By Jordan Long
The Texas Rangers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series 4-1. It was a dominating series for the Rangers who outscored Arizona 26 to 22. This was the Rangers’ first ever World Series win. It was also the 4th World Series victory for Manager Bruce Bochy.
Bochy previously won 3 World Series titles with the San Francisco Giants in 2010, 2012, and 2014. Bochy was let go from the Giants in 2019 when they finished 77-85, the 3rd year in a row they missed the postseason.
The Rangers fired Chris Woodward 114 games into the 2022 season. At the time the Rangers record stood at 51-63. Woodward was the Manager since 2019. The Rangers’ overall record with him as their Manager was 211-287, a winning percentage of .424. The Rangers never earned a playoff spot.
Bochy ended up being the top candidate because of his managerial history. He managed San Diego from 1995 to 2006 and San Francisco from 2007 to 2019. His teams earned a playoff spot 8 times with 4 trips to the World Series and 3 championships.
Bochy was the right man for the job. He turned the team around in one year. Before this season, the Rangers last earned a playoff spot in 2016 when they were swept in the Divisional Series by the Toronto Blue Jays. Two years ago, this franchise finished 60-102, the 2nd worst record in the American League. Last year they were 68-94.
Bochy helped them go 90-72, ending their playoff drought. They advanced to the World Series where they knocked off Arizona. The impressive part about the Rangers’ run is they were 11-0 away from Globe Life Field this postseason. That is a remarkable record. Many teams play well at home but don’t on the road. This team was focused, showing how great of a manager Bochy is.
With the victory, Bochy has won 4 World Series as manager, tying him with Joe Torre and Walker Alston for the 3rd most in baseball history. The two managers who have won the most titles are Joe McCarthy and Casey Stengel, who managed the New York Yankees. They each have 7 titles. McCarthy managed the New York Yankees from 1931 to 35 games into the 1946 season. Stengel spent 1949 to 1960 as the Yankees manager.
Bochy will be in the conversation for the best manager in baseball history after this win. Taking 3 different teams to the World Series is difficult and winning 4 rings is an outstanding accomplishment. Bochy should enjoy this victory. When the season starts on March 28th, 2024 against the Cubs, they will try to repeat. The last team to repeat as World Series Champions was the New York Yankees who won three in a row from 1998 to 2000. Hopefully, the Rangers are primed for a repeat performance in 2024.
Leave a Reply