Ideal Win Sets Texas Rangers Up For Vital Series

A 3-1 victory over the New York Mets this afternoon gave the Texas Rangers a half-game lead in the AL West. With three regular season games remaining, the Rangers are in control of their postseason fate — but there’s virtually no room for error. Today’s win, and how they won, sets them up favorably as they head to Minnesota to take on the Twins.

Kumar Rocker Owned the Stage

Hats off to Kumar Rocker, who pitched five innings allowing just one run to Mets hitters. His gutsy outing allowed the Rangers offense to take an early lead which they would not relinquish. Rocker kept the game plan on track for manager Skip Schumaker, who oversaw four short relief appearances on the path to victory.

The Bullpen Took Over With Supreme Efficiency

How about the following from the Rangers’ relief corps this afternoon:

Robert Garcia: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 Runs on 10 pitches

Tyler Alexander: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 Runs on 20 pitches

Chase Silseth: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 Runs on 14 pitches

Jordan Montgomery: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 Runs on 8 pitches

Efficiency at its finest. They collectively shut down the Mets and kept their defense stress-free. The tying run stepped to the plate just one time after the sixth inning.

The Rangers were not forced to use Jacob Latz or Nathan Eovaldi, affording each high-leverage arm an extra day of rest ahead of the most important series of the season. And low pitch counts from Garcia, Alexander, Silseth, and Montgomery means they’ll be available to pitch tomorrow.

Schumaker will have a fresh bullpen at his disposal, a true luxury at this point in the season.

Ace On The Mound Tomorrow

The Rangers confirmed Jacob deGrom will start tomorrow in Game 160 of 162. He’s coming off a poor showing in which he allowed three runs and walked four across 4 1/3 innings in a loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. In September, however, he has a 2.95 ERA, 0.891 WHIP, and 12.2 K/9 rate.

There’s no time like the present to entrust the stuff, composure, and experience of a two-time Cy Young Award winner. Tomorrow’s outing will be the highest-stakes deGrom has encountered in a Rangers uniform. He’ll come prepared to get his team to the postseason, and motivated to pitch in the postseason for the first time since 2022.