It's Been a Long Time Since the Rangers Started Off Like This

With apologies to those who enjoyed the trio of Taylor Swift concerts in Arlington over the weekend, it’s fair to wonder whether it was those watching baseball at nearby Globe Life Field who were the ones who really witnessed something special.

For the first time in 12 years, the Texas Rangers started a season by winning three games in a row. It’s a big deal, especially for a team that has offered fans so very little to celebrate in many years. In terms of how rare this baseball feat of strength is, just remember that T-Swift came through town for a pair of concerts less than five years ago, when the Rangers were only seven years removed from starting a season this well.

The team, led by new manager Bruce Bochy, overcame a rough start on opening day from its biggest free agent signing of the summer, pitcher Jacob deGrom, to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 11-7 on Thursday. On Saturday, the Rangers kept piling up the runs, winning 16-3, before grinding out a close 2-1 victory on Sunday night in front of a national ESPN Sunday Night Baseball audience.

To get a better understanding on just how long it’s been since the Arlington squad raced out to such a sterling start, just think that terms such as “Arab Spring” and “Occupy Wall Street” were barely a part of our consciousness in 2011. The Tohoku earthquake and resulting tsunami destroyed a large swath of Japan just before the season began. Osama Bin Laden was still alive when the Rangers swept the Boston Red Sox in their old home of Globe Life Park. He wouldn't be that way for long, however; his death was reported in early May 2011.

Hop, the Easter-appropriate film blending animation and live action starring James Marsden and Russell Brand, was bringing in the big box office bucks when the Rangers got going that year. Katy Perry’s collaboration with some fella named Kanye West, “E.T.” and Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” were getting played all over radio, but not Spotify as much, because in 2011, the streaming giant was just becoming available in the United States.


In Dallas, Tom Leppert was ending his four-year term as mayor, to be followed by Mike Rawlings, who was elected in June 2011. Just before the season began, a man named Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari, from Lubbock, was arrested while trying to build a bomb that authorities say he planned to use to wage a war on America. One of the alleged terrorist’s targets was the Dallas home of former President George W. Bush. The year 2011 was so long ago that none other than Robert Wilonsky was on our staff at the time, writing about plans to improve affordable housing Dallas (clearly, some things never change).

Of course, for Rangers fans, 2011 is notable for another major reason. That is the last time the Rangers went to the World Series. That team managed to start the season with six wins, but this year, a good start is a good start, which is more than Rangers fans have seen around here for some time.