Rangers Notes: Club Secures Home-Field with League’s Best Record

Sam Dyson receives congratulations from catcher Jonathan Lucroy after striking out pinch-hitter Logan Forsythe to end Friday’s 3-1 victory.

Following a 3-1 win over Tampa Bay on Friday, the Rangers secured home-field advantage throughout the playoffs and finished the regular season with the best record (95-67) in the American League.

Only the Cubs posted a better winning percentage (.640) than Texas, which matched the Washington Nationals with a .586 mark.

Yu Darvish notched a season-high 12 strikeouts Friday – fanning exactly half of the 24 batters he faced over six innings pitched – and delivered perhaps his most complete start since returning from Tommy John surgery.

His lone hiccup came in the top of the sixth, when Kevin Kiermaier drew a leadoff walk and was driven home on Evan Longoria’s RBI double. Darvish rebounded in a big way, striking out Brad Miller, Nick Franklin and Jaff Decker in order to end the inning.

Texas, meanwhile, jumped on Rays starter Matt Andriese for a quick tally in the bottom of the first courtesy of Adrian Beltre’s run-scoring single.

Two innings later, Carlos Beltran laced a solo home run off Andriese that sailed just inside the right-field foul pole, and Rougned Odor clubbed a towering bomb to right in the sixth inning to give the Rangers a 3-1 advantage.

Darvish’s outstanding performance was followed by stellar outings from the team’s top late-inning relievers, always a promising sign as they tune up for the postseason.

Tony Barnette and Jake Diekman combined for a scoreless top of the seventh before Matt Bush worked around another Evan Longoria double in the eighth. Closer Sam Dyson then tossed a perfect ninth inning punctuated by a swinging strikeout of Logan Forsythe to end the game.

In a matchup that seemed fated to happen, the Rangers will again take on Toronto in the American League Division Series, rekindling the fiery rivalry that began during the 2015 playoffs.

The game times and projected starting pitchers are as follows:

Game 1 – Thursday, October 6, 3:30 p.m. (TBS)
RHP Marco Estrada (9-9, 3.48 ERA) vs. LHP Cole Hamels (15-5, 3.32)

Game 2 – Friday, October 7, 12 p.m. (TBS)
LHP J.A. Happ (20-4, 3.18) vs. RHP Yu Darvish (7-5, 3.41)

Game 3 – Sunday, October 9, 6:30 p.m. (TBS)
RHP Colby Lewis (6-5, 3.71) vs. RHP Aaron Sanchez (15-2, 3.00)

Game 4 (if necessary) – Monday, October 10, Time TBD (TBS)
TBD vs. RHP Marcus Stroman (9-10, 4.37)

Game 5 (if necessary) – Wednesday, October 12, Time TBD (TBS)
TBD vs. TBD

Texas could either start left-hander Martin Perez in Game 4 at Rogers Centre or bring back Hamels on short rest. The latter option would allow Darvish to start a decisive Game 5, if necessary.

Rays Come Back for Series Win

On the heels of their victory Friday, the Rangers had two chances to beat Tampa Bay and match the top regular-season record in franchise history (96-66 in 2011), but the Rays bounced back to win Saturday and Sunday to take the series.

Tampa Bay rode a quality start from Jake Odorizzi and a three-run homer from Corey Dickerson to a 4-1 win on Saturday before eking out a 6-4 extra-inning victory in the rubber game.

Hanser Alberto pulled the Rangers even on Sunday with his game-tying single in the bottom of the ninth, but Tanner Scheppers permitted a pair of runs in the tenth inning to help the Rays defeat Texas.

Prior to their series with Tampa Bay, the Rangers had taken two out of three contests from the Brewers at Globe Life Park in Arlington.

Choo Activated, Poised for Playoffs

Outfielder Shin-Soo Choo was activated from the 15-day disabled list on Friday after missing a month and a half with a fractured left forearm.

The 34-year-old Choo was hit by a pitch from Oakland’s Ross Detwiler on Aug. 15 and underwent surgery the following day, an injury that kept him from taking batting practice until late September.

He started all three games against Tampa Bay in right field, going 2-for-12 with a pair of singles and a pair of strikeouts. Choo’s availability could mean less playing time for Nomar Mazara in the upcoming division series.

Rangers Notes: Division Lead Grows during Stellar Homestand

Right-hander Matt Bush tossed a perfect inning of relief in Saturday’s 12-4 victory over Houston, lowering his season earned run average to 2.92.

A 7-6 defeat to the Astros on Sunday slightly dampened an otherwise near-perfect homestand for Texas, helping the team build a 9.5-game advantage over second-place Houston heading into the final four weeks of the season.

The Rangers got rolling with a 6-3 win over the Mariners last Monday at Globe Life Park, receiving a 3-for-4 performance from Carlos Beltran and six-plus quality innings from Yu Darvish before Sam Dyson earned his 30th save.

Rougned Odor belted the first walk-off home run of his career Tuesday to give Texas a thrilling 8-7 comeback victory. After the Rangers tied the game at 6-6 in the bottom of the seventh and Seattle reclaimed the lead with a run in the eighth, Odor faced Seattle reliever Edwin Diaz with one man aboard in the ninth.

He clocked a low fastball to straightaway center, dropped his bat and watched the ball land at the base of Greene’s Hill beyond the fence. Odor was greeted at home plate by his jubilant teammates before being embraced in a bear hug by manager Jeff Banister.

Wednesday afternoon’s finale was an absolute shellacking by the Rangers, who slugged five long balls – including two by Odor – on the way to a 14-1 rout.

Texas drove Felix Hernandez from the game after just four innings of work, with Carlos Gomez connecting for his third career grand slam in the bottom of the fourth. Adrian Beltre and Ryan Rua also went deep while Martin Perez tossed six scoreless frames.

The Rangers broke out the bats for another big fourth inning on Friday versus Houston, pushing seven runs across the plate against the Astros’ tandem of Doug Fister and Michael Feliz.

Although Texas hurlers didn’t fare much better (each of the first five pitchers permitted at least one earned run), the Rangers were able to hang on for a slim 10-8 margin of victory.

The well-balanced offensive onslaught continued Saturday as five players collected two RBIs apiece in a 12-4 victory, but Texas fell just short of the sweep with Sunday’s 7-6 loss.

The team will now embark on its second-to-last road swing of the regular season, a 10-game, three-city trip against the Mariners, Angels and Astros.

Mendez Earns Big-League Call Up

Left-hander Yohander Mendez was one of four players called up by the Rangers when active rosters expanded on Sept. 1, along with infielder Hanser Alberto, righty Nick Martinez and catcher Brett Nicholas.

Alberto, Martinez and Nicholas have all logged MLB service time for Texas, but the 21-year-old Mendez will be looking to make his big-league debut.

The Venezuelan southpaw posted identical records of 4-1 at each of his three minor-league stops this year (High Desert, Frisco and Round Rock) while lowering his ERA from 2.45 with the Mavericks to 0.57 with the Express.

He held opposing batters to a .119 average (12-for-101) at Round Rock, including a paltry .074 mark (2-for-27) produced by left-handed hitters.

Texas Sends Cordell to Brewers

Outfielder Ryan Cordell was sent to Milwaukee on Monday to complete the Aug. 1 deal that brought Jonathan Lucroy and Jeremy Jeffress to the Rangers.

The speedy Cordell, a non-roster invitee during spring training with Texas, spent the entire season at Frisco and led the RoughRiders with 12 stolen bases, 19 homers and 70 runs batted in.

Last Wednesday, the club acquired veteran backstop Nevin Ashley from the Mets in exchange for cash considerations and assigned him to Triple-A Round Rock.

Rangers Notes: Choo, Fielder Again Lost to Injuries

Prince Fielder may be out for the year with a herniated disc in his neck, an injury similar to the one he suffered in 2014.

The Rangers hold the distinction of limping both into and out of the All-Star break this season, dropping five consecutive series at one point before taking two out of three last weekend against the Kansas City Royals.

The team’s main area of concern has shifted away from the playing field, however, as it was announced Wednesday that two of the highest-salaried players on the roster – outfielder Shin-Soo Choo and DH Prince Fielder – were headed to the disabled list.

While Choo is expected to return soon from lower back inflammation, Fielder has a herniated disc in his neck and could require season-ending surgery. Both players missed significant time due to injuries during the disastrous 2014 campaign for Texas.

Fielder rebounded from his forgettable ’14 performance and was named A.L. Comeback Player of the Year last season after appearing in 158 games, batting .305 and collecting a career-high 187 hits, numbers more in line with the pre-injury totals he had posted with Milwaukee and Detroit.

In 89 games this year, Fielder has hit just .212 while watching his on-base plus slugging percentage plummet by more than 200 points (from .841 to .626). He has just one homer in the last month and hasn’t driven in a run since Jul. 8.

“I think some of the things we were seeing, the struggles for him to get the ball in the air [on the] pull side are very similar to the things we were seeing early in 2014,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said.

“He was trying to fight through this, but I don’t know exactly for how long … It’s reasonable to say that this definitely had an impact on his performance.”

Choo, meanwhile, missed much of the season’s first two months with a strained calf and then a strained hamstring, and he sat out three straight games to begin the second half while dealing with tightness in his lower back.

After going 0-for-6 in his six plate appearances against Los Angeles last week, Choo received an MRI and an anti-inflammatory injection. His current trip to the DL should not last more than the minimum 15 days.

Infielder Hanser Alberto and outfielder Delino DeShields were called up from Triple-A Round Rock to replace Fielder and Choo on the Rangers’ active roster.

Back on the diamond, Texas stumbled to two straight losses at Wrigley Field following the midsummer classic, managing a total of eight hits as Kyle Hendricks and Jason Hammel picked up victories for the Cubs.

Rangers lefty Cole Hamels delivered a much-needed quality start in the series finale, recording seven strikeouts and limiting Chicago to one unearned run en route to a 4-1 win over native Texan John Lackey.

The club then traveled to Anaheim for a three-game set versus the Angels, getting swept by finals of 9-5, 8-6 and 7-4 while watching what had been a double-digit lead in the American League West dwindle to 3.5 games over the second-place Astros.

Kyle Lohse and Martin Perez were both shelled in their starts for Texas – combining to allow 14 earned runs on 16 hits – and Los Angeles got wins from J.C. Ramirez, Tim Lincecum and Hector Santiago in the series.

Sliced Finger Sends Diekman to DL

Before the Rangers played their first game out of the All-Star break, reliever Jake Diekman was placed on the 15-day disabled list (retroactive to Jul. 6) with a lacerated left index finger, an injury that occurred when he was reaching into his luggage for a broken beer mug.

Right-hander Keone Kela was reinstated from the 60-day disabled list and starter Derek Holland was transferred from the 15- to the 60-day DL in a pair of corresponding roster moves.

Diekman healed quickly enough to return last Friday while swingman Cesar Ramos was designated for assignment. The 29-year-old has shown no lingering effects of the freak injury, tossing a scoreless inning in each of his two outings versus Kansas City.

Former All-Star Yu Darvish was activated from the disabled list on Jul. 16 – more than a month after getting shut down due to discomfort in his neck and throwing shoulder – as right-hander Jose Leclerc was optioned to Round Rock.

Rangers Pick Up Duffy, Breslow

Utility infielder Matt Duffy was claimed off waivers from Houston over the weekend and assigned to Triple-A Round Rock, giving Texas some depth in case the club needs to use multiple pieces of its farm system for a trade deadline deal.

Duffy had been DFA’d by the Astros to clear an active roster spot for Cuban third baseman Yulieski Gourriel, who recently agreed to a five-year contract worth $47.5 million.

On Sunday, it was announced that the Rangers had agreed to a minor-league deal with veteran southpaw Craig Breslow. The 35-year-old pitched in 15 games this season for Miami before he was released by the Marlins earlier this month.

In addition, Texas acquired right-hander Scott Carroll from the White Sox last Wednesday in exchange for cash considerations and assigned him to Double-A.

Rangers Notes: Darvish’s Return Lifts Texas into First Place

Yu Darvish is 2-0 across his first two major-league starts this season, striking out 12 batters while issuing just two free passes.

Backed by a pair of strong starts from a healthy Yu Darvish, the Rangers moved past Seattle in the American League West standings and now hold a three-game division lead over the Mariners following a weekend sweep in Arlington.

Darvish made his first big-league start in nearly two years May 28 against Pittsburgh, scattering three hits and recording seven strikeouts across five innings as Texas cruised to a 5-2 victory.

After he retired the side in the top of the first, Darvish’s teammates gave the three-time All-Star some quick support with three runs off Pirates right-hander Juan Nicasio. Jurickson Profar led off with a single and came around to score before Adrian Beltre launched a two-run homer to center field.

Mitch Moreland took Nicasio deep in the bottom of the fourth to pad the Rangers’ lead, and Darvish allowed his only run on an RBI single from Cole Figueroa in the fifth.

Relievers Tony Barnette, Jake Diekman and Matt Bush followed Darvish on the mound with one scoreless inning apiece, and Sam Dyson permitted one run before retiring Sean Rodriguez to seal the win for Texas.

Pittsburgh had rolled to a 9-1 rout over the Rangers and Cole Hamels the night before, setting up a rubber match Sunday between southpaws Martin Perez and Francisco Liriano.

The Pirates drew first blood against Perez, scoring one run on Andrew McCutchen’s first-inning RBI double and another on David Freese’s solo homer in the third.

In the bottom of the fourth, Prince Fielder hit a towering home run to right field off Liriano – his first long ball in more than a month – before walks to Beltre and Ryan Rua set the table for Moreland’s go-ahead three-run shot.

The Texas bullpen trio of Bush, Barnette and Dyson combined to allow just one hit over three shutout innings as the Rangers took the series with a 6-2 win.

After winning two out of three games at Progressive Field in Cleveland last week (the only defeat courtesy of Yan Gomes’ walk-off single in the 11th inning on Wednesday), Texas returned to Globe Life Park for a weekend matchup against the Mariners.

Darvish was given an early lead with which to work again Friday, retiring the side in order before Beltre hammered a three-run home run off Seattle starter Taijuan Walker in the bottom of the first.

Beltre would later add a two-run double to finish the night with five RBIs, and Darvish was backed up by another solid performance from the bullpen as part of a 7-3 victory for Texas.

On Saturday, Perez scattered six hits and allowed single runs in three different innings, but he was bailed out by a potent Rangers offense that scored early and often against Nathan Karns.

Nomar Mazara’s sacrifice fly brought home the first tally for Texas, and Rua followed with a two-run double down the left-field line. Holding a 5-3 lead in the fifth inning, the Rangers scored four more times to put the game out of reach, with Elvis Andrus’ three-run homer off Vidal Nuno the nail in Seattle’s coffin.

Texas fell behind 2-0 Sunday when Nelson Cruz blasted a two-run shot off former teammate Derek Holland, but the Rangers’ lineup rallied for three runs against Hisashi Iwakuma in the bottom of the fifth.

A single from Rougned Odor and a fielding error by Seattle’s Luis Sardinas set up Jared Hoying’s run-scoring single to put Texas on the board. Andrus came home when Bobby Wilson followed with a sac fly, and Profar provided the go-ahead run on an opposite-field RBI single.

Holland was followed on the hill by shutout performances from Bush, Diekman and Dyson, who tossed a perfect ninth inning to complete the 3-2 win and earn his seventh save of the year.

Young to Join Team Hall of Fame

Former infielder Michael Young was announced as the 20th member of the Texas Rangers Baseball Hall of Fame on Friday, and he will be inducted during a pregame ceremony next month in Arlington.

The seven-time All-Star spent 13 of his 14 major-league seasons with Texas, collecting more total bases (3,286), hits (2,230), runs (1,085), doubles (415) and triples (55) than any player in franchise history.

Young took home the 2005 A.L. batting title with a .331 average and the following year was named MVP of the All-Star Game at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park.

“It means a lot,” he said. “Obviously nowadays it’s rare that a player spends as much time with a team but it was a great time for me … reaching new heights. To be in one place like that for a long time and have the relationship with the fans, it’s very special.”

After splitting his final season between the Phillies and Dodgers, Young returned to Texas and officially retired in a Rangers uniform on Jan. 31, 2014.

Roster Reinforced with Darvish, Profar

When Rougned Odor’s seven-game suspension began on May 27, infielder Jurickson Profar was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock as right-hander Shawn Tolleson was placed on Major League Baseball’s family medical emergency list.

Joey Gallo was optioned back to Triple-A the following day in order to clear an active roster spot for Yu Darvish, and more transactions were needed when Odor and Tolleson re-joined the club a week later.

On Friday, Tolleson was reinstated while left-hander Alex Claudio was optioned to Triple-A, and Hanser Alberto followed Claudio to Round Rock on Saturday when Tom Wilhelmsen was recalled by the Rangers.

In addition, right-handed swingman Nick Tepesch – who had a chance to earn the fifth starter’s role during spring training – requested and was granted his unconditional release Saturday.

Rangers Notes: Texas Drops ALDS Rematch in Toronto

Pinch-runner Hanser Alberto (left) is tagged out at home plate by Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin during Toronto’s 3-1 extra-inning victory on Tuesday.

Making their first trip north of the border since a deflating Game 5 of the American League Division Series last October, the Rangers took Monday’s series opener by a 2-1 final before losing three straight contests at Rogers Centre.

A.J. Griffin struck out nine batters and scattered three hits across six quality innings of work Monday, with an RBI single by Michael Saunders as the only blemish against his ledger. Brett Nicholas had hit a solo homer off the Blue Jays’ R.A. Dickey earlier in the game, and a 1-1 tie was turned over to the bullpens.

In the top of the eighth, Nomar Mazara put Texas ahead with a leadoff home run to straightaway center field, then started an inning-ending double play in the bottom of the frame when he caught Troy Tulowitzki’s fly ball and fired home to nab Saunders trying to score.

Rangers closer Shawn Tolleson allowed a leadoff single to Justin Smoak in the ninth, then induced three straight ground-ball outs to seal the 2-1 win and earn his ninth save of the year.

Smoak would fare even better against his former club the following night, however, when he homered off Tolleson in the ninth to erase what had been a slim 1-0 Texas lead and send the game into extra innings.

Facing Phil Klein with one man on and one out in the bottom of the tenth, Smoak clubbed another home run – this time an opposite-field shot down the line in left – to give the Blue Jays a 3-1 walk-off victory.

The Rangers carried a 3-1 advantage into the sixth inning on Wednesday, but Colby Lewis surrendered a towering two-run homer to Edwin Encarnacion that tied the ballgame.

Toronto then loaded the bases with one against Tony Barnette in the bottom of the ninth, and native Canadian Russell Martin followed with a walk-off single into right to score Ezequiel Carrera with the winning run.

Unlike the first three games of the series, Thursday’s finale held little suspense as the Blue Jays hammered Derek Holland early and often on the way to a 12-2 blowout.

Texas actually plated the first run of the game on an RBI single by Prince Fielder in the top of the first, but Toronto then went on to score 11 earned runs against Holland in less than three innings.

Cesar Ramos pitched well in relief for the Rangers – keeping the Blue Jays off the board across his four-plus frames of work – but the damage had long been done.

Last weekend, Texas won two out of three games versus the visiting Angels, picking up victories both Friday and Saturday before Cole Hamels endured his worst start of the year in a 9-6 loss on Sunday afternoon.

Hamels (who had missed his previous start due to a groin strain) worked in and out of trouble through the first four innings Sunday, but then seemed to lose command of his pitches in the fifth when he allowed two hits, three walks and three earned runs.

Wilson Returns; Gimenez Sent to Tribe

Catcher Bobby Wilson was re-acquired from the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday in exchange for left-handed pitcher Chad Bell, and the Rangers designated Chris Gimenez for assignment to make room for Wilson on the 40-man roster.

Gimenez was then traded to Cleveland for cash considerations the following day while Brett Nicholas was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock so that Wilson could be added to the active roster.

Wilson, 34, spent the final two months of the 2015 season with Texas and was with the ballclub during spring training before getting sent to Detroit as part of the deal for Bryan Holaday.

Mazara Named Rookie of the Month

Rangers outfielder Nomar Mazara was named the American League Rookie of the Month for April, it was announced on Monday. Colorado shortstop Trevor Story took home the award in the National League.

In 17 games played at the big-league level after he replaced the injured Shin-Soo Choo last month, Mazara batted .333 (21-for-63) while collecting four extra-base hits, drawing seven walks and scoring 10 runs.

Additionally, the .852 on-base plus slugging percentage he posted is the highest OPS ever by a Texas rookie in the month of April.

At the minor-league level, Frisco outfielder Ryan Cordell was named the Texas League Player of the Week after hitting .429 (9-for-21) with nine runs batted in from Apr. 24-30.