Texas Rangers fire manager Chris Woodward

ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.com) - The Texas Rangers have fired manager Chris Woodward.

The team announced the move Monday afternoon. Third base coach Tony Beasley will be interim manager for the remainder of the 2022 season and will be a candidate for the official role during the offseason.

"We think Tony is the right person to lead us for this season," Rangers President of Baseball Operations Jon Daniels said during a news conference. 

Daniels also thanked Woodward for his efforts in a statement.

"Chris worked tirelessly under what was at times some difficult circumstances. He has been dedicated and passionate in his efforts to improve on-field performance for the Texas Rangers, and it is greatly appreciated."

Rangers General Manager Chris Young said the organization wants to build momentum going into next season.

"We recognize that there are things that we need to address moving forward and we could either wait until after the season or we could get ahead of that and start addressing those things now," Young said.

The team went 211-287 in four seasons with Woodward at the helm. The Rangers are currently third in the AL West with a 51-63 record going 5-5 in their last 10 games. The team is 23 games back from the first place Houston Astros. 

In both the 2020 and 2021 seasons, the Rangers were last in their division.

Many fans have placed blame on Daniels for the lack of wins the past six seasons. The last time the Rangers had a winning record was in 2016. Daniels said he takes 'a lot' of responsibility for the losses, but also said it's a team effort and there are many good people in the organization. 

He was the 19th full-time manager in club history.  

The Rangers take on the Oakland Athletics Monday night at Globe Life Stadium in Arlington.

Full statement by the Texas Rangers: