Rangers’ season ends. Did Beltre’s career? ‘I wish I knew one way or the other, but I don’t’

The season has been over for months, arguably for six months.

The Texas Rangers were a .500 team March 30, after their second game, and never again.

As of Sunday, 160 games later, there are no games remaining to be played until next season.

For Adrian Beltre, there might not be any games remaining in his career.

Beltre and the rest of the Rangers left Safeco Field with a 3-1 loss and a 67-95 record, tied with the 2014 club for the worst in the past 33 seasons.

They don’t have a full-time manager, are in the midst of a rebuilding project, and could be without their future Hall of Fame third baseman for the first time since 2011.

Now that the 2018 story has been told in full, it’s time to get busy on 2019. Beltre, despite signs that point to retirement, said that he has a decision to make about ending his career, returning to the Rangers or the slim possibility of playing for a contender.

“I’m right in the middle,” Beltre said. “It’s confusing because I don’t really know. I wish I knew one way or the other right now, but I don’t.”

Beltre finished his 21st season by going 1 for 2 with one hug of former Mariners teammate and longtime friend Felix Hernandez after getting double off at first base in the second inning.

Beltre was removed from the game in the bottom of the fifth as Jurickson Profar walked out of the dugout to replace him. Each Rangers player on the field jogged over for a hug. The Safeco Field crowd had already given the former Mariners star a standing ovation, but provided another.

Beltre’s season-ending average was .273 with 15 homers, 65 RBIs and two stints on the disabled list. He is 15th in MLB history with 3,165 hits, 30th with 477 home runs and 11th with 1,707 RBIs.

He is contemplating another season, which he would prefer to be with the Rangers if he doesn’t retire, or becoming a stay-at-home dad to three children. He has missed much of their childhoods while they and his wife have sacrificed a great deal with him away from home eight months a year.

“I love the game. I love the competition. There’s a side of me there that’s never going to die,” Beltre said. “I know that I can still compete — maybe not the way that I used to because there’s aging — but I can still play the game. I like to be out here. It’s a fun game. It’s what I’ve done since I was a little kid. I have nothing else to do but play baseball.

“But it’s just … maybe it’s just time for me to go become a full-time husband, a full-time dad. That’s part of my life that, being selfish with my family. They live in a different state. Maybe it’s time.

“And like I said before, I love the game, and I appreciate everything about it, but I want to go on my own terms, too. If I do come back next year, if I don’t stay healthy, if I don’t play the way I want to, I don’t want to be pushed out of the game. So I want to go on my own terms, so maybe this is some sign.”

He said that he won’t drag out the decision, and much of what the Rangers do this offensively this off-season hinge on his choice.

General manager Jon Daniels said that he plans to speak to Beltre in a few days and at some point will lay out for Beltre what Daniels envisions for the 2019 season. Beltre continues to be haunted by not having won a World Series, and that leaves open the possibility that Beltre could play in 2019 for a team with a better chance at the postseason.

If Beltre wants to return to the Rangers, Daniels doesn’t want to tell him no.

“Timing could play a factor, but I would hope not,” Daniels said. “If this is his last road trip or his last games, he doesn’t need to worry about our needs right now.”

The Rangers have many needs, first and foremost a manager, after their worst season since 2014 and their first consecutive losing seasons since 2007 and 2008. Jeff Banister was fired Sept. 21, and Don Wakamatsu finished the final 10 games as the interim manager.

Daniels said in June that the Rangers were officially rebuilding, though their lackluster off-season suggested they were headed down that path. The fine seasons for Jose Leclerc and Profar were positive developments for future seasons, and rookies Ronald Guzman and Isiah Kiner-Falefa look to be future roster fixtures.

Second baseman Rougned Odor had a bounce-back season from his miserable 2017, though the thought is that he has more in reserve. Shortstop Elvis Andrus and center fielder Delino DeShields struggled after early-season injuries.

Beltre finished the season with his best month, despite coping with hamstring and hip issues. Now he must contemplate the biggest decision of his career.

The Rangers’ season is over.

This story was originally published September 30, 2018 at 4:25 PM.