SportsDay Rangers, Episode 32: The one where Michael Young returns

After a successful season-opening road trip, John and Evan break down what went right for the Rangers in Baltimore and Philadelphia and fawn a little bit about the glory of opening day. Evan can't stop gushing over the Brandon Nimmo impact. And John isn't worried about Nathan Eovaldi. Then Rangers Hall of Famer Michael Young, the first-ever guest on the podcast, makes his return. He's the second-most successful WBC bench coach we've ever had on. A week after winning bench-coach Robinson Chirinos joined the guy to discuss the Venezuela experience, Michael breaks down the challenges of being part of Team USA. And then we discuss ABS with him and he's got some hot takes. Finally, John creaks open the Archives in Arlington to remember Nelson Cruz's history-making start to the 2011 season and his complicated Rangers legacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Four years in, the Eat Drink D-FW team looks back at the moments that defined the North Texas food scene — the highs, the head-scratchers and everything in between. Think you know what lands at number one? You might be right. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Zul Mohamed pled guilty to 106 felony charges related to voter fraud, was convicted by a jury in Denton County and sentenced to prison. He appealed and was released from prison after a month. Now, Carrollton residents will see Mohamed’s name on their ballots again for the city’s mayoral election on May 2. Is this legal? It depends on the meaning of the word 'final.' Development Group filed to transform the Eldorado Towers property, off of North Stemmons Freeway, into apartments; a 31-year-old mother is accused of medical child abuse after allegedly lying about her child’s health conditions to medical professionals for years, leading to her 3-year-old son having a feeding tube surgically placed; and Chuy's, a Tex-Mex restaurant that opened on Dallas' McKinney Avenue in 1993, has been bulldozed. Crews knocked down the building near Knox Street this week to make way for a 12-story office tower. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

West Dallas residents along Singleton Boulevard have long pushed to reduce industrial sites in their neighborhood. Now the city is working with them to rezone the area. In other news, If you’re a single 20- or 30-something in Dallas County, you need about $48,500 a year before taxes to cover basic needs, MIT’s Living Wage Institute estimates; American Airlines Center officials have opened an internal investigation after a video emerged on social media Tuesday of Dallas Stars fans doing what appears to be the Nazi salute at a game in December; the size of ERCOT’s large load interconnection requests soared by nearly 150 gigawatts to 410 gigawatts in just two weeks, a symptom of Texas becoming a hub for data centers and other high-tech industries; and the mother of Dallas police Officer Darron Burks has sued the parents of the man accused of killing him in late August 2024, along with a north Oak Cliff pawn shop she alleges sold the handgun. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

SportsDay Insiders Kevin Sherrington, Evan Grant and Shawn McFarland go over their Final Four picks, or at least Kevin and Shawn do. The guys also discuss Mark Cuban's expressed regrets over selling the Mavs to the Adelsons. He shouldn't expect an invitation to a Las Vegas Thanksgiving. The Rangers' fast start caught everyone by surprise. The quality of the Rangers' at-bats was also a topic of discussion, with newcomer Brandon Nimmo getting the credit both internally and from our guys for breaking the Rangers' mold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Top Dallas officials have fired back at Attorney General Ken Paxton’s recent lawsuit, denying they’re illegally withholding money from the police and arguing the state’s case is so weak it should be thrown out. In other news, no matter how you count it, this March was the hottest Dallas-Fort Worth has ever seen. As of March 30, the average temperature for the month was 67.4 degrees, about three-quarters of a degree above the previous record in 1907; a North Texas judge issued a temporary injunction blocking an effort to support a Muslim-centric neighborhood. Collin County’s 493rd Judicial District issued an injunction tied to development of The Meadow, a project planned to feature more than 1,000 homes; the Texas Stock Exchange is the planned primary listing venue of a new exchange-traded fund from Westwood Holdings Group, a Dallas-based investment and asset management firm; and as the James Beard Foundation slims its list of chefs eligible for a coveted culinary award in 2026, two Dallas-Fort Worth chefs remain as contenders. Both work at Italian restaurants. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mark Cuban has had a change of heart, but not about the sale of the Dallas Mavericks franchise itself. Instead, in the latest episode of Intersections, Cuban said, “I don’t regret selling. I regret who I sold to. I made a lot of mistakes in the process, and I’ll leave it at that.” In other news, cosmetics giant Mary Kay is looking to sell its more than 500,000-square-foot campus in Addison; Texas lawmakers plan to study the possibility of annexing a chunk of its western neighbor. Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows this month directed a state legislative committee to explore the legal and economic implications of adding one or more New Mexico counties; and Democratic state Sen. Taylor Rehmet of Fort Worth accused Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of “petty, partisan politics” Monday after the newly elected senator was left off a list of influential appointments. Patrick gave Rehmet zero committee assignments Monday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Entrepreneur and former Dallas Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban on selling the Mavericks and the Luka Doncic trade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

First Baptist Dallas Church executive pastor Ben Lovvorn announced on Palm Sunday that construction will soon begin to rebuild the church’s 134-year-old historic sanctuary that was destroyed in a four-alarm fire in July 2024. In other news, Dallas police detained a man at the No Kings protest in downtown Dallas Saturday afternoon after an incident; The "Texas Furry Fiesta" was held at the Sheraton Dallas Hotelm this weekend, drawing more than 8,000 furries — people who create an anthropomorphic animal character; and the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., had a “protein-packed” day after visiting Dallas-Fort Worth barbecue joint The Original Roy Hutchins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After the Rangers' season-opening roster was set, John and Evan break down the final decisions and how playing time might be split at some positions. We also revisit the cool moment of Skip Schumaker informing Carter Baumler that he'd made the team while on the mound in the middle of an inning. Former Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos, the bench coach for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, stops by to talk about the run through the tournament, the work the staff and players put in and the gratitude that washed over him and his countrymen after the win over Team USA. Finally, in the Archives in Arlington, we walk through some 21st Century season openers, including Alex Rodriguez's first game, which foreshadowed a season and an era. And John shares a little surprise about the time Nolan Ryan and Robin Ventura talked on opening day - for the first time in nearly 20 years since their brawl. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices