Rangers Name Chris Young General Manager
Today, Chris Young will be introduced as the Rangers General Manager, but who is he? Young, a Dallas native, will work under Jon Daniels, the Rangers president of baseball operations. He was one of the leading candidates to become the New York Mets general manager, but he withdrew due to family considerations, according to Ken Rosenthal.
This is out-of-nowhere news, as there was no indication Daniels would step aside as the Rangers’ GM this offseason. It’s a role Daniels has held since 2005. While Daniels is now 43, he became the youngest GM in league history when he got the job at the age of 28. Young will now have to address the Rangers’ offseason needs.
Young joins a rebuilding franchise that finished 22-38 in 2020, the worst record in the American League. It was Texas’ fourth consecutive losing season, and it is committed to a youth movement. While both the opening of Globe Life Field and the hiring of Young fuel excitement, the Rangers still find themselves in the middle of a full rebuild.
The Rangers finished with the worst offense in the AL, averaging 3.73 runs scored per game. It wasn’t much better on the mound, either. Texas ranked 23rd in team ERA (5.02) and 21st in WHIP (1.384).
Daniels had been handling both roles even though many Major League teams have employed both a president of baseball operations and a general manager working directly under them.
“When [Rangers owner] Ray Davis and I sat down after the season to evaluate our baseball operation, we agreed that adding the separate role of general manager would make us a stronger organization in a number of ways,” Daniels said in a statement. “The responsibilities of running a Major League Baseball operation have increased significantly, and many successful MLB organizations now have a similar structure in place.
“I welcome the opportunity to collaborate with Chris and the many talented individuals we have in the Texas Rangers baseball operations group as we continue to grow and improve on both the Major and Minor League levels.”
Chris Young comes to the Rangers after working in the MLB Commissioner’s Office and a successful pitching career. As a senior VP with MLB, he was responsible for, among other things, ensuring that ballpark and field alterations met MLB standards; working on MLB’s pace of play and game presentation initiatives; advising on on-field disciplinary issues; assisting with negotiations with umpires, players and Minor League Baseball; participating in issues regarding player safety, on-field equipment and wearable technology; and helping with official scoring reviews submitted to MLB.
“As a Dallas native who grew up rooting for the Rangers, I recognize what a special opportunity this is and how much the Rangers mean to this community,” said Young.
Before his time in the commissioner’s office, Young spent 13 years as a big-league pitcher with the Rangers (2004-05), the San Diego Padres (2006-10), the Mets (2011-12), the Seattle Mariners (2014) and the Kansas City Royals (2015-17).
He played his final MLB season in 2017, though he participated Spring Training with the Padres in 2018. He posted a career 79-67 record with a 3.95 ERA. Young was a member of the starting rotation when the Padres won the NL West in 2006—the most recent time they made the playoffs before their resurgent 2020 campaign.
Young was on the NL All-Star team in 2007, and he helped the Royals win the 2015 World Series, pitching 15 2/3 innings during the postseason. He threw three innings of hitless relief and earned the win in Kansas City’s 14-inning victory over the Mets in Game 1 of the Fall Classic. In his five career postseason games, Young went 2-0 with a 2.01 ERA over 22 1/3 innings.
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