Rangers’ front office tension aplenty, according to report

According to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, tension at the Ballpark in Arlington began between GM Jon Daniels and Hall of Famer and former Rangers’ CEO Nolan Ryan as soon as Ryan was brought onboard.

KESN-FM (103.3) interviewed former Texas bench coach Jackie Moore, a self-admitted “Nolan guy” recently to see if any insight into the Rangers’ front office situation could be uncovered.

"“It went back to when Nolan first came over. He put his face on the franchise. It really upset a lot of people. It was never the same since.”"

The report goes on to detail a seeming friction between Daniels and Ryan, that up until recently, the two seemed willing to put aside in hopes of bettering a franchise they both hold dear.

As Daniels emerged as one of the game’s top executives, he and Ryan clashed more as credit was heaped upon the former big league pitcher, leaving Daniels and the rest of the executives out in the cold more often than not.

Since 2008, Daniels has assembled one of the most consistent clubs in the game, after removing his relationship with players, something that Moore said he advised Daniels about.

"“JD asked me what would make him a better general manager. I point blank told him he spent too much time in the clubhouse and too much time getting close to the players. … In my honest opinion, he held that against me.”"

Furthermore, despite being the Rangers’ CEO, Ryan never had, nor did he want the final say concerning baseball decisions, according to Moore.

"“Nolan Ryan did not have final say in the baseball part.”"

Ryan essentially gave Daniels the freedom to make the moves he saw fit, which leaves many to wonder where this dysfunction that led to Ryan’s departure stemmed from. All we know now is that the Nolan Express has left the station and the Ballpark at Arlington will dearly miss him in years to come.