ARLINGTON, Texas — Brandon Nimmo drove in 5 runs, MacKenzie Gore allowed 1 run over 5 1/3 innings, and the Texas Rangers beat the Athletics 8-5 on Tuesday night at Globe Life Field.
Texas improved to 69-70 and moved within one game of the first-place Houston Astros, who lost 5-1 to the Chicago White Sox. The Athletics fell to 53-86 and lost their fifth straight game.
Nimmo scored Corey Seager with a two-out double in the first inning. The Athletics tied it in the third, when Gore worked out of a bases-loaded jam, and Brady Basso came out with one out in the bottom of the inning after Seager doubled for the second time. Basso allowed 4 hits and 2 runs.
Ezequiel Durán kept the game at 2-1 in the fourth. The second baseman dove to stop a one-hopper and threw out Henry Bolte, who had led off the inning.
Nimmo came up with the bases loaded in the fifth against Luis Medina and singled in two runs for a 5-1 lead. His 4 hits and 5 RBI were season highs, and 3 of the RBI came with two outs.
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said the fifth-inning single opened the game up, and that Texas wound up needing all of those runs.
“He knew he was going to come through after kind of a tough road trip,” Schumaker said. “A lot of guys were kind of feeling it for a little bit there. And I said it before the game that Brandon’s been working really hard, always works hard. That’s nothing really new.”
“But for him to find something after one of the games, hit until 1:30 in the morning or whatever it was in Chicago and Milwaukee, and then feeling something and it actually being tangible to use in a game was pretty great,” Schumaker continued. “Five RBIs, four hits today, just a fantastic night.”
Nimmo credited cage work with Rangers lead hitting coach Justin Viele afterward, and said he stayed at the ballpark on the road trip after the team buses left.
Skip Schumaker On The Texas Rangers’ Bases-Loaded At-Bats
Texas has beaten teams in different ways over the last two nights, on ball-in-the-dirt reads, sacrifice flies, moving runners over, and baserunning.
“I don’t know about the psychological part,” Schumaker explained. “I think there’s just some guys that have been there before and it’s happened for them before. And I think there was just frustration early on in the year with the bases loaded thing. It just became a thing. But I think the part that is, I don’t know if it’s different or not, but they’re just not coming away from their game plan. I think they’re just really stingy in their game plan.”
“That Brandon Nimmo, bases loaded, RBI, two RBIs. He went from a one-two count. Medina was throwing nasty splits and sliders. Fastball at 99 miles an hour, big takes. And then to get a base hit in the four hole was a big moment in the game,” Schumaker added. “But there’s a lot of guys that I’m excited about when there’s bases loaded that come up to the plate up and down the lineup. It’s nice to see that Brandon came through tonight in a big spot and kind of opened the game up a little bit, and it turns out that we needed all those runs.”
Texas scored twice more in the sixth on sacrifice flies by Logan O’Hoppe and Seager, with Evan Carter reaching on a bunt earlier in the inning. Seager doubled twice, walked, and scored 3 times. Wyatt Langford had two hits, and Seager, Langford, and Nimmo combined for 8 of Texas’ 12 hits.
Evan Carter Bunts Again As Texas Rangers Add Runs On Two Sacrifice Flies
Carter has been working on bunting left-on-left to the right side, and Tuesday was the second time he has put one down that way.
“The offense the last three, four games has been really good,” Schumaker said. “Even a couple games in Chicago, they looked really good. Milwaukee faced some tough pitching. The last game was really good. The last two nights have been great. Different ways that we’re beating them with, we said a little bit earlier, ball in the dirt reads, sac flies, getting them over, getting them in, first and third, base running. It’s been really, really good at-bats, solid at-bats, using the whole field. Wyatt Langford, it was really good to see him getting a couple hits tonight. In big spots, double the other way, base hit through the hole. Corey Seager, two more doubles. Just looks so good at the plate, with another walk.”
“So, O’Hoppe good sac fly. Evan Carter bunting left on left to the right side. That’s two of them, which is really good on the right side to see him,” Schumaker noted. “And he’s working really hard at it and to see it have success at this level. And I think we’ll have him be more confident in utilizing that because that’s what he’s going to need to use against lefties and really good for him to continue trying to do it. That’s a big deal.”
Texas led 8-1 through six innings. Gore allowed 5 hits and 4 walks in his 5 1/3 innings and improved to 8-10. Jacob Latz struck out both hitters he faced for his 28th save in 31 chances, a night after Texas had 4 relievers available for the series opener.
Jeff McNeil hit a two-run homer in the ninth. The Athletics finished with 11 hits, 7 walks, and 2 hit batters, left the bases loaded twice, and stranded 14 runners. Their current losing streak is the fourth of at least five games they have run off in the past two months, a stretch that also includes skids of 10 and nine.
Athletics first baseman Tommy White left the game with low back soreness after taking one swing leading off the second inning.
The Rangers have scored at least 7 runs in three straight games. They beat Milwaukee 7-4 on Sunday and the Athletics 8-1 on Monday.
Texas goes for the sweep in Wednesday’s series finale at 1:35 p.m. CT on Rangers Sports Network. Left-hander Cody Bradford (0-3, 3.42 ERA) starts for the Rangers against Athletics left-hander Jacob Lopez (5-4, 4.62).
