Report: Nolan Ryan to let Rangers power shift play out before possible exit

Nolan Ryan and Jon Daniels have both been credited with turning the Rangers franchise around. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Nolan Ryan intends to wait and see how his new CEO title works out before deciding whether to leave the Texas Rangers, sources told Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News.

Ryan's future with the Rangers came into question Monday when the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported sources saying the Hall of Fame pitcher was unhappy with the team's announcement that general manager Jon Daniels was promoted to president of baseball operations, and that Rick George was promoted to president of business operations. Ryan’s CEO title remained, but sources also said Daniels now owned final say over all baseball decisions and George had final say over business decisions.

Grant wrote:

This seems to pass the legitimacy test. Ryan has done nothing impetuously. To leave now, would be the only way to potentially exit the Rangers in anything but a graceful manner. If he leaves within weeks of the announcement of this decision, there will be some perception that Ryan lost a “power play” and couldn’t work under a situation that he had some initial discomfort with.

Ryan has been credited, along with Daniels for a Rangers front office that has produced back-to- back World Series appearances (2010, 2011), three straight 90-win seasons and a top-ranked farm system. Ryan has not commented since the announcement. Daniels said Tuesday he hopes Ryan stays with the team.

“I think once Nolan chooses to address this publicly I would assume that’ll get addressed and figured out,” Daniels said Tuesday on 103.3’s Fitzsimmons and Durrett show [KESN-FM]. “I think our relationship is good. It’s a good working relationship. We respect each other. We have similar values as people, as humans, as fathers, husbands, etc. We believe in treating people well.

“I’ve learned a lot from him. Hopefully that’s mutual on some level. We’ve had a lot of success working together, and I want to continue that.”

Bob Simpson, one of the Rangers' two majority owners, is considered a Ryan ally. He denied that he and Ray Davis had stripped Nolan of power.

“My definition of CEO is it’s the person in charge,” Simpson said. “Nolan Ryan will still make the anything-of-significance decisions and bring those to the owners for approval. I say significant decisions because we wanted to remove some of the day-to-day stuff from Nolan.

“Nolan is a treasure for us. His wisdom and his counsel are invaluable. And if anyone in his camp has taken these latest moves the wrong way, then that needs to be addressed.”