DALLAS — It's official: The Texas Rangers are playing the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series, which begins Friday at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
You're probably not *too* familiar with the Rangers' National League counterpart. The two teams don't play each other often. They played four times this season, but the matchups were split across two two-game sets, the first in May and the second in August.
So it was a brief crossover between the clubs, both of which entering the Fall Classic playoff as underdogs. Both teams clinched their spot in the postseason via the Wild Card, and neither had homefield advantage to this point.
Texas gets the homefield advantage in the World Series, on account of having a better regular season record. But it was Arizona that got the best of the Rangers in their 2023 matchups, winning three of four.
Here's how each game unfolded:
May 2: Texas wins 6-4 at home
Texas starting pitcher Jon Gray faced the Diamondbacks' ace, Zac Gallen, but both pitchers got roughed up: Gray gave up two runs in the first, and the Rangers responded with a run of their own in the bottom half of the inning.
Arizona held a 4-1 lead heading into the fifth, when Texas scored runs on singles from Marcus Semien and Travis Jankowski.
Gallen exited after five innings, then Texas took the lead with a two-run homer from Ezequiel Duran. The Rangers added a run on a wild pitch in the seventh, and Will Smith later closed the game for the save.
May 3: Texas loses 12-7 at home
This was a wild one: Texas struck first with a Jonah Heim homer in the second inning, off Arizona starter Brandon Pfaadt. But a Christian Walker three-run homer off Andrew Heaney put the Diamondbacks ahead in the third.
Walker homered again in the fifth, alongside Ketel Marte, but Texas answered with five runs in the fifth, including Josh Jung's second homer of the game.
Then the Rangers bullpen fell apart. Josh Sborz, Jose Leclerc and Ian Kennedy combined to give up five runs in the seventh, and Kennedy gave up another in the eighth.
August 21: Texas loses 4-3 (11) at Arizona
This was in the heart of the Rangers' bullpen problems in 2023.
Jordan Montgomery delivered eight shutout innings, and an Adolis Garcia solo homer in the seventh gave Texas a 1-0 lead. Manager Bruce Bochy gave the ball to Aroldis Chapman in the bottom of the ninth inning... and Chapman blew the lead on the second batter, Ketel Marte, who homered to tie the game.
Newly-acquired Diamondbacks closer Paul Sewald shut down the Rangers in the top of the 10th, while Chapman kept Arizona at bay in the bottom of the inning.
A Nathaniel Lowe double in the 11th scored two Texas runs. But then Will Smith gave up three runs on back-to-back doubles in the bottom of the inning, costing Texas the game.
August 22: Texas loses 6-3 at Arizona
Jon Gray struggled in this one, giving up five runs in four innings pitched, while Gallen, the Arizona ace, went six innings of one-run ball with 11 strikeouts.
The Rangers were down 5-0 when Mitch Garver hit a solo homer in the sixth, but Corbin Carroll, the Diamondbacks' rookie star, scored Gabriel Moreno on a sac fly in the bottom of the inning.
Texas tried to mount a comeback with a two-run single from Corey Seager in the seventh, but the Arizona bullpen combo of Kevin Ginkel and Paul Sewald shut them down in the eighth and ninth innings.
The two losses to Arizona in August came during and eight-game losing streak for the Rangers, which saw their American League West lead dwindle from 2.5 game to none.
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