Orioles 8, Rangers 2
ARLINGTON, Texas, Aug 2 — It was rare night on Tuesday in which Corey Seager was not in the Texas Rangers‘ starting lineup, and his absence was noticeable as they lost again to the Baltimore Orioles by a final score of 8–2. Seager did however, make a pinch-hit appearance in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Rangers’ offense has been very sluggish in the first two games of their current home stand. Manager Chris Woodward needs to think of something in order to shake things up, or his team will have a rough second half of the season. The finale in this three-game series is set for Wednesday afternoon. The Orioles will send right-hander Kyle Bradish (1–4, 7.01 ERA) to the mound in that game. The Rangers will counter with left-hander Martin Perez (9–2, 2.52 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 PM Central.
Orioles’ Offense
Tuesday’s game remained scoreless until the top of the third inning. This was a welcomed site for Rangers fans, as they saw Cedric Mullins lead off the game with a solo home run off starting pitcher Jon Gray the night before. On Tuesday, it was Jorge Mateo who hit a three-run homer off Rangers starter Spencer Howard. This gave the Orioles a 3–0 lead. Moments later, Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman made it 4–0 on a ground-rule double. This allowed Mullins to score from second base. First baseman Ryan Mountcastle contributed to their offense later in the inning with a sacrifice fly that brought in Rutschman from third base. The Orioles scored their sixth and final run in the top of the fifth inning.
Rutschman scored yet again. This time, it was a double to right field off the bat of Anthony Santander. The Orioles weren’t finished yet. In the top of the ninth inning, Mateo homered again with a man on base to make it 8–1 in favor of Baltimore. The Rangers just could not figure out the Orioles on Tuesday. Rangers fans are hoping that that they can avoid the sweep by Baltimore in the series finale on Wednesday afternoon.
Rangers’ Pair of Runs
The Rangers could only manage to score two runs in the middle game against the Orioles on Tuesday evening. It came off the bat of shortstop Marcus Semien. In the bottom of the fifth inning, Semien lined a single to center field. This was enough to drive in Meibrys Viloria. They got their second run in the bottom of the ninth inning on a solo home run by Meibrys Viloria. They put up a good fight, but the Rangers definitely missed the presence of Corey Seager in their lineup. There is no indication of an injury to Seager. They could just be taking an opportunity to give him a needed night off. As mentioned earlier, he made a pinch-hit appearance in the ninth inning, and singled in that at-bat.
Pitching Notes
Right-hander Spencer Howard took the mound for the Rangers on another hot night in Arlington, Texas. Howard struggled through four inning, and two batters. He gave up six runs, all earned, on six hits. Howard also walked two, and struck out three. He took the losing decision for the Rangers. His record for the 2022 season now sits at 2–3, with an ERA of 6.82. Josh Sborz came in to pitch the next two innings. He gave up one hit, and struck out two.
The recently recalled Taylor Hearn tossed two innings, in which he walked one, and struck out one. The last one out of the bullpen in this middle game between the Rangers and Orioles was Dennis Santana. He pitched the ninth inning, and he gave up two runs on two hits. He walked one, and struck out two. Former Rangers pitcher Jordan Lyles got the winning decision for the Orioles. In 6 1/3 innings, he gave up one run, which was earned, on seven hits. He walked one, and struck out seven. His record on the 2022 season now sits at 8–8, with an ERA of 4.40. There was no save recorded in this game.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
Players Mentioned:
Corey Seager, Chris Woodward, Kyle Bradish, Martin Perez, Cedric Mullins, Jon Gray, Jorge Mateo, Spencer Howard, Adley Rutschman, Ryan Mountcastle, Anthony Santander, Marcus Semien, Meibrys Viloria, Josh Sborz, Taylor Hearn, Dennis Santana, Jordan Lyles
