This story was excerpted from Kennedi Landry’s Rangers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
DALLAS -- Marcus Semien and Cody Bradford had very different journeys to becoming members of the World Series champion Rangers in 2023.
Bradford is a graduate of Aledo (Texas) High School, about 30 miles west of Globe Life Field. He attended Baylor University, where he was the Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Year his sophomore season before being selected by the Rangers in the sixth round of the 2019 MLB Draft. His entire baseball career has run through Texas.
Semien, on the other hand, was born and raised in the Bay Area before attending Cal-Berkeley for college. He was drafted in 2011 by the White Sox, with whom he made his MLB debut, but after a 2014 trade, he spent six years with his hometown A’s. Semien then spent one year with Toronto in 2021, before signing a seven-year, $175 million deal with the Rangers ahead of the 2022 season.
No matter the different journeys, both Bradford and Semien have built a community in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in recent years.
That community was on display Wednesday, when the two of them were joined by outfielder J.P. Martínez, bullpen coach Brett Hayes, broadcasters Dave Raymond and Emily Jones and Rangers mascot Captain as they visited patients at the Memorial City Children's Hospital in Dallas.
“It's been an incredible opportunity to share in the excitement that the Rangers brought people in Fort Worth and Dallas, and [I’m] super honored to be a part of it and really grateful for an opportunity to just spread cheer,” Bradford said.
Semien has been one of the most charitable Rangers since joining the club, and he and his family have become actively involved with both the Texas Rangers Baseball Foundation and the Texas Rangers Youth Academy in West Dallas.
“I've gotten to meet a lot of new people here, whether we're at the Youth Academy or here at the hospital,” Semien added. “Things like that mean a lot to me. We're able to go out and do good and help people, whether it's providing food for people in need [or] just making kids happy during a tough time. That's something that my family always wants to do.”
Decked out in Rangers-themed Santa Claus hats, the group took pictures with patients alongside the Commissioner’s Trophy in the lobby before dropping off gifts at various rooms in the hospital and meeting other patients and staff.
Bradford was an unexpected contributor to the Rangers’ World Series-winning squad this season. After posting a 5.30 ERA in 56 innings as a swingman in the regular season, the rookie lefty allowed just one run in 7 2/3 innings in the postseason, good for a 1.17 ERA over five appearances.
He was even happier to do it for his hometown team.
“My hope for these kids is that our journey brings them hope and joy through some of their struggles in life.” Bradford said. “Gosh, it's an honor to see a kid recognize you and know your name. I've never had that happen before. So that's pretty incredible.”