Jim Kern played in the Major leagues for thirteen seasons. He only spent three of those seasons with the Rangers, yet he is one of the most memorable players in franchise history. He stood at 6’5†and was well known for his eccentric, intelligent behavior. He was also widely known for being a prankster. Kern was called “Emu†by his teammates because he looked and acted like a big bird. He kept his teammates and the fans on their toes throughout every game. All of this aside, Jim was a very effective reliever as well.
Kern came to the Rangers in 1979 and enjoyed the best season of his career. He had an overpowering fastball and a lunatic reputation that made him an intimidating short reliever. The Rangers used Kern in 99 games during the 1979 season and he responded with a 13-5 record, a 1.57 ERA with 29 saves and 136 k’s in 143 innings. Jim and Sparky Lyle were both in the Rangers bullpen from 1979-1980 and they were known as “Craziness, Inc.†for their antics, both, on and off-the-field. During a game at Arlington Stadium in 1980, Kern was hit in the mouth with a throw from his catcher, Jim Sundberg, while watching a foul ball. Kern fell flat on his back and suffered a concussion and had a touch of temporary amnesia.
Kern was recognized for his brilliant season in 1979 by winning Fireman of the Year co-honors with Mike Marshall. Kern suffered an elbow injury in 1980 and was never the same again. He went on to appear in a total of 86 games for the Rangers during the 1980-1981 seasons. His record during this time period was 4-13, his ERA was 4.15 and he only recorded eight saves. He then bounced from the White Sox, Reds, Brewers, Phillies and Indians over the last five year of his career.
Kern’s trademark was his scraggly beard that hung down past his collar. This became as much a part of Jim as his rising fastball. In 1982, he was traded from the White Sox to the Reds and was forced to shave his beard so that he would conform to the Reds “no facial hair†rule. Kern was so unhappy in Cincinnati that he forced the Reds to trade him by regrowing his infamous beard.
When you scan the Rangers record book, you won’t find Jim Kern’s name anywhere. In fact, if you asked the casual fan what team that Kern played for, they would more than likely answer, “The Indians.†Jim’s remarkable season in 1979, and his eccentric personality will be remembered by Rangers fans for years to come.
Click here to see Jim’s lifetime stats.
Remember the Rangers!
Jeremy Northrip
rangerhistory@hotmail.com
Roster Transaction
- C Randy Knorr rejected assignment to AAA
Oklahoma – declared a free agent - 3B Tom Evans assigned to AAA Oklahoma – is now
also a free agent (presumably actived from DL for move)
Roster Transaction
- Claimed OF Bo Porter off waivers from the
Oakland A’s - Corey Lee, Juan Moreno, & B.J. Waszgis
assigned to AAA Oklahoma
G162: Rangers shut out on season finale, 3-0
Well, the Rangers did get to play October baseball this year, but unfortunately, it wasn’t the kind we were looking for, it was just the final game in a very dismal season.
Ryan Glynn pitched like he was the ace of the staff yesterday. He went toe to toe with Oakland starter Tim Hudson, going a total of 7 innings, and giving up 2 runs on six hits. Two of the runs were in the final inning he pitched, when he seemed to be getting the ball up, Oakland hit two solo home runs. Other than that, he was masterful. Pitch count was good, he walked four, struck out four, and generally pitched awesome.
Problem was that Tim Hudson was even more awesome. With the division crown on the line, and going for his 20th win, Tim Hudson pitched like a CY Young winner. He went 8 innings, giving up no runs, striking out ten, and giving up only four hits. There were two walks, but one of them was intentional. Tim Hudson was totally awesome, and from the looks of yesterday’s game, he was a big part of the success the A’s have had this year.
My hat goes off to the A’s – they are worthy champs, and I hope they go further than we were able to in the last couple of years in the playoffs against the Yankees.
I did notice on the TV coverage that after the A’s had won, you didn’t hear anything from Tom Grieve anymore. I wonder if he was on the field or in the A’s clubhouse to congratulate his son or something. Again, I can’t express how glad I am it was the A’s that won the division, and not the Mariners. I don’t dislike the Mariners, but I like the A’s – great young team, great heart. Also, I’m from Philadelphia, so there’s that tie too (Although when I was born, they had already left for Kansas City).
G161: SWEET MOTHER OF GOD! Rangers lose 23-2!
OH MY GOD! – Just when you didn’t think it could possibly get worse – it does. Worst loss ever in team history, and the most runs the A’s ever score in their team history – going all the way back to the Philadelphia days.
A big two THUMBS DOWN! Could it get any worse on the final game tomorrow? Look at this box score!
Line Score AL FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - TEXAS 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 9 0 OAKLAND 9 0 1 0 5 0 8 0 x 23 24 0 (FINAL) BATTERIES: TEX - DARREN OLIVER, BRIAN SIKORSKI (1ST), MATT PERISHO (5TH), FRANCISCO CORDERO (5TH), JONATHAN JOHNSON (7TH), DOUG DAVIS (7TH), JEFF ZIMMERMAN (8TH) AND RANDY KNORR, BJ WASZGIS (8TH) OAK - BARRY ZITO, SCOTT SERVICE (7TH), TODD BELITZ (9TH) AND RAMON HERNANDEZ, SAL FASANO (6TH) WP - BARRY ZITO (7-4) LP - DARREN OLIVER (2-9) SAVE - NONE HOME RUNS: TEX - NONE OAK - RANDY VELARDE (11) OFF SIKORSKI IN THE 1ST, 1 ON JASON GIAMBI (43) OFF SIKORSKI IN THE 3RD, 0 ON MIGUEL TEJADA (30) OFF CORDERO IN THE 5TH, 3 ON RYAN CHRISTENSON (4) OFF D DAVIS IN THE 7TH, 2 ON TIME: 3:32 ATT: 35,546 PROBABLES: TEX - RYAN GLYNN (5-6, 5.84) OAK - TIM HUDSON (19-6, 4.31) Box Score TEXAS (2) VS OAKLAND (23) - FINAL TEXAS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg Sc Green cf 5 0 1 0 0 1 5 .242 R Clayton ss 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 .241 M Young 2b 2 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 R Palmeiro 1b 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 .288 Dransfeldt ss 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .115 Curtis lf 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 .275 a-Valdes ph-rf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .260 Sierra dh 4 1 1 0 0 0 2 .237 Ledee rf-lf 2 1 1 0 2 1 0 .238 Sheldon 2b-1b 4 0 2 0 0 1 1 .289 Lamb 3b 4 0 2 1 0 0 0 .276 Knorr c 3 0 0 0 0 0 5 .303 Waszgis c 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .222 Totals 36 2 9 2 2 10 17 a-singled for Curtis in the 8th. BATTING: RBI - Lamb (47), Waszgis (4). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - Sc Green 2, Knorr 1, Sierra 1, M Young 1. Team LOB - 9. OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg Long cf 4 3 3 3 1 0 0 .290 b-Porter ph-cf 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 .154 R Velarde 2b 5 3 3 2 0 0 2 .277 Menechino 2b 2 1 2 2 0 0 0 .255 Ja Giambi 1b 3 3 3 3 2 0 0 .334 Je Giambi pr-1b 2 0 1 0 0 1 1 .253 Saenz dh 3 0 1 1 1 0 1 .310 J Ortiz pr-dh 2 2 1 1 0 1 3 .182 d-Hinch ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .250 Tejada ss 4 1 1 5 1 0 4 .275 c-Byrnes ph-rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .300 Grieve lf 4 1 1 0 1 1 2 .279 R Christenson pr-lf 1 2 1 3 0 0 0 .248 Piatt rf-3b 6 2 4 0 0 1 2 .299 Chavez 3b 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .280 a-M Bellhorn ph-3b-ss 4 0 0 0 1 3 5 .154 Ra Hernandez c 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 .238 Fasano c 3 1 2 2 0 1 0 .214 Totals 48 23 24 23 10 10 24 a-walked for Chavez in the 2nd; b-walked for Long in the 7th; c-singled for Tejada in the 7th; d-struck out for J Ortiz in the 8th. BATTING: 2B - Long (34, Sikorski); Grieve (39, Cordero); Fasano (6, Cordero); Piatt (5, Jo Johnson); Menechino (9, Jo Johnson). HR - R Velarde (11, 1st inning off Sikorski 1 on, 2 out); Ja Giambi (43, 3rd inning off Sikorski 0 on, 2 out); Tejada (30, 5th inning off Cordero 3 on, 1 out); R Christenson (4, 7th inning off D Davis 2 on, 2 out). RBI - Ja Giambi 3 (137), Saenz (32), Tejada 5 (115), Ra Hernandez (61), Long 3 (80), R Velarde 2 (40), Fasano 2 (19), Menechino 2 (26), J Ortiz (1), R Christenson 3 (18). 2-out RBI - Ra Hernandez, Long 3, R Velarde 2, Ja Giambi, J Ortiz, R Christenson 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - Ra Hernandez 1, M Bellhorn 1, Tejada 2, Hinch 1. Team LOB - 11. -------------------------------------------------- Texas - 010 000 001 -- 2 Oakland - 901 050 80X -- 23 -------------------------------------------------- TEXAS ip h r er bb so hr era D Oliver (L, 2-9) 2/3 5 6 6 1 0 0 7.50 Sikorski 3 1/3 4 4 4 4 2 2 5.73 Perisho 1/3 3 4 4 1 1 0 7.46 Cordero 1 2/3 3 1 1 2 2 1 5.35 Jo Johnson 2/3 5 7 7 2 2 0 6.21 D Davis 1/3 2 1 1 0 1 1 5.38 Je Zimmerman 1 2 0 0 0 2 0 5.30 OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era Zito (W, 7-4) 6 5 1 1 1 7 0 2.72 Service 2 2 0 0 0 2 0 6.38 T Belitz 1 2 1 1 1 1 0 2.70 WP - Perisho. Pitches-strikes: Zito 100-62; Service 34-22; T Belitz 16-10; D Oliver 29-18; Sikorski 73-38; Perisho 29-19; Cordero 39-21; Jo Johnson 37-20; D Davis 20-13; Je Zimmerman 28-21. Ground balls-fly balls: Zito 6-5; Service 2-2; T Belitz 1-1; D Oliver 2-0; Sikorski 1-7; Perisho 0-0; Cordero 0-3; Jo Johnson 0-0; D Davis 0-0; Je Zimmerman 0-1. Batters faced: Zito 24; Service 8; T Belitz 6; D Oliver 8; Sikorski 18; Perisho 5; Cordero 10; Jo Johnson 9; D Davis 3; Je Zimmerman 5. UMPIRES: HP--John Shulock. 1B--Brian Runge. 2B--Rocky Roe. 3B--Ian Lamplugh. T--3:32. Att--35,546. Weather: 72 degrees, sunny. Wind: 7 mph, out to right.
Dick Bosman Fired
TEXAS RANGERS WILL NOT RETAIN DICK BOSMAN AS PITCHING COACH FOR 2001 SEASON
FOR RELEASE: Immediate
The Texas Rangers announced this morning that Dick Bosman will not return as the team’s major league pitching coach for the 2001 season.
Bosman, who has served as the Rangers’ pitching coach for the last six years, also will not work the final three games of the season this weekend in Oakland. Bullpen coach Larry Hardy will handle the pitching coach duties for the Oakland series. The search for a new pitching coach will begin after the season.
“The decision to change pitching coaches was totally mine,†commented Rangers Manager Johnny Oates. “After further analyzing where we are and where we want to be, I felt it was time for an overall change in our pitching philosophy.
“Dick and I have worked together for a long time, and I appreciate all his efforts. The job of a pitching coach in today’s game is a tough one. He is not the reason that we have failed to perform up to expectations this season. However, I feel that we need to make improvement and progress in our overall pitching.â€
Bosman served as Oates’ pitching coach in Baltimore from 1992-94 before joining him in Texas for the 1995 season. The former major league pitcher with Washington/Texas, Cleveland, and Oakland from 1967-76 was previously pitching coach for the Chicago White Sox in 1986-87 and a minor league pitching instructor for Baltimore from 1988-91.
Oates also indicated that the other five members of the major league coaching staff: dugout coach Bucky Dent, bullpen coach Larry Hardy, hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, first base coach Bobby Jones, and third base coach Jerry Narron have been invited to return for the 2001 season. Dent, Hardy, Jaramillo, and Narron have been on Oates’ staff since 1995. Jones was added in May, 2000 following the retirement of Ed Napoleon.
Roster Transaction
- Pitching Coach Dick Bosman not asked to return
for next season – will not work the remainder of the season.
G160: Rangers drop opener to A’s, 7-5, Dick Bosman fired
The final series of the season. I hope going into this series that we actually lose all three, and let the A’s win it. We have nothing to play for at this point – the season is just about a total loss, we’re way in last place, and the only point in winning now would be to help the Mariners. Given a choice between the Mariners and the A’s, I’d rather the A’s get the division crown.
Well, we followed up on this plan in Game 1, losing 7-5. As losses go, it wasn’t the worst, we didn’t lie down, but a loss is a loss, and in this season, there’s a ton of ’em. 89 losses. That means we have to win both the last two to avoid a 90 loss season – don’t think it’s gonna happen. :)
We used seven pitchers, Kenny Rogers going 4.1, giving up five hits, and 3 earned runs. No one else pitched more than a single inning (Perisho had a 0 for IP). Francisco Cordero gave up two runs in 2/3 of an inning, and Jonathan Johnson & Mike Venafro each gave up a run, but neither was earned. On our side of the stick, we had a few decent nights by Scott sheldon, who went 2 for 3 after coming in early for Luis Alicea (Luis never played the field), Royce Clayton, who went 3 for 5, and Randy Knorr, who went 3 for 4.
Johnny Oates also fired Dick Bosman, which was a surprise, as they’d been together 9 years over two teams. Be curious to see who we bring in as a pitching coach. My initial vote – Bill Haselman.
G159: Rangers win with big offense, 13-6
Well, I was really hoping to come out of Seattle winning two of three and hurting Seattle – I really want to see the A’s win the division. Didn’t happen. No change in the standings at all during this series – Seattle is still 1/2 game up on Oakland going into the final three games of the season.
I had forgotten this game was on at 5:30, and didn’t see much of it, as I tuned in late. I did get to see Ruben Sierra’s home run – I was really really hoping he’d get one, on the (fairly decent) chance he won’t be here next season. He was all kinds of smiles in the dugout, and that was very nice to see – my wife even commented that it’s great to see players smile like that.
The other notable about this game (other than the fact we trounced on the Mariners) was the 5 stolen bases by Scarborough Green. I really think he should be given a shot at a 5th outfielder position. It’s too bad he can’t hit – because he plays passable defense, and has some ungodly speed – he could be a great leadoff hitter.
This weekend Tom Grieve has a chance to see his son’s team clinch the division with him announcing it. That must be cool for him.
G158: Rangers lose to Mariners, 6-4
As this season draws to a close, I’m finding it harder and harder to sit and watch an entire game without flipping channels, looking at something else on my TiVo… This game was no exception.
We lost, and we had chances. We couldn’t follow through and beat the Mariners’ closer for the win. Oh well.
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