ARLINGTON, Texas -- When things were going bad for the Texas Rangers and doubters were being critical of his team, manager Ron Washington liked to refer to his team as a submarine.
He'd always say the club would resurface and there would be plenty of room for people to jump back on board the Rangers.
Let's hope Washington resurfaces soon too. The game of baseball, another Wash-ism, is better when Wash is involved.
The Rangers, many of whom were caught off guard Friday when Washington resigned "from the job I love" for an off-the-field personal matter. He apologized for letting the down the Rangers organization and its fans.
As tough as the news was to take for some, at least there is some good news. According to a source Washington's decision had nothing to do with health issues for the 62-year-old or his wife Gerry. And general manager Jon Daniels said the resignation wasn't because of a drug-related issue. That's great too for a guy who failed a drug test in 2009 for cocaine.
Finding good news for the Wash faithful after that is tough to come by.
The baseball lifer's decision left many of the Rangers stunned and saddened by the news Washington delivered wearing a suit and not his familiar No. 38.
"It's like losing your dad," said Derek Holland, who had never played for another manager in the big leagues. "I was extremely close with him. I didn't see any of this coming at all."
Holland wasn't alone. Matt Harrison, who is at the park rehabbing from back surgery, thought the club was having a player's meeting. When he found out Washington was talking he went in. Harrison, the longest-tenured Ranger, was stunned.
"I've been with him pretty much since he got here," Harrison said. "He's a good manager, a good person. He's definitely going to be missed by a lot of guys who spent time with him here."
It wasn't just the players who were blindsided. New manager Tim Bogar found out the job was his Friday morning. Pitching coach Mike Maddux didn't see it coming either.
"I had known Wash through the years, played against him but never knew the man that he is," Maddux said. "I saw him grow as a manager and in that growth I think he brought a lot of coaches along with him, and we grew, too. We learned a lot from one another and learned a lot from Wash, the way he handled day to day operations around here was ... you can't explain how great it was."
A manager getting fired is nothing new, especially when he's managing a team with the worst record in baseball. But that wasn't going to be Washington's fate after this season according to general manager Jon Daniels.
While it's human nature to wonder what was the reason for Washington's decision to leave, it becomes a moot point now because he's gone and Bogar is now in Washington's' seat on the bench. Washington is now out of the game for the first time since he began his pro career in Sarasota in 1971.
Bogar got choked up when talking about what Washington has meant to him throughout his career. Washington was Bogar's coach in the minor leagues in 1991 and 1992.
"Ron has taught me a lot about a lot of things," Bogar said. "I think all of you who've been around him for all these years know how positive he is, how enthusiastic he is, how to treat the players. The one thing he taught me the most was 'They don't care what you know until they know that you care.'
Anybody who knows Ron, that's what he did every day. These players knew that he cared. Whether it was him having to tell them what they were doing wrong or putting his arm around them and comforting them or giving them a big hug after a victory. So I think that was most important thing I learned from Ron, how much you need to love these guys."
It wouldn't hurt to love the game the way Washington does either. He became a media darling during the World Series runs in 2010 and 2011 with his honest answers and the way the camera caught him in the dugout.
Even as the Rangers' season went careening out of control this year Wash's love for the game didn't change. That's going to be tough to replace.
"I think he brought a collegiate atmosphere to professional sport which I think we all enjoyed and endeared himself to his players and the fans and ownership and the management," said Bob Simpson, one of the team's owners. "So we'll miss that. I was looking forward to more time with him."
So were a lot of people. But as bad as Friday was for the Wash faithful, there was still hope even if that hope won't come in the form of a return to the Rangers in some capacity.
Wash said so in a text.
"I'll be back in the Game!" the text read. "Wash!"
Let's hope he resurfaces soon.
