Inside The Rangers

Isiah Kiner-Falefa Thanks Rangers, Fans After Trade to Twins

Isiah Kiner-Falefa took the time to thank the Texas Rangers and their fans after being traded to the Minnesota Twins.

Chris Halicke

The Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins pulled off an old-fashioned baseball trade Saturday, swapping Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Mitch Garver. The Rangers upgraded their offense with the addition of Garver while the Twins got themselves a stout defender to play shortstop.

Ultimately, that's what Kiner-Falefa wanted—to play shortstop. And after the Rangers dropped half a billion dollars on Corey Seager and Marcus Semien in free agency, that was no longer an avenue for the Hawaiin native. At least, not in Texas.

But before he rerouted his travel plans from Arizona to Florida, Kiner-Falefa took some time to thank the Rangers and their fans for his time in Texas.

Thank you

@Rangers

for giving a young kid from Hawaii an opportunity. Thank you to all my teammates/coaches for grinding everyday. I can’t thank the fans enough for supporting my growth as a player and sticking with me!

-Isiah Kiner-Falefa (

@Isiahkf11

)

In Kiner-Falefa's first couple years in the big leagues, the Rangers moved him around where they needed him. First he was a utility infielder. Then they tried him out at catcher. When that didn't work out, they shifted him back to the infield. After a standout performance during both versions of spring training in 2020, Kiner-Falefa quickly established himself as one of the better defensive infielders in baseball by winning a Gold Glove at third base.

The Rangers rewarded him with the everyday job at shortstop in 2021, which was his ultimate goal all along. With the Twins, he'll get to do just that.

"I was just really happy for the opportunity to play shortstop everyday, the opportunity to come to a new team and the best part about this whole situation is the Twins want me," Kiner-Falefa told reporters, including the Pioneer Press' Betsy Helfand, on Saturday. "I want to be somewhere a team wants me."

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Chris Halicke
CHRIS HALICKE

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