Best Texas Rangers Who Never Made An All Star Game

The Texas Rangers aren't the oldest franchise in baseball, but it could be argued they're one of the proudest. The franchise has a World Series win, multiple Hall of Famer players, and some of the best fans in baseball.

Over the years, there have been a lot of Rangers that have made MLB All Star rosters, including numerous starters. But there have also been a handful of Texas Rangers greats, some who are even in the team's Hall of Fame, who never made the All Star roster. EVER. Which has left baseball fans scratching their heads.

Lets take a look at some of these legends that tragically never made the All Star Game.

Does Ken McMullen Count As A Texas Rangers Legend?

It's technically not fair to include McMullen here, because he was never a Texas Ranger. McMullen played 6 seasons for the Washington Senators (the 1961 expansion version) franchise that would end up relocating to Texas.

While McMullen was a Senator, he hit .251 with 86 home runs in 6 seasons. While those numbers might not jump off the page, consider this. His WAR (wins above replacement) for his Senators career was 21.2...which might not mean much to someone, and the value of WAR can be argued heavily among those who are stat nerds, but lets create a frame-of-reference.

Alfonso Soriano is a 7-time All Star and 4-time Silver Slugger, his career WAR is 28.6, Don Baylor was an MVP and his career WAR is 28.5, Josh Hamilton is fondly remembered by Rangers fans and won an MVP, his Rangers career WAR is 23.0, which is pretty in-line with McMullen. The biggest difference between these three and McMullen is that they're All Stars, and McMullen was never selected.

Catcher Geno Petralli Never Made An MLB All Star Team

While Geno Petralli doesn't have the same big career numbers that McMullen did, Petralli brought joy to plenty of Rangers fans. He played 9 years in Texas, from 1985 to 1993, and was what many fans call a "glue guy".

Petralli was primarily a catcher in Texas, although he did dabble at third base. His main job was to catch for knuckleballer Charlie Hough, which is no easy task. Catching knuckleball pitchers is an artform, and Petralli got pretty good at it. In his catching duties, he also served as the catcher for Nolan Ryan's 300th career win in 1990.

At the plate, Petralli became the first catcher in Rangers history to hit over .300 in a season, which he did in 1987. He would clear the .300 mark again in the 1989 season, but was never a power threat. Petralli hit just 24 home runs in his Rangers career. But the timing of his home runs were what people remember.

His first career home run came off Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro in a Rangers win, while his biggest home run came off legendary pitcher Roger Clemens in the bottom of the 8th of a nationally televised game. The late season game was between the first place Boston Red Sox and a Rangers team surging to overtake the California Angels in the AL West. The game-tying home run Petralli hit set the stage for a walk off home run by Ruben Sierra in the bottom of the 9th. While the Rangers didn't catch the Angels that season, the race had Rangers fans excited down the stretch.

Rusty Greer Might Be The Best Texas Ranger To Never Make An All Star Team

It's really hard to make a "best of" or "top" Texas Rangers list without Rusty Greer. Which is why its shocking to realize he never made an All Star team.

Greer spent his entire 9 year career with the Texas Rangers, putting up a respectable 22.4 WAR between 1994 and 2002. He's a career .305 hitter with 119 home runs, 258 career doubles, and a career OPS of .865 (which is pretty good).

His best season was probably 1996, when he hit .332 with 18 home runs and 100 RBIs. Greer mixed in 41 doubles for good measure...and he decided to steal 9 bases too. His defense was solid, including making plays that you wouldn't expect from the build of the 6 foot 190 lbs outfielder.

Greer finished 3rd in Rookie of the Year voting in 1994, behind Manny Ramirez...but Manny didn't win. A guy named Bob Hamelin won ROY in the American League that year over Greer and Manny. Hamelin's career only lasted 497 games, and he bounced between 3 franchises.

In 1997, Greer received votes for AL MVP. While he came nowhere close to winning the award (he got 1% of the vote), its still a milestone to get any votes during your career.

The Red Baron was a Rangers draft pick, came up through their farm system, and played his whole career in Texas. Making him a forever fan favorite for the franchise...even if he was never named to an All Star team.

Mr. Ranger, Tom Grieve, Never Made An All Star Team

Mr. Ranger has to make the list. Literally, it's MR. RANGER...but never an All Star.

Grieve was a Day 1 Texas Ranger, coming with the franchise from Washington. He would spend 6 years in Texas, putting together a 2.9 WAR during those seasons. In Texas, Grieve hit a .255 average with 60 home runs and over 425 hits in 560 games.

His best year in Texas was probably 1976, where he hit .255 with 139 hits, 20 home runs, and 81 RBIs.

Once Grieve retired, he joined the Rangers front office. He worked for the Rangers from 1979 to 1984, and then became the General Manager of the franchise. Grieve held the GM position until 1994, and worked some incredible additions for the team, like trading Mitch Williams to the Chicago Cubs for Rafael Palmeiro and Jamie Moyer. He also added Julio Franco, Ivan Rodriguez, Juan Gonzalez, and signed Nolan Ryan in 1989.

In 1995, Grieve moved to the broadcast booth, where he called epic Rangers moments until the 2022 season.

But we're here to talk about his playing career...where Grieve was good, and could have easily made an All Star team. But he never did.

How Did Rougned Odor Never Make An All Star Team?

Dude could swing...a bat and his fists. He's probably most remembered by Rangers fans for getting into a boxing match with Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista in 2016, but Odor was good at baseball too.

Over his Rangers career, Odor carried a 6.6 WAR, with 178 home runs  in 7 seasons. During his Rangers era, Odor averaged 21 home runs a season, with 21 doubles...a different kind of 20/20 guy.

While the hard numbers might not paint Odor as a regular All Star, the eyeball test would tell you otherwise. Odor played the game like you'd want your All Star representative to play. But the biggest issue for his All Star case was always a log jam. During Odor's best Rangers years, Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was locked in for the All Star game. He made 4 straight All Star starting lineups between 2015 and 2018.

How Did Pete O'Brien Miss The All Star Game?

O'Brien played for the Rangers between 1982 and 1988, where he put together a very strong career. His career Texas WAR is 18.2, and he put together some strong seasons along the way.

During his time in Texas, O'Brien had three straight seasons where his WAR was above 3.1, and he hit over 20 home runs three times too. He was named AL Player of the Week multiple times, and was named Rangers Team MVP in 1985. After the 1986 season, O'Brien received AL MVP votes.

While he apparently wasn't good enough to be an All Star, the power hitting lefty was strong enough to be the centerpiece of a blockbuster trade between Texas and the Cleveland Indians which brought Silver Slugger Julio Franco to the Rangers. Franco won the Silver Slugger in 1988, right before he was traded to Texas, where he would win 3 more consecutive Silver Sluggers.

Is Being A Team Icon Better Than An All Star?

While these players may have never had a chance to shine in the Midsummer Classic, Texas Rangers fans will remember them forever. Sometimes its better to be an icon for a single franchise, than to be a single-serving shared All-Star for the whole MLB.