ARLINGTON, Texas — With the calendar flipping to September, the Texas Rangers still have much to do. They started the month in third place after spending the majority of the year atop the American League West. The goal now is to reclaim their spot or else a fight for a Wild Card berth beckons.
The offensive output hasn’t been nearly as consistent for Texas as it was in the first half of the year, the starting pitching hasn’t been as efficient as desired, and the biggest problem, the bullpen, has been a victory-siphoning menace for the Rangers all season.
A dramatically fantastic walk-off win produced a sigh of relief but before Adolis Garcia’s home run in the finale sent the denizens at Globe Life Field home happy on Sunday, Texas had already lost the series with each game winnable before ending up in the loss column in ways that have become all too familiar.
- Game 134: Minnesota 5, Texas 1 (W: Ryan, 10-8, L: Burke, 5-3)
- Game 135: Minnesota 9, Texas 7 in 10 innings (W: Headrick, 3-0, L: Chapman, 5-4, Sv: Duran, 24)
- Game 136: Minnesota 5, Texas 6 (W: Bradford, 3-1, L: Winder, 2-1)
Three Up
A golden sombrero, but still a hero – Rangers right fielder Garcia has struck out at least once in all but five games since the All-Star break. In the finale of this series, Garcia struck out in his first four at-bats. Three of those came with runners in scoring position, and the one that didn’t came leading off an inning.
However, in the bottom of the 9th, with nobody on base, the man they call El Bombi took the at-bat’s fourth pitch, a 96-MPH fastball up & in and just barely off the edge of the zone, and turned a 5-5 game into a winner for Texas.
What may have looked to be admiration for the 430-feet, second deck blast to a latecomer was more likely the weight of the world falling off his shoulders, as Garcia took an emotional trot around the bases. He was mobbed at home plate after producing his MLB-leading 100th RBI.
Bradford bears down – On a day when the Rangers’ bullpen suffered two blown saves and its third of the series, Texas really could have used a break when they handed their pitchers a lead. Cody Bradford was at last the man to answer the call on Sunday.
Bradford, who was called up when rosters expanded to begin September, pitched a scoreless inning after Aroldis Chapman surrendered two runs on Saturday. Bradford allowed one inherited runner to score on a sacrifice fly, but otherwise pitched a clean inning. The next day, after both Chris Stratton and Jose Leclerc blew the small leads that the offense gave them, Will Smith and Bradford put out the fires.
Bradford was able to get the Rangers to the bottom of the ninth with the score still tied by retiring the side in order on 14 pitches. The rookie Bradford’s two outings were the cleanest lines that the bullpen saw all weekend.
Call-ups shine – In addition to Bradford, the Rangers also recalled Sam Huff as a home run threat on the bench. Although he’s listed as a backstop, Huff’s primary reason for being up with the team is added offensive support.
Before he got sent back down to the minor leagues after a brief stint with the Rangers in early August, Huff had gone 6-for-15, scoring two runs and driving in a run. In his first game action after roster expansion gave him another look with the big leaguers, Huff delivered some pop with a two-run homer off a Dallas Keuchel cutter that helped give Texas a lead on Saturday.
Three Down
Must be a Mets thing – On the surface, it looked like a poor managerial decision to pull former New York Mets hurler Max Scherzer after six scoreless innings and just 88 pitches in Friday night’s opener. Scherzer’s last fastballs registered in the mid-90s and on the night, he struck out seven and allowed just one hit.
Later, in the postgame media session, Scherzer revealed that he felt some tightness in his forearm and his mechanics had faltered. This was, obviously, an easy reason to lift the veteran even if it was ill-timed.
Earlier this season, former New York Mets hurler Jacob deGrom had said the same thing after leaving his start against the Yankees. It was later revealed that the tightness deGrom felt turned into a strain and that deGrom would need to undergo Tommy John surgery.
Scherzer insisted that his removal from the game was a way to prevent the tightness from turning into a strain requiring surgery, but the news certainly isn’t what anyone wants to hear, especially with the season at a critical juncture.
The Bullpen Blues – The bullpen problems that the Rangers have had in all but one month of the season continue to surface with the issues nowadays exacerbating other areas of the club faltering.
On Friday, Texas held a scant 1-0 lead when Scherzer left the game. Brock Burke, who gave up seven runs throughout August after a July in which he gave up just three runs, gave up three in the 6th inning to immediately allow Minnesota to take a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
On Saturday, after the Rangers battled back to get Jordan Montgomery off the hook and tied the game late, former All-Star closer Chapman was entrusted to keep the tie, but he instead gave up three runs in the 10th without recording an out.
In the finale, Burke was asked to go out for a second inning of work, but failed to retire the first two hitters he faced. Deadline acquisition Stratton came on and immediately allowed another single to blow the lead. Mitch Garver homered in the bottom of that inning to allow Texas to reclaim their lead, but Leclerc walked two and then allowed another single to tie the game again.
The biggest problem is that Stratton and Chapman were the bullpen reinforcements, and they were good ones who delivered upon their arrival. But they, too, have faltered, and their failures are magnified even more with the Rangers losing so much in the last two weeks.
RISP without rewards – The weekend series against the Twins seemed to be a microcosm of the issues that the Rangers endured during June and July. The bullpen had its issues in holding leads, while the offense couldn’t make use of their abundant opportunities to build bigger leads.
Over the three-game series, Texas went 5-for-32 with runners in scoring position, a measly .156. In the Sunday finale, Garver carried the team on his back, slugging a three-run homer in the 1st and a solo shot in the 7th, before Garcia hit the cathartic walk-off solo homer in the bottom of the 9th.
The only other run that the Rangers scored on the afternoon came via a wild pitch. A win is a win, but the victory in the finale on Sunday was, by no means, a sealed deal until the Garcia homer landed in the second deck despite Texas having many chances to put Minnesota away.
The Rangers now have an important date against the contending Houston Astros, the final series between the two Texas rivals in 2023. It’s up to Texas to show that the walk-off win was a turning point or if the rest of the series is more indicative of things to come this month.
Do you think Adolis Garcia’s home run will be the catalyst for a Rangers recovery? Share your thoughts with Matt on Twitter @FisherWritesMLB.
