Latest news with #RonWashington
Fox Sports
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
2025 MLB All-Star Game: Building the Best Rangers Lineup
The Texas Rangers bring the high heat, especially when you're standing in it. It took decades for the Rangers, which was the last stop for the Nolan Ryan Express, to become a postseason contender. And like all things in Texas, the bats (and contracts) have always been bigger. After all, this team gave Alex Rodriguez the first ever sports contract that broke the $250 million barrier. Now in their third stadium in Arlington – this one smartly built with a retractable roof and some air-conditioning – plenty of Rangers have shined big and bright. Manager: Ron Washington How hard could winning a World Series be? Ron Washington could certainly tell you the answer. Maybe this will be Bruce Bochy's spot someday, but even though he's the lone Rangers' manager to pilot a World Series champion, Washington spent eight seasons in Texas, managing more games than any other while also leading in wins. It's not as if the Rangers lacked success here, either: Washington was at the helm for the only other two World Series appearances the franchise has had, and his teams posted at least 90 wins four years in a row. Starting pitcher: Nolan Ryan The Rangers have no shortage of hitters in their history, as their honorable mentions attest. On the pitching side, things have been different. Charlie Hough is the all-time leader in wins and wins above replacement while Kenny Rogers leads in games, but neither of them dominated in the way that Nolan Ryan did. Even at the end of his career, all after turning 41, Ryan managed to produce the lowest-ever hit rate among Rangers' starters — and two no-hitters — while striking out 939 batters in 840 innings. By ERA+, his Rangers' stint is the best he ever was for any team. Reliever/closer: John Wetteland Like with so many former Expos in the 90s, John Wetteland bounced around following his stint in Montreal. He starred with the Yankees for two years before Mariano Rivera grabbed hold of the closer's role, and then headed on down to Texas, where he logged a franchise-high 150 saves in four seasons, passing Jeff Rusell. Wetteland was dominant, too, not just the guy who happened to be at the back of the pen, making two All-Star teams while putting up a 2.95 ERA — and 167 ERA+ — during his run in hitter-friendly Arlington in a hitter-friendly era. Catcher: Ivan Rodriguez Ivan Rodriguez spent the first dozen years of his career with Texas. His second season was the start of 10 consecutive All-Star teams nominations and 10 consecutive Gold Gloves. He was also awarded six Silver Sluggers in a row, and won the 1999 AL MVP, too. He's the franchise leader in wins above replacement, owing not just to his bat but his spot as the top defender by WAR in Rangers' history. Rodriguez signed with the Marlins in 2003, helping them to a World Series, then joined the Tigers before adding to his All-Star and Gold Glove totals. 1B: Rafael Palmeiro Rafael Palmeiro was drafted in 1982 by the Mets, but reentered in 1985 and went 22nd overall to the Cubs. It was an omen for his career, in a way: Palmeiro bounced around quite a bit, albeit to just three teams. The Cubs for three years, then the Rangers from 1989 through 1993, before heading to the Orioles for five seasons, then back to Texas for another five before closing out with two more in Baltimore. Regardless of the where, he hit. Palmeiro was at his best with Texas, however: .290/.378/.519 with 321 of his 544 career homers. 2B: Ian Kinsler Ian Kinsler was drafted three times: twice by the Diamondbacks, in 2000 (29th round) and 2001 (26th round), then in the 17th by the Rangers in 2003. Despite perpetually being taken late, he arrived in the majors in 2006, and hit .286/.347/.454 as a rookie. He'd spend eight of his 14 years with Texas, batting .273/.349/.454 there while amassing 35 WAR, fifth-best among all Rangers. He added value in some less obvious ways, too: he's second in hit by pitches and steals, and deserved more credit for his glove than he got while with Texas. 3B: Adrian Beltre Despite arriving while turning 32 and in his 14th season, Beltre was never better than with the Rangers: his greatest campaign came in 2004 with the Dodgers, and his one-year stint with the Red Sox is his second-best, but those were one-offs. Of his 21 years in the bigs, his third- through seventh-best years were with Texas, with just one of them — his final in the majors — anywhere near the bottom. That Beltre hit .304/.357/.509 with 199 of his 477 homers and 1,277 of his 3,166 hits in Texas sealed his Hall of Fame case. SS: Michael Young For 10 years, Michael Young was a highly productive shortstop — that's not a short amount of time,, especially not for just one franchise. He hit .307/.353/.454 with 158 home runs, 84 steals and 1,965 of his 2,230 hits during that run, while making seven All-Star teams and winning a Gold Glove. The Rangers reached the World Series twice in that stretch, too, with Young driving in 19 runs and collecting 35 hits in 34 postseason games from 2010-2012. Young played more games than anyone in Rangers' history, and leads the franchise in hits, as well. OF: Ruben Sierra Ruben Sierra made multiple trips to Texas in his 20-year career. It's where things began, back in 1986 as a 20-year-old, and it's where he'd end up again in 2000, then again in 2003. Half of his career was played for the Rangers, and it's also the uniform he played his best in: Sierra amassed 1,281 of his 2,152 hits for Texas, batting .280/.323/.473 with 180 home runs and 90 steals. He's sixth in hits and homers in franchise history, fifth in RBIs (742) and extra-base hits (481) behind Ivan Rodriguez and ahead of Adrian Beltre. OF: Juan Gonzalez Juan Gonzalez led MLB in homers as a 22-year-old in 1992 with 43, then did it again in 1993 with 46. In '96, he'd hit a career-high 47, and before his career was done, he'd have crossed the 40-dinger mark on two more occasions. All told, he hit 434 homers: they were harder to find after he turned 30, and his career was effectively over at 34, as he had just one plate appearance in 2005 with Cleveland. With Texas alone, however, Gonzalez batted .293/.342/.565 with 373 homers, first in franchise history, and left while first in OPS. OF: Josh Hamilton Josh Hamilton's time with Texas was easily his best anywhere: he not only spent the most time there (six years), but showed off all of the potential he'd displayed as an amateur and prospect, as well. Hamilton led the majors in batting average, slugging and OPS in 2010, earning him AL MVP honors. Two years later, he'd hit a career-high 43 home runs, and made five consecutive All-Star squads. Across his six seasons with the Rangers, the outfielder hit .302/.359/.542 with 150 of his 200 home runs. He ranks third in Texas in both slugging and OPS. DH: Frank Howard Frank Howard did play in Texas, but only briefly: he was purchased by the Tigers late in 1972, the team's first year as the Rangers, ending his time with the franchise. Before then, the bespectacled Howard was a 6-foot-7 slugger who weighed somewhere between 275 and 295 pounds, plying his trade in Washington on the Senators: the intimidating Ohio native joined the organization in just their fifth year of existence when the Dodgers traded him, and thrived. In eight years, Howard went deep 246 times, third-most among Rangers, and posted a 153 OPS+ that ranks second all-time in franchise history. Honorable mention Charlie Hough (starting pitcher) Fergie Jenkins (starting pitcher) CJ Wilson (starting pitcher) Kenny Rogers (starting pitcher) Neftali Feliz (reliever/closer) Jeff Russell (reliever/closer) Joe Nathan (reliever/closer) Will Clark (1B) Buddy Bell (3B) Alex Rodriguez (SS) Elvis Andrus (SS) Toby Harrah (SS) Rusty Greer (OF) Frank Howard (OF) Nelson Cruz (OF) Gary Matthews (OF) Oddibe McDowell (OF) Mickey Rivers (OF) David Segui (DH) Mark Teixeira (DH) Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! recommended Item 1 of 3 Get more from the Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more in this topic
New York Times
09-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Blum: Angels' decision to use prospects as innings eaters could be detrimental
ANAHEIM, Calif. — The first time that Sam Aldegheri was called up to the big leagues this season on June 2, then-manager Ron Washington was asked if there was concern a spot-relief promotion could affect his long-term development as a starter. 'We never thought that far ahead,' Washington told reporters. 'Right now, we need length here.' Advertisement The Angels have made it abundantly clear this season that much-needed minor league pitching development is secondary to survival in individual big league games. In a season where the Angels have a 3.7 percent chance of making the playoffs, per FanGraphs, they are focusing on the present and not their future. The most egregious example of this shortsightedness came on Tuesday night, as Aldegheri was forced to wear it. It took three walks and two hits before anyone started warming. In the end, he threw 42 pitches in the fifth inning, giving up four runs. Then, he was asked to pitch a second inning, where he gave up another run. 'Listen, it's a tough spot, when you're in that position and you're here to give us length, and then it kind of gets off the rails a little bit — we have to protect him too,' said interim manager Ray Montgomery. But the Angels didn't protect him. Protecting him would have been keeping him in Double A, starting games every five days, and waiting until he was ready to stand on that big league mound as a starter. Protecting him, at the very least, would have been pulling him when it was clear he didn't have it that night. What the Angels did on Tuesday was force Aldegheri into a bad position — one that could stall or harm his growth. Angels GM Perry Minasian has talked a lot in the last two years about development and growth. Yet so many of his decisions seem rooted in the team's present-day needs at any given moment and not development at the affiliates. His is a front office that has yet to develop a good starting pitcher in the five years it's been at the helm, with many failures occurring along the way. Perhaps that will change someday, but decisions like this make it less likely. 'Of course,' Montgomery said when asked if he was concerned Aldegheri's outing would impact his development and confidence. 'Anytime you don't have success at the major-league level, regardless of your status, it affects your psyche.' Advertisement Minasian did not immediately respond to a text message after the 13-1 loss. Aldegheri is not the only pitching prospect who's been put in this position. Caden Dana and Victor Mederos have also been called up twice as spot long relievers. Mederos filled that role on Monday night, walking two batters in an inning before being optioned to Triple A in favor of Aldegheri. Dana's last appearance for the Angels came on May 24. In his first inning of work that night, he threw 41 pitches and gave up three runs. He was optioned after the game, pitched three more games in Triple A — all very poor — and has been out with what the team says is fatigue. That's to say nothing of Ryan Johnson — a pitching prospect who made his professional debut in the majors on Opening Day this season, only to be optioned to High A after it became evident he wasn't ready. It's because the Angels have rushed so many pitchers to the big leagues that they have compromised their roster flexibility. There are almost no other options on the 40-man roster, other than prospects who were called up before they were ready to stay up. Jake Eder is the only non-prospect in the minor leagues on the 40-man, but he was unavailable for a call-up after pitching the night prior. Bringing up anyone else would require someone being designated for assignment or placed on the 60-day injured list. While the big league team has performed better this season, on the backs of improved play by their one-time first-round picks, the minor league system appears to be in a shambles. The Angels' Triple-A, Double-A and Low-A affiliates are all below .500 in last place — with Double-A Rocket City recently snapping a 16-game losing streak. Calling up prospects before they're ready risks further detriment in an already ugly situation. What happened on Tuesday night wasn't anomalous. Advertisement There's no doubt that owner Arte Moreno — who has always had a hand in baseball operations — has been singularly obsessed with the big league product. There's a reason you'll never hear any of his hired executives use the word 'rebuild.' There's a reason there are no aggressive trade deadline sell-offs, regardless of the team's playoff positioning. That, however, shouldn't lead to this. The front office needs to make better decisions. Embarrassing a pitcher you've invested in, just for the sake of eating a couple innings, should not be an option. Decisions about young pitchers should solely be about what's in their best interest. Because what's in the player's best interest is what will benefit the organization long-term. The people in charge just haven't realized that yet. (Photo of Victor Mederos pitching: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Covington mayor addresses loss of federal jobs, revenue to the city
Amid a budget crunch after hundreds of federal jobs were eliminated in Covington, causing a massive loss in payroll tax, we sat down with Mayor Ron Washington to see where his priorities lie for the city's spending.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
As Angels come to town, Braves send their support to former coach Ron Washington
The Atlanta Braves will host a three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels at Truist Park this week, but one notable figure will be missing in the visiting dugout. The Angels will be without their manager Ron Washington. The beloved former Braves third base coach will miss the rest of the 2025 season for medical reasons. Advertisement [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Braves manager Brian Snitker told Channel 2's Alison Mastrangelo that he has spoken to Washington a number of times in the days since his announcement. 'I've talk to him live, I've text with him, I've told him, you know what, whatever he does I'm gonna be praying for him and hoping for the best because he's a really good friend and I know how this affects him and we're all concerned that you know, and all we want is for him to get, take the right steps and get back healthy and doing what he loves," Snitker said. Washington spent seven seasons on the Braves coaching staff and played an integral role during the team's 2021 World Series championship run. The players and coaches love him from his infield warm-up drills to his pregame notes. The Braves and Angels will play Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night at 7:15 p.m. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
CBS News
29-06-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Angels manager Ron Washington to miss rest of season with unspecified medical issue
Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington will miss the rest of the season because of an unspecified medical issue, the team said Friday. Washington, the oldest manager in the major leagues at 73, has been sidelined for the past week. He experienced shortness of breath and appeared fatigued toward the end of a four-game series at the New York Yankees that ended on June 19. Washington flew back to Southern California, underwent a series of tests and was placed on medical leave. Angels bench coach Ray Montgomery, who has filled in for Washington for the past week, was named interim manager. Infield coach Ryan Goins was promoted to bench coach. Washington is 664-611 in 10 seasons as a major league manager, eight with Texas and two with Los Angeles. He led the Rangers to back-to-back World Series appearances in 2010 and 2011 before stepping down abruptly in September 2014. Washington returned to the sport as a coach with the Athletics and the Atlanta Braves, who won the World Series in 2021, before landing a second managerial job in Orange County. The Angels were 40-40 entering Friday night's game against the visiting Washington Nationals, winning three straight under Montgomery and seven of 10 overall. Los Angeles has played better than most expected from a team with major league-worst streaks of nine straight losing seasons and 10 straight non-playoff seasons. The 55-year-old Montgomery is getting his first job as a major league manager. The native of New York's Westchester County is a former Houston Astros outfielder who served as the scouting director for Arizona and Milwaukee before joining the Angels as their director of player personnel for the 2020 season. Montgomery became Los Angeles' bench coach in 2021 after general manager Perry Minasian took over the front office, and he stayed with the Angels while Joe Maddon, Phil Nevin and Washington managed the club. Goins played eight seasons in the major leagues before Washington hired him as the Angels' infield coach before the 2024 season.
