Texas Rangers

Texas Rangers outfielder Ian Desmond hit his 20th home run of the season during Wednesday's 6-4 loss to the Oakland Athletics, becoming just the fourth player in major league history to record 20-homer campaigns as both a primary shortstop and center fielder, per MLB Stat of the Day (h/t MLB.com's Ryan Posner).

Cole Hamels never really came close to winning a Cy Young Award when he was in the National League. He placed in the voting four times, but never higher than fifth. The competition was just too good.

So, maybe being in the American League and part of a race with too much competition is just the ticket he needs.

Texas Rangers first baseman and designated hitter Prince Fielder will undergo a neck operation on Friday that will end his 2016 season.

Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram reported on Wednesday that Fielder is slated for fusion surgery.

Joey Gallo is very good at hitting the ball over the fence. In fact, he did it Tuesday in his first game since the Texas Rangers recalled him. 

It came in the fifth inning of the Rangers' 6-3 loss to the Oakland A's. Like most Gallo blasts, it was impressive—a no-doubt drive to left-center field off Oakland starter Sonny Gray that might as well have lit up the scoreboard the moment it touched his bat.

An underwhelming 2015 season left Texas Rangers star Ian Desmond in need of reinventing himself.

Like Apple on the brink of bankruptcy in the late 1990s or Taylor Swift transitioning from country singer to mainstream pop star, Desmond’s brand was due for a seismic change when he entered free agency this past offseason.

Texas Rangers outfielder Shin-Soo Choo is heading to the 15-day disabled list with a back injury, per Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.  

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Prince Fielder's dreadful 2016 season has taken another bad turn, with the Texas Rangers placing the former All-Star on the disabled list on Wednesday because of neck problems. 

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Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor is halfway through his third major league season and has just three months until his rookie contract is up, per Spotrac. 

The Texas Rangers have the best record in the American League, and they've mostly done it without Prince Fielder.

Oh, sure, Fielder has been around, appearing in 72 of the Rangers' 76 games. But for much of that time, he hasn't resembled the lineup-anchoring power hitter Texas expects him to be.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Colby Lewis will miss up to two months after suffering a strained lat muscle, per T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.

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