One day he is telling sportswriters that Elvis Andrus will be the Rangers third baseman moving forward. The next day he is trading him.

Chris Young is officially a general manager. You cannot believe a word he says. That is not a knock again him. That’s not to call him a liar. It’s just, he has learned GM speak.

Don’t tip your hand. Don’t share your game plan. Fly under the radar.

GM speak is a general manager tells the press that his manager is safe and he has no plans on making a change, then the next day fires him.

Happens all the time.

In this case, the Rangers have traded one of the franchise’s most popular players. He’s been the starting shortstop around here for twelve years. That’s a long, remarkable run. He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting and was twice an All-Star.

Early in his career, he was known mainly for his glove. But in 2016 and 2017, Andrus turned the corner and put up his best offensive numbers.

Since then, he has been in a steady decline, enough to make him lose his coveted starting shortstop role.

But Elvis’s contributions to this franchise go beyond the numbers. For the past twelve seasons, he has been a constant. Always there. Always with that smile. Always with that joy for playing.

Once Adrian Beltre retired, Andrus seemed a bit lost. He didn’t wear the role of team leader well.

Now the last remaining reminder of when the Rangers were a World Series-caliber team is gone. Traded to Oakland of all place. For Khris Davis, the Ranger killer. Davis, a year older than Andrus, is also on the same offensive trajectory. Downward.

Just two seasons ago he led all of baseball with 48 home runs. Since then, the power hasn’t been as consistent. He is a high strikeout, low batting average, home run or bust kind of guy.

He is a Ranger now, in more ways than one.

So we say goodbye to Elvis Andrus. Good luck in Oakland. You will be missed.