DVD Corner

The Essential Games Of The Texas Rangers DVD Review

Texas Rangers fans will savor this DVD set.

As with the “The Essential Games Of The Chicago Cubs” and “The Essential Games Of The Philadelphia Phillies,” “The Essential Games Of The Texas Rangers” contains 4 of the MLB club’s best games as mentioned below.

First up, there is the May 1, 1991 game against the Toronto Blue Jays in which Nolan Ryan pitched a no-hitter. I don’t think any Rangers fan will argue that no Rangers DVD set could be complete without a game featuring one of the all time great pitchers in action.

The second game is the October 1, 1996 ALDS Game 1 against the New York Yankees. The Rangers would only get 1 win in their very first playoff appearance, but it was a memorable one. Juan Gonzalez and Dean Palmer both smack a homer while John Burkett pitches a fantastic full game. This is unquestionably a pivotal game in the history of the Rangers organization.

The third game here is the October 22, 2010 ALCS Game 6 against thew New York Yankees. While we know the Rangers would go on to their very first World Series to lose to the San Francisco Giants, 2010 was a huge year for the franchise (and the fans) and this was arguably their best playoff game. The game features a commanding pitching performance from Colby Lewis and stand-out hitters like Nelson Cruz, Josh Hamilton, and Vladimir Guerrero.

2011 was another tough year for the Texas Rangers as a World Series victory was in their grasp in game 6, but alas it was not meant to be. Still, they had another enormously successful year and the October 15, 2011 game 6 ALCS battle against the Detroit Tigers showed why. Surprisingly, this was not a pitching display as starter Derek Holland was underwhelming. However, the hitters were most definitely on display in this particular game as the club’s stats consisted of 17 hits, 15 runs, and 2 homers. Nelson Cruz, Michael Young, Adrian Beltre, Josh Hamilton, Elvis Andrus, Ian Kinsler, David Murphy and Mike Napoli all had 1 or more hits and runs. Impressive to say the least.

Summary: Nostalgic Rangers fans looking to watch some of the team’s greatest games will no doubt want to pick up this DVD set.

Video/Audio:

The 2010 and 2011 games are presented in widescreen and both look sharp. The colors of the ‘96 game are a bit faded, but it looks about as clear as we can expect. The ‘91 game is not in the best shape. The corners of the screen are often fuzzy.

All 4 games are presented in Dolby Digital Stereo. The 2010 and 2011 games sound the best obviously, but I’m surprised alternate tracks weren’t available for these games. As for the ’91 and ’96 games, they both sounded solid with the ’96 game having slightly better audio quality.

No extras.

September 13, 2012 - Posted by nicklyons1 | DVD review | baseball, MLB Playoffs, sports, Texas Rangers MLB, The Essential Games Of The Texas Rangers DVD Review