Texas Rangers team 1965-2017, position players

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For a team that has never won a world series, the Rangers have had a remarkable amount of talent. This is another case where many great players won't make the lineup. With that said here is the all Texas Rangers team:

Catcher: Pudge Rodriguez. A line drive hitter with power and a tremendous throwing arm, Pudge is an easy choice as the Rangers catcher. Pudge spent 13 seasons with the Rangers and put together a batting average of .304 and an OPS of .828. I was surprised to find OBP was .341. His defensive metrics are comparable with any other catcher I've seen. In the 1996-97 seasons his defensive WAR was 6.1. From 1999-2001 Pudge had a power surge that raised some eyebrows. During those seasons his home run totals were 35-27-25. His total WAR for his 13 seasons in Texas was 49.9. Jim Sundberg rates a distant second. Jim spent 12 seasons with the Rangers and excelled with the glove. His defensive WAR was 20.5 and he carried decent, though slightly subpar bat.

First base: Rafael Palmeiro Before Rafael was pitching Viagra and making questionable statements before Congress, he was a hitting machine. A lot of that hitting took place in Texas. In 10 seasons with the Rangers, Palmeiro hit 321 home runs to go with 321 doubles. He put together an OPS of .897 to go with a WAR of 44.4. Mark Texiera had similar stats over a five year span. In this case, Palmeiro gets the nod because of longevity. Mike Hargrove spent five seasons with the Rangers and put together an OBP of .399 while unnecessarily delaying game with his rituals. Pete O'Brein also had some nice seasons with the Rangers.

Second base: Ian Kinsler Ian swung a good bat and had a few seasons of good defensive metrics. Overall, in eight seasons with the Rangers, Kinsler hung up an OPS of .804. Included in that total is a couple of seasons of 30+ home runs. In those eight seasons he put up a defensive WAR of 8.0. His total WAR for his time with the Rangers was 35.1. Julio Franco also spent some time at second and was also a prolific offensive player. In 1991, Franco hit .341 to lead the AL while playing second for the Rangers.

Shortstop: Alex Rodriguez Arod has his detractors, but he put together some amazing stats. While he spent only three seasons with the Rangers, he was at his peak during that time. In his three seasons playing short for the he led the AL in home runs each year. His home run total for those three seasons was 157. His total WAR for those three seasons was an incredible 25.5. Michael Young was a staple for the Rangers in various positions for many years, including at shortstop. Though it doesn't seem possible, Elvis Andrus has been the Rangers shortstop for nine seasons and has compiled a WAR 28.8. The Rangers have had some nice production out of the shortstop slot, but Arod is hands down the best Rangers shortstop in the last 50+ years.

Third base: Adrian Beltre Adrian has played a great third base while warding off attempts by teammates to touch his head. Beltre has had four seasons of 30+ home runs in his seven years with the Rangers while playing gold glove caliber defense. He also has three seasons of 100+ RBIs. A WAR of 41.6 attests to the greatest Beltre has displayed while in Texas. Beltre isn't the only outstanding third baseman the Rangers have had. Buddy Bell was rock solid for eight seasons with the Rangers. His great glove and solid bat were good for a WAR 36.1. In most of his seasons in Texas, Buddy had a WAR of 6.0 or more. That would be good enough on most teams, just not the Rangers.

Left field: Juan Gonzalez Throughout the 90's Juan was a huge stick in the Rangers lineup. Four times he had 40+ homers and on one other occasion he had 39. The dude could hit. Gonzalez was a huge RBI guy, with seven seasons of 100+ runs driven in. Gonzalez was a huge offensive force. His glove wasn't particularly good, but he outhit his glove. I'm making a note here of slugging Frank Howard who played left field for the Washington Senators before they moved to Texas. He was a 40+ home run guy in his peak who terrorized pitchers, both opponents and his own. Frank's glove truly was problematic. Al Oliver also gets a shoutout here. Al was a great hitter who played the outfield and first base for the Rangers. He doesn't make this team, but definitely deserves a notation.

Center field: Josh Hamilton Hamilton's personal problems are well chronicled, but for a short period of time, he was one of the best players in baseball. Josh maxed out in 2010 with an MVP season. He led the AL in hitting with an average of .359 that season, to go with an OPS of 1.044. That stat also led the AL. In 2008 Hamilton led the AL in RBIs with 130. He also slugged 43 homers in 2012. You get the point. When Hamilton had his act together, he was one of the best in baseball.

Right field: Reuben Sierra In Sierra's rookie season in 1986, he hit 16 homers and had an OBP of .779. Not bad, but a lot more impressive when you consider Sierra was 20 years old. In 1987 Reuben clobbered 30 home runs. In 1989 Sierra led the AL with 119 RBIs and 14 triples. He was an exciting player to watch. Nelson Cruz also got some consideration based on his power. Unfortunately his fielding deficiencies were on full display in the 2011 World Series. Put that on Ron Washington.

Designated hitter: Michael Young Young needs to be on this team somewhere and DH works. Young spent 13 seasons in Texas and in six of those seasons he had 200+ hits. While much of Young's value revolved around batting average, he was a consistent producer for a long period of time. He may not be a conventional pick as DH, but that doesn't mean he's not a good one.

So, there are my Texas Ranger picks. How do they line up with yours?

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