Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan stepping down at end of month

The Hall of Fame pitcher has opted to end his tenure with Texas.

Oct 17, 2013, 7:52 PM UTC

USA TODAY Sports

Nolan Ryan is stepping down from his position as Chief Executive Officer of the Texas Rangers at the end of the month, according to a team press release. His resignation will become effective Oct. 31.

While the Express hasn’t explicitly stated that he is retiring, he did tell Danny Knobler of CBS Sports that this may be “the final chapter” of his baseball career. Ryan spoke fondly of his six years as a Rangers exec in a prepared statement:

“This is the right time for me to step down from my role of overseeing the Rangers organization,” said Ryan. “I am extremely proud of what this organization has accomplished...
“This organization is in good hands. I am leaving with a lot of great memories from my tenure here and I know the organization will continue to thrive in the years to come.”

The Hall of Fame pitcher joined the Rangers front office in February 2008 and helped put in the winning bid on the club when it went up for auction the following year. Ryan took over as CEO of the Rangers before the 2011 season, and had been the most prominent figure in the upper echelons of the franchise until this past season.

“During times of significant change for the franchise, Nolan has been a constant – accessible, dedicated and an icon to his fellow Texans who love our game,” MLB commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement. “Nolan’s unique perspective as a legendary player and an accomplished executive has been invaluable to the Rangers franchise. I am certain that Nolan will continue to be a great credit to Major League Baseball and an exemplary ambassador for the National Pastime in the state of Texas and beyond.”

If the rumors are to be believed, the 66-year-old had been toying with the idea of stepping down from his post all year. Speculation of his leaving the organization first cropped up around 2013 Spring Training, when Ryan was stripped of two of his job titles: president of both baseball and business operations. At that time, general manager/president of baseball operations Jon Daniels was given final say on player moves.

Though apparently unhappy, Ryan eventually opted to stick around in a "lesser" capacity for the 2013 season. The Rangers reportedly have no plans to replace Ryan as CEO, per Knobler, which indicates he may have been working in more of a figurehead role than anything else.

Things came to a head again between Ryan and the front office shortly after the Rangers' loss to the Rays in the Wild Card play-in game last month. Ryan reportedly got into a heated dispute with Daniels after the GM fired bench coach Jackie Moore, whom Ryan supposedly hand-picked. It's uncertain whether that confrontation played a role in Ryan's decision to step down.

Per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, co-owners Bob Simpson and Ray Davis have purchased Ryan’s remaining shares in the club -- estimated at less than one percent -- so his ties to the club will be completely severed when his resignation goes into effect on Halloween.

If Ryan does decide to get back into baseball, his wait won’t be long. Astros owner Jim Crane said, “I like Nolan, and at some point if Nolan wanted to do something, we’re all ears,” per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Ryan was 106-94 with a 3.13 ERA from 1980-1988 with the Astros, and threw the fifth of his record seven career no-hitters playing for Houston.