Texas Rangers player Chris Young says Oakland Athletics’ departure is ‘sad for baseball’

Texas Rangers general manager Chris Young made a appearance on GBag Nation on 105.3 The Fan (KRLD-FM) to discuss the Rangers’ latest road trip, Wyatt Langford’s September surge, lessons learned for the 2024 season and more.

Here are some highlights, edited for clarity.

What do you think about the Last series in Oakland for the RangersIt’s a place rich in baseball history, what comes to mind first?

Chris Young: It’s funny, I got to the ballpark this afternoon in the parking lot and there were already fans lining up to get in. I spent a lot of time here as a player. I love this place, there’s a lot of history here, a lot of great players, a lot of great teams that have come through Oakland. You know, it’s sad. It’s sad for baseball that they’re leaving, but I’m glad we’re here to close it out. I have great memories of pitching here, playing against the A’s. It’s a great environment when the place is packed, the fans are here and they’re loud. It creates a great environment. I think that’s what we’re going to expect for these last three games here. I’m looking forward to it and I just hope we play well and find a way to win in a loud environment.

It’s an old stadium, it’s run down, the facilities aren’t the best. But I always thought that was part of the A’s identity, too. They found a way to accept that and hold a grudge. There wasn’t a lot of fun playing for Oakland, but they’ve always put out good teams and they play hard. This year’s team is no different. Mark Kotsay makes them play really hard, and the guys seem to be embracing the blue-collar mentality that comes with playing in the Coliseum.

It’s impressive Wyatt Langford finishes 2024 season strong in the context of excitement as we approach next year?

Young: I can speak from personal experience: Your first full season, at the end of September, it’s a mental ordeal. You’ve never had a season this long in your life, you’ve never played this many games in your life. So you’re hoping to get to the finish line, you’re not expecting to sprint across it. Wyatt is picking up the pace as he gets across the finish line. It’s really fun to watch. I think it’s a testament to Wyatt’s ability, the adjustments he’s made throughout the season, his mentality of getting better, not letting things get to him and taking it day by day. He’s got all the attributes of a really good player. To see what he’s done over the last six weeks and how strong he’s gotten, it’s so exciting to think about what he’s going to be like in 2025 and beyond.

Josh Jung ArrestedWhat is his perspective?

Young: We’re trying to get some answers on that. I think it’s frustrating for Josh. He’s a hard worker and he’s so committed. The fact that he’s having a little setback right now, it’s tough on him. I know he wanted to finish the season strong. But this issue has gotten a little bit worse. It’s kind of normal, they put a plate in his wrist to stabilize the bone. But there’s a tendon that runs along that plate that continues to get irritated. So I think we need to take a step back and evaluate how best to mitigate this and manage it going forward. We’re hoping to have some answers in the next four or five days as to what that looks like.

What do you think are the most important things you learned from taking on the repetition challenge? What are your thoughts on this?

Young: Well, I experienced that as a player in 2015, going into the 2016 season in Kansas City, when we won the World Series. I think as a player, it’s natural that you have that emotional month where you’re at the top of the game and you win. Then you start your offseason and you need time mentally and physically to recover, and then you’re kind of behind. Then the offseason speeds up on you. Then you get to spring training and you’re like, “Okay, I have to take it easy because I’m not as far along as I was last year when there was a full offseason.” All of a sudden, you look up and you get to May and June and you’re still kind of behind, because you haven’t stepped up and caught up on the work that you missed. I’m not sure there’s a perfect way to avoid this, other than just making sure you have the same full offseason and do it with the same grit and mentality that you did in losing seasons.

Maybe it’s natural for players to let their guard down a little bit after a win. I saw that in Kansas City. I think one of the big things about this game is you never really get there. There are very few players that have job security and are fully arrived in this game. So I think all of our players have to stay motivated, stay focused and keep working because the offseason is the foundation for what you can expect in the regular season. If you don’t build that good, solid foundation in the offseason, it’s very difficult to catch up during the season.

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