For love of God, family and baseball: Texas Rangers in the World Series

In July 2006, I wrote an Inside Story column for The Christian Chronicle titled “For love of God, family and baseball.”
In that column, I confessed my deep affection for the Texas Rangers:

The stadium felt like a furnace — think obnoxious Texas heat in early July — when I walked into my first major-league baseball game at age 14.
By then, of course, I was already a big baseball fan, with thousands of baseball cards, an autographed picture of Pete Rose and a dream of growing up to do radio play-by-play. For all the hours I had spent watching televised games and poring over newspaper box scores, though, I had never actually been to a game.
But in 1982, my family moved to Dallas-Fort Worth, and a heaven with the greenest grass I had ever seen beckoned us. We made it to our bleacher seats in the bottom of the first inning, just as Texas Rangers slugger Larry Parrish stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. That Saturday was “Bat Day,” so 10,000 wooden bats banged thunderously against the concrete and the crowd roared at an obscene decibel as the ball sailed over the fence — a grand slam!

Bobby Ross Jr., Wes Woodell and other ministers and members of the Lake Merced Church of Christ at a San Francisco Giants’ game in 2009.

A young lifetime of rooting for the Cincinnati Reds suddenly vanished. I fell in love with the Rangers that day.

As you may have heard, my Rangers are going to the World Series. They play the San Francisco Giants starting tonight, and I am a bit excited.
Of course, I know that some of my friends will be rooting for that other team.
When I was in San Francisco on a Chronicle reporting trip last year, Wes Woodell took me to see a game at AT&T Park. I cheered for Tim Lincecum and the Giants that night. But I definitely won’t be doing that tonight.
Go Rangers! 🙂

• Feedback
  Looking forward to good games.
  Go Giants! 🙂

  Wes Woodell

  October, 27 2010

  Go Rangers! I wish we could still be cheering for Cecil Cooper managing MLB somewhere! Maybe if GOD wills, someday! I pray that the team that deserves to win will, whether it is the Rangers or the Giants!

  Deborah Stephens

  October, 28 2010

  Oops! The Giants bats came alive last night. Better luck tonight!

  Victor Knowles

  October, 28 2010

  Deborah, I hope it’s the Rangers who deserve to win. 🙂
  Victor, I hope the supposedly weak-hitting Giants got all that slugging out of their system!

  Bobby Ross Jr.

  October, 28 2010

  The Rangers for the first time ever make it to the big dance. Great story no matter what happens!

  Gary Turner

  October, 28 2010

  I’m with you…….. My son, at the ripe age of 9(now 35) introduced me to one of the greatest players of all time…Nolan Ryan. His dad made arrangements to see Nolan pitch. We watched him behind home plate pitch 13 innings on a hot summer night and it was simply the greatest time of my life. I have been hooked ever since. But the Rangers are the only team I go to see. I live 4 hours away, but have friends in Rockwall, they have invited me every birthday for the past several years to come out, and go to the game. So when “my boys” got to go to the World Series, I was elated to say the least!! Go Cliff Lee (my sons name is Lee) and I got him a Cliff Lee t-shirt in July. The Rangers are GREAT and I sincerely hope that they WIN this World Series. But, if they don’t……..they have played the greatest year on MY Life..
  GO….Rangers…….Win!!!! Only one of your biggest Fans!!

  Gail Albritton

  October, 28 2010