Well, it didn't end like we'd all dreamed it might.
But wow. What a ride. (Proven by this musical montage by the great Michael Gruber of 1310 The Ticket.)
The Rangers were beaten, plain and simple, and really could've easily been swept if not for one swing of the bat by Mitch Moreland, who was far and away the best Rangers hitter (hit .462) in the World Series loss to the Giants that was completed last night with a "freak"ishly dominant performance from Giants ace Tim Lincecum.
The Rangers ran into a buzzsaw in the form of the Giants pitching staff, from Lincecum to 21-year-old No. 4 starter Madison Bumgarner, to a situational bullpen lefty, to the new most feared closer in baseball with a disgusting, yet awesome, beard.
And there was nothing they could do about it. Give the Giants credit. They held Josh Hamilton, Vladimir Guerrero, Ian Kinsler, Bengie Molina, Elvis Andrus, David Murphy and Nelson Cruz to a .200 or worse batting average in the series.
But think about this, Rangers fans, even after the euphoria following the Rangers' win in Oakland the day that clinched the AL West, even after Cliff Lee's complete-game masterpiece in Game 5 in Tampa to give the Rangers their first playoff series win ever, did you REALLY expect this thing to last into November?
If you answered "yes," there's a good chance you're lying.
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Starting with Ron Washington's run-in with cocaine last season, on to the crazy bankruptcy hearings in midseason and the fact that Major League Baseball was actually running the team for much of the season, then the Rangers somehow managing to steal Cliff Lee right out of the Yankees' back pocket and overcoming lengthy DL stints by Hamilton, Cruz and Kinsler, this season has been the most wild roller coaster ride by a successful team possibly ever.
The team moved its closer/set-up man into the starting rotation only to see him lead the team in wins and ERA, and managed to turn the Metroplex into a "baseball town" for a month, possibly longer.
Now we have to watch the Cowboys for nine more weeks? Gag me.
We got to watch the soon-to-be American League MVP, the American League Rookie of the Year and -- despite what he did in the World Series (pitch ONE, not two bad games) -- one of the greatest postseason pitchers to ever play the game, and we got to watch them in one of the most beautiful ballparks in the land filled beyond capacity and earned the reputation in this postseason as being the loudest house in the league. Pat yourselves on the back, Rangers fans. Well done.
So it didn't end the way we'd all hoped, but how great was it to see Alex Rodriguez turn around and walk back to the dugout mystified by the sickest of off-speed pitches as Bengie Molina and Neftali Feliz met in midair between the mound and home plate as the Rangers won the AL pennant? Absorb that thought for a second. The Rangers won the AL pennant.
So it didn't end the way we'd all hoped, but like our leader likes to say, "That's the way baseball go."
