The Texas Rangers put seven runs on the board and still walked away on the wrong side of an 11-7 loss to the Chicago White Sox, a game that was effectively decided by one ugly first inning.
Texas had chances to strike first. Wyatt Langford opened the top of the inning by popping a ball straight up that should have been the third out, but poor communication from the White Sox infield let it drop and gave the Rangers their first baserunner. Langford reached on the mistake, though he could have potentially made it to second if he had been sprinting.
One batter later, Brandon Nimmo lined a double down the line, and Langford’s indecision cost Texas again. With two outs, he should have been flying around the bases, but instead he appeared to think the ball had been handled near the infield and stopped at second while third base coach Corey Ragsdale yelled for him to keep going. By the time Langford realized the ball had gotten to the outfield, he could only advance to third, wiping out a chance for an early two-out RBI.
Texas still had another opening with Ezequiel Duran at the plate and two men in scoring position, but Duran bunted with two outs and did not execute it well enough to keep the inning alive. The White Sox got out of the inning without damage.
That should have been a warning sign, because the bottom of the first was much worse.
Jacob deGrom gave up six runs in the inning on five hits and two walks. None of the five hits left the bat at more than 80 MPH, and the hardest-hit ball among them was a 230-foot single off Miguel Vargas’ bat at 71.5 MPH. Some of it was just weak contact and some of it was bloop-hit misery, but the walks were a major problem too.
The inning also included a costly sequence behind deGrom. Justin Foscue could not handle a throw and apply a tag that might have erased a leadoff double, and later Langford compounded the damage with a rough throw that turned into an error and let Chicago score its first run.
After that disaster, the Rangers actually outscored the White Sox 7-5 the rest of the way. That at least gave Texas something to hang onto, but the first inning still went on the books, and so did another result that left the Rangers back below .500.
Danny Jansen was the bright spot for Texas, homering and finishing with two hits and a team-high three RBIs from the No. 9 spot.
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Rangers Finally Woke Up At The Plate When They Needed It Most
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Corey Seager led the charge with three hits and three RBIs, a needed centerpiece for an offense that had struggled to find rhythm. The victory moved Texas back to .500 and into first place in the American League West, though the early portion of the game had a little more chaos than the final score might suggest. [Read more 🡒]