Best Pitcher Whisperer 2016 | Jonathan Lucroy | Best of Dallas® 2020 | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Dallas | Dallas Observer
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Best Pitcher Whisperer

Jonathan Lucroy

When the Rangers traded for Jonathan Lucroy on Aug. 1, they knew they were getting one of the three or four best-hitting catchers in baseball and a guy who could control the opposing running game. They knew they were getting a catcher whose pitchers loved him, too, but they couldn't have imagined what he'd do for the Rangers staff. Thanks in large part to Lucroy's pitch-calling, the Rangers' starters, Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels, have never been better and Martin Perez, who looked like he might be broken before Lucroy's arrival, has flashed the form that made him the inspiration for so much hope in 2014 and 2015.

Best Sports Feud

Dez Bryant and Royce West

Texas state Senator Royce West was brought in to help Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant navigate through the fame and cash that come part and parcel with being one of the NFL's best wide receivers. Bryant relied on West for legal and public relations advice, even renting his DeSoto home from the senator. Early this year, however, Bryant decided to move out of the house. Bryant left the property basically destroyed, West says, with more than $60,000 in damages including broken windows and feces-stained carpets. West sued Bryant, Bryant counter-sued West and the whole thing turned into a big, juicy, legal mess that's still unresolved.

Best Sports Story

Fabian Castillo's Trip to Turkey

Fabian Castillo is one of FC Dallas' biggest development success stories. Head coach Oscar Pareja brought the attacking midfielder to North Texas from Colombia in 2011, even briefly letting Castillo stay on his couch. Castillo blossomed for FC Dallas, turning into one of the most dynamic offensive players in the MLS, culminating with his being named the league's best player under 24 following the 2015 season. Buoyed by the award and playing his first match for the Colombian national team, Castillo decided to take his game to Europe, traveling to Turkey in July to sign a contract with Trabzonspor. All of that would've been well and good except for one thing: FC Dallas hadn't let Castillo go. While essentially AWOL from the team that held his rights, Castillo was pictured at the airport, taking a physical and in a Trabzonspor jersey with team officials, all without FC Dallas having agreed to his transfer. Eventually FC Dallas agreed to loan Castillo to Trabzonspor for the Turkish league season with an option to buy.

Best Sports Owner

Mark Cuban, Dallas Mavericks

After a spate of attacks on Dallas LGBT community in Oak Lawn, the Dallas Mavericks owner gave the Dallas Police Department $1 million to pay for overtime in the affected area. That's enough to get him the best owner title, even if his Mavericks are struggling.

Best Gun Range

DFW Gun Range and Training Center

DFW Gun Range offers not only a place to practice the craft of gunmanship but also one where anyone can train with highly credentialed trainers to learn the art of gun protection. Since 1995, the gun range has been training not only private citizens but also law enforcement and security companies. It took only one businessman and two Dallas police officers to pull it off. Besides a 2,000-square-foot training gymnasium, they also offer 17 electronic indoor shooting lanes in an environmentally controlled space with shooting distances varying from 3 to 20 yards. The lanes also accommodate most caliber weapons, including your AR-15.

Readers' Pick:

DFW Gun Range

Best Punch

Rougned Odor, Texas Rangers

On May 15, Rougned Odor landed one of the best shots you'll ever see in a baseball fight. During the eighth inning of a Sunday afternoon rubber match between the Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays, Blue Jays right fielder Jose Bautista slid in hard in an attempt to break up a double play. Odor took exception and threw a right hook to Bautista's jaw, solidifying Rangers-Blue Jays as one of MLB's best and most unexpected rivalries. Bautista lost his helmet and sunglasses; Odor became a folk hero.

Best Boondoggle

Texas Rangers' New Stadium

In May, the Rangers and the city of Arlington announced plans to hold an election to finance a new stadium for the Rangers, despite the venue currently know as Globe Life Park being just over 20 years old. The problem with the Rangers' current stadium, as it's been since it opened, is the park's lack of a roof. July and August games can be completely miserable, the team's owners say, so the Rangers need a stadium with a roof. And the city of Arlington needs to pay for half of it. The Arlington City Council quickly moved to put the stadium measure on the November ballot, where it is sure to be approved. Arlington residents will keep paying the tax that is currently helping finance AT&T Stadium and all of us who happen to live elsewhere will continue to reap the benefits. Bring on the climate-controlled bliss.

Best Play-by-Play Announcer

Eric Nadel, 105.3 FM

Eric Nadel's voice sounds like summer in North Texas. The Rangers play-by-play announcer, winner of the Baseball Hall of Fame's Ford Frick award in 2014, has been with the team for 38 seasons and is consistently recognized as one of the very best radio broadcasters in the game. Nadel rises to the moment without overselling his call or the occasion. His signature, "that. ball. is. history." home run call is, for Rangers fans, one of the happiest sounds in the world. Whether the Rangers are good, as they are this year, or bad, as they were in 2014, Nadel is an essential guide to their journey.

Best Reminder of the Way Things Used To Be and What's To Come

Dallas Stars

For a moment this spring, the hearts of Dallas sports fans belonged, for the first time in a long time, to the Dallas Stars. The Rangers' season hadn't ramped up yet, and the Mavericks were quickly dispatched in the first round of the playoffs by the Oklahoma City Thunder, but the Stars had attained the top seed in the NHL's Western Conference and taken down the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the playoffs. The Stars ended up losing their next series, a seven-game classic against the St. Louis Blues, but their run served as a pleasant reminder of the team's success in the late '90s and early '00s, when they were the hottest ticket in town. With stars like Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin slated to be around for years to come, there is hope that the Stars' next glory days might be just over the horizon.

Best Addition

Ian Desmond

The Rangers signed Ian Desmond as an afterthought. It was Feb. 29, just before the start of spring training, and the former Nationals shortstop hadn't yet found anyone to give him a chance to resuscitate his career — on life support after a career worst season in 2015. The Rangers thought Desmond might be able to provide league-average production in left field, and Desmond placed a bet on himself by signing a one-year contract for just $8 million. After a slow start to the season, Desmond has been an MVP candidate, taking over center field from a flailing, demoted Delino Deshields and playing one of baseball's most important defensive positions while learning on the fly. He's hit, too, mashing his way to being among the Rangers' team leaders in home runs and slugging percentage.

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