Breaking: Ron Washington resigns as manager of the Texas Rangers

Ron Washington resigned suddenly as manager of the Texas Rangers the team and Washington, both announced Friday. Washington cited personal reasons for his resignation.

According to CBS Sports’ Max Axisa, Washington issued the following statement,

"“Today, I have submitted my resignation from the job I love – managing the Rangers – in order to devote my full attention to addressing an off-the-field personal matter. As painful as it is, stepping away from the game is what’s best for me and my family.“This is in no way related to the disappointing performance of the team this season. We were already discussing 2015 and looking forward to getting the Rangers back to postseason contention.“I deeply regret that I’ve let down the Rangers organization and our great fans. Over the past eight seasons, it’s been a privilege to be part of some of the best years in club history and I will always be grateful for the opportunities I’ve had here, and for the great management, players, and coaches who have made our time here a success. Thank you for respecting my privacy.”"

The Rangers would not comment on Washington’s sudden and surprising announcement in order to protect his privacy. Rangers’ general manger Jon Daniels did say that the team had planned to have Washington as their manager in 2015, the final year of his contract.

"“We accept Ron’s decision and are grateful for his many contributions to the Rangers organization over the last eight years,” Daniels said. “This has certainly been a difficult season for our major league club in terms of on-field performance, but we were looking forward to moving ahead with Ron as our manager in 2015.”"

The Rangers’ bench coach Tom Bogar has been name the interim manager for the ball club for the remainder of the 2014 season.

Washington attempted to resign once before in 2010 because he admitted to having a problem with cocaine. Neither former club president Nolan Ryan nor GM Daniels would accept the resignation.

Washington got help for his addiction and underwent weekly drug testing. There is no indication that his resignation has to do with any kind of relapse.

Washington, 62, won the more games than any other manager in Rangers history. He led the team to four 90-win seasons, three playoff appearances and two American League pennants.

Prior to taking over as the Rangers’ manager in 2007, Washington had been a player in the major leagues for parts of ten seasons during the 1980’s. He acted as a coach for the Oakland Athletics from 1996-2006. He was beloved by the players of both clubs.

For now and likely the time being, Washington’s reasons for his sudden resignation will unfortunately remain a mystery.