| 1974 Texas Rangers | |
|---|---|
| League | American League |
| Division | West |
| Ballpark | Arlington Stadium |
| City | Arlington, Texas |
| Record | 84–76 (.525) |
| Divisional place | 2nd |
| Owners | Bob Short,Bradford G. Corbett, Amon Carter, Jr., Ray Nasher |
| General managers | Dan O'Brien Sr. |
| Managers | Billy Martin |
| Television | WBAP-TV (Dick Risenhoover,Jimmy Piersall, Burt Hawkins) |
| Radio | WBAP (Dick Risenhoover,Bill Mercer) |
The1974 Texas Rangers season was the 14th of theTexas Rangers franchise overall, their 3rd inArlington as the Rangers, and the 3rd season atArlington Stadium. The Rangers finished second in theAmerican League West with a record of 84 wins and 76 losses (two rained-out games were never completed). It would be only the second time in franchise history (to that point) that the club finished over .500 and the first since the club relocated toArlington, Texas. The club became the first (and, to date, only) team to finish over .500 after two consecutive 100-loss seasons.
During the season,Ferguson Jenkins won 25 games for the Rangers, which was Jenkins' personal best for a season and remains the Rangers franchise record for wins by a pitcher in one season. He would also be the third pitcher in the history of the American League to win 25 games in the 20th century and not win the Cy Young Award.[2]
On June 4, in one of the most remarkably ill-conceived promotions inMajor League Baseball history, fans atCleveland Municipal Stadium for aCleveland Indians vs. Texas Rangers game were served as manybeers as they wanted for just10¢ each. After numerous instances of drunken fans throwing debris or running onto the field—"streaking" in many instances—the situation boiled over in the 9th inning when a fan ran onto the field and snatched Rangers outfielderJeff Burroughs' cap and glove. Burroughs' teammates charged out to his aid, followed by hundreds of rioting Cleveland fans who poured out onto the field.
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland Athletics | 90 | 72 | .556 | — | 49–32 | 41–40 |
| Texas Rangers | 84 | 76 | .525 | 5 | 42–38 | 42–38 |
| Minnesota Twins | 82 | 80 | .506 | 8 | 48–33 | 34–47 |
| Chicago White Sox | 80 | 80 | .500 | 9 | 46–34 | 34–46 |
| Kansas City Royals | 77 | 85 | .475 | 13 | 40–41 | 37–44 |
| California Angels | 68 | 94 | .420 | 22 | 36–45 | 32–49 |
Sources:[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | TEX | |
| Baltimore | — | 10–8 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 12–6 | 14–4 | 8–4 | 8–10 | 6–6 | 11–7 | 6–6 | 4–8 | |
| Boston | 8–10 | — | 4–8 | 8–4 | 9–9 | 11–7 | 4–8 | 10–8 | 6–6 | 11–7 | 8–4 | 5–7 | |
| California | 5–7 | 8–4 | — | 10–8–1 | 3–9 | 5–7 | 8–10 | 3–9 | 8–10 | 3–9 | 6–12 | 9–9 | |
| Chicago | 7–5 | 4–8 | 8–10–1 | — | 8–4 | 7–5 | 11–7 | 8–4 | 7–11–1 | 4–8 | 7–11 | 9–7–1 | |
| Cleveland | 6–12 | 9–9 | 9–3 | 4–8 | — | 9–9 | 8–4 | 10–8 | 6–6 | 7–11 | 5–7 | 4–8 | |
| Detroit | 4–14 | 7–11 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 9–9 | — | 7–5 | 9–9 | 3–9 | 11–7 | 5–7 | 5–7 | |
| Kansas City | 4–8 | 8–4 | 10–8 | 7–11 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 11–1 | 8–10 | 4–8 | 8–10 | 8–10 | |
| Milwaukee | 10–8 | 8–10 | 9–3 | 4–8 | 8–10 | 9–9 | 1–11 | — | 6–6 | 9–9 | 5–7 | 7–5 | |
| Minnesota | 6–6 | 6–6 | 10–8 | 11–7–1 | 6–6 | 9–3 | 10–8 | 6–6 | — | 4–8 | 5–13 | 9–9 | |
| New York | 7–11 | 7–11 | 9–3 | 8–4 | 11–7 | 7–11 | 8–4 | 9–9 | 8–4 | — | 7–5 | 8–4 | |
| Oakland | 6–6 | 4–8 | 12–6 | 11–7 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 10–8 | 7–5 | 13–5 | 5–7 | — | 8–10 | |
| Texas | 8–4 | 7–5 | 9–9 | 7–9–1 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 10–8 | 5–7 | 9–9 | 4–8 | 10–8 | — | |
| 1974 Texas Rangers | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers | Catchers Infielders | Outfielders Other batters | Manager Coaches | ||||||
| = Indicates team leader |
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos. | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Jim Sundberg | 132 | 368 | 91 | .247 | 3 | 36 |
| 1B | Mike Hargrove | 131 | 415 | 134 | .323 | 4 | 66 |
| 2B | Dave Nelson | 121 | 474 | 112 | .236 | 3 | 42 |
| 3B | Lenny Randle | 151 | 520 | 157 | .302 | 1 | 49 |
| SS | Toby Harrah | 161 | 573 | 149 | .260 | 21 | 74 |
| LF | Alex Johnson | 114 | 453 | 132 | .291 | 4 | 41 |
| CF | Joe Lovitto | 113 | 283 | 63 | .223 | 2 | 26 |
| RF | Jeff Burroughs | 152 | 554 | 167 | .301 | 25 | 118 |
| DH | Jim Spencer | 118 | 352 | 98 | .278 | 7 | 74 |
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| César Tovar | 138 | 562 | 164 | .292 | 4 | 58 |
| Tom Grieve | 84 | 259 | 66 | .255 | 9 | 32 |
| Jim Fregosi | 78 | 230 | 60 | .261 | 12 | 34 |
| Duke Sims | 39 | 106 | 22 | .208 | 3 | 6 |
| Leo Cárdenas | 34 | 92 | 25 | .272 | 0 | 7 |
| Larry Brown | 54 | 76 | 15 | .197 | 0 | 5 |
| Roy Howell | 13 | 44 | 11 | .250 | 1 | 3 |
| Dick Billings | 16 | 31 | 7 | .226 | 0 | 0 |
| Bill Fahey | 6 | 16 | 4 | .250 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Cubbage | 9 | 15 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Robson | 6 | 13 | 3 | .231 | 0 | 2 |
| Pete Mackanin | 2 | 6 | 1 | .167 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Jones | 2 | 5 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Dave Moates | 1 | 0 | 0 | ---- | 0 | 0 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferguson Jenkins | 41 | 328.1 | 25 | 12 | 2.82 | 225 |
| Jim Bibby | 41 | 264.0 | 19 | 19 | 4.74 | 149 |
| Jackie Brown | 35 | 216.2 | 13 | 12 | 3.57 | 134 |
| Steve Hargan | 37 | 186.2 | 12 | 9 | 3.95 | 98 |
| David Clyde | 28 | 117.0 | 3 | 9 | 4.38 | 52 |
| Bill Hands | 2 | 14.0 | 2 | 0 | 1.93 | 4 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pete Broberg | 12 | 29.0 | 0 | 4 | 8.07 | 15 |
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Foucault | 69 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 2.24 | 106 |
| Jim Merritt | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.13 | 18 |
| Don Stanhouse | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4.88 | 26 |
| Lloyd Allen | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6.55 | 18 |
| Stan Thomas | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.59 | 8 |
| Jim Shellenback | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.84 | 14 |
| Jeff Terpko | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.29 | 3 |
| Steve Dunning | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19.29 | 1 |
1974 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Spokane, Gastonia