ARLINGTON — This was not the greatest 24 hours of Michael Helman’s life. He has a wife and a child. But after his wedding day and his baby being born, there can’t be anything that tops what he did Monday and Tuesday for the Rangers.
Just to recap because, it’s been a lot: On Monday, he hit the Rangers’ first grand slam of the season. In his first ever at-bat with the bases loaded. And drove in all five of the team’s runs. Then he followed it up with a home run-saving catch, a game-tying, rally-sparking homer of his own — all in the same inning Tuesday — in a 5-4 come-from-behind win over Milwaukee, the team with the best record in the majors.
Who knows what Wednesday can bring?
“I’m just so happy for that guy,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. “He’s had two terrific games, but he’s saved some other games for us. He’s spent a lot of time in the minor leagues, gone through waivers, all those things and he finally gets a chance here and he’s helped us from Day One. We’re all chanting ‘Helly! Helly!’ and wanting to get him back up there. We’re having fun with it, watching this guy play.
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“I’ve said all along that to go where you want to go, you have to have some surprises along the way.”
Oh, the Rangers have had plenty of surprises this season, it’s just that most haven’t been of the pleasant variety. It’s why they find themselves swimming upstream for a playoff berth in the final weeks of the season. But with 16 games remaining — 10% of the season — they can finally get a close-up view of AL West leader Houston. Combined with the Astros’ walkoff loss at Toronto on Tuesday, the Rangers pulled within 2 ½ games of Houston. It’s the closest they’ve been in the West since May 18 when they lost at Houston to start a six-game losing streak.
Seemed like a horrible week at the time. Then again, on May 19, they were awarded Helman on waivers from Pittsburgh and he was immediately optioned to the minors. A depth play. The Rangers had liked Helman dating back to 2024, had plans to pursue him in minor league free agency that winter, but he was added to Minnesota’s roster last September, traded for cash to St. Louis in December, DFA’d by St. Louis the second week of May, claimed by Pittsburgh and run through waivers again two days later. The Rangers had put in claims for Helman on both occasions; the second time, they had the prevailing claim. They got him, stashed him at Round Rock for depth. Boy, have they needed that depth as the middle of the diamond has cratered with injuries,
He had two brief call-ups with the Rangers in June and July, but when Marcus Semien and Evan Carter went down on the same day in August, it cleared a perfect spot for Helman, who has middle infield and center field ability.
Texas Rangers outfielder Michael Helman robs Milwaukee Brewers’ Brice Turang of a home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025, in Arlington, Texas.
Julio Cortez / AP
“It’s hard to keep it straight because it all happened very quickly,” Helman said of being taken off two rosters in such a short period. “There wasn’t much going through my mind. I was just going to continue to play the game the way I play the game and whatever happens, happens. I was just very fortunate the Rangers picked me and getting around those guys, even in Triple-A, it just felt more like home.”
The majors should feel like home right now, too. Mostly because a ton of the guys he played with at Triple-A are all in the big leagues with him now. And it feels like the whole team is playing the game like Helman and Cody Freeman, one of those guys he played with in Triple-A play it: all gas no breaks.
Consider the fifth inning on Tuesday. It began with Helman going above the wall in left center to rob Brice Turang of what appeared to be a homer. Statcast, the analytics website, said it would not have been a homer. But, you know what, maybe analytics have run their course. On the mound, starter Jack Leiter lifted both arms into the air in admiration. Leiter still allowed three runs in the inning, turning a 1-0 Rangers lead into a 3-1 deficit.
But, hey, it was only momentary. Helman, batting in the ninth spot, was due up third in the inning. After Jonah Heim worked his way to a one-out walk, Helman caught a 1-0 cutter on the outside edge, maybe even off the edge, and drove it out to left center, to nearly the same spot in which he’d made his catch in the top of the inning. But, of course, Helman wasn’t out there to steal his own homer. It tied the game at three and it ignited the Rangers.
It began a stretch of four-straight hits, a single by Josh Smith, a go-ahead triple by Wyatt Langford and a hustling pinch-hit double by Kyle Higashioka. It was the first time the Rangers had all four elements of a cycle in the same inning in three years.
“It’s just really incredible,” said veteran Joc Pederson. “You are really happy for him. He works hard. He’s a nice kid. He’s putting the team on his back. He’s winning games on offense, on defense on the bases. It’s fun to watch.”
And for Helman, what was that amazing 24-hour run like?
“It’s just been a huge adrenaline rush,” Helman said, sheepishly and perhaps a bit sleepily. “I’ve still got a lot of adrenaline going. I blacked out on both home runs, don’t remember them. I couldn’t sleep last night because I had so much adrenaline going. I was up until like 2 a.m. I just kind of want to get some sleep.”
Even heroes eventually need sleep.
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