OAKLAND, Calif. -- Texas Rangers manager Jeff Banister left the team on Saturday morning to be with his ill mother.
Banister's mother, Verda, lives in Clear Lake, Texas. Bench coach Steve Buechele will manage the last two games of the Rangers' series against the Oakland Athletics. The Rangers were on the fringe of the American League wild-card race, going into Saturday, as they trailed the Minnesota Twins by 3 1/2 games for the second wild-card spot.
"The circumstances of this are terrible, but family first,'' Buechele said.
Buechele learned about Banister's situation on Friday night but said he didn't know Banister would be flying back to Texas until Saturday morning.