Hunter Pence comes home to boyhood school. Is another Texas Rangers return in works?
Hunter Pence returned to J.B. Little Elementary on Friday morning for the first time in decades, since he was a fifth and sixth grader at one of the top elementary schools in the Arlington ISD.
His objective was charitable, planting trees to help the environment and provide shade on the field where he once played soccer at recess.
The event proved, once again, that you can go home again.
Will it happen one more time in the coming weeks with Pence and the Texas Rangers?
It’s doesn’t look good, for now.
The Rangers are not one of the teams who have shown interest in Pence, though he remains in regular contact with manager Chris Woodward. Woodward wants Pence back and has been trying to convince general manager Jon Daniels to re-sign one of the Rangers’ three All-Stars last season.
“I haven’t heard from them,” Pence said. “Woody talks to me. He talks to me. Regardless of the business side of baseball, we are extremely close.”
Pence said that teams from both leagues have shown interest. The Rangers would seem to be a good fit with their need for a veteran right-handed-hitting outfielder.
Pence showed last spring that he is willing to come to spring training needing to win a job. He did that with the Rangers after spending the off-season revamping his swing and getting results.
He worked his way into the lineup as a regular in May and was voted as the starter at designated hitter for the American League All-Star team. He did not participate because of a groin injury, and he was diagnosed with a back injury in August that ended his season.
The injury was actually to the SI joint where the hip and lower back meet. He said he’s healthy now and has been working out with the intention of playing in 2020.
He said last season was “a blast.”
“Honestly, last season was a dream come true,” he said. “To be able to learn a whole new swing, playing winter ball in the Dominican, that experience I wouldn’t trade for the world. Getting an opportunity to play in my hometown. There’s a really great thing happening with the culture there.”
Pence partnered with the Dallas-based Texas Trees Foundation to plant 43 trees at the school. He spoke at an assembly about the importance trees bring to the environment, and he became emotional after he was presented with a golden shovel as gratitude from coming home again.
He hopes it can come home to the Rangers again in 2020.
