Only 5,000 Special Baseballs Will Be Produced to Salute World Series Achievement
The Wait Is OVER For Texas Rangers As Half Century Drought Ends
Sales Will Benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation® of North Texas
ARLINGTON, TEXAS (October 24, 2010) This one was for all the fans that had patiently watched and waited since 1960, back when the franchise was first known as the Washington Senators before moving to Texas with a manager named Ted Williams in 1972.
With the ultimate gunslinger himself—Rangers president Nolan Ryan watching from the stands—the Texas Rangers put the half-century jinx to rest, downing their longtime playoff nemesis, the New York Yankees, in six games in the American League Championship Series to finally earn a spot in the World Series.
No franchise had ever gone this long (50 seasons) without a visit to the Fall Classic.
But now all of that bad karma is behind them, and no one could be more elated about the Rangers post-season triumphs than a special group of local youngsters who look to the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of North Texas for support as they battle life-threatening medical conditions. Nikco Sports announced it will continue to sell a special limited-edition Texas Rangers post-season baseball, and will add the official World Series logo to all 5,000 baseballs being manufactured by Rawlings. Each baseball comes with a handsome acrylic display case so that Rangers fans can showcase it at home or at the office.
These officially licensed baseballs will be sold for $39.95 on a first-come basis to raise funds and grant wishes for the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of North Texas. They will be delivered to customers in plenty of time to use as a holiday or Christmas gift idea.
In recent years, Nikco Sports has raised more than $1.7 million for children’s charities, including past projects in the state of Texas that have saluted the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Astros, Texas Longhorns football and San Antonio Spurs, as well as local stars such as Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman, David Robinson, Craig Biggio and present day Rangers owner and Hall of Fame star pitcher Nolan Ryan.
Fans can order the Rangers World Series Appearance baseballs at 1-800-345-2868 or by visiting www.nikcosports.com. Each baseball and case includes a numbered certificate of authenticity to enhance the value. Four dollars from each sale goes to the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of North Texas, with a potential goal of raising $20,000.
Each panel of the baseball contains historical information about the Rangers franchise. One panel will contain the official Rangers team logo; another spotlights the official 2010 World Series logo; other panels will contain printed information that recaps the Rangers winning the American League Western Division title, the fourth divisional title in club history, as well as the divisional series win over Tampa Bay and the ALCS triumph over the Yankees.
By winning all three games on the road in the first round of the playoffs, the Rangers made history in another way, as this was the first post-season series of any length in baseball history in which the road team won every game. The Rangers also won two of three road games in New York during the ALCS.
“It certainly looks like the Rangers are a team of destiny with their play in the post-season and their goal of reaching the World Series for the first time in 50 seasons has finally been accomplished,” said Nikco Sports CEO Craig Bidner, whose company has given back regularly to communities since its inception in 1992. “Good things happen to those who wait, and Rangers fans and their patience certainly have been tested.
“It’s a great time to be a fan of the Texas Rangers and we’re very pleased to be able to present a quality product that fans can own and reflect back on for years to come. At the same time, we are also honored to be again working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of North Texas to help youngsters who have some life-threatening medical conditions, as we have done on a number of occasions in the past in working on projects throughout the state of Texas that have saluted various teams and individual hometown stars. Those were all very successful projects and raised awareness for these youngsters. We hope this time around will be as rewarding.”
During the past several years, Nikco Sports has raised more than $1.7 million for charitable organizations across the nation with the issue of limited-edition sports memorabilia that has honored amateur and professional teams, as well as select athletes such athletes as Dan Marino, Brett Favre, Jerome Bettis, Tim Tebow, Ben Roethlisberger, along with Peyton Manning, Jim Kelly, Carson Palmer, Steve Young, John Elway, David Robinson, John Stockton, Magic Johnson, Roger Clemens, Ryne Sandberg, Paul Molitor, Kirby Puckett, Stephen Strasburg, Edgar Martinez, Ichiro, Ozzie Smith, Mark McGwire, Ken Griffey Jr., Whitey Herzog, Nolan Ryan, Matt Garza, Tony Gwynn, Craig Biggio and Cal Ripken Jr.
About the Make-A-Wish Foundation
The Make-A-Wish Foundation® grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. Born in 1980 when a group of caring individuals helped a young boy fulfill his dream of becoming a police officer, the Foundation is now the largest wish-granting charity in the world, with 65 chapters in the U.S. and its territories. With the help of generous donors and nearly 25,000 volunteers, the Make-A-Wish Foundation grants more than 12,600 wishes a year and has granted more than 168,000 wishes in the U.S. since inception.
