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How ALCS-bound Rangers built clubhouse chemistry through old-school card game ‘Pluck’

At a time when technology has invaded the locker room space, a simple deck of cards has brought the Rangers together.

ARLINGTON — The Rangers’ clubhouse was designed to be a sanctum. Or a resort.

Between the spacious dressing area, spa room, sleep pods, lounge, biomechanics lab and gourmet chef-stocked dining area, it’s posh. For crying out loud, the place is so nice, the Rangers didn’t even celebrate winning the AL Division Series in there. They set up an auxiliary locker room down the right-field line. Poppin’ bottles is fun. But champagne and high-tech don’t mix well.

In the age of fancy finish-outs, perhaps it’s a bit surprising the centerpiece to the clubhouse is a single white, circular dinette table. And a deck of playing cards.

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If you are looking for how this team bonded — beyond the prodigious amount of talent — it might not be necessary to look beyond an old-school card game that has broken out and picked up steam. Pluck is a version of Spades, a trick-taking, two-team, four-player game based on trump cards and suits. Any afternoon, home or away, you can find a foursome playing with a handful of others watching, waiting and, of course, trash-talking.

“When you get guys together and do stuff outside of your job, it’s good for chemistry,” veteran outfielder Robbie Grossman said. “You get to see who people really are. It’s a good team-building exercise.”

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Second baseman Marcus Semien, along with Grossman, was one of the founding members of the informal card group. “Good teams hang out together,” he said. “Athletes like to compete. And when you compete in something that isn’t baseball, it gets everybody involved.”

The basic rules of the game, though there are often individualized twists: Thirteen cards are dealt singly to each of four players. The player who gets the two of clubs calls the initial trump suit and all other players must play a card of that suit if they have it. Highest card wins. If the player doesn’t have a card of that suit but has a card of the trump suit, he may play that card and win unless another player plays a higher card of that suit. If a card of neither suit is played, the player loses that hand. After the first hand, the call of the trump suit traditionally passes to the left, though in the version the Rangers play, the team that wins the hand calls the next “pluck.”

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The team with the pluck must take at least eight of the 13 books (a trick of four cards played) on the next deck to score. The team without the pluck must take at least five of the 13 books to score. Points are awarded for number of books above the minimum. A game typically consists of 10 points, but sometimes they go shorter due to meetings or other commitments. The idea: Win at the moment. And talk as much trash as possible. That’s the most important rule.

There’s no money involved. Which makes the liveliness of the game even more surprising. This is about winning and losing.

Shortstop Corey Seager is perhaps the most competitive. Rookie third baseman Josh Jung and outfielder Evan Carter, who didn’t really play cards in the minor leagues, are on a learning curve. It’s fair to say Carter has more easily adjusted to big-league pitching than big-league cards. But give him time. Infielder Josh Smith might be the loudest.

There is no consensus on who is the worst player.

Grossman would only narrow it down to “rookies.” The rookies acknowledged they are still learning.

“I can’t go there,” Seager said. “I just can’t.”

Which is not surprising, considering Seager’s noncontroversial approach to interviews. On the other hand, Seager is also the consensus pick for most pointed trash-talker.

“Unfortunately, yeah, that’s probably true,” he said sheepishly.

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Building team chemistry is perhaps harder than ever. The clubhouse is where it should happen. It’s where players see each other not just as teammates, but as people. As clubhouses get bigger and bigger, with more amenities spread out, and players get enveloped in personal technology, bonding becomes more difficult.

Teams try. But more often than not, the efforts are just that: effort. Or they look like they were conjured up by a social media person.

It started with Joe Maddon introducing the themed road trip garb while he was the manager of the Tampa Bay Rays more than a decade ago. Even the Rangers did one of those this year, an ′80s flight, the highlight of which was coach Bobby Wilson dressing up as 1984′s version of Bruce Bochy, complete with a vintage San Diego Padres uniform, fake mustache and a Shark Tank-approved Noggin Boss oversized cap. It was fun. For a night.

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The most recent trend has become something of a forced bit: team home run celebrations. After hitting a homer, a player is greeted at the dugout with a special greeting and a prop, usually of local significance. It’s not that far removed from what have become choreographed NFL touchdown celebrations. The point: Homers are fun. Everybody should celebrate the accomplishment. Nearly took over the sport this year.

Seattle Mariners' Dylan Moore (25) is presented with a trident by Julio Rodriguez after...
Seattle Mariners' Dylan Moore (25) is presented with a trident by Julio Rodriguez after hitting a solo home run during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Saturday, Aug. 19, 2023, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox)(Kevin M. Cox / ASSOCIATED PRESS)

At one point, MLB.com ranked team homer celebrations. The top two spots went to AL West rivals: Seattle Mariners, which presented the conqueror with a trident and Neptune’s helmet upon his return to the dugout, and the Los Angeles Angels, who offered up a Kabuto, a Japanese Samurai helmet, in congratulations. The Mariners kept their seafaring theme on the celebration; the Angels apparently gave a nod to the guy who hit the most homers, Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani.

The celebrations are meant to exhibit joy and bring a team together. In other words, to create or enhance team chemistry. Not so fun fact: None of the 13 teams whose celebrations were ranked in the MLB.com mid-season story are still playing. Only two made the postseason. The Rangers never had a homer celebration. They prefer competition.

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“When I got here, it was already clear this team had chemistry; it was a good group of guys,” said veteran outfielder Travis Jankowski, new to card playing this season, but a regular in the Pluck game over the last half of the year as his playing time and role waned. “But you go throughout the year and you know that chemistry can fade, especially when you have really high highs and really low lows. The lows can really cut into that.

“That’s where I think honestly, the consistent card games we play every single day bring us together. It’s even gotten to the point where you have your own regular partner. If you walk in and your partner is playing with someone else, you get kind of pissed off. Like: ‘That’s my partner. What’s going on?’”

For the record, Jankowski and pitcher Jacob deGrom have become regular Pluck teammates. Seager and Smith are regular teammates, too. Reliever Brock Burke, Marcus Semien, Grossman and the rookies are all among those rotate in and out.

Semien said he’s been playing cards since he came up. His only real evaluation of the game in the Rangers’ clubhouse: “You don’t want me and Corey on the same team.”

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Most AL pitchers would agree.

Before he got to the Rangers, Jankowski, who turned 32 in June, hadn’t really played cards, a staple of clubhouse entertainment that has faded as iPhones, iPads and AirPods have taken hold.

“Nowadays, it’s really easy to sit in your locker and ignore your teammates,” Jankowski said. “And I was guilty of it. I think this has given us an extra bond.”

In particular, that seems to apply to Seager. A year ago, Seager arrived in a new clubhouse, with a huge contract and a meticulous, individualized game prep. At times, it gave off an air of distance. The card game has helped bring out Seager’s personality.

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“He didn’t know a ton of people when he got here,” said Smith, his usual partner. “This year, it’s been really fun to see him cut loose. He’s performing on the field and [having fun] in here. When you can cut loose, that’s where you really [create chemistry]. We didn’t really have that last year.”

They do in 2023. They just needed a deck of cards.

Twitter: @Evan_P_Grant

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