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The Legend of Evan Carter illustrates why Rangers shouldn’t be seen as one-year wonder

Carter reached base seven times in eight plate appearances during the Rangers’ two-game sweep of the Rays.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The din had settled. Corks had been popped. Champagne toasts had given way to Budweiser showers.

Bruce Bochy, out of baseball for three years before the Rangers dragged him back in to manage, leaned back in his chair, his T-shirt still soaked, with one bottle of champagne on his desk and one at his feet. He looked up from congratulatory texts and all he could do was break into a long, slow smile.

“This,” he said. “This is what I came back for.”

And then he smiled again.

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This was a celebration more than a decade in the making for the Rangers, who won a playoff series for the first time since 2011 on Wednesday with a 7-1 victory over Tampa Bay to sweep the two-game AL Wild Card Series. It wasn’t so much a smile of satisfaction as it was one of greed. There is more to accomplish for this team, for a franchise that has gone more than a half-century without a World Series trophy. Bochy has three of them at home. Doesn’t matter, they are both still hungry: The Rangers for their first; Bochy for more.

The next step on the road: The AL Division Series, which begins Saturday in Baltimore. The Rangers would host Games 3 and 4, if it is necessary, in the best-of-5 series on Tuesday and Wednesday in Arlington.

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A team that had developed multiple personalities over the second half of the season, limped into the playoffs as a wild card after leading the AL West for 160 days during the season. They lost three of four over the weekend at Seattle to earn a cross-country flight and a date with the Rays, who had the best home record in the AL. It was not the ideal scenario with which to start a playoff quest.

“These guys have the ability to put tough times, tough losses, tough streaks behind them, and this club did an unbelievable job of doing that,” Bochy said. “You couldn’t have a tougher loss than the last game. And then we had to fly right over Dallas on the way here; that could have been a real downer for the club. But they reset, refocused and put together two of the best back-to-back games we’ve had all year.”

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Helps when you’ve got your own legend staking his claim in the lineup. The Rangers now have clinched three different playoff series in Tropicana Field. There was the Cliff Lee master performance in Game 5 in 2010. There was the Adrian Beltré three-homer clincher in 2011. And, on Wednesday, there came perhaps the best story of them all for Rangers fans: There came the Legend of Evan Carter.

Carter, 36 days past his 21st birthday and not yet a full month into his major league career, gave the Rangers a commanding lead by jumping on a first-pitch cut fastball in the fourth inning for a two-run homer. It was the sixth consecutive time he reached base in the series. He reached base seven times in eight plate appearances.

“We joke around and say he’s our little savior,” said Josh Jung, who until September had been the designated little savior. “The impact he has had has been incredible. He’s had a quality at-bat every at-bat.”

The Rangers are at this point — advancing in the playoffs — because of the culmination of a lot of work from a lot of people. From owner Ray Davis, who invested more than $800 million in free agent contracts the last two winters, to GM Chris Young, who overhauled the pitching staff, to Bochy. And, of course, the players.

But Carter, perhaps more than anybody else, illustrates why this should not be viewed as merely a one-year wonder for a franchise that has too infrequently known any kind of success. He underscores that this isn’t just a one-time thing. The window for the Rangers to contend long-term is open. He is that rarest of Rangers: drafted and developed. A second-round pick in 2020.

“I plan on playing with him for a long time,” said second baseman Marcus Semien, one of the two major free agent core pieces signed in the last two years. “I’m really excited to watch his entire career. His performance propelled us. Everybody sees what he’s doing and wants to feed off it. He’s mature. He’s quiet. He goes to work.”

Said the other free agent cornerstone, Corey Seager: “What he’s done is really impressive in this environment. He’s done this all September. He never gets above himself. He’s not afraid of the moment.”

That was the main takeaway about Carter no matter which champagne-soaked Ranger you spoke to Wednesday: He’s not afraid of the moment. The GM echoed it. So did scouting director Kip Fagg, who drafted him and was mocked by TV analysts for doing so, and assistant GM Ross Fenstermaker, who boldly who proclaimed he’d be a top 25 talent by the end of the season. He underplayed it. By the time Carter went from Double-A Frisco to a week at Triple-A Round Rock, he was in the top 10.

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In 25 games in the majors, two of which are in the postseason, he’s put together a slash line of a .318 batting average, .452 on-base percentage, .727 slugging percentage and a 1.179 OPS (on-base plus slugging). According to Baseball-Reference, no Ranger player has ever come within 100 points of that in his first 25 games. When somebody said to Bochy, that Carter might be the best young player he’s had since the future Hall of Famer Buster Posey, the manager didn’t argue. Just smiled again.

“Nothing changes for him,” said bench coach and offensive coordinator Donnie Ecker. “He’s just really advanced [as a hitter]. It’s really hard to shake his foundation. It’s really strong. That speaks to the kind of person inside of him. He’s going to be a really good player for us for a long time.”

During the clubhouse celebration, Carter stood in a corner, taking it all in. He’d clearly had to show somebody ID just to be able to get some celebratory champagne, but it was OK, because champagne is “nasty,” he said. He might have had a couple of Budweisers, though.

How does this feel?

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“Gosh,” he said and, yeah, it really was ‘gosh.’ “I’m kinda cold.”

Ever pragmatic.

“Look, this is awesome,” he said. “This is just the beginning for us.”

With Evan Carter, it might be the beginning of a very long and very special run.

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