free agent out of Japan, was 16-9 with a 3.90 ERA in 29 starts. He struck out 221 in 191 innings and held opponents to a .221 batting average. He was only the second rookie pitcher in American League history with at least 16 wins and 210 strikeouts in their first season, joining Herb Score of the 1955 Indians. He finished third in the A.L. Rookie of the Year voting behind Angels outfielder Mike Trout and Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes.
The Rangers set a club record by drawing 3,460,280 fans, the first time ever for them to draw over three million in a season.
Hamilton tied a Major League record by hitting four home runs in a game against the Orioles on May 8, 2012. He also had a double, giving him 18 total bases. He was the American League Player of the Month for April and May.
2013
The Rangers finished 91-72, winning 90-plus games for the fourth straight year. They finished in second place in the American League West and lost to the Rays, 5-2, in a tie-breaker game for one of the two Wild Card playoff spots. It was the sixth straight year the Rangers finished either first or second in their division.
The Rangers had a 3 1/2 game lead in the division on Aug. 24 before losing 18 of their next 27 games. They won seven straight games to finish the regular season and force the tie breaker game.
Yu Darvish went 13-9 with a 2.83 ERA and came within one out of throwing a perfect game in the second game of the season against the Astros. He led the Majors with 277 strikeouts.
The Rangers pitching staff finished with a 3.62 ERA, their lowest since 1993. They scored 730 runs, their lowest in a full season since 1992.
Ron Washington passed Bobby Valentine for the most wins in club history with 611 over seven full seasons.
Adrian Beltre led the Rangers with a .315 batting average, 30 home runs and 92 RBI.
Joe Nathan was selected to the All-Star Game and recorded his first save in the AL's 3-0 victory. Nathan finished the season with 43 saves and a 1.39 ERA in a bullpen that was one of the Rangers biggest strength.
Alex Rios hit for the cycle on Sept. 23, the seventh Rangers player to accomplish the feat.
2014
Rangers Ballpark in Arlington was renamed Globe Life Park in Arlington.
After four straight 90-plus win seasons, the Rangers plummeted to 67-95, finishing in last place in the American League West. The Rangers were clobbered by numerous injuries as the club set Major League records by using 64 players, including 40 pitchers.
The Rangers used the disabled list a Major League-leading 26 times. Among those who went on the disabled list were pitchers Yu Darvish, Derek Holland, Matt Harrison, Martin Perez and Alexi Ogando, catcher Geovany Soto, infielders Adrian Beltre, Prince Fielder, Jurickson Profar and Mitch Moreland, and outfielders Shin-Soo Choo and Jim Adduci.
Manager Ron Washington resigned with 22 games to go for personal reasons. He was replaced by interim manager Tim Bogar, who led the club to a 14-8 record. The Rangers won 13 of their last 16 games. After the season, the Rangers hired Pirates bench coach Jeff Banister as their manager.
Beltre was selected to the All-Star Game for the fourth time in his career. He finished the season hitting .324 while also leading the club with 19 home runs and 77 RBI.
Pitcher Colby Lewis returned to the rotation after missing 18 months because of flexor tendon and hip replacement surgery. He went 10-14 with a 5.18 ERA in 29 starts. He was 4-8 with a 3.86 ERA in 13 starts after the All-Star break.
The Rangers traded reliever Joakim Soria to the Tigers for pitchers Corey Knebel and Jake Robertson on July 23. That allowed Neftali Feliz to go back into the closer's role for the first time since 2011. He finished with 13 saves and a 1.99 ERA.
2015
The Rangers went 88-74 under first-year manager Jeff Banister and won the sixth division title in club history. Banister was hired after 29 years in the Pirates organization as a player, coach, instructor, coordinator and Minor League manager. The Rangers were 42-46 at the All-Star break but went 46-28 in the second half - led by the resurgence of Adrian Beltre and Shin-Soo Choo - and clinched the division on the last day of the season.
The Rangers lost to the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Division Series. They won the first two games in Toronto, lost two in Arlington and then lost Game 5 on the road despite taking a 3-2 lead into the bottom of the seventh.
Prince Fielder swept the post-season Comeback Player of the Year Awards after hitting .305 with 23 home runs and 98 RBI. He had been limited to 42 games the prior season because of a neck injury that required season-ending surgery.
The Rangers made a number of notable in-season acquisitions, acquiring outfielder Josh Hamilton from the Angels and Mike Napoli from the Red Sox. They also acquired relievers Jake Diekman and Sam Dyson to reinforce their bullpen and catchers Bobby Wilson and Chris Gimenez. The biggest acquisition was getting All-Star left-hander Cole Hamels from the Phillies.
Several young players emerged as key members of the team. Right-hander Shawn Tolleson flourished in the closer's role, rookie reliever Keone Kela was superb in a setup role and Rule 5 draft pick Delino DeShields took over as the center fielder and leadoff hitter. Veteran starters Colby Lewis and Yovani Gallardo combined to win 30 games, helping make up for the loss of Yu Darvish and Derek Holland to injuries.
2016
The Rangers won the American League West for the second straight year and seventh time in club history. It was their eighth trip to the postseason including the Wild Card game in 2012.
Texas was 60-31 against teams with a .500 record or better, they were 36-11 in one-run games and they had 49 come-from-behind victories. They set a club record with 53 wins at home.
The Rangers' success came with the notable acquisitions of outfielder Ian Desmond in Spring Training, catcher Jonathan Lucroy, reliever Jeremy Jeffress and outfielder Carlos Beltran at the Trade Deadline and outfielder Carlos Gomez in August.
Rookie reliever Matt Bush and outfielder Nomar Mazara both had excellent first seasons. Mazara was the American League Rookie of the Month in both April and May.
Adrian Beltre was the Rangers Player of the Year after hitting .300 with 32 home runs and 104 RBI, but Prince Fielder had to announce his retirement in August because of a second spinal fusion operation in his neck.
Cole Hamels was the Rangers Pitcher of the Year, going 15-5 with a 3.32 ERA and Yu Darvish returned to the rotation after missing all of 2015 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Sam Dyson took over as closer and led the team with 38 saves.
Manager Jeff Banister was second in the Manager of the Year voting.
2017
The Rangers finished 78-84 and finished tied with the Mariners for third place in the American League West. It was only the Rangers second losing season in the last nine years.
The highlight of the season for the Rangers came on July 30. On that day, former catcher Ivan Rodriguez was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Later that day, back in Arlington, Adrian Beltre had a double off of Orioles pitcher Wade Miley for the 3000th hit of his career.
But injuries also limited Beltre to 94 games, the fewest in his career since his rookie season. Injuries dominated the Rangers season, most notably Cole Hamels missing two months with a strained right oblique muscle.
Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus was the club's Player of the Year, hitting .297 with a career high 100 runs scored, 20 home runs and 88 RBI. Joey Gallo finished the season with 40 home runs and Nomar Mazara led the Rangers with 101 RBI. Martin Perez led the Rangers with 13 wins and Alex Claudio had 11 saves.
The Rangers also broke ground on a new $1.1 billion ballpark. Globe Life Field is scheduled to open in 2020.
2018
The Rangers struggled to a 67-95 season, finishing in last place in the American League West. Manager Jeff Banister was dismissed after the season and Dodgers third base coach Chris Woodward was hired as his replacement. Third baseman Adrian Beltre announced his retirement after 21 seasons. The Rangers traded five pitchers during the season - Cole Hamels, Keone Kela, Jake Diekman, Jesse Chavez and Cory Gearrin - and netted ten players in return, including nine Minor League prospects. While the pitching staff struggled, Mike Minor won 12 games while being used as a starter for the first time in four years. Jose Leclerc saved 12 games and had a 1.56 ERA while emerging as their closer. Joey Gallo reached the 40-home run level for the second straight season and Shin-Soo Choo was named an All-Star for the first time in his career. Bartolo Colon earned his 244th career victory to pass Juan Marichal for most wins by a pitcher from the Dominican Republic. His 246th career victory made him the all-time leader from Latin America.
2019
The Rangers finished 78-84 and in third place in the American League West during manager Chris Woodward¡¯s first season. It was also the final season after 26 years for Globe Life Park, which opened in 1994 as the Ballpark in Arlington. The Rangers were 50-42 after winning their first two games of the second half before being brought down by injuries and a lack of pitching depth. Outfielders Joey Gallo and Hunter Pence and pitcher Mike Minor were selected to the American League All-Star team. Gallo hit a seventh-inning home run in the All-Star Game that proved to the margin of victory in the American League¡¯s 4-3 win. Lance Lynn closed out the old ballpark by pitching the Rangers to a 6-1 win over the Yankees in the final game of the season. It was his 16th win of the season.