The Texas Rangers have determined one of their employees made an audio recording of the clubhouse speech manager Ron Washington gave to his players before Game 7 of the World Series. (AP)
The Texas Rangers have determined one of their employees made an audio recording of the clubhouse speech manager Ron Washington gave to his players before Game 7 of the World Series.
The team investigated after the JoeSportsFan.com website posted the six-minute recording and said it was made by a member of the clubhouse staff it did not identify. The profanity-filled speech includes Washington encouraging and laughing with his players.
“It’s unacceptable. It was a private meeting for the team,” general manager Jon Daniels said during a conference call Monday. “It was very poor judgment to tape it. That’s not what that meeting was for.”
Washington spoke to his team on Oct. 28, the day after the Rangers twice were within a strike of winning their first World Series title before losing Game 6 to the St. Louis Cardinals 10-9 in 11 innings. The Rangers then lost Game 7 by a score of 6-2.
The employee did not intend for the recording to be made public, the Rangers said.
“My understanding is that it was shared with somebody close to the employee,” Daniels said. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t take too much to go from point A to point B.”
The Rangers said they have handled the matter internally. Daniels would not specify what disciplinary measures had been taken.
