Athletics’ Offense Stuns Rangers

Athletics 5, Rangers 1

ARLINGTON, Texas, Aug 16 — The Texas Rangers just couldn’t keep up with the Oakland Athletics‘ offense on Tuesday night at Globe Life Field, as they lost by a final score of 5–1. The only thing that really got the fans stirring was an RBI single by Jonah Heim in the bottom of the sixth inning. With this loss, the Texas Rangers drop to 52–64 on the season. They have been here many times before. The only thing they can do now is get ready for their next game. That game will be on Wednesday evening at 7:05 PM Central against this Athletics offense. Right-hander Adam Oller (1–5, 7.26 ERA) will take the hill for the A’s. The Rangers will counter with left-hander Cole Ragans (0–1, 4.82 ERA).

Athletics’ Offense

The Athletics’ offense got an early start in this one. In the bottom of the first inning, a single by Oakland right-fielder Seth Brown was just enough to drive in centerfielder Cal Stevenson. The A’s added to their 1–0 lead in the top of the second inning. First baseman Jonah Bride brought in Shea Langeliers to score with a single. They weren’t finished yet. Catcher Sean Murphy hit a solo home run in the top of the third inning to extend the Athletics’ lead to 3–0. Fast forward to the bottom of the seventh inning. Oakland shortstop, and for Ranger mainstay Elvis Andrus sent one over the wall in left-center field for a two-run shot.

This made it 5–1 in favor of Oakland. The Athletics’ offense was definitely on display at Globe Life Field on Tuesday evening. The Rangers, meanwhile, only managed to put one run on the b. It happened in the bottom of the sixth inning. Rangers right fielder Adolis Garcia crossed home plate on an infield single by catcher Jonah Heim.

Pitching Notes

The Athletics offense proved to be too much for the Rangers to handle. Right-hander Kohei Arihara finished one out shy of his first career quality start. Arihara pitched 5 2/3 innings. He allowed three runs, all earned, on eight hits. He left the game with a runner on third base and two outs in the sixth inning. Arihara threw a career-high 93 pitches, and matched the longest outing of his career (5 2/3 IP).

He tied his career high in strikeouts with six (the first time was on April 19, 2021 against the Los Angeles Angels). Arihara held the A’s scoreless from the fourth inning on after allowing one run in each of his first three frames. Tuesday was his first MLB appearance since a start he made on September 15, 2021 against the Houston Astros, as he had his contract selected from Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday. Arihara took the losing decision on Tuesday. His record for the 2022 season now sits at 0–1, with an ERA of 4.76. JP Sears got the winning decision for the Athletics. His record for 2022 now sits at 4–0, with an ERA of 1.95. Lefty A.J. Puk got his 15th save of the year.

Miscellaneous Notes

The night may have been all about the Athletics’ offense, but there were some noteworthy moments for the Rangers as well. Adolis Garcia extended his career-best hitting streak to 13 games at .333 (17-for-51). It is the longest by a Ranger this season. He entered play on Tuesday tied with Seattle Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger for the longest active hit streak in MLB. The longest run previously for a Texas batter was by Isiah Kiner-Falefa two seasons ago (14 games, August 28-September 11, 2020). García has the longest hit streak by a Texas outfielder since Shin-Soo Choo in 2015 (14 games).

Nathaniel Lowe tied his season high with three hits for the eighth time overall, and already the third time this month. He last did it on August 1 against the Baltimore Orioles, and on August 7 against the Chicago White Sox. Tuesday was his team-high 36th multi-hit game after entering the game among the AL’s top-five in that category. The only Ranger with more 3+ hit games is Marcus Semien (10). He reached base for his 22nd straight game and hit safely for his seventh straight game. His on-base streak remains longest by a Ranger in 2022 and 2nd-longest of his career (25, 4/17-5/13/21).