Arlington Mayor Jim Ross’ phone rang until 1 a.m. after the Texas Rangers landed a spot in the World Series.
Ross, who moved to Arlington 40 years ago, said he’s never seen a performance quite like the one the Rangers put on at the American League Championship Series.
He watched the seventh and final game from Texas Live!, the bar next door to Globe Life Field. He describes the Rangers as that of a "Cinderella team."
“We’ve come close in the past, but we’ve never really had this kind of excitement and this big of a turnaround in such a short period of time,” Ross said.
The trip to the World Series is the team's third, and the first since the Rangers’ heartbreaking loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2011 World Series. The victory –and the games to come– will bring an economic boon to Arlington’s entertainment district.
“We pride ourselves on the sports entertainment that we bring in the entertainment district, period, with concerts and the Cowboys and the Rangers and everything else going on,” Ross said. “To have this type of excitement centered right here in Arlington, there’s nothing like it.”
The Rangers’ World Series appearance also brings pride to the community who has cheered for the Rangers–even during dismal seasons.
“Every bit as important as the economic impact is the emotional impact in the sense of pride that this brings to the community,” Ross said.
Ross and several Arlington City Council members wore Rangers jerseys Tuesday night during a council meeting. Ross said he has shipped one off to Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
"Even though I may have had a little bit of an urge to gloat, I withheld that gloating because he's such a class act," Ross said.
Rangers will play the Arizona Diamondbacks on Game 1 of the World Series Friday at Globe Life Field. The Diamondbacks beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-2 in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series.
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