The Yankees and the Red Sox and oh yes, the Rangers have been battling the last couple of days for the best record in baseball.  Most East coasters probably hadn’t noticed the Rangers- who ended an 11 game win streak earlier this week as inter-league came to a close.  These Rangers can hit, and they have some pretty strong young pitching, too. The Rangers are the only franchise to have never won a playoff series, and one of only three to have never appeared in a World Series.

But, back in 1996, the Rangers played the Yankees and gave the Yankees a run for their money in the ALDS.  This Tyler Kepner blog post talks about that series, and also about the differences between that 1996 Rangers team and this one- and perhaps the differences between all 1996 teams and this years versions.