The Rangers are down to one more chance at home before the schedule turns again, and Sunday’s matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays comes with plenty riding on it for Texas.
At 70-73, the Rangers are still trying to chip away at the Houston Astros’ three-game lead in the AL West, while also keeping an eye on the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL wild card race. Toronto is 72-71 and tied with the Cleveland Guardians for the final AL wild card berth; if the postseason started today, the Blue Jays would own that spot on the tiebreaker. Texas sits two games back of that group.
That path may actually be the cleaner one for the Rangers, especially with three games still left against Toronto on the final homestand. But none of that matters much if Texas can’t take care of business Sunday or if it can’t steady itself on the road next week in Seattle and Arizona, the final two-city trip of the season.
The Rangers get the Rays at 1:35 p.m., with Texas sending left-hander MacKenzie Gore (8-10, 4.31) to the mound against Tampa Bay lefty Ian Seymour (9-6, 4.21). The Rays are 85-57 and closing in on both the AL East crown and the No. 1 overall seed in the AL playoffs.
For Texas, the lineup against Seymour leans heavily on current form, since no Rangers hitter has a home run or RBI against him in his career. Ezequiel Duran has been the strongest option of the group, and the Rangers have been using him in center field against left-handers lately. He is slashing .300/.401/.467 against lefties.
Justin Foscue has also emerged as the Rangers’ preferred right-handed bat against left-handed pitching, filling the role Texas had hoped Andrew McCutchen would handle early in the season. Foscue is hitting .319/.391/.622 with eight home runs and 22 RBI against lefties.
Cody Freeman is another name holding down a spot despite the team’s looming off day Monday and the road trip ahead. What once looked like a lost season because of injury has turned into a steady run of at-bats, and Freeman has put together a .260/.329/.338 line in 27 games this year.
In Other News...
Rangers Are Sending Justin Foscue A Tough Message At The Wrong Time
Justin Foscue gave the Rangers a reason to keep watching him when he drove a ball out of the park in a recent game, a reminder that his bat can still change the feel of an inning. But when a right-handed reliever came in, manager Skip Schumaker went to a pinch-hitter anyway, turning to left-handed Evan Carter in a move that underscored how fragile Foscues place in the lineup can be.
That kind of decision is bigger than one at-bat for a player still trying to prove he belongs, especially one whose best numbers have come against left-handed pitching. Foscues contract status and the way the Rangers have handled similar matchups around him only sharpen the question of whether these quick hooks are helping him grow as a hitter or sending a message at exactly the wrong time. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Add Another Brutal Twist To A Season Fans Know Too Well
The Rangers kept themselves in the game long enough to make it interesting, tying the score in the eighth after Evan Carter went deep for a solo shot and pushed himself closer to double digits on the season. For a while, it looked like they might steal one from Tampa Bay after a back-and-forth night that spilled into extra innings, with Texas showing enough fight to erase the deficit and force the Rays into a longer finish.
Instead, the night turned into one more reminder of how thin the margin has been for Texas this year. The Rangers came up empty in the extra frame, and Tampa Bay made them pay before the game was over, leaving another frustrating loss in a season full of them and another missed chance to turn a close game into something useful. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Turn Another Frustrating Night Into A Win They Desperately Needed
The Rangers needed a night like this, and they got it after falling behind early against the Rays. Texas kept its composure, leaned on a timely offense and got enough from the bullpen to keep the game within reach before the bats finally broke through late.
Jake Burger was at the center of it, giving the Rangers the kind of pop they have been searching for with a pair of home runs and several key RBIs. The relief work held Tampa Bay down when the game tightened, and Texas added a little more cushion in the late innings before Jakob Junis finished it off with the save. [Read more 🡒]