Rangers snap eight-game losing streak with win over Twins
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Texas Rangers stopped their eight-game dropping streak with some additional persistence.
The Rangers ended their season-worst skid and remained tied for the AL West lead with a 6-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins, after Robbie Grossman and Leody Taveras sparked a four-run ninth inning Saturday with consecutive bases-loaded walks.
“They’ve been going through a lot when you go through a stretch like this, so good for them,” Rangers supervisor Bruce Bochy mentioned. “We had some great at-bats there in the ninth inning.”
Adolis Garcia and Mitch Garver, who each homered, greeted reliever Griffin Jax (5-8) with back-to-back singles. Ezequiel Duran received hit within the shoulder with a one-out pitch to load the bases, earlier than Grossman escaped an 0-2 gap by taking three straight balls, fouling one off and drawing the go-ahead stroll.
Dylan Floro relieved Jax, and hit Marcus Semien with a pitch to power in one other run, and Corey Seager gave the Rangers a four-run lead with a sacrifice fly. The remaining tally was three walks and two hit batsmen in that inning.
“This game’s about momentum,” Grossman mentioned, “and that was huge for us tonight.”
Brock Burke (5-2) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win for Texas, which has been in first or tied for it for all however sooner or later this season. The Rangers (73-56) stayed even with Seattle (73-56) for the division lead, one sport forward of Houston (73-58).
“I wouldn’t put it as a relief. Look, we’re a great team,” mentioned beginning pitcher Max Scherzer, who loved an eight-game profitable streak shortly after his arrival in a commerce with the Mets.
The Twins (67-63) remained six video games forward of Cleveland within the AL Central.
Twins nearer Jhoan Duran confronted simply three batters within the eighth, with catcher Christian Vazquez ending it on his second thwarted stolen base try of the sport. Twins supervisor Rocco Baldelli mentioned he used Duran earlier than Jax as a result of he was more energizing for the highest of the Texas lineup.
“Griff’s been excellent,” Baldelli mentioned. “I’ve really liked what I’ve seen from him. Today wasn’t his day.”
GOING DEEP
Garcia gave the Rangers a short lead within the sixth along with his career-high thirty second residence run that admired with a few sluggish steps earlier than glancing towards the Twins dugout and initiating his jog across the bases.
The Rangers had been irked Thursday when Ryan Jeffers flipped his bat within the air on the profitable homer. The two groups exchanged beanballs and cleared the benches to argue about it Friday in Minnesota’s 12-2 win.
Jorge Polanco homered and Max Kepler hit an RBI double off Scherzer, who had 10 strikeouts in seven innings with two runs allowed. The three-time Cy Young Award winner, who’s 9-2 in 17 profession begins in opposition to the Twins, confronted them for the primary time since 2014 when he was with Detroit.
RYAN RETURNS
Twins starter Joe Ryan made a easy return after an absence of three-plus weeks to a groin pressure, with seven strikeouts and one run allowed in 5 innings. With veteran Dallas Keuchel filling whereas Ryan was sidelined, the Twins are contemplating a six-man rotation to hold them into the ultimate month.
Ryan gave up Garver’s homer within the second, his twenty sixth allowed this season for the fourth-highest price amongst certified pitchers within the main leagues. Grossman smashed a double into the right-field nook later in that inning, however shortstop Carlos Correa — who ran over to to take the throw from Kepler — fired an ideal relay residence to Vazquez to get Duran making an attempt to attain from first base.
“That was so cool,” mentioned Ryan who watched the play unfold from behind the plate.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rangers: RHP Nathan Eovaldi (forearm pressure) will throw a bullpen session when the workforce is in New York subsequent week for a three-game collection in opposition to the Mets. There’s been no willpower but on whether or not Eovaldi, who has been sidelined for a month, will likely be despatched on a rehab task.
Twins: CF Michael A. Taylor was out for the second straight sport as a precaution with hamstring tightness. Joey Gallo performed CF rather than Taylor, who homered twice within the collection opener Thursday.
UP NEXT
Rangers: LHP Jordan Montgomery (8-10, 3.12 ERA) pitches Sunday. He has allowed 5 runs in 26 innings over 4 begins since his acquisition in a commerce with the St. Louis Cardinals on the identical day as Scherzer.
Twins: RHP Bailey Ober (6-6, 3.41 ERA) takes the mound for the collection finale.
