Easily forgotten former NY Mets player is a shocking bright spot for the Rangers

The Texas Rangers were in New York earlier this week and couldn’t come away with a victory against the Yankees. Their biggest issue has been an inability to hit. Marcus Semien, Joc Pederson, Adolis Garcia, and others have been guilty of underperforming at the plate. Their pitching staff has been superb, with former New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom putting together the kind of season we saw plenty of in the past.

deGrom’s success is understandable. What isn’t is how bad the Rangers have been on offense to the point where they’ve already fired coaches. The club has reached a point where anyone with an ounce of production can work their way to the top of the order. That’s where easily forgotten former Mets player Sam Haggerty enters the picture.

The scuffling Rangers have turned to a once-upon-a-time former Mets player Sam Haggerty for some help

Remember the Haggerty era in Queens? Hollywood relationships have a longer shelf life. 

Haggerty came to the Mets in the early 2019 trade which sent catcher Kevin Plawecki to the Cleveland Indians. He was dealt alongside Walker Lockett, a pitcher whose time with the Mets managed to include 30.2 innings combined in 2019 and 2020. The 7.63 ERA he had while with New York somehow ended up below the 7.67 ERA he had for his 54 inning MLB career.

Haggerty played even fewer games for the Mets. His 4 plate appearances in 11 games included 3 strikeouts. He did manage to score a pair of runs, putting his legs to use in a role that had him playing some second base and right field. Mostly, he was a pinch runner late in games left stranded on the bases. Half of his at-bats came in the final game of the season, including the one instance where he didn’t strike out.

If you haven’t been keeping tabs on Haggerty, you might have failed to realize how useful he became for the Seattle Mariners. From 2020-2024, the Mariners kept Haggerty in a super utility role and even managed to hand him 201 plate appearances in 2022 across 83 games. He hit a solid .256/.335/.403.

A free agent for the first time in his career this offseason, Haggerty joined the Rangers on a minor league deal. He has become a regular in center field for them and the leadoff hitter for one of baseball’s most one-sided teams in 2025.

Things have gone well for Haggerty early on, batting a light yet valuable .263/.317/.447 through 12 games. To show how bad things are going for Texas, the batting average is fourth on the team, as is his .764 OPS. A Yankee Stadium home run has helped highlight his short stint thus far. His team hasn't had much to enjoy. The Rangers have lost 6 straight, including two in a row to the lowly Chicago White Sox.