Top 5 Hitting Seasons in Texas Rangers Franchise History

Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees is having a remarkable season, currently slashing .316/.419/.701 with a 1.120 OPS and a OPS+ of 213, which is astounding. He is also set to soon break the American League home run record of 61 home runs, which was previously set way back in 1961 by Roger Maris. There is an argument to be made that he is having the best steroid-free season in history, post-integration. As incredible as that is, us Texas Rangers fans are having to begrudgingly watch a Yankee complete this miraculous task.

However, the Rangers have also had players post some pretty incredible offensive seasons of their own. Here is the top five Texas Rangers hitting seasons of all-time.

Some ground rules first.

The player’s season would have to have been with the Texas Rangers, not the Washington Senators, and the rankings will be decided on the stat OPS+. This is because OPS+ takes players’ on-base plus slugging percentage and normalizes the number throughout the league, taking into account any external factors, like the ballpark or the league a player plays in.

By doing so, it creates a league average number of 100, meaning if that’s your OPS+ then you’re an average player, and if your OPS+ is 150 it would mean your performance is 50 percent better than the average.

This goes to show how absolutely insane of a season Judge is currently having, and will show how effective the players on this list actually were. Some of these will surprise you.

The five best hitting seasons in Texas Rangers history

5. 1999 Rafael Palmeiro: 160 OPS+

Stats: 158 Games, 183 Hits, 47 Home Runs, 148 RBIs, .324 BA, .420 OBP, .630 SLG, 1.050 OPS,  160 OPS+

One would think that a season like this would have a higher OPS+, however, the Ballpark in Arlington at the time was a massive hitters park. While the stats are phenomenal, the park factors come into play here, placing this season lower on the list than one would think. However, that still places him as the 5th best OPS+ season in Rangers history.

Palmeiro would be an All-Star and be awarded a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger award this season, while finishing 5th in MVP voting, behind his teammate who won the award that year Ivan Rodriguez. Certainly a memorable season.

The five best hitting seasons in Texas Rangers history

3. 2008 Milton Bradley: 162 OPS+

Stats: 126 Games, 133 Hits, 22 Home Runs, 77 RBIs, .321 BA, .436 OBP, .563 SLG, .999 OPS, 162 OPS+

I told you some of these were surprising.

Bradley’s 2008 season was incredibly undervalued, as he had not only the highest OBP, OPS, and OPS+ in the AL, he was also top ten in the league in batting average and slugging percentage. He finished 17th in MVP voting in 2008, but he had far better hitting stats that season.

He did, however, have a lower WAR than many who ranked above him in MVP voting, but WAR also takes into account fielding, and oWAR(offensive WAR) takes into account base-running, while OPS+ is purely a hitting stat, which is why Bradley makes this list.

His 2008 season was one of the best pure hitting seasons in Rangers history.

The five best hitting seasons in Texas Rangers history

2. 1993 Juan Gonzalez: 169 OPS+

Stats: 140 Games, 166 Hits, 46 Home Runs, 118 RBIs, .310 BA, .368 OBP, .632 SLG, 1.000 OPS, 169 OPS+

Juan Gonzalez was awarded six Silver Slugger awards and two MVP awards during his incredible playing career.

Steroids scandal aside, Gonzalez was feared and treated as one of the greats among the league during his tenure, and while he won his two MVP awards in later seasons, his 1993 season ranks as his best pure hitting season.

This season would’ve likely been an MVP season if not for the insane showings by John Olerud and Frank Thomas. However, Gonzalez’s 1993 season makes this list at number two.

The five best hitting seasons in Texas Rangers history

1. 2010 Josh Hamilton: 170 OPS+

Stats: 133 Games, 186 Hits, 32 Home Runs, 100 RBIs, .359 BA, .411 OBP, .633 SLG, 1.044 OPS, 170 OPS+

The fact that Hamilton achieved these numbers in only 133 games is astounding.

To nobody’s surprise, the man that won the 2010 MVP award, who was called “the Natural” holds statistically the best hitting season in Rangers history, as he also had the highest batting average in team history and the 2nd highest WAR ever recorded by a Ranger.

It’s fitting that 2010 was also the year of the Rangers’ first ever World Series appearance. Hamilton’s magical run in 2010 will definitely be remembered, and it’s indisputably best offensive season in Rangers history.