ARLINGTON, Texas — Rangers manager Skip Schumaker called Sunday’s series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays a must-win type of game before it began, with MacKenzie Gore starting and a series split still available after two straight late losses.
Texas lost 6-3 in 10 innings Saturday night at Globe Life Field when Jonathan Aranda hit a three-run home run off Jacob Latz. On Friday night, the Rays came back from a grand slam by Elias Díaz to win 7-6. The Texas Rangers won the series opener 6-0 on Thursday.
At 70-73, the Rangers sit three games behind Houston in the AL West with 19 games left. They trail Cleveland and Toronto by two games for the American League’s final wild card spot.
Schumaker took Saturday’s loss home with him and spent the drive going over what he could have done to help win the game, he told Rangers Sports Network before Sunday’s game.
“It was a tough loss last night. There’s no doubt about it,” Schumaker said. “It stings when you lose late. It stings when you lose right now in September, quite honestly. But the reality is we have another game to play. A quick turnaround the next day. And looking forward to seeing MacKenzie Gore start. This is a chance to split a series against a really good team. And it’s a must-win situation type of game. That’s the feeling that you get every day now in September, and looking forward to watching them play.”
MacKenzie Gore Faces The Rays For The Second Time
Gore entered Sunday’s start at 8-10 with a 4.31 ERA. Texas acquired the left-hander in a January trade, and he started the home opener against Cincinnati on April 3.
On July 29 at Tropicana Field, Gore pitched 7 innings against Tampa Bay and allowed 3 hits and 3 earned runs with 9 strikeouts in a 3-0 loss. Yandy Díaz and Ryan Vilade homered off him in the first inning.
Tampa Bay started left-hander Ian Seymour, who entered at 9-6 with a 4.21 ERA. In that July 29 game, Seymour got the win with 4.2 scoreless innings behind opener Casey Legumina.
The Rays are 85-57 and hold the best record in the American League. On Saturday, Drew Rasmussen held Texas to 1 run on 3 hits over 7 innings.
Rangers Chase A Split After Two Late Losses
Saturday, Jacob deGrom went 6 innings, allowed 4 hits and 2 earned runs, walked 1, and struck out 7. Junior Caminero hit his AL-leading 38th home run in the first inning, and Richie Palacios homered in the fifth. According to the Associated Press, deGrom has allowed a major league-high 10 home runs in first innings this season.
Joc Pederson hit his team-high 25th home run in the sixth. In the eighth, Evan Carter led off with a home run off Kevin Kelly, and Justin Foscue tied it at 3-3 with a line drive to left-center that scored pinch-runner Cam Cauley.
Latz, working his second inning in the 10th, intentionally walked Yandy Díaz before Aranda homered to right. It was Latz’s first loss since April 10.
Schumaker feels each loss with the players and expects to win, so the losses register more than the wins.
“It was a big hit at the time,” Schumaker explained of Carter’s eighth-inning home run. “Got us within one run. We need our guys to go. And Evan is obviously one of those guys that we’re hoping has a really big September.”
First pitch Sunday was 1:35 p.m. CT at Globe Life Field.
