“Sudden Sam” then joined MLB’s newly created Baseball Assistance Team in 1987 and helped hundreds of former players and members of the baseball family through the years.

The Texas Rangers send their condolences to the family of former Major League pitcher Sam McDowell, who passed away Monday at age 84. After recovering from his own battle with alcoholism, he became one of MLB’s 1st sports addiction and player counselors with Texas in the 1980’s.

This week’s SportsDay Rangers podcast features FOX baseball analyst and former catcher A.J. Pierzynski, 2005 WS champion and 2013 Rangers backstop. He talks to @Evan_P_Grant and me about the 2026 playoffs and his summer visit with Pale Hose fan Pope Leo. Please give a listen!

Harmon also founded Merle Harmon’s Fan Fair, a chain of licensed sports merchandise retail stores founded in the 1970’s. It expanded to over 140 stores nationwide before Harmon sold the business in 1996. He passed in 2009.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame today named the late Merle Harmon as one of ten finalists for the 2027 Ford C. Frick Award for Broadcasting Excellence. Harmon called Rangers games on over-the-air and cable TV from 1982-89, his final stop in a 30-year MLB broadcasting career.

This week’s episode of our SportsDay Rangers podcast is a special Wednesday edition as the regular season winds down to 5 games. Josh Hamilton is @Evan_P_Grant and my guest as we talk his playoff race experiences and his recent batting practice exploits at Globe Life Field!

This week’s SportsDay Rangers podcast is LIVE. We return to the DMN studio with Rangers Hall of Famer Ruben Sierra as our guest. @Evan_P_Grant and I talk with Ruben about Roberto Clemente’s legacy, and Sierra’s MLB debut at 20 in 1986. Also the playoff chase is down to 9 games!