Baseball is a unique sport in itself. Baseball fans are passionate about their favorite teams. Baseball players are hard workers. Baseball reporters are all about the details. But, unlike most other baseball reporters, I didn’t grow up with MLB. I didn’t play softball growing up. I didn’t watch MLB Network until I went to college. My parents weren’t from MLB-loving countries. I traveled to Mexico, Japan, and South Korea when I was younger, and even though I wasn’t a baseball fan, I noticed the people’s love for MLB.
When I got on board with Inside The Diamonds, I thought about the St. Louis Cardinals and then the Texas Rangers. After all, I learned about a historic MLB team, and I had to learn about a new MLB team. I wasted no time as I rushed to order 100 Things Rangers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die by Russ Cohen on Amazon and began reading a chapter a day after receiving the Texas Rangers book. I was more than ready to learn about the Rangers. Well, enough about myself. Here are my top five favorite Texas Rangers players.
5. Corey Seager
I don’t know if Corey Seager is a top-five player in MLB, but he’s the fifth of my top-five favorite Texas Rangers players. Seager has been playing for Texas since 2022. Previously, the 29-year-old played for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2015 to 2022. That, my friends, was why I wasn’t a big fan of the star shortstop until he left LA, as the Cardinals-Dodgers rivalry is so significant. Seager is a fan-favorite who helped the Dodgers end their World Series championship drought in 2020. Most, if not all, Dodgers fans were in their feelings when Seager headed to the 2023 World Series with the Rangers as their team reportedly let the Charlotte, North Carolina, native walk in free agency after 2021. Seager is just the fourth MLB player to win multiple World Series MVP awards — four in 2016, 2017, 2022, and 2023. As a result, Seager joined MLB Hall of Famers Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, and Reggie Jackson.
4. Adolis García
I’ve paid attention to Adolis García since he played for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2018. García began his professional baseball career with the Yomiuri Giants of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in 2016. García, a Ciego de Ávila, Cuba native, was named a two-time MLB All-Star in 2021 and 2023. The 30-year-old was designed for assignment after the Texas Rangers officially signed pitcher Mike “Folty” Foltynewicz. Folty eventually retired as a Texas Ranger in 2021. Despite the initial shortcomings in Texas, García went on to hit .250, .300, .456, and .756 with 27 home runs, 101 RBIs, and 25 stolen bases in 156 games in 2022 and .245, .328, .508, and .836 with 39 home runs, 107 RBI, and nine stolen bases in 2023. The star outfielder also won his first-ever AL outfield Gold Glove Award in 2023.
3. Nathaniel Lowe
Did you know Nathaniel Lowe’s first name is David? If not, don’t worry. I didn’t know either. Nathaniel Lowe, born David Nathaniel Lowe Jr., is a first baseman for the Texas Rangers. Lowe has played for Texas since 2021 after being traded by the Tampa Bay Rays, whom he played for from 2019 to 2020, alongside Jake Guenther and Carl Chester for Heriberto Hernandez, Osleivis Basabe, and Alexander Ovalles. The Norfolk, Virginia native made his MLB debut with the Rays on April 29, 2019, after being selected 390th overall in the 13th round of the 2016 MLB Draft. Nathaniel, 28, comes from an athletic family. He and his brother, Josh, were former Bowling Green and Charlotte teammates. Josh, 25, plays for the Rays as an outfielder. Their father, David, was drafted 115th overall in the fifth round by the Seattle Mariners in the 1986 MLB Draft but attended the U.S. Naval Academy and served in the U.S. Navy for 20 years as a Naval Aviator and a Fighter Pilot.
2. Marcus Semien
I recently wrote an article about why Marcus Semien is a real-life Iron Man. But, for those who aren’t too familiar with Semien, he’s a shortstop and a second baseman for the Texas Rangers. Previously, the San Francisco-born and El Cerrito-bred MLB star played for the Chicago White Sox from 2013 to 2014, the Oakland Athletics from 2015 to 2020, and the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021. Marcus, 33, grew up in a Californian family. His parents attended the University of California, Berkeley, where his father, Damien, played college football for the Golden Bears. Marcus played college baseball for the namesake team. Though he struggled as a freshman, he improved in his sophomore year as he hit .328 and became the Golden Bears’ starting shortstop in his junior year but hit .275, which hurt his future MLB Draft stock. He was drafted 201st overall in the sixth round by the White Sox in the 2011 MLB Draft. Semien reportedly overcame his early defensive struggles and worked his way up to become a 2023 World Champion, 2021 Gold Glove winner, and 2021 and 2023 MLB All-Star.
1. Nathan Eovaldi
I’ve always leaned towards pitchers as my favorite MLB players. I like how a pitcher pitches on the mound and a pitcher’s throwing speed. It’s not easy to throw baseballs for a living. Texas Rangers pitcher Nathan Eovaldi is my No. 1 favorite Texas Ranger. Eovaldi was better known as a Boston Red Sox pitcher from 2018 to 2022 before electing to become a free agent and signing a two-year, $34 million contract with a third-year vesting option with the Rangers on December 22, 2022. The 33-year-old forwent his college baseball commitment to Texas A&M. Eovaldi, an Alvin, Texas, native, has been building on his idol Nolan Ryan’s legacy. The Rangers ace helped bring a World Series title to Texas. Eovaldi regularly throws an electric, four-seam fastball at 96-97 MPH and perhaps 101 MPH as a starting pitcher. The fact that Eovaldi tied an MLB record for the most wins by a pitcher in a single postseason was one for the ages, as he trailed just Randy Johnson in 2001, Francisco Rodríguez in 2002, and Stephen Strasburg in 2019.
Closing Words
I’ll leave my drawing of Nathan Eovaldi here.
