Tom Schieffer Selected To Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame

ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) -- Former Rangers executive Tom Schieffer, who was instrumental in building the new ballpark in Arlington, has been selected as the 17th member of the Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame.

Schieffer joins Johnny Oates (2003), Tom Vandergriff (2004), Mark Holtz (2005), Tom Grieve (2010), and Eric Nadel (2012) as the only members of the elite club in a "non-playing capacity".

A pre-game ceremony will be held on Aug. 23 before the Rangers game with Kansas City. Schieffer will also be honored at the team's Dr Pepper Hall of Fame Luncheon on Friday, Aug. 22.

Schieffer was an original investor in the ownership group headed by George W. Bush and Edward (Rusty) Rose, which purchased the team in 1989. On July 26, 1990, he was tasked with the goal of securing a new facility to replace Arlington Stadium.

Less than three months later, the Rangers and the City of Arlington announced plans for the construction of a new ballpark complex funded through a public-private partnership. After city voters approved the funding in January 1991, Schieffer was appointed as the Rangers President in February.

As President, Schieffer oversaw all aspects of the Rangers organization, but focused on the vision and construction of the new ballpark. The ballpark opened on time and on budget in April 1994.

"Out of all the things I've done, from a pure enjoyment standpoint, that was the most enjoyable," says Schieffer. "It was so much fun to see the creativity involved. It was connecting the dots differently than they'd been connected in the past."

Twenty years later, the ballpark still stands, having received a number of renovations and upgrades under the name Globe Life Park.

In Schieffer's tenure, the Rangers also reached their first ever postseason, winning the AL West in 1996. He also helped create the Texas Rangers Baseball Foundation in 1992, an organization dedicated to building youth ballparks in North Texas.

Tom Hicks purchased the team in 1998; Schieffer left the team in April 1999.

Schieffer graduated from Arlington Heights High School and attended the University of Texas. He also served as the United States Ambassador to Australia from 2001-05 and to Japan from 2005-09.

Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame Members

Charlie Hough (2003)
Johnny Oates (2003)
Nolan Ryan (2003)
Jim Sundberg (2003)
Buddy Bell (2004)
Ferguson Jenkins (2004)
Tom Vandergriff (2004)
Mark Holtz (2005)
John Wetteland (2005)
Rusty Greer (2007)
Toby Harrah (2009)
Ruben Sierra (2009)
Tom Grieve (2010)
Kenny Rogers (2011)
Eric Nadel (2012)
Ivan Rodriguez (2013)
Tom Schieffer (2014)

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