Rangers Hire Ian Kinsler As Special Assistant

The Rangers announced Monday that they’ve hired four-time All-Star Ian Kinsler as a special assistant to general manager Chris Young. Kinsler is slated to serve as the manager for Team Israel in the upcoming World Baseball Classic but will begin his duties in this new role with the Rangers following the WBC.

Kinsler, 40, was a 17th-round pick by the Rangers back in 2003 and, despite that humble draft status, reached the Majors early in the 2006 campaign. He never looked back. Kinsler finished seventh in AL Rookie of the Year voting after turning in a .286/.347/.454 batting line with 14 home runs, 27 doubles, a triple and 11 steals in 120 games, and by 2008 he’d made the first of those four All-Star appearances.

Kinsler spent eight seasons in a Rangers uniform, hitting .273/.349/.454 with 156 home runs and 172 steals in 4791 trips to the plate. Traded to Detroit prior to the 2014 season, he went on to play another six years with the Tigers, Rangers, Red Sox and Padres. The Rangers inducted him into their team Hall of Fame this past summer — the 26th player to receive that honor.

In his new position, Kinsler will join a handful of former big leaguers — including some former teammates — in providing some insight to the baseball operations staff. He joins Michael Young, Darren Oliver, Colby Lewis, Nick Hundley and Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez as a special assistant to Young. The Rangers didn’t provide concrete details on Kinsler’s duties in his new role, noting only that he’ll assist Young “in many facets of baseball operations.”