This position was a little bit of a challenge for me. I had someone in mind, but there were two other players that I thought could also be the winner. I struggled to pick one for a week or so, and finally went to Twitter and put a poll asking people to vote and help me decide. The people spoke (and thank you to everyone that voted), and the result was not the way I was considering leaning, but I am happy to be wrong.
The three men that I was choosing between were Ian Kinsler, Michael Young and Julio Franco. Kinsler played for the Rangers from 2006 until he was unceremoniously traded to the Tigers for Prince Fielder in 2014. Kinsler was a vert good second baseman. His time with Texas saw him hit 156 home runs and 539 RBI. He didn’t make many errors and he turn a heck of a lot of double plays. But I decided not to go with Ian. I also went against Julio Franco.
My choice (and the choice of my voters) was Michael Young. While he could have been the best at several positions, Michael was a very good second baseman. Now, he did win his only gold glove award at short stop, but Mike held down second base very well. I believe he would have become a premiere second baseman if they hadn’t moved him to short. Young was nothing if not consistent. He had a batting average of .301 in his time with Texas. He had over 200 hits six seasons (five in a row). He was a rock no matter where they played him.
Known as “Mr. Ranger” during his time here, he is one of the most beloved players in franchise history. He continues to be around the team even now (well not now, since COVID-19 is keeping all people apart) as a special assistant to Jon Daniels. His defense was always as solid as his offense, as he never committed over 20 errors in a season at any position he played. He was also the face of the franchise and an excellent spokesperson for the sport of baseball. Not to mention the Rangers retired his number.
I feel good about my choice of Young. An all around great player, I hope we see him in the hall of fame one day. He really does deserve it.
