'Nerve-Wracking!' Texas Rangers New Manager Tony Beasley Wins in Debut

Texas entered a new phase with the third-base coach as its interim manager and squeaked out a victory over the Athletics.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Tony Beasley made his debut as a Major League manager on Monday night as the Texas Rangers defeated the Oakland Athletics 2-1 at Globe Life Field.

Beasley, who takes over after nearly eight years as a Rangers coach and after an eight-year managerial stint in the minors, will guide Texas for the rest of this season. His first win came in the type of contest the Rangers have struggled to win all season — a one-run game.

Texas was 6-24 in one-run games before Monday’s victory.

"It was nerve-wracking," Beasley said with a smile after his debut. "It was a one-run game. Every pitch mattered, every play mattered. We persevered and we got through it. It was fun."

It was the first game Beasley managed since 2013 when he was a minor-league manager in the Washington organization. 

The Rangers were down 1-0 before Marcus Semien tied the game with a solo home run in the bottom of the third.

The Rangers grabbed the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Leody Taveras had a one-out triple. That led the Athletics to remove starter James Kaprielian for reliever Sam Moll. Two hitters later, Bubba Thompson grounded an opposite-field single to right to score Taveras. He later advanced to third on a two-base throwing error by Moll but was later stranded.

Rangers starter Glenn Otto walked the first two hitters he faced and gave up six walks for the game. But he navigated the trouble well, giving up just one run in six innings, along with two hits. He only struck out one. The only run he gave up was on a solo home run by Nick Allen in the third inning.

Otto gutted through those six innings and got a handshake from Beasley after he left the game. He said he was happy he could be a part of Beasley's first win.

"He's poured a lot into baseball and a lot of individuals who are still playing this game," Otto said. "He has a lot of stories. He's definitely one of the people you root for. It was good to be a part of that."

Brock Burke threw two innings of scoreless relief, though he had to navigate two baserunners in the eighth. Jonathan Hernández came on in the ninth to close on the game for the save.

The Rangers started Monday by firing manager Chris Woodward in his fourth season at the helm. Texas president Jon Daniels said the team didn’t expect to contend this season but was hoping to “overachieve.” General manager Chris Young said part of the reason for letting Woodward go was to start the preparations now for 2023.

Beasley joined the Rangers in 2015 and has been their long-time third-base coach under both Jeff Banister and Woodward. Diagnosed with cancer early in his tenure with the Rangers, he’s been cancer-free for four seasons. In fact, that anniversary coincided with Martín Pérez throwing a complete-game shutout against Houston on May 20. Pérez dedicated the game to Beasley and gave him the game ball.

Beasley was a manager in the minor leagues for eight years, spending time in the Pittsburgh and Washington systems. He won more than 600 games, led this team to six league titles or playoff berths, and was a two-time Baseball America Minor League manager of the year.

He called the next several weeks a “bittersweet opportunity,” as Woodward’s firing had to happen for him to get the job, even if it is on an interim basis.

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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard

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