Bruce Bochy is out as manager of the Texas Rangers. The team called it a mutual parting, and for once that feels about right.

Bochy leaves with a record just a touch over .500, 249 wins and 237 losses, but those numbers barely matter. What matters is he gave this fanbase something it had never had before: a championship parade. That 2023 run will live forever. Seager on fire, Semien steady, the bullpen bending but never breaking, and Bochy calmly steering through October like he had done so many times before. After decades of heartbreak, the Rangers finally got to call themselves champions.

The years that followed showed how hard it is to stay on top. The 2024 season never clicked, too many injuries and too many empty bats. The team finished with a losing record and missed the playoffs.

This season had all the makings of a rebound but it never came together. The pitching staff actually did its part, finishing as one of the best groups in baseball, and kept the Rangers in plenty of games. The problem was on the other side. The offense could never stay consistent enough to match the arms. Some nights they strung it together, but more often the lineup went cold at the wrong time. By late September the playoff picture had slipped away, and finishing at 81 and 81 told the story. Great pitching wasted and a team that once looked like a contender left stuck in the middle.

Bochy is 70 now. The grind of 162 games wears down even the youngest managers, and he had already taken a short leave during the summer. Add in the fact that his contract was up and it was clear something had to give. The fact that the club is offering him a front office role shows there is no bad blood. They respect what he did and still want his presence around the organization.

So how should Rangers fans feel? Grateful, first and foremost. Bochy delivered the one thing this franchise had never captured, a championship. He changed what people expect from Texas baseball. At the same time, it is fair to feel a little sad. Three seasons fly by fast, and outside of that magical October in 2023, the last two years have been frustrating.

Still, he leaves with his head high and a ring on his finger. Whatever comes next for the Rangers, that banner will always hang in the rafters, and Bruce Bochy will always be the man who finally brought it home.

Article by AJ McQuillan | Toast Sports Media