Rangers deserving American League champs

The Texas Rangers are the epitome of a team and they deserve to represent the American League in the World Series.

As Tim McCarver pointed out last night, there is no question who the best baseball team in the American League is. He is absolutely right, as much as it pains me as a fan of the New York Yankees to admit. It’s not even about the beat down they put on the Detroit Tigers last night. The Rangers are going to the World Series for the second consecutive year, this time without stud ace Cliff Lee, because they are a well-rounded baseball team. The Rangers are showing all of baseball what can be accomplished when they go against conventional wisdom, like refusing to baby their starters at the direction of Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan.

The Rangers could use the emotional lift that comes from winning a World Series. The players, particularly Josh Hamilton, were devastated by the tragedy at the Ballpark at Arlington, when fan Shannon Stone died right in front of his young son trying to catch a ball thrown into the stands by Hamilton. But they responded to that incident with class, having the child throw the ceremonial first pitch at the start of the playoffs and launching a memorial fund for Stone’s family. The Rangers supported each other through that horrific tragedy, just as they have and continue to support Hamilton in his struggles with addiction to drugs and alcohol.

Now I await the winner of the National League Championship Series to decide who I will root for to win it all. I’ve been leaning toward the Milwaukee Brewers because they are the one team I don’t have any problems with (except for this T. Plush alter ego nonsense). Plus, I thought Ryan Braun handled the whole Jose Reyes controversy with a lot of class and respect for the game of baseball (unlike Reyes and the Mets). But if the Brewers don’t survive the St. Louis Cardinals, then I will be rooting hard for Texas.

Thanks to Red3biggs via Wikimedia Commons for the Hamilton photo.