Rangers Notes: Texas Struggles through Losing Homestand

Pinch-hitter Mike Napoli is called out on strikes to end Monday’s game, a 3-1 loss to the Royals.

Following a torrid 17-6 month of April, Texas has gone just 7-9 since the beginning of May while losing four of seven ballgames on its recently-completed homestand, including three of the final four contests this week against Kansas City and Oakland.

The Rangers started well enough by winning two of three games against the A.L. West division-rival Angels, beginning with a 10-3 victory Friday in which Yu Darvish returned from a nearly two-hour rain delay and pitched into the sixth inning. Josh Hamilton continued his hot hitting with a pair of solo homers and three runs scored.

Hamilton connected again Saturday off former Texas southpaw C.J. Wilson, but Matt Harrison was touched for four earned runs on the way to a 4-2 Angels win. Nelson Cruz helped the Rangers rebound with a grand slam off Jered Weaver in Sunday’s nationally-televised rubber game, part of a 13-6 Texas win to take the series from Los Angeles.

Spot starter Scott Feldman allowed a pair of runs over four-plus innings Monday — which stood up as the difference in a 3-1 loss to Bruce Chen and the Royals — before Kansas City scored early and often against Colby Lewis on Tuesday en route to a 7-4 win and a quick two-game sweep.

Darvish continued his recent success Wednesday with a stellar outing against the Athletics, striking out seven batters across seven and two-thirds innings while helping Texas to a 4-1 victory, although Oakland earned the split with a 5-4 comeback win in 10 innings on Thursday.

Interleague play begins this weekend as the Rangers travel to Minute Maid Park in Houston for the first half of this year’s Lone Star Series. Texas holds an all-time series advantage of 37-29 over the Astros, who have not won the annual Silver Boot Trophy outright since 2006.

Hamilton Named A.L. Player of the Week

Not surprisingly, outfielder Josh Hamilton was named the American League Player of the Week after batting .467 with nine home runs and 18 runs batted in from May 7-13, which included his four-homer outburst last Tuesday at Camden Yards in Baltimore.

Hamilton, who turns 31 next week, had already garnered A.L. Player of the Month honors for his performance in April, when he hit .395 with a slugging percentage of .744 and 25 RBIs in just 22 games.

His sizzling start to the season has inevitably sparked talk of Hamilton’s impending free-agent status; if he and the Rangers cannot find common ground on a contract extension in the next few months, Hamilton can test the open market for the first time this winter.

Nadel Earns Selection to Team Hall of Fame

Longtime radio broadcaster Eric Nadel was announced Tuesday as the 15^th inductee into the Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame, and he will be officially enshrined during a pre-game ceremony on Saturday, Aug. 11.

Nadel has been a staple of Rangers radio broadcasts for over 30 years — actually getting his start in the television booth in 1979 — and he’s slated to become the fifth non-playing member of the team’s Hall of Fame, joining Tom Grieve and the late Mark Holtz, Johnny Oates and Tom Vandergriff.

A Long Island native and a seven-time recipient of the Texas Sportscaster of the Year Award, Nadel has also been a finalist for the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s prestigious Ford C. Frick Award in each of the last two seasons.

Currently Reading: The Only Game in Town

The Only Game in Town by Fay Vincent — Compiled by the former commissioner, this book essentially picks up where Lawrence S. Ritter’s The Glory of Their Times left off, as its stated goal is to be the first installment of Fay Vincent’s oral history project. In this volume, baseball as it was played in the 1930s and ‘40s is recounted by an array of legends from the time, including Hall of Famers Bob Feller and Monte Irvin, former Negro Leaguers Larry Doby and Buck O’Neil, and perennial All-Stars Dom DiMaggio and Tommy Henrich.

Rangers Notes: Red-Hot Hamilton Makes History in Baltimore

Josh Hamilton doubled and hit four home runs Tuesday, setting a new A.L. record with 18 total bases.

It was a night to remember Tuesday in Baltimore for Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton, as he became just the 16th player in big-league history – and the first in Texas franchise history – to hit four home runs in a single game.

Hamilton went a perfect 5-for-5 at the plate Tuesday, connecting for a double in addition to his four two-run homers, and he set a new single-game American League record with 18 total bases. Moreover, the 30-year-old shattered his own personal career highs, as he had never before hit more than two home runs or collected more than five RBIs in a game (he drove in eight runs Tuesday).

The last MLB player to connect for four home runs in a game was Toronto slugger Carlos Delgado, who performed his feat against Tampa Bay in September 2003, and only the Dodgers’ Shawn Green racked up more total bases (19) in his 2002 four-homer game at Milwaukee.

“Other than being in the World Series, [it’s] the highlight of my big-league career,” Hamilton said. “I was saying after I hit two I’ve never hit three in a game before, and what a blessing that was. Then to hit four is just an awesome feeling, to see how excited my teammates got.”

Hamilton’s four-homer performance came in the second of a four-game series against the Orioles, with Texas winning the first two contests by scores of 10-3 and 14-3 before Wednesday’s game was postponed due to rain in the area.

On Thursday, Rangers starter Colby Lewis made home-run history of his own — albeit dubious — in Game 1 of the doubleheader, surrendering five long balls to Baltimore while recording a career-best 12 strikeouts. Texas saw a ninth-inning rally fall just short in a 6-5 loss, and Lewis became the first pitcher in MLB history to allow five homers and strike out at least 10 batters in a game.

Josh Hamilton continued his torrid pace in Game 2, as he connected for his 15^th home run of the year in the first inning off former Rangers right-hander Tommy Hunter, part of a series-clinching 7-3 victory for Texas.

Indians Take Two of Three from Texas

In the middle of the Rangers’ recently-completed road trip was a three-day stop in Cleveland, where Texas dropped two out of three games to the A.L. Central Division-leading Indians.

Colby Lewis gave up six earned runs on 10 hits (including homers by Shin-Soo Choo and Jack Hannahan) across six-plus innings of work Friday, as Cleveland won the opener by a 6-3 final.

The Rangers let a 2-0 lead slip away in the bottom of the eighth on Saturday, but Adrian Beltre — who has been dealing with a strained left hamstring since last month — hit a pinch-hit three-run home run in the 11^th inning to deliver a 5-2 win for Texas.

Sunday afternoon saw right-hander Yu Darvish take the first loss of his MLB career, with Asdrubal Cabrera and Shin-Soo Choo keying a three-run Cleveland rally in the third inning en route to the Indians’ 4-2 victory.

Solarte, Profar Remain Hot in Minors

Round Rock outfielder Yangervis Solarte extended his hitting streak to 21 games streak Thursday with a double and a run scored against Salt Lake, helping raise his season batting average to .309.

Meanwhile, Frisco shortstop Jurickson Profar went 2-for-6 Thursday at Corpus Christi and will carry a 20-game hitting streak into the remainder of this weekend’s series against the Hooks.

Rangers Notes: Injuries Take Toll, Rays & Jays Take Series

Matt Harrison (left) inspects a new baseball after giving up a three-run home run to Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria in the first inning on Friday.

As the calendar turned from April to May and the Rangers began facing typically stiff competition from the A.L. East, Texas lost its first two series of the year while playing much of this week without Adrian Beltre or Josh Hamilton.

Beltre had already missed three games earlier this season due to a strained left hamstring, but he returned to hit a pair of home runs with six RBIs against the Yankees and Rays last week. Since going 3-for-5 with two doubles Monday in Toronto, however, Beltre has been limited to just one pinch-hitting appearance.

Hamilton, meanwhile, was pulled in the third inning of Sunday’s finale against Tampa Bay after experiencing stiffness in his back. Though he had expected to return to the lineup Monday, Hamilton missed all three games of the Rangers’ series against the Blue Jays.

Texas dropped the opener to Tampa Bay before Colby Lewis produced a quality outing on Saturday, scattering three hits and one run over six innings of work to help the Rangers secure a 7-2 victory. Unfortunately, Derek Holland endured his first rough start of the year Sunday, and the Rays left town with a 5-2 win.

In Toronto, right-hander Yu Darvish improved to a perfect 4-0 to start his big-league career with a victory Monday, striking out nine batters across seven innings and leading Texas to a 4-1 win over the Blue Jays.

But without the services of Beltre or Hamilton, Toronto rallied for an 8-7 come-from-behind walk-off victory Tuesday, then handed the Rangers their first consecutive losses of the season with an 11-5 win on Wednesday afternoon.

Next up for Texas is a three-game weekend set against the Indians at Progressive Field in Cleveland, followed by four games in Baltimore against the Orioles next week.

Hamilton, Darvish win A.L. Monthly Awards

Before missing time due to back stiffness, Josh Hamilton had been one of the hottest hitters in baseball across the season’s first month, batting .395 in April with a league-high nine home runs and 25 RBIs in April.

For his performance — which included 20 runs scored and a .744 slugging percentage — Hamilton took home his fourth career American League Player of the Month Award, previously receiving the honor in April and May 2008 and June 2010.

Not to be outdone, Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish was named the A.L. Rookie of the Month for April, having posted a 4-0 record with a 2.18 ERA and 33 strikeouts against just 17 walks.

Spilborghs Acquired from Cleveland

With Hamilton’s health status in question (and minor-league prospect Leonys Martin out up to two months due to a torn thumb ligament), Texas announced Friday that it had acquired outfielder Ryan Spilborghs from Cleveland in exchange for cash considerations.

Spilborghs has spent the entirety of his big-league career to this point with the Colorado Rockies, where he batted .272 across parts of seven seasons before becoming a free agent last December.

The 32-year-old Spilborghs was hitting a paltry .250 over 21 games for the Indians’ Triple-A affiliate, so he will have to improve those numbers at Round Rock if he hopes to join the Rangers in Arlington this season.

Rangers Notes: Darvish Shines while Texas Continues Hot Start

Yu Darvish struck out a career-high 10 batters against the Yankees Tuesday in Arlington.

Texas won its sixth consecutive series by beating New York in the rubber match of their three-game set on Wednesday, 7-3, behind three home runs and an all-bullpen effort on the mound.

Right-hander Scott Feldman made the spot start and pitched into the fourth inning before turning it over to southpaw Robbie Ross, who got the Rangers through the sixth while receiving offensive support via long balls from Adrian Beltre, Mike Napoli and Mitch Moreland.

The previous night, Yu Darvish enjoyed his best major-league performance to this point, setting a new career high with 10 strikeouts across eight-plus scoreless innings of work. Holding a 2-0 lead in the top of the ninth, Darvish was pulled following a one-out single by Nick Swisher, but Joe Nathan needed just one pitch to induce a game-ending double play.

With the victory, Darvish improved to 3-0 on the season and has an earned run average of 2.42 across four starts, a far cry from the 7.94 ERA he fashioned after his rocky debut against Seattle earlier this month.

“Stuff-wise, there is not much difference, but my command is getting better,” Darvish said through a translator following Tuesday’s game. “It’s a very nice outing, pitching against the Yankees and a performance like that.”

The series win over New York, which came after Texas had taken three of four against the Tigers last weekend in Detroit, leaves the Rangers with the best record in baseball at 15-4 entering Friday’s series opener versus Tampa Bay.

Feliz to Bullpen, Will Skip Next Turn in Rotation

Taking advantage of Feldman’s spot start against the Yankees and two scheduled off days over the next week, manager Ron Washington announced Wednesday that right-hander Neftali Feliz won’t make his next start as planned, instead getting pushed back to Tuesday, May 1, in Toronto.

Washington explained that the move was made in an effort to permit Feliz some extra rest early in the season as opposed to later, which seemed to have a negative effect on fellow reliever-turned-starter Alexi Ogando after a strong first half last summer.

Feliz, who is in his first season as a starter at the big-league level, threw one inning out of the bullpen Wednesday night against New York, allowing a leadoff home run to Raul Ibanez before retiring the next three batters.

In this weekend’s three-game set against the Rays, Texas plans to start Matt Harrison on Friday followed by Colby Lewis and Derek Holland.

Nathan Rebounds after Rough Beginning

New closer Joe Nathan didn’t get off to the best start in a Rangers uniform, allowing runs and taking the loss in two of his first four appearances with Texas, but he has since settled down to convert three save opportunities in a row.

In addition, Nathan has shown improvement when pitching on consecutive days. After a pair of back-to-back appearances in early April left his earned run average at an inflated 9.00, he has tossed a scoreless inning in two such outings since then while lowering his season ERA to 3.72.

Currently Reading: Juicing the Game

Juicing the Game by Howard Bryant — I’ve flipped through different parts of this book on various occasions, so I figure now it’s time to sit down and put it all together. Beginning with the origins of Major League Baseball’s devastating labor strike in 1994 (and Bud Selig’s concurrent rise to the commissioner’s office), Bryant recounts the skyrocketing revenues, growth of players’ bodies and shattering of long-standing records that took place over the next decade.

Rangers Notes: Texas Keeps Rolling as Streak Reaches Six

Josh Hamilton connects for a three-run homer in the top of the eighth inning during Tuesday’s 18-3 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park in Boston.

The Rangers are riding a six-game winning streak and have the best record in baseball (10-2) after completing road sweeps of both Minnesota and Boston over the last week. Texas will now travel to Detroit for a four-game weekend set against the Tigers.

Left-hander Matt Harrison provided eight quality innings of one-run ball Friday at Target Field to lead the Rangers to a 4-1 win, and Yu Darvish worked into the sixth on Saturday before Texas rallied late and held on for a 6-2 victory.

Josh Hamilton was the hero Sunday, blasting a two-run home run in the eighth inning that turned a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead for the Rangers, and Joe Nathan worked a perfect ninth to notch his third save of the year.

Following an off day Monday, the Texas offense exploded for a season-high 18 runs – including six homers, two by Mike Napoli – en route to an 18-3 defeat over the Red Sox on Tuesday at Fenway Park. Napoli was joined by Hamilton, Michael Young, Adrian Beltre and Nelson Cruz on the home run barrage.

Starter Derek Holland found himself in early trouble Wednesday after Kevin Youkilis hit a two-run homer in the second, giving Boston a quick 2-0 lead. But the Rangers’ bats came to life once again and chipped away with six runs off Josh Beckett and Franklin Morales, leading to a 6-3 win and a two-game sweep.

Darvish, Harrison to be swapped in Rotation

When Texas begins its series in Detroit, right-hander Yu Darvish will move up a spot in the rotation and pitch the opener on Thursday, with Matt Harrison shifting into the No. 4 slot and getting the start Friday.

While the move allows the Rangers to split up southpaws Harrison and Holland in their rotation, manager Ron Washington said the biggest reason for the swap is to keep Darvish on his normal four days’ rest after this week’s off day.

“It’s just so he can get used to what’s expected over here,” Washington said. “We want him to get used to four days down and pitch on the fifth day. It just so happens we had to split the lefties to get it done.”

The 25-year-old Darvish has gone exactly five and two-thirds innings in each of his first two big-league starts, posting a 1-0 record but showing command issues with eight walks against nine strikeouts.

‘Pudge’ will Retire as a Ranger

It was reported late Wednesday that veteran catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez plans to finish his 21-year career Monday in Texas Rangers colors, a tip of the cap to the team that drafted him and brought him to the big leagues at age 19 in 1991.

Rodriguez, now 40, spent his first 12 major-league seasons in Texas before logging time with Florida, Detroit, the New York Yankees, Houston and Washington over the last decade.

A 14-time All-Star, Rodriguez also won 13 Gold Gloves, seven Silver Slugger awards and was named the 1999 American League Most Valuable Player.