ARLINGTON, Texas — Elias Díaz hit a two-run double with two outs in the second inning Tuesday night. Three batters later, Corey Seager added a two-run single, and the Texas Rangers beat left-hander Patrick Sandoval and the Boston Red Sox 4-2.
Sandoval struck out the first 4 Rangers he faced. Díaz’s double went into the left-field corner and scored Brandon Nimmo and Ezequiel Durán. Sandoval then walked Danny Jansen and Justin Foscue. Seager’s high popup to shallow left deflected off the glove of shortstop Trevor Story, and Díaz and Jansen scored.
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said the club had trouble with Sandoval’s changeup early before getting to him the second time through the order.
“They threw a lot of lefties tonight,” Schumaker said. “We got after the starter but just couldn’t add on runs against a really good bullpen and kept it at two runs. But luckily, Díaz had a really good day. Two-out RBI, a huge double down the line. I mean, that really set the tone for us. And then Seager adding on with two more RBIs was huge.”
“But yeah, we feel really good about our lineup against left-handers,” Schumaker continued. “Sandoval is a good pitcher, and we had trouble early on with the changeup, but ended up second time around getting to them. But their bullpen, they matched up, it feels like, every inning to try to stop us, and they did. They did a good job, but four was enough, and our bullpen was equally as good, which was great to see.”
Elias Díaz And Corey Seager Deliver Two-Out Runs
Texas went 2-for-4 with runners in scoring position, and both hits came with two outs. Díaz went 1-for-2 before Alejandro Osuna pinch-hit for him in the sixth. The double was his 13th of the season.
Díaz served as the designated hitter, and Jansen caught. Joc Pederson was not in the lineup. He has a small fracture in his left hand and plans to try to play through it.
Seager went 2-for-4 and added a single in the fifth. It was his 12th multi-hit game in 27 games since Aug. 15. He has 45 RBIs this season. Durán went 2-for-3 with a run.
Sandoval (1-6) lasted 2 2/3 innings and was charged with 4 runs on 4 hits. He walked 2 and struck out 5 on 68 pitches, and his ERA rose to 4.99. Through his first six starts this season, he had a 3.30 ERA.
Boston Red Sox Turn To Left-Handers Again Wednesday
Three of Boston’s five pitchers Tuesday were left-handers: Sandoval, Alec Gamboa, and Jovani Morán. Brayan Bello, Gamboa, Wyatt Olds, and Morán held Texas scoreless over the final 5 1/3 innings on 3 hits. Boston pitchers struck out 10 Rangers.
Texas sees another left-hander Wednesday. Rookie Jake Bennett (9-7, 3.69 ERA) starts for Boston after coming over from the Washington Nationals in the offseason. Last Wednesday against the Los Angeles Angels, Bennett allowed 6 runs on 9 hits over 5 1/3 innings.
MacKenzie Gore (8-11, 4.62 ERA) starts for Texas. First pitch is 7:05 p.m. CT on Rangers Sports Network.
