Guerrero signing powers Rangers into postseason

Written by: Justin Alpert

The Texas Rangers averaged 77 wins a season from 2000-09 and never tasted postseason baseball. In spite of all the stars they fielded during the decade, the Rangers never won 90 games.

Perhaps their greatest nemesis was Vladimir Guerrero, the strong-armed Angels outfielder whose production versus Texas was beyond belief. Beginning in 2004 — his first season in Anaheim — Guerrero hit safely in 44 consecutive games against the Rangers. Through 2009, his contract year by which point he was primarily a designated hitter, the Dominican slugger had bullied his division rivals with a .396 average, 24 home runs and 68 RBI.

After 2009, however, Vladdy’s six-year run in Anaheim had come to an end. The Angels spent hefty sums to retain Bobby Abreu and sign Hideki Matsui. The latter, entering his age-36 season, would replace Guerrero at designated hitter.

While Guerrero’s days as an outfielder were virtually over, his bat still offered intrigue on the open market. And on Jan. 9, 2010, the Rangers signed their tormenter to a one-year, $5.5 million contract — quite the bargain for a player who’d already compiled a Hall of Fame résumé.

“The Texas Rangers’ search for a right-handed power bat is over,” wrote the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “Having Guerrero in the lineup also takes away a Rangers killer.”

Adding Guerrero stabilized what the Star-Telegram described as “the revolving door that was the DH spot for Texas last season.” The 2009 Rangers, who had filled the spot with a combination of Andruw Jones, Hank Blalock and Julio Borbón, had ranked 10th in the major leagues scoring 4.84 runs per game.

Their star-studded 2010 lineup, with Guerrero joining the likes of Josh Hamilton (1.044 OPS), Nelson Cruz (.950) and David Murphy (.806), scored the fifth-most runs in baseball. Guerrero hit .300 with an .841 OPS, smacking 29 home runs and plating a team-best 115 runs. Texas’ pitching staff also improved thanks to arms like Neftalí Feliz, the AL Rookie of the Year who saved 40 games.

The Rangers won 90 games and the division for the first time since 1999, but a franchise which had never won a postseason series had more to prove. Their roster lacked October experience but Guerrero boasted plenty, having hit .286 in 29 postseason games with the Angels.

An October run yielded an American League pennant. Guerrero tallied three RBI in the ALCS clincher over New York, reaching the World Series for the first time in his 15-year career.

Guerrero would enter free agency again and earn a slight pay raise, collecting $7.6 million from the Orioles to play one final season in 2011. In his career, Guerrero totaled 449 home runs and 1,496 RBI. He hit .318 with a .931 OPS, earning nine All-Star selections, eight Silver Slugger Awards and the 2004 AL MVP Award.

And in 2018, Guerrero was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Justin Alpert is a digital content specialist at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

Guerrero signing powers Rangers into postseason

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