DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - Tomorrow night begins Saturday Night Rangers Classics on 105.3 The Fan. For the foreseeable future on Saturday nights starting at 6pm after we conclude with Rangers Hot Stove, 105.3 The Fan and stations a part of the Rangers Radio Network will re-air a significant game in franchise history. Tomorrow night we are replaying the game in which Adrian Beltre collected his 3000th hit, one of the most special moments in franchise history. Here are some of my recollections of Beltre, that season leading up to his accomplishment, that game, and more.
*Let's not forget the beginning of this story. The off-season following the 2010 World Series was all about re-signing Cliff Lee. When that didn't happen, the Rangers signed Adrian Beltre. The baseball world was floored that the Rangers would give him a 5-year, $80 million contract and the Rangers were laughed at in baseball circles. It was seen as a big overpay for a guy whose performance in Seattle was inconsistent but was coming off a big year in contract year for Boston. We all know that the Rangers had the last laugh on this one…
*The difference between career milestones and single-game achievements like a no-hitter or a four-home run game is that at a certain point with the milestones, you know it is going to happen barring major injury, it's just a matter of when. The build up over time can be really exciting and I remember that it was one of the saving graces in what was a really bad 2017 season for the Rangers. The countdown and the positive attention from this was really cool.
*Prior to the season we were all trying to figure out about when he'd get to 3000 and whether he'd be able to do it at home etc. Beltre played in the WBC prior to that year and ended up messing up his calves so his season didn't start until late May. That backed everything up and his pursuit ended up coinciding with Pudge's Hall of Fame induction. Lo and behold, Pudge's speech and Adrian's 3000th hit happened on the same day: July 30th.
*I'm not sure if Adrian Beltre needed to reach 3,000 hits with the Rangers to tie him more with the Rangers then the Dodgers but one of the narratives discussed was that getting to 3,000 hits with the Rangers would further ensure that he'd go into the Hall of Fame with a Texas 'T' so that was cool.
*On that note, Adrian's 3,000th hit is arguably the greatest career accomplishment moment in franchise history. Sammy Sosa hit his 600th homer with the Rangers but he wasn't really a Ranger. Raffy's 500th was big bt has since been tarnished. Beltre was with the Rangers long enough to where we feel like he is oursand ended up achieving more with the Rangers than the Dodgers.
*The 2017 was a rough one. It became clear early on that they weren't going anywhere and that's tough for fans (and broadcasters) with such a long season. Adrian's pursuit helped shine a positive light on a tough season and also gave people something to look forward to as the season progressed. The countdown and all the discussions that developed as he approached were really cool and offered some great history lessons.
*Really cool move by Eric Nadel in advance of Adrian's accomplishment. Eric is the lead guy of our broadcast and Matt offered him the opportunity to call all of Adrian's at-bats once he got to 2,999 hits. It's definitely not required that Matt make that offer but knowing Matt, that wasn't a surprise. Eric refused, however, and said that if it happened during one of Matt's innings, he'd get the call. Beltre' hit did come during Matt's time as the play-by-play guy and I think he nailed the call. There's a lot of pressure as a broadcaster in these situations because you know the call will be played over and over and over again and you want to put your best foot forward and I think Matt did exactly that.
*I had an awesome conversation with Manny Machado prior to the first game of the series which was two days prior to Adrian's 3000th. With Manny being a third baseman and someone who I knew looked up to Beltre, I asked him if he wanted Beltre to get his 3,000th hit while the Orioles were in town. He was very honest when he said that not only did he want to see it but that he would be "very disappointed if it didn't happen" while they were there. Funnily enough, not only was Machado, one of the best defensive third baseman in the bigs, there to see it, but Beltre's hit was a hard shot down the third base line. A year later I saw Manny in Baltimore and I asked him about it and he said it is the only time a ball got past him and he wasn't too disappointed by it.
*That particular day the Rangers were on top of the baseball world. Not only did Beltre reach 3000, but Pudge was officially inducted into the Hall of Fame.
*One thing that is so impressive about Beltre is how good he was in his 30s and beyond what is considered the "prime years" of someone's career. Beltre retired as one of the most productive players in big league history in his 30s.
*On that note, Beltre didn't limp to 3,000. Not that there is anything wrong with this, but some guys stick around to reach a major milestone in spite of the fact that they are a shell of themselves and, depending on their role, maybe even a big detriment to their team. That season, Beltre hit .312 with a .915 OPS. Those are All-Star numbers. It was his age-38 season. Wow!!!
*Adrian was able to do that because of his work ethic. I don't mean to make an example of Felix Hernandez but Felix is a guy who is said to not have the best work ethic and that's probably one reason why his career started going downhill as a 31-year old. Adrian Beltre, a tireless worker, was able to extend his career. There's always luck involved, no doubt, but none of that is even possible without Adrian's work ethic.
*The ballpark wasn't sold out—it was a Sunday in July—but those who were there were LOUD when Adrian got his 3,000th. They were also buzzing with anticipation leading up to and during his plate appearances. It was a special and unique atmosphere to witness.
*The on-field celebration was really cool. Having Adrian's kids as big of a part of it as they were was special. These guys commit so much time to their craft and often times it comes at the expense of their kids, especially as these players get later in the career and their kids get older. Sharing a moment like that produced all the feels.
*I don't know if it necessarily happened on that day, but that day certainly was a reminder of how special it was and still is that Adrian Beltre was and is a Texas Ranger.
