Tom Vandergriff, the former Dallas-area mayor who lured the Texas Rangers out of Washington nearly 40 years ago, died Thursday. He was 84. The former Arlington mayor's son, Victor Vandergriff, said his father died of natural causes at a Fort Worth hospital. Tom Vandergriff had Alzheimer's disease in recent years. Vandergriff brought the Rangers to the city halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth in 1972. It took the Rangers almost 25 years to reach the playoffs, and another 14 to win a postseason series. The younger Vandergriff said his father was in attendance when the Rangers beat the New York Yankees in October to win the AL pennant and advance to their first World Series. The morning after that historic win, Tom Vandergriff fell and broke his hip, preventing from attending any World Series games, his son said. The Rangers lost the World Series to the San Francisco Giants in five games. Read more: http://sports.espn.go.com/dallas/mlb/news/story?id=5971869
