Texas Rangers (2006–13) Ian Kinsler

1 texas rangers (2006–13)

1.1 2006: rookie
1.2 2007: 20–20 season
1.3 2008: all-star
1.4 2009: hitting cycle, , joining 30–30 club
1.5 2010: all-star
1.6 2011: 30–30 club, redux
1.7 2012: all-star
1.8 2013: rangers all-time stolen base leader

texas rangers (2006–13)
2006: rookie

with alfonso soriano having been traded in off-season, kinsler won rangers starting second base job in spring training in 2006 on mark derosa. ian kinsler came advertised , said showalter.

he made major league debut against boston red sox on opening day on april 3, 2006, , got first major league hit in first major league @ bat, off curt schilling. kinsler said:

the crowd full; had butterflies going, hit huge. family in town.... go out there , face 1 of best pitchers of time, ve got locked in. s first game, first big league experience—it unbelievable face guy.

he hitting .476 when dislocated left thumb sliding head-first second base on april 11, 2006, , placed on disabled list. knew wasn t when looked down , saw top part of thumb pointing in @ me , kinsler said. came 41 games later on may 25, , went 3–4 single , 2 home runs, lead rangers 8–7 victory on oakland athletics. hope fans don t expect every night , joked.

while kinsler started off season batting ninth in lineup, in june showalter moved him seventh. think ian s career progresses, ll move in batting order , predicted showalter. season, started 31 games batting seventh, 30 batting eighth, 20 batting sixth, 19 batting ninth, 12 batting second, 3 batting leadoff, 2 batting third, , 1 batting fifth.

kinsler finished 2006 .286 batting average, 14 home runs, 55 rbis, , team-leading 11 stolen bases in 423 at-bats. batted .300 runners in scoring position, , .300 when game tied. led al rookies 27 doubles, , .454 slugging percentage seventh-best in season since 2000 al rookie @ least 400 @ bats. defensively, in august tied team record recording 5 double plays in 1 game. led american league (al) second basemen in both range factor (5.58) , errors (18). named texas rangers 2006 rookie of year.

2007: 20–20 season

kinsler in april 2007

during 2006–07 off-season, kinsler focused on building legs improve speed, durability, , agility. in spring training in 2007, hit .429, led al in rbis (19), , sixth in major leagues in hits (27).

his torrid hitting continued season, , kinsler named al player of week period ending april 15. batted .476 (10-for-21) week 4 home runs, 8 rbis, 7 runs scored, , 1.095 slugging percentage. 9 home runs in april tied team record month (shared iván rodríguez (2000), alex rodriguez (2002), , carl everett (2003)), , ever in season s first month major league second baseman. kinsler said: m trying put swings on ball, , if goes out, goes out. batted .298 22 rbis month, , voted rangers player of month april.

on july 2, kinsler went on disabled list stress fracture in left foot; did not come until july 31, , missed 26 games. tied major league record on august 25, when had 8 plate appearances in nine-inning game (a 30–3 win on baltimore).

in 2007, kinsler hit 20 home runs (leading al second basemen) , 23-for-25 in stolen base attempts (a 92% success rate). 1 of 6 batters in al have @ least 20 home runs , 20 stolen bases, along alex rodriguez, gary sheffield, grady sizemore, b.j. upton, , curtis granderson. became sixth player in franchise history reach 20–20 plateau, joining alfonso soriano (2005), iván rodríguez (1999), rafael palmeiro (1993), bobby bonds (1978), , toby harrah (1975 , 1977). did despite stress fracture, kept him under 500 @ bats. 23 stolen bases , 96 runs led rangers.

kinsler finished season seventh in al in power/speed number (21.4), ninth in sacrifice hits (8) , steals of third base (4), , tied tenth in bunt hits (5). tied fourth in league in steals of third (4), eighth in line drive percentage (23%), , tied ninth in sacrifice hits (8). began hit higher in batting order, batted second in 48 games, leadoff in 26, seventh in 24, sixth in 19, ninth in 10, , eighth in 2. on defense, kinsler led major league second basemen in range factor (5.69), leading league second straight year.

2008: all-star

in february 2008, kinsler signed five-year deal worth $22 million guaranteed. jump $32 million if rangers exercise $10 million option 2013. received raise $500,000 in 2008, , $1 million signing bonus. contract went $3 million in 2009 , $4 million in 2010, , go $6 million in 2011 , $7 million in 2012. if rangers choose not exercise $10 million option, kinsler receive $500,000 buyout. if traded, both buyout , option year increase $500,000. if option exercised, commitment have been largest rangers have ever made player whom drafted , developed. ian represents past, present, , future of organization , said assistant general manager thad levine.

s lot of money , kinsler said. ve never imagined being in position in life. big day me , family , reflected. ve been working whole life point, since dad first started taking me out in backyard , started throwing baseball me.

asked impact money have on him, kinsler said:

i m going play same regardless of whether m making 5 dollars or $1 trillion. doesn t make difference me. m going go out there , play hard, , money doesn t bring respect. way play game brings respect. when finish playing game, s not how money made going legacy. s how played game, , did on field.

kinsler batting against baltimore; april 2009

kinsler delighted when rangers manager ron washington committed kinsler being team s leadoff hitter in 2008. didn t think prototype leadoff hitter, guy proved me wrong , washington said. ll take walk, or 1 run 1 swing of bat. can bunt, can run, , can hit ball other side.

through mid-may 2008, kinsler had best career stolen-base percentage (88.5%) of in rangers/senators history @ least 40 attempts. s part of game , said kinsler. s not 1 of first things m known for. according scouts, ability on basepaths due innate instincts , twitch speed rather pure running speed. grouse, signed him, says kinsler goes first third faster anyone, because has god-given ability read ball off bat.

during mid-june rain delay @ shea stadium, kinsler hopped feet, raced dugout , dove head-first across wet tarp covering infield though giant slip n slide. 4 teammates followed, receiving large ovation new york mets fans. shea stadium security ushered them off field, drawing chorus of boos. had routines going , said kinsler. awesome.

kinsler 2008 al star @ 79th star game @ yankee stadium. exciting moment in baseball point. reserve voted in peers. in fan balloting, dustin pedroia, finished 1.3 million votes, beat him 34,243 votes. in game, kinsler hit 1-for-5 , stole base. called out attempting steal base, though replays demonstrated umpire had missed call. washington post , espn baseball writer jayson stark picked kinsler al mvp first half of season.

kinsler had mlb-best 25-game hitting streak in june , july. team-best hitting streak of 28 belongs gabe kapler.

through july 28, kinsler leading al in batting average (.331), runs (90), hits (145), total bases (232), base hits (55), @ bats (438), , plate appearances (499). second in doubles (37) , power/speed number (17.9), third in sacrifices (7), fourth in singles (90), sixth in sacrifice flies (6), seventh in stolen bases (26), triples (4), , on-base percentage (.392), , eighth in ops (.922). kinsler , said seattle mariners left fielder raúl ibañez, engine makes offense go.

however, on august 17 injured left side of groin on defensive play, suffering sports hernia required season-ending surgery. missed last 37 games of season. didn t have decision , kinsler said. if want fix injury, have have surgery.

in 2008, despite missing last 6 weeks of season, kinsler third in al in times advanced first third on single (17), fourth in batting average (.319) , power/speed number (21.3), fifth in steals of third base (8) , bases taken (23; advanced on fly balls, passed balls, wild pitches, balks, etc.), sixth in line drive percentage (24%) , in base hit percentage (10.8% of plate appearances), eighth in runs (102) , ops (.892), ninth in sacrifice hits (8) , home runs on road (14), , tenth in stolen bases (26; while being caught twice—a 93% success rate) , lowest strikeout percentage (11.5% of @ bats).

he hit .413 runners in scoring position. 1 of 3 batters in al have @ least 18 home runs , 18 stolen bases in both 2007 , 2008, along alex rodriguez , grady sizemore. 41 doubles ranked second in franchise history alfonso soriano s 43 in 2005. had .377 on-base percentage leadoff hitter, third-best mark in al, , .521 slugging percentage highest leadoff batter in american league. kinsler s .381 on-base percentage leadoff hitter on 2005–08 seasons fourth-highest in major leagues.

hitters have [a location] can exploit , said star pitcher justin duchscherer. guy has trouble fastballs in. guy has trouble breaking balls down. [kinsler] doesn t have hole that. in field, led major league second basemen 5.77 range factor , 123 double plays, in errors 18.

kinsler mentioned mvp candidate before injury writers @ espn, dallas news, los angeles times, , washington post. have conceivably rivaled pedroia mvp, if not sports hernia cut 2008 campaign short month , half. think missed having mvp year , manager ron washington said. if luck [had been] on our side , [had stayed] healthy, have run away it. in end, received single 10th-place vote jeff wilson of fort worth star-telegram.

2009: hitting cycle, , joining 30–30 club

in 2009, kinsler named # 24 on sporting news list of 50 greatest current players in baseball. panel of 100 baseball people, many of them members of baseball hall of fame , winners of major baseball awards, polled arrive @ list.

— teammate chris davis, commenting on kinsler s 6–6 game.

on april 15, 2009, in game against baltimore orioles, kinsler hit cycle, becoming fourth ranger (and, @ time, right-handed ranger). in same game, kinsler became second player in ranger history 6 hits in single game (the first having been alfonso soriano, on may 8, 2004), , first in 9-inning game. 5 runs , 4 base hits in game matched 2 other team records.

thing of beauty , teammate marlon byrd said. loved it. kinsler s dual feat first in modern baseball era. last major league player have 6 hits in game while hitting cycle william farmer weaver, louisville colonels on august 12, 1890. kinsler s 13 total bases 1 base shy of jose canseco s june 13, 1994, team record. 3 other players in prior 55 years had had 6 hits, 5 runs, , 4 extra-base hits in game, recent having been shawn green of los angeles dodgers in 2002.

kinsler named al co-player of week on april 20, 2009. week, in 30 plate appearances led major leagues in batting average (.556), hits (15), base hits (7), , runs (9), , tied lead in doubles (4). had .600 on-base percentage , 1.000 slugging percentage, triple, 2 home runs, , 6 stolen bases. s incredible , said teammate hank blalock.

on june 16 against houston, kinsler opened first inning ninth career leadoff homer, surpassing club record of eight, shared mike hargrove, oddibe mcdowell, , michael young. on may 21, kinsler stole third base in fifth inning, setting club record career steals of third @ 18. furthermore, @ time kinsler had never been caught trying steal third. rick paulas of espn called kinsler first quarter mvp.

through july 1, kinsler led al in power-speed number (17.5), third in home runs (19), fourth in runs (55) , total bases (160), sixth in base hits (38) , @ bats (307), seventh in sacrifice flies (4), , ninth in stolen bases (16) , sacrifices (8), while batting .359 against left-handers , .333 runners on base.

kinsler narrowly missed making al all-star team. first, though had led al second basemen of june 30, 2,170,100 fan votes (fifth-most votes of al players, ahead of dustin pedroia s 2,163,270), pedroia passed him on last day in last-minute voting. then, missed making team reserve in player voting, coming in second again, time toronto s aaron hill. missed in third chance, al star team , tampa bay manager joe maddon did not pick him reserve. missed fourth opportunity make team, in sprint final vote competition final spot on team, coming in second brandon inge of tigers. fifth opportunity presented when pedroia pulled out of star game spend time pregnant wife—and kinsler had finished second in fan voting, in player voting, , in final vote competition, appeared candidate replace fellow second baseman. maddon went 1 of own replace pedroia, tampa bay s first baseman carlos peña, leading league in homers batting .228 (and had come in fourth in final vote competition, behind kinsler , chone figgins). sixth , final opportunity presented when evan longoria withdrew because of finger infection; again maddon (a former angels coach) chose else replacement, time figgins of angels, had come in third in final vote competition (behind kinsler).

bleacher reports andrew nuschler observed: maddon spent tenure al star manager finding new , inventive ways give ian kinsler middle finger. , sports illustrated s jacob osterhout took note, writing:

it absolute travesty ian kinsler not starting second baseman american league. dustin pedroia, starting second baseman, has hit 3 home runs , has 36 rbis. kinsler, on other hand, has hit 20 home runs , has 63 rbis. fact kinsler isn t reserve makes hard take star game seriously.

at star game, tribute kinsler, teammate , close friend michael young wore wristbands kinsler s number 5.

on july 11, kinsler stole third base 21st time in career, building on team record, without ever having been thrown out. on july 19, led off bottom of first inning home run, , 12 innings later broke 3–3 tie two-run, walk-off home run. 4 times before in major league history had same batter led off bottom of first inning home run, , ended game homer. kinsler suffered strained left hamstring on july 28, , missed 11 games while on disabled list.

kinsler, had 30 stolen bases, hit 30th home run on september 25, becoming major leaguer join 30–30 club in 2009, , 34th major leaguer ever. became second player in rangers history have 30–30 season (joining alfonso soriano, did in 2005), , joined soriano (who had 30–30 seasons in 2002 , 2003 yankees) , brandon phillips (2007) 30–30 second basemen in major league history. s incredible accomplishment , said michael young. ve played guys have had incredible seasons here, 30–30 special. deserves lot of credit. battled season long. s separates great players ones.

he led al in power-speed#, 31.0. through 2009, had second-highest steal success rate among active players @ least 100 attempts, @ 87.5% (91-of-104). carlos beltrán best, @ 88.3%. sharing philosophy on stealing bases, said: takes art of stealing away if when re 4 runs or 4 runs down, , opposing team worried getting outs, not stolen bases. idea steal them when need them.

he showed eye @ plate. of 15 rangers had @ least 100 @ bats, rate of 1 strikeout per 8.31 at-bats best on team. similarly, made contact on 87% of swings, best contact rate on team.

playing 144 games, had 13 home runs against lefties (2nd in league), stole third base 11 times (3rd), hit 47% of hits bases (7th-best in al), 7th in al in stolen bases, scored 101 runs (10th), , had 5 bunt hits (10th). on defense, led al second baseman in zone runs s (17), 2nd in assists (451) , range factor/game (4.86), , 5th in putouts (249).

2010: all-star

although kinsler missed significant playing time in 2010, still represented rangers second star appearance

in december 2009, washington said kinsler bat second in 2010. think kinsler performs better when s in mix hitting @ top of lineup in first inning , washington said. when has wait hit, think takes lot away him. march, reported bat fifth. washington said, however, that not keep kinsler running: not slow him down. threat. not take away threat. m not stopping kins. on days when julio borbon not batting leadoff, kinsler move top of lineup. in end, kinsler started 60 games batting 3rd, 20 games batting 5th, 16 games batting 6th, , 6 games leading off.

in spring training, while batting .400, kinsler slipped on patch of wet grass during pre-game warm-ups. rolled right ankle, , suffered sprain of ligaments above (referred high ankle sprain ), small bone bruise @ tip of tibia @ of ankle. missed 3 weeks of spring training, , began season on disabled list. washington said: miss presence. miss threat. miss brings on defensive end. miss leadership. made initial 2010 appearance on april 30, after having missed first 20 games of season.

batting .304 @ time .412 on-base percentage (4th in al), selected reserve 2010 american league star team, second star game. appreciative kinsler said: s huge honor. had finished third among al second basemen in fan voting behind robinson canó , pedroia, pedroia injured, , kinsler picked replace him. had finished second among al second basemen in voting al players. on july 29 went on disabled list again, time strained left groin, , not reactivated until september 1.

kinsler finished season batting .286, career-high on-base percentage of .382. .985 fielding percentage 5th-best in league, , had highest career range factor/game of active major league second basemen (5.201). 2 stints on disabled list, played in 103 games.

in first round of playoffs, against tampa bay rays, kinsler batted .444/.500/.944 in 5 games, leading majors 3 home runs (tied) , 6 rbis in division series. hit safely , scored run in 5 games, joining boston s nomar garciaparra 2 players start post-season careers @ least 1 hit—and @ least 1 hit , 1 run—in each of 5 consecutive games. teammate nelson cruz hit 3 home runs, marked second time in major league history 2 teammates each hit 3 homers in postseason series of 5 games or fewer (the other 2 babe ruth , lou gehrig, in 1928 world series). first 2 rounds of playoffs, kinsler hit safely in 9 of 11 games, , batted .342 3 hrs, playoff-high 9 rbis, 6 runs, 2 stolen bases, obp of .409, , ops of 1.067.

2011: 30–30 club, redux

kinsler in 2011

on april 2, 2011, kinsler became first player in major league history hit lead-off home run in first 2 games of season (giving him total of 15 lead-off homers in career). in next game against red sox, hit home run in third inning. kinsler , nelson cruz became first 2 teammates homer in each of first 3 games in season. 2 joined dean palmer (1992) texas ballplayers ever homer in first 3 games of season.

in september, kinsler tied own rangers record, set in 2009, seventh leadoff home run of season. hit 20th career leadoff homer, becoming 34th player in major league baseball history have hit @ least 20. since first season in 2006, 20 lead-off homers 6th-most behind alfonso soriano (31), hanley ramírez (25), jimmy rollins (24), curtis granderson (24), , rickie weeks (24).

he stole 28 consecutive bases without being caught, breaking own club record, had set in 2007–08.

kinsler joined 30–30 club, second time. became 12th player in major league history have multiple 30–30 seasons. other infielders in major league history had had multiple 30–30 seasons of 2011 alfonso soriano, howard johnson, , jeff bagwell. joined 20 (home runs)/20 (steals) club third time in career. joe morgan, did 4 seasons, second baseman have joined 20–20 club more times.

in 2011, kinsler 2nd in american league in runs scored (121; fifth-highest season total in rangers history), 5th in home runs (32; career high) , walks (89), , 9th in stolen bases (30) , base hits (70). third in power-speed # (31.0; behind jacoby ellsbury , curtis granderson), , had best walks-to-strikeouts ratio in major leagues, 1.25 walks per each strikeout. on defense, career range factor of 5.092 highest among active major league second basemen, , in 2011 led al second basemen in double plays, 103.

his 136 career stolen bases through season-end third-most in rangers history, behind bump wills (161) , toby harrah (143), , career stolen-base percentage third-best rate among active players @ least 120 attempts.

his 124 career home runs 5th-most in first 6 years of second baseman s career, behind dan uggla (183), joe gordon (142), chase utley (130), , alfonso soriano (126).

on october 4, in game 4 of playoff series against rays, kinsler led off game home run, sparking rangers 4–3 victory on tampa bay send them alcs.

2012: all-star

kinsler star again in 2012, third time. season, second in al in plate appearances (731), third in @ bats (655) , runs (105), fifth in power-speed number (20.0), sixth in doubles (42), , eighth in hit pitch (10).

2013: rangers all-time stolen base leader

in 2013, kinsler struck out once every 10.4 plate appearances, making him third-toughest batter strike out in american league, , sixth-toughest batter double in league (109.0 @ bats/double play). finished season tied fifth among active players in leadoff home runs. led texas rangers, all-time, career-wise, in stolen bases (172), hit pitch (57), , power-speed number (163.6), , fifth in runs (748), seventh in doubles (249) , walks (462), eighth in home runs (156), , ninth in hits (1,145) , rbis (539). fangraphs ranked him 56th-best baserunner in baseball history.