Rangers History Today: Coming Up Big In A Pinch

On this date, Bill Stein set the American League record for most consecutive pinch-hit appearances with a base hit.

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On this date in Texas Rangers history, Bill Stein added to his legendary pinch-hitting streak as the Rangers hosted the Minnesota Twins at Arlington Stadium.

On May 25, 1981, Stein came up as a pinch-hitter for left fielder Leon Roberts and drove in a run in his only plate appearance. What made it interesting was that it was Stein’s seventh straight hit in a pinch-hitting appearance, which at the time became an American League record.

That season was Stein’s first in Texas and it might have been his best. Stein was hitting .441 at the end of June and finished that season with a .330 batting average, as he scored 21 runs and drove in 22 runs. But, Stein only appeared in 53 games.

Stein came close to duplicating those numbers in 1983, when he hit .310 in 232 at-bats and drove in 33 runs. He played two more seasons for Texas and then retired.

For his 14-year Major League career, Stein played in 959 games, hit .267 and hit 44 home runs. He also played for Seattle, the Chicago White Sox, and St. Louis. But, oddly enough, he spent more time as a Ranger than anywhere else.

After his Rangers career ended, Stein bounced around as a minor league manager, including a stint with the Columbia Mets, during which he led the Mets affiliate to an 83-60 record in 1990, the best record in the South Atlantic League that season. 

Stein then moved on to the Clinton Giants in 1992, and following a break in 1993, took over an independent minor league team in Tyler, Texas, called the Tyler Wildcatters.

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