Father-daughter combos out in force for Texas Rangers’ Fan Fest

Among the approximately 7,500 fans braving the near-freezing temperatures Saturday morning for the Texas Rangers’ annual Fan Fest were quite a few young girls eagerly waiting with their fathers for autographs and pictures with their baseball heroes.

Some had driven a long way to see the likes of Adrian Beltre, Cole Hamels and Prince Fielder up close at Globe Life Park.

Chance Gary and his 10-year-old daughter, Olivia, had to get up before 6 a.m. to drive from Tyler to see her favorite player — Rougned Odor.

“We enjoy getting autographs, especially from some of the young guys we don’t get to see as much,” said Chance Gary, who brought Olivia to her first Fan Fest. “Just the experience of getting to go in the clubhouse and all of that stuff. Some of the behind- the-scenes stuff she doesn’t usually get to see.”

Jim Watts and his 12-year-old daughter, Emily, drove from Shreveport, La. They watch the Rangers every night on Fox Sports Southwest, and dad called his daughter the “next Emily Jones.” It was her first Fan Fest as well.

She enjoyed running the bases and hitting in the batting cages at Globe Life Park, just like her favorite player — Adrian Beltre.

“Seeing their clubhouse, that was cool,” she said.

David Wheeler and his two daughters also were making their first visit to Fan Fest. Wheeler said his father has had season tickets since he was in the third grade. Lauren, 10, and Ellie, 5, enjoyed walking on the field, playing in the playground and seeing the clubhouse.

Beltre is Lauren’s favorite player, “Because he’s my daddy’s favorite player.”

That’s good parenting.

Ready for hearings

General manager Jon Daniels said he expects that the three remaining players with pending arbitration will settle their contracts without a hearing.

But the club, he said, will be prepared for hearings while continuing to work toward settlements with Mitch Moreland, Shawn Tolleson and Jake Diekman.

The Rangers haven’t had an arbitration hearing since Lee Stevens lost his in 2000.

Hamilton’s pain

Daniels said Josh Hamilton’s lingering left knee pain will be something that the club has to help the left fielder manage throughout the season.

Hamilton was pain-free for the first time after getting a cortisone injection Thursday. He had two surgeries, including one shortly after the season, but continued to have pain.

“There’s nothing to fix,” Daniels said. “Structurally speaking, Dr. [Keith] Meister feels like the knee is in as good of shape as it has been recently, and it’s as good as it’s going to be. It’s something we’re going to have to manage.”

Daniels said left field should be one of the more hotly contested positions in March.

“We have a number of guys who have talent and can help us. It’s going to be a matter of sorting through the best way to utilize that group,” he said.

Scouting for scout

Daniels said the club expects to name a new international scouting director by early February to fill the vacancy left after Gil Kim took a player development job with the Toronto Blue Jays earlier this month.

Bobblehead guide

The Rangers are stepping up their bobblehead game for 2016.

Among the nine bobblehead giveaways scheduled for this season is manager Jeff Banister in a powder blue retro uniform pointing his finger with a smile on his face. Fans will recall the memorable moment last season in Houston when a bench-clearing kerfuffle with the Astros included Banister pointing and shouting in the direction of Astros manager A.J. Hinch.

He wasn’t smiling at that moment, but both managers have since downplayed the incident. The Banister giveaway is scheduled for April 19 when the Astros visit Globe Life Park.

Another surefire bobblehead hit will be Adrian Beltre’s on Aug. 14. It will include a removable helmet so fans can touch his famously protected noggin.

Others include Rougned Odor sliding into home plate, Cole Hamels’ first bobblehead as a Ranger and three dot race bobbleheads.

This story was originally published January 23, 2016 at 2:29 PM with the headline "Father-daughter combos out in force for Texas Rangers’ Fan Fest."