The Rangers closed out their series and their homestand with a 7-3 win, and the biggest reason was simple: Kumar Rocker gave them a real start.
It didn’t look that way right away. Randy Arozarena opened the second inning by taking Rocker deep, wiping out Joc Pederson’s leadoff homer in the bottom of the first.
Then, after Pederson’s second blast of the day pushed Texas in front 4-1 heading into the third, Rocker ran into another jam. A flared single, a hard single, and Julio Rodriguez’s line-drive contact that turned into a sacrifice fly cut the lead to 4-2.
That set up Dominic Canzone, who had already done damage the day before with a go-ahead three-run homer against Cole Winn and an insurance RBI double. With one out and the tying run at the plate, it looked like the kind of swing that could flip the whole afternoon.
Instead, Canzone crushed a Rocker pitch - a slider, not a sinker - straight into a 4-6-3 double play. The threat vanished, and so did the sense that the game might be slipping away.
From there, Rocker settled in and stayed there. He faced 13 more batters, retired 11 of them, and exited with two outs in the seventh to a warm ovation from the crowd at the Shed on a Monday afternoon. He finished with seven strikeouts and two walks, and his line now sits at a 4.03 ERA and 4.14 FIP.
The numbers suggest a pitcher who has been steadier than the memory sometimes says. In 20 appearances - 18 starts and two pseudo-starts behind an opener - Rocker has allowed more than three runs only four times.
He has given up two or fewer runs in 13 of those outings and has seven quality starts this season. The inconsistency is still part of the package, but this year has been a clear step forward from last season’s uneven run, and that matters with roughly 11 scheduled starts left.
After Sunday’s bullpen meltdown, Skip Schumaker wasn’t interested in letting this one drift. Robby Ahlstrom was brought in to face J.P.
Crawford after Rocker’s exit in the seventh, and it was the third straight day Ahlstrom had pitched. Jakob Junis, held back on Sunday when the lead disappeared, handled a scoreless eighth.
Jacob Latz finished it off, though he allowed a couple of hits and a sacrifice fly that made the final 7-3 instead of 7-2.
Texas didn’t need much offense beyond the long ball. The Rangers scored all seven runs on four homers: two from Pederson, one from Ezequiel Duran, and one from Jake Burger. Every one of them came against George Kirby, who has been a problem for Texas for as long as anyone can remember.
Pederson is now slashing .254/.343/.513, which looks a lot like the version the Rangers believed they were getting when they signed him after the 2024 season. Evan Carter also kept building momentum, going 2 for 4 with a double and a stolen base. His season line is up to .198/.314/.348, and since coming off the injured list he’s hitting .278/.391/.444.
Duran’s homer traveled 436 feet, the eighth farthest at the Shed this season. Pederson’s first-inning shot went 418 feet, tied for 33rd longest this year. The 10 farthest balls hit in Arlington this season, and 29 of the 34 farthest, have come since May 26.
The ballpark has been playing differently lately, and the exit velocities backed that up too. Rocker’s fastball reached 96.0 mph and averaged 94.5 mph, while his sinker topped out at 95.0 mph and averaged 93.7 mph. Ahlstrom hit 94.5 mph with his fastball, Junis reached 93.5 mph, and Latz touched 96.2 mph.
At the plate, Carter posted a 107.8 mph double, a 104.4 mph single, and a 104.0 mph groundout. Brandon Nimmo had a 106.8 mph double, Pederson’s homer came off the bat at 106.4 mph, Duran’s homer at 106.3 mph, Burger’s at 105.1 mph, and Wyatt Langford added a 102.0 mph groundout.
In Other News...
Rangers Suddenly Face A Roster Squeeze At The Worst Time
The Rangers left Seattle with a series win and a little more momentum than they arrived with, thanks to a strong pitching stretch that included Kumar Rockers latest outing and a power surge against George Kirby. It was the kind of trip that can steady a club heading into the final week before the trade deadline, especially for a team that looks positioned to buy and is already being linked to bullpen help.
Corey Seagers rehab assignment adds another layer to the picture, because every step toward getting him back on the field can ripple through the roster. For a Rangers club trying to balance immediate upgrades with internal reinforcements, the timing could hardly be tighter, and the next few days may force some difficult decisions about who stays put and who gets moved around. [Read more 🡒]
Another Jarred Kelenic Turn Just Reinforced White Sox Fans' Frustration
Jarred Kelenics latest stop in Texas ended quickly, and it added another layer to a career that has kept bouncing between promise and frustration. The Rangers had promoted him to the major league roster after he was doing well at Triple-A Round Rock, but the big-league results never followed, leaving the organization to move on after a brief look.
For White Sox fans, the turn is an easy one to notice because it fits a familiar pattern around a player who has kept searching for the right landing spot. Kelenic now heads back into free agency, still looking for the next chance to settle in and prove he can turn minor league production into something more lasting at the highest level. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Deadline Dilemma Could Define This Division Race
With the trade deadline looming, the Rangers find themselves in a familiar but delicate spot: leading the AL West by 2.5 games and trying to decide how much urgency to attach to a roster that has kept them in first place. The front office is weighing the shape of the pitching staff, including the possibility of Jordan Montgomery returning from rehab, while also sorting through the kind of low-cost bullpen help that can matter in a division race without forcing a long-term financial commitment.
What makes the next week so tricky is the balance between need and restraint. Texas wants relief help, but it is not looking to chase the expensive starting pitching market or sacrifice the kind of prospect capital that can alter the organizations future. That leaves the Rangers hunting for affordable arms that can steady the late innings, even as the pressure rises to make a move that helps now without boxing them in later. [Read more 🡒]