Nationals 6, Rangers 4
ARLINGTON, Texas, June 26 — The momentum from Saturday didn’t exactly carry over into Sunday, as fans watched the Texas Rangers drop their series finale to the Washington Nationals by a final score of 6–4. A ninth inning home run by Jonah Heim made things interesting, but it wasn’t enough to squeak out a series win. All the Rangers can do now is move on to their next series, which will be against the Kansas City Royals starting on Monday evening at Kauffman Stadium. Left-hander Kris Bubic (1–4, 7.41 ERA) will start for the Royals. Texas will counter with their own lefty in the person of Martin Perez (5–2, 1.96 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 PM Central.
Nationals’ Offensive Outburst
The Nationals came out swinging against the Rangers in the finale on Sunday afternoon. They scored three of their runs in the top of the first inning. Nelson Cruz drove in right fielder Juan Soto with a single to right field. Then Yadiel Hernandez made it 2–0 with a sacrifice fly that allowed Josh Bell to score. It would soon become 3–0 on an RBI double by Lane Thomas that drove in Cruz.
The Nationals opened it up to 6–0 in the top of the second inning. Josh Bell, who walked in the first inning, doubled to right field to drive in second baseman Cesar Hernandez. Then Cruz stepped up to the plate once again, and singled to right field. This base hit allowed Soto and Bell to cross the plate.
Rangers’ Offense
Despite making things interesting on Sunday afternoon, the Rangers dropped the finale . They were held scoreless for the first six innings of the game. In the bottom of the seventh inning, catcher Jonah Heim hit a sacrifice fly out to center field. This drove in right fielder, and Saturday’s walk-off hero Adolis Garcia. They wouldn’t score again until the bottom of the ninth inning. Kole Calhoun scored on an RBI single to right field hit by Nathaniel Lowe. They scored their last two runs moments later on Jonah Heim’s tenth home run of the season.
Pitching Notes
Right-hander Glenn Otto started the Rangers’ finale on Sunday afternoon. Otto struggled to make it through two innings. He gave up all six of the Nationals’ runs, on six hits, in that stretch. Otto also walked three, and struck out one. He took the losing decision, bringing his record for 2022 to 4–3, with an earned run average of 5.31. Garrett Richards came on in relief in the third inning. He pitched three innings, giving up three hits, and a walk. He also struck out one batter. Lefty John King took over in the sixth inning. He pitched two frames, and only surrendered one walk.
Righty Jose Leclerc pitched a perfect eighth inning, in which he struck out two. Last, but not least, Josh Sborz pitched the ninth inning. He gave up one hit, and surrendered one walk. He also had three strikeouts. Right-hander Jackson Tetreault got the winning decision against the Rangers in the finale. He pitched six innings, giving up one run that was earned, on four hits. He walked two, and struck out four. His record for 2022 now sits at 2–1, with an ERA of 4.24. Tanner Rainey got his tenth save of the season for the Nationals. He threw one inning. He walked one, and struck out one.
Main Photo:
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Players Mentioned:
Jonah Heim, Kris Bubic, Martin Perez, Nelson Cruz, Juan Soto, Yadiel Hernandez, Josh Bell, Lane Thomas, Cesar Hernandez, Adolis Garcia, Kole Calhoun, Nathaniel Lowe, Glenn Otto, Garrett Richards, John King, Jose Leclerc, Josh Sborz, Jackson Tetreault, Tanner Rainey
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