Friday Newsletter time: When Do It For Durrett needs a hand, an old Rangers friend comes through time and time again
Ron Washington is doing just fine, by the way, coaching infield and third base for Atlanta.
The FedEx truck stopped by the house The other daywith a package from Atlanta.
Wash had come through again.
Ron Washington, the former Texas Rangers manager who is now coaching infield and third base for the Braves, has been picking up autographed memorabilia from across the National League for the past few years and donating it to the Do It For Durrett Foundation.
Those of us at DIFD then turn around and put the items up for auction at our annual main event, which this year will be held Oct. 23 at Legal Draft in Arlington.
Washington sent 13 autographed baseballs: Ronald Acuna Jr., Ozzie Albies, Freddie Freeman and Chipper Jones of the Braves; Clayton Kershaw and Albert Pujols of the Dodgers; Jacob de Grom of the Mets; Don Mattingly of the Marlins; Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado of the Padres; and Yadier Molina and Nolan Arenado of the Cardinals.
And, by special request, Washington autographed a ball, too.
He’s not the only ex-Rangers coach or player who knew DIFD namesake Richard Durrett and contributes. Mike Maddux, Nelson Cruz and Derek Holland are regulars to the silent auction, too. Ian Kinsler, Chris Davis, Yu Darvish and Mitch Moreland have all been fantastic.
Having secured the Washington haul, I shot him a text to make sure he was aware we received it. What does he do? Calls, of course.
Wash is doing just fine. His house made it through the latest hurricane to hit New Orleans with only minimal damage, and the Braves are leading the National League East.
He had some thoughts about baseball, a few of them quite colorful. He has seen the Rangers and what they’re going through. He had a young, rebuilding Rangers team in 2007 and 2008.
He gets it — in a lot ways.
Trio reaches Triple A
Double A Frisco saw its season end Sunday with a tough loss that kept the RoughRiders out of the postseason, but not every player’s season ended.
Three of them were promoted Thursday to Triple A Round Rock while the Rangers were losing 3-0 at Baltimore.
Right-hander Cole Winn started for the Express while Sam Huff, the catcher who isn’t catching this season, and infielder Davis Wendzel rode the pine at Dell Diamond.
Huff came off the off the bench in the ninth as a pinch-hitter and delivered a key double in a 7-6 walk-off win.
Winn, working on a pitch count, allowed three runs in three-plus innings. He walked one and struck out four in his 61-pitch outing.
The promotions were designed to give the threesome some familiarity with Triple A ball and Round Rock. All three could start there next season.
In other words, it’s just the next step in their development and not an indication that they could make the Opening Day roster in 2022. Breaking camp in the majors isn’t impossible, but it’s pretty unlikely.
Card of the Week
The choice for the Card of the Week this week is one I’ve wanted in my collection since I learned it was coming out this year. There must be, oh, a couple dozen of people like me.
It’s the 2021 Topps Allen & Ginter Jesse Sanchez rookie auto.
Jesse isn’t a ballplayer, though he once played at Saginaw Boswell High School north of Fort Worth. He writes about ballplayers for MLB.com and is regarded as The Man when it comes to international prospects.
He’s also been a close friend for nearly 25 years. We first met in the composing room at the Star-Telegram, and we had much in common. He likes beer, and I do, too.
Nearly 25 years later, we both have families and live in different cities. We bond these days talking about our kids and our better halves.
And now he’s on baseball card. Pretty cool.
Doggy video!
This is brilliant. Enjoy. See you Monday.
Love Wash. Hope he gets another chance. Stats-Schmatz, it's a people game, and no one relates with his people better than Wash.
Wash is the best. Man, I miss him.