Rangers Broadcaster Jared Sandler on The A-Team-The Rivalry Is Alive and Well

It's time for the Astros and Rangers to meet up again for the Silver Boot! As the two clubs are set to meet in Arlington, Rangers radio/TV broadcaster Jared Sandler joined The A-Team. He talks about the current state of the World Champions. Plus, the history in recent years of this rivalry. 

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
With the Astros and Rangers get toset to take on one another in Arlington
this weekend. Jared Sandler, whohandles like myself, radio and TV duties
for one of the teams in town. We appreciate your time, Jared,
and it's been a good start tothe season for the Rangers, some of
their most notable pitchers a player wejust talked about last segment, which will

(00:21):
fill you in on. But asthey set sail into the second weekend of
the season, they're obviously with someother stuff with what happened with Josh Young
and how they're going to accommodate forthat, somewhat like what happened at the
beginning of last year with Corey Seegermissing some time at points in the season.
His return has been fine. Everythingabout how things finished and how things
started, I would assume Rangers brassand fans and the team are perfectly fine

(00:43):
with where things stand so far.Yeah, no, thanks so much for
having me in. Yeah. Ithink you know, they were very much
tested last year when it came toinjuries and injuries to big names, and
I mean Asteris fans can relate tothis. I mean the Asterisks have dominated
the American League for the last sevenyears. You don't have that level of
success without depth. And the Rangerslast year had a roster of position players

(01:08):
that was pretty deep, and theyhave it again this year, and I
think that, you know, allowsthem to weather those storms as much as
possible. And they've gone off toa good start. But this is about
to be a really tough stretch,seventeen games in seventeen days, two series
against the Astros. Like you mentioned, the Tigers, who I've got a
world of respect for a J.Hinch, starting with you know what he
did when he was with the Astros. I think that's a pretty good ball

(01:32):
club, and then Atlanta as wella part of it. So it's gonna
be a really tough run for theRangers. And obviously having to play the
Astros seven times over the next tendays or whatever, that doesn't make life
any We joked a little bit yesterday, Jared about that very fact regarding the
Tigers, only in that the WhiteSox and Mets have been their early season
foes. I do think they're verygood. Their pitching is incredible, but

(01:53):
again, it's been against those twoteams and everything will all even out as
the course of the season moves forwardin the postseason. Last year, the
thought was if the Astros could getpast the starters, things might work out
in their favor, and at timesit seemed like it did. Playoffs different
animal, you can go to theguys you count on the most a lot
more often, and that certainly playedout. What do you think of the
state of this year's bullpen for theRangers? Yeah, well, I just

(02:19):
don't know what to make of anypitcher who has to face the Astros in
Orleans and the way the Astros justabsolutely own this ballpark. But yeah,
the bullpen is deeper, and you'reright, that was the I mean,
the conventional thought process in baseball isthat in the postseason you're not gonna win
if you don't have a bullpen thatcan get out, because you're gonna play
close games and you've got to beable to win, you know, the

(02:40):
final three innings. But the Rangerstarters did a really good job limited the
exposure of the bullpen last year,and the guys who you know, did
did get on the mound Chapman sportsLa clerk, you know, they for
the most part, did a goodjob. This year's bullpen is is deeper.
They still have a little bit ofan identity crisis of the you know,
the games. Jose Lecark is kindof the team's closer, but he's

(03:04):
you know, not had a greatstart to the season. He can be
straight t and they've got two veteransin Kirby Yates and David Robertson, who
they you know, spent a decentamount of money on. But they're at
stages in their career where you justnever know when when Father time's going to
catch up to them. So sofar, so good. This is they
don't have the firepower the back ofthe bullpen like Houston does, and probably

(03:27):
don't have the depth either. Butor for the Rangers, just in a
vacuum relative to last year, we'retalking about it historically bad bullpen, and
they've taken leaps forward. I wouldimagine at the end of the year we'll
look at as an average or competitivebullpen. Talking to Jared Sandler here on
Sports Talk seven to ninety, kindof a two part question, you kind
of you brought up an aspect ofthis. You know, the Astros played

(03:51):
so well up there in Arlington,particularly that season series at the end of
the year where the Astros went inand just wrecked shop, and then you
know, come back here and it'sstill happening. To an extent, the
Astros couldn't find a way to wina single home game in that series,
and it was kind of a microcosmof the whole year. They were just
terrible at home. I mean terribleis the appropriate word, because they were

(04:15):
so much better on the road,and for a division winner for them to
have the substandard record in their homeballpark, and so do you think there's
something to that or is that justa quirk particularly with these two teams,
Like as we enter this series tonightthat's gonna be played in Arlington, do
you think that's even top of mindfor anybody on the Rangers side, how
well the Astros play there. Yeah, I mean there's such a you know,

(04:38):
as you can imagine with a goodteam, there's a lot of turnover
or there wasn't a lot of turnoverfrom last year to this year, so
a lot of Like it's not likeit's a totally roster with young guys who
are sort of oblivious to what's happened. Yeah, I mean, like I
don't think it's it's funny. Idon't know how much you guys experienced.
The coverage of the Rangers has pickedup over the last I don't know,

(05:00):
six eight months because the team's beengood, but it's still not so intense
like it is for football to wearlike that would be a huge storyline if
the Cowboys were playing a team thathad kicked their ass, you know,
in like the Packers, the Packersowned the Cowboys in Arlington. That always
comes up. No one from likea media standpoint brings it up, But
I think the players are aware.I don't think they they read anything into
it other than just random sampling.But like, I don't know. For

(05:25):
me, I think there is somethingto be said about going to a you
know, an enemy venue and beingcomfortable. And the thing that jumped out
to me about the Rangers and theirsuccess on the road in the playoffs last
year, which obviously included the gamesin Houston, is the ability to score
first. And it's Baseball is theonly sport where you don't really have Like

(05:45):
in basketball and hockey, whoever hasthe first possession wins the tip whins ob
faseball face off that doesn't there's nobearing right and football you at least have
the choice. Uh, with thecoin toss and baseball, there's no choice
who hits first. Yet if youscore first, you win, we like
fifty six percent of the game,So in a weird way, like the
visiting team statistically speaking, does kindof have a little bit of an advantage.

(06:09):
And I think the Rangers took advantageof that in Houston, and I
think Houston took advantage of that inArlington last year. It seemed like before
the Rangers would hit, whether itwas in the regular season or postseason,
they'd be down one, three,five runs. So I other than that,
I don't know what to make ofit. It was so bizarre because
obviously, as you guys know,the Astros really took advantage of their home

(06:30):
park in recent years. But Astrowas just an anomaly. And I still
have no and I don't know ifanyone has real, real reasons or good
answers as to why that was.I can't help myself with you bringing in
all these other sports and talking about, you know, scoring first aspect,
like if the other team gets theball first, like if Jordan Love's team
gets the ball first, they're obviouslygoing to score a touchdown, and it's

(06:51):
going to be an embarrassing day.And it brings me into sense. You
brought it up. This Astros Rangersrivalry is real because now they're foe as
they're playing each other, battling fora division, playing in the postseason.
Unlike the Yankees, the Rangers canactually beat the Astros, and unlike the
Texans and Cowboys, who while theywill play this year, it's such a
rare occurrence. And for the mostpart, the Texans haven't really been up

(07:15):
enough over the course of their timeto really be a true rival. But
the irony is that the Cowboys havebeen down the entire time, especially for
where they were and this offseason theirowners, the one who said we're all
in and our fans there in Arlingtonand in everywhere else in the Metroplex watching
the Texans load up under C.J. Stroud now adding Stefan Diggs and

(07:35):
saying, man, I didn't knowwhat all in meant until the Cowboys did
nothing. Yeah, no, especiallyafter last week, and that was a
big talking point. You know hereat sports talk radio today, and you
know there are people who swear byJerry Jones, but I think more people,

(07:56):
at least on the airwaves kind oftake the other side, where like,
what are we doing here? Andwhen he opens his mouth like that
and doesn't back it up, thenyeah, they there are a lot of
dissatisfied Cowboys fans, and there arepeople, I mean, the You're right,
there's not as much of a directrivalry between the Cowboys and Texans as

(08:18):
there is Astros Rangers, But Imean, it's an easy comparison to make,
and a lot of the questions arewhich team is better equipped to potentially
win a Super Bowl. And maybeit's just the misery of Cowboys fans and
their ineptitude as an organization the lasthowever many years to get over the hump,
But a lot of Cowboys fans wouldprobably say, if they had to,

(08:39):
you know, drink truth serum,that the Texans are and why wouldn't
you. I mean, they gotthe better quarterback, they've got the better
head coach, they've probably got thebetter supporting cast, and you know,
they're a young, up and comingteam that's fun to watch, whereas the
Cowboys just seem like a recycled versionof themselves year and year out, where
it might look really shiny over thecourse of the regular season, but you're

(09:01):
pretty sure. You know how thestory ends, and it's ended that way
pretty much every single year for thelast thirty years. Jared Sandler here on
Sports Talk seven ninety Rangers radio andtelevision broadcaster. I saw you gonna be
calling some games this year. That'sgonna be That's gonna be awesome for you.
Yeah. No, I'm looking forwardto it. It's kind of like

(09:22):
the Rudy equivalent. You got,like an ugly Jewish guy with a big
nose who they're letting on TV.We'll see, you know, the spring
training we did some games. Weweren't on camera very much. Regular season
a little bit more so, ifI get pulled in the fifth ending of
the first game, right after anon camera shot, you guys will know
exactly why. Well, if youget pulled, that means they're going to
the bullpen. Do they already havesomebody lined up to kick you out of

(09:45):
it? They'll have to scramble.But they got much better looking people in
this building than me. Who I'msure they can just stick in there and
let let one of our analysts stealthe show. But hey, I do
want to say one thing I touchedon the rivalry Adam I think we spoke,
you know, years a decade agowhen the Rangers and Astros were both

(10:05):
good in fifteen and sixteen, andthat was a blast, right, Like
that was so much fun. Andthen the rivalry kind of existed from seventeen
to twenty two. But like,I don't know, did the Astros take
the Rangers seriously? And I don'tblame them the answers, though, it's
really cool that we now have thesetwo teams both competitive and both good rivalries.

(10:26):
Emotion, passion, that stuff sogood for any sport, especially baseball,
and I'm really excited to see howthis all plays out here in twenty
four. Now there's a lot ofincestuous you know, Dave Raymonds up there
and his background here, so there'sa lot of you know, crossover if
you will. And I've got abuddy that I went to school with.
It's texted me already and just beenlike, you know, hey, when
did the benches clear tonight? AndI was like, first pitch, you

(10:48):
know, So it is it's betterwhen they're both good, especially within the
division, and unlike that Cowboys Texanspseudo rivalry, there's something here and I
think it's it's better for every one. So hey, let's get the let's
get the hate on starting this weekend. Sounds good. Screw you, guys,
I can't stand you exactly back atyou man, Hey, Jared,

(11:09):
thanks for the time, good luckthe rest of the season, and especially
when you're in that booth on television. I appreciate THATLL thanks so much for
having me. I have a greatrest of your day and weekend.