During the same meetings in the fall of 1960 that saw the American League approve Calvin Griffith's efforts to move the Senators to Minneapolis, the league approved an expansion plan that, in addition to planting the Angels in Southern California, would provide for a new Washington Senators team.  Their motivation was simple - they feared renewed Congressional interest in their cherished anti-trust exemption if the nation's capital was left without a team in 1961.  So, the Senators team that took the field in 1961 was an entirely different franchise than the one that had finished out the 1960 season.  

 

The Senators lost at least 100 games in each of their first 4 seasons, but the arrival of manager Gil Hodges in '64 and slugger Frank Howard in '65 gave fans hope that the team  might actually be ready to turn some corner.  Steady if slight win increases between 1964 and 1967 gave way to a drop back to 96 losses in 1968, and in January of 1969 the club was sold to Bob Short, a hotel entrepreneur and treasurer of the Democratic National Committee.  Short made waves almost immediately by inking legendary hitter Ted Williams, who had largely stayed away from MLB since his retirement in 1960, as manager.  

 

Dividends were immediate - in 1969, the first year of divisional play, Williams led the club to 86 wins and a 4th place finish in the AL East.  Hopes, and Williams' disposition, took a hit in the fall of 1970, though, when Short announced he had acquired former 31-game winner and ne'er- do-well Denny McLain from the Tigers, along with Elliott Maddox and some spare parts for pitchers Joe Coleman and Jim Hannan, and infielders Aurelio Rodriguez and Ed Brinkman.  The latter two would anchor the left side of the Tiger infield for years to come, and Coleman would win 88 games for the Tigers, including two 20-win seasons.   McLain, the prize in Short's eyes, would lose 22 in 1971 and be off to Oakland for 1972.  

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During the 1971 season, pleading poverty and behind on rent payments for RFK stadium, Short told MLB to either find him a buyer or let him move to Dallas.  Efforts at the former fell through, and approval was given for the move.  The Senators' final home game was a forfeit to the Yankees as fans stormed the field in the 9th inning and play couldn't be resumed.  

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The transfer of the team to Texas, where they were named "Rangers" in honor of the legendary Texan law enforcement entity, didn't do much for the team's success on the field.   Their first two seasons saw them lose more than 100 games and in 1973, and Short's insistence on inserting teen-aged David Clyde into the rotation (over the objections of manager Whitey Herzog) had disastrous results on Clyde's career and still serves as a cautionary tale to anyone thinking of rushing a young pitcher.

 

The team was actually competitive under new manager Billy Martin in 1974, and it was around that time they settled into what would more or less be their reputation for many years to come - strong offense, weak pitching. 

 

Unable even to make the post-season until 1996, the team still hadn't learned the importance of pitching by the time they opened their pocket book to sign Alex Rodriguez in 2001 - as more than one observer said, he wasn't worth any price if he wasn't able to take the mound every 5th day.  A crop of young talent finally got the team over the hump in 2010, when they won their first AL pennant.  They followed up with another in 2011, and had St. Louis down to their last out in game 6 but still lost in 7.   Finally, under future Hall of Fame manager Bruce Bochy, they won it all in 2023.       

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The main purpose of this page is to illustrate those players, managers and coaches who have been the most prominent in the franchise's history.  Links below will take you to galleries highlighting each, by position.  Generally, an individual is included if he spent at least 2 full seasons (consecutive or cumulative) as a starter, relief pitcher, closer or manager. For coaches, I've generally used 5 years of service as the bar.  None of this is scientific, though, so there are exceptions.  Where possible and practical, I used pictures of actual baseball cards because that it is the medium through which I, and I suppose many others, first discovered the game. Where necessary, I designed my own images.  Images of actual baseball cards were obtained at the Card Cyber Museum, and for my own designs I used photos found at host of different sites, but none moreso than the wonderful forum at Out of the Park Developments.  

 

I claim no rights to, or ownership of, any of the photographic images I've used on these pages.   You are welcome to use them yourself.  All I ask is that that if you use any of my personal creations, you give credit to this site.