Guardians 6, Rangers 3
ARLINGTON, Texas, Sep 23 — The Texas Rangers were caught off guard by the Cleveland Guardians on Friday evening at Globe Life Field as they lost by a final score of 6–3. Catcher Kevin Plawecki made a nice first impression in his Rangers debut with an RBI single in the bottom of the sixth inning. Other than that, it was relatively quiet on the offensive side for the Rangers in this series opener. They’ll try to even this series in the middle game on Saturday night. Right-hander Cal Quantrill (13–5, 3.56 ERA) will get the start for the Guardians. The Rangers will send their own righty to the hill in the person of Glenn Otto (6–9, 4.88 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 PM Central.
Caught ‘Off Guard’
The recently signed Kevin Plawecki got the Rangers on the board in the bottom of the second inning. The Rangers catcher singled on a line drive to centerfield. Outfielder Adolis Garcia sprinted home on the play. The score would remain 2–0 in favor of the Rangers until the top of the fourth inning. A stolen base by Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor, and a throwing error by Plawecki drove in shortstop Amed Rosario. The score was now 2–1. Incidentally, it was Naylor that drove in the tying run for the Guardians.
He did this on an RBI double to right field. One batter later, DH Oscar Gonzalez singled to centerfield to bring Jose Ramirez home. Moments later, Naylor scored on a single to right field by Andres Gimenez. The Guardians scored their final two runs of the evening in the top of the 6th inning as well. A single by right-fielder Will Brennan to centerfield drove in Gimenez. The Rangers, meanwhile were able to cut the lead to 6–3 on a single to right field. Josh Jung was able to score on the base hit. The Rangers were definitely caught off guard by this strong Cleveland team.
Pitching Notes
Right-hander Jon Gray started this one for the Rangers on Friday. Gray allowed just one unearned run over five innings in his third start since returning from the Injured List. He has posted a 2.08 ERA (three ER/13 IP). He has limited opponents to a .146 BA (6-41) in those outings. Gray permitted just three baserunners: a hit-by-pitch in the second inning, and a walk/triple in the fourth. His five innings pitched, and 87 pitches on Friday were both his highest marks since returning from injury, as he continues to ramp up to a full workload. He allowed one run on one hit. He also walked one, and struck out one.
Gray earned the no-decision in this one, so his record for 2022 will remain the same at 7–7, with an ERA of 3.64. Left-handed reliever Taylor Hearn was saddled with the losing decision. Hearn came on in relief for Gray in the sixth inning, and was only able to record one out. He gave up five runs, all earned, on six hits. He didn’t walk anyone, and he didn’t strike anyone out. Hearn’s record for 2022 now sits at 6–8, with an ERA of 5.31. This was also his first blown save. Right-hander Cody Morris got the win for the Guardians. His record now stands at 1–2, with an ERA of 2.18. This was his first major league win.Emmanuel Clase earned his 38th save of the year for the Guardians.
Additional Notes
Adolis Garcia recorded his 25th stolen base in the second inning to go along with his 25 home runs. He is the sixth player (seventh instance) in Rangers history with a 25+ HR/25+ SB season. He is the first to do it since Ian Kinsler did it (32/30 in ’11, 31/31 in ’09), Alfonso Soriano in 2005 (36/30), Ivan Rodríguez in 1999 (35/25), Bobby Bonds in 1978 (29/37), and Toby Harrah in 1977 (27/27). His 25 stolen bases are most by a Ranger since Elvis Andrus in 2019 (31) and most by an outfielder since Delino DeShields in 2017 (29).
Kevin Plawecki recorded an RBI single in his 1st plate appearance as a Ranger in the second inning, a play that resulted in two Texas runs after Leody Taveras scored on an E8. Plawecki was signed to a contract and added to the active roster on Wednesday. In doing so, he became the 54th player used by the Rangers in 2022, matching last year’s total (also 54).
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
Players Mentioned:
Kevin Plawecki, Cal Quantrill, Glenn Otto, Adolis Garcia, Josh Naylor, Amed Rosario, Oscar Gonzalez, Jose Ramirez, Andres Gimenez, Will Brennan, Josh Jung, Jon Gray, Taylor Hearn, Cody Morris, Ian Kinsler, Alfonso Soriano, Bobby Bonds, Toby Harrah, Elvis Andrus, Delino DeShields, Ivan Rodriguez, Leody Taveras, Emmanuel Clase
