Rangers Notes: Hamels Acquired in Eight-Player Deal

Cole Hamels pitched into the eighth inning but received a no-decision in his first Texas start on Saturday.

The Rangers reeled in the biggest catch of last week’s non-waiver trade deadline when they acquired starter Cole Hamels as part of an eight-player swap with Philadelphia.

The Phillies also sent relief pitcher Jake Diekman and cash to Texas in the deal, while the Rangers’ return package included Matt Harrison and five minor-leaguers – Jorge Alfaro, Alec Asher, Jerad Eickhoff, Jake Thompson and Nick Williams.

The trade, which was agreed to on Wednesday but not finalized until Friday, came only after Hamels used his limited no-trade clause to block a potential deal with the Astros.

“I have a lot of catching up to do,” Hamels said after joining his new team Friday, “but with this group of guys I think it’s going to be pretty easy because they’re true competitors, and it’s fun to watch them on the field and know that those are guys that are going to be behind me.”

A three-time National League All-Star, Hamels posted a career record of 114-90 with a 3.30 ERA across parts of 10 seasons for the Phillies, throwing a no-hitter on July 25 against the Cubs in his final start with Philadelphia.

Making his A.L. debut in a Texas uniform two nights ago, Hamels pitched into the eighth inning and was lifted with a 7-4 lead, but Tanner Scheppers allowed three consecutive run-scoring hits as San Francisco rallied to tie the game.

After a scoreless tenth inning, Hunter Pence and Brandon Belt each connected for solo home runs in the top of the eleventh to lead the Giants to a 9-7 comeback victory.

Although the Rangers’ bullpen faltered and denied Hamels a chance at a win in his first game with Texas, manager Jeff Banister was still pleased with the results put forth by the club’s new No. 1 starter.

“Given everything involved,” Banister said, “coming off the no-hitter, the volume of pitches he threw in the no-hitter, everything swirling around the trade and the travel getting here … I really felt like he threw the ball well.”

Following Hamels in the Rangers’ revamped rotation, left-hander Martin Perez delivered the best performance of his injury-shortened season on the way to a 2-1 win in Sunday’s rubber game. He retired the first 14 batters he faced before Brandon Belt and Justin Maxwell reached, respectively, on an error and an infield single in the top of the fifth.

Perez was pulled after allowing a one-out double to Angel Pagan in the ninth, and the Texas bullpen had to work around trouble before Hunter Pence grounded into a game-ending double play.

Dyson, Wilson Added to Roster

While the trade for Hamels grabbed most of the headlines, Texas also made a pair of under-the-radar moves Friday aimed at strengthening the team’s relief pitching and catching corps.

Right-hander Sam Dyson was acquired from Miami in exchange for backstop Tomas Telis and minor-league lefty Cody Ege, and veteran catcher Bobby Wilson was picked up on a waiver claim from Tampa Bay.

Dyson, 27, was activated Saturday and made back-to-back appearances against the Giants, including a scoreless outing Sunday in which he earned his first career save. The 32-year-old Wilson, meanwhile, had two hits and caught all 11 innings in his Texas debut on Saturday.

Shoulder Strain Sends Chirinos to DL

Both of the Rangers’ Opening Day catchers are now on the disabled list after Robinson Chirinos was placed on the 15-day DL Saturday (retroactive to Friday) with a strained left shoulder.

Backup catcher Carlos Corporan has also been on the disabled list since mid-July with a sprain in his left thumb, leaving the ballclub’s pitch-calling duties to Chris Gimenez – who had his contract purchased Friday from Triple-A Round Rock – and Bobby Wilson.

In other roster moves, both Wandy Rodriguez and Ross Ohlendorf were designated for assignment by Texas over the past week, and Ohlendorf was placed on unconditional release waivers on Friday.

In the bullpen, late-inning reliever Keone Kela was optioned to Double-A Frisco Saturday in an effort to limit his workload. Kela had averaged a total of 44 innings pitched in each of the past two seasons in the minors, and he has already thrown 43 and two-thirds innings for the Rangers this year.

Rangers Notes: Garza Acquired for Grimm, Olt, Prospects

In his Rangers debut on Wednesday, Matt Garza pitched into the eighth inning and did not allow an earned run.

Texas added a proven starter to its injury-riddled rotation Monday when the club traded third baseman Mike Olt, right-hander Justin Grimm, right-handed prospect C.J. Edwards and one or two players to be named later to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for 29-year-old Matt Garza.

Having won each of his final five starts with Chicago, Garza brought a season record of 6-1 to Texas with a 3.17 earned run average and 62 strikeouts, and his was one of the top names available on an overall tepid midsummer trade market.

“[Garza’s] one of the better big-game pitchers in the game,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. “He’s throwing the ball as well as anybody. … He’s an extremely talented pitcher, and he’s had success in the toughest divisions and on the biggest stages.”

Across parts of eight major-league seasons with the Cubs, Rays and Twins, Garza had built a 63-62 career record over 178 starts, which included a no-hitter thrown against Detroit exactly three years ago while with Tampa Bay.

The Rangers were one of a number of teams that had shown interest in trading for Garza last summer, but those discussions stalled when the hard-throwing righty was shut down for the season after leaving a late-July start against the Cardinals with a triceps injury.

Making his Texas debut on Wednesday against the Yankees, Garza gave up only one unearned run on five hits while recording five strikeouts in seven-plus innings of work, and A.J. Pierzynski had two RBIs in the Rangers’ 3-1 victory.

“I’m excited,” Garza said after the game. “I couldn’t be more happy being in a place where I’m at, a place where I’m wanted, been wanted. It’s awesome.”

Among the players sent from Texas to Chicago in the deal, Mike Olt is considered to have the most upside as a corner infielder with power potential, although C.J. Edwards — a 48th-round draft pick in 2011 — has developed himself into a top-tier prospect over a relatively short period of time.

Even with the addition of Garza, the Rangers may not be done trying to acquire more pieces before next Wednesday’s non-waiver trade deadline, and they are specifically rumored to be seeking a power-hitting outfielder.

A few of the names to which Texas has been linked include Seattle’s Kendrys Morales, San Francisco’s Hunter Pence, Alex Rios of the White Sox and Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins.

Yankees Earn Split in Arlington

Garza’s gem Wednesday proved to be one of the few bright spots for the Rangers on a 2-5 homestand that saw them get swept by Baltimore before splitting a four-game series versus New York this week.

Yu Darvish came back from the 15-day disabled list to shut out the Yankees for six and one-third innings on Monday, and the consistent bullpen trio of Robbie Ross, Tanner Scheppers and Joe Nathan combined to allow just one hit in a 3-0 Texas win.

Tuesday featured another starter returning from the DL as right-hander Alexi Ogando made his first appearance since early June, going five innings before watching as Texas rallied to take the lead with a four-run bottom of the sixth.

In the ninth inning, however, New York was able to regain a 5-4 advantage (and ultimately win) when home-plate umpire Kerwin Danley exhibited two decidedly different strike zones for Yankees batters compared to Rangers hitters.

Following Garza’s victorious debut on Wednesday, New York salvaged a series split Thursday afternoon as Hiroki Kuroda outdueled Texas southpaw Derek Holland while the Yankees scored two late runs to set the table for Mariano Rivera and secure a 2-0 win.

Burns, Ortiz Sent Down to Balance Roster

The trade of Justin Grimm to Chicago cleared an active roster spot for Yu Darvish when he returned from the disabled list prior to Monday’s game, but the Rangers needed to create two more roster openings when Matt Garza and Alexi Ogando were added.

To that end, Texas optioned right-handed reliever Cory Burns and left-hander Joe Ortiz back to Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday.

Rangers Notes: Texas Takes Silver Boot with Series Victory

Catcher Yorvit Torrealba reacts after completing a strikeout-caught stealing to end the Rangers’ 3-2 win Wednesday in Houston.

After winning two out of three games against the Astros last week in Arlington, the Rangers did the same thing this week at Minute Maid Park in Houston to secure a 4-2 overall victory in this year’s Lone Star Series, taking home the Silver Boot trophy for the fifth straight season.

On Tuesday, every Texas starter collected at least one hit while Josh Hamilton, Mitch Moreland and Ian Kinsler all went deep to help the Rangers beat Houston, 7-3, and snap their two-game skid.

The Astros drew first blood when Michael Bourn singled against left-hander C.J. Wilson in the bottom of the first and came around to score on a stolen base, a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly from Carlos Lee.

Leading off the top of the third against Houston starter Jordan Lyles, Wilson helped his own cause with a triple into the right-center field gap – his first major-league hit – and he tied the game on Ian Kinsler’s run-scoring groundout. Josh Hamilton then connected for a solo homer off Lyles before three consecutive singles provided the Rangers with another run and a 3-1 advantage.

Texas padded its lead further with a pair of runs against Lyles in the sixth inning, one scoring on Yorvit Torrealba’s RBI single and another on a run-scoring triple from Kinsler.

Moreland and Kinsler added late-inning homers against Astros right-hander Aneury Rodriguez, and Texas reliever Yoshinori Tateyama allowed a run in the bottom of the ninth before Neftali Feliz came on to record his 15^th save of the season.

Ian Kinsler kept his hot hitting alive on Wednesday with two more home runs as the Rangers held off a late charge by the Astros to grab a series-clinching 3-2 win at Minute Maid Park.

Kinsler homered against Astros right-hander Brett Myers to lead off the top of the first inning, his 10^th long ball of the year. Shortstop Andres Blanco followed with a double and was driven home on an RBI single from Josh Hamilton to give Texas an early 2-0 lead. After a perfect second inning, Myers was taken deep again by Kinsler in the top of the third, padding the Rangers’ lead to three runs for starter Colby Lewis.

Lewis retired the first 11 batters he faced before allowing a two-out single to Hunter Pence in the bottom of the fourth. After getting the final out of the inning, Lewis led off the top of the fifth with a double to Tal’s Hill in center field, although he was left stranded at second base.

Carlos Lee sparked a Houston rally when he homered off Lewis with one out in the bottom of the seventh, and Clint Barmes added an RBI single to bring the Astros to within a run before southpaw Darren Oliver came on and got out of the jam.

Rangers closer Neftali Feliz issued a leadoff walk to Lee in the bottom of the ninth, but he struck out Matt Downs before a strikeout-caught stealing double play ended the ballgame, securing both the victory and his 16^th save of the season.

Having clinched the Silver Boot trophy, Texas had a chance to wrap up the month of June the same way it started – with a series sweep on the road – but instead the Rangers were shut out for only the third time this season as Houston hammered its way a 7-0 victory on Thursday.

Astros left-hander Wandy Rodriguez allowed four hits and three walks over seven scoreless innings of work, and he benefitted from three double plays turned by Houston’s infield behind him.

Texas starter Matt Harrison, on the other hand, was roughed up for five earned runs across six innings pitched, though he had given up just one hit over the first three frames before yielding a leadoff homer to Carlos Lee in the bottom of the fourth. With one out in the fifth, Michael Bourn was hit by a pitch from Harrison and advanced to second on an Angel Sanchez bunt, then came home when Hunter Pence grounded an infield single to third baseman Adrian Beltre.

A throwing error by Beltre allowed Pence to go to second base, and Harrison issued an intentional walk to Carlos Lee before Jason Michaels connected for an RBI ground-rule double. Chris Johnson then lined a two-run single up the middle to drive in Lee and Michaels and give the Astros a 5-0 lead.

Michaels wrapped up Houston’s scoring barrage with a two-run homer off right-hander Dave Bush in the bottom of the seventh, making for a 7-0 final.

Young Named A.L. Player of the Week

Rangers infielder Michael Young received his third career American League Player of the Week honor after batting .481 (13-for-27) across six games from June 20-26, also collecting three doubles, four home runs and nine runs batted in.

Young, who also led the league with 28 total bases and a 1.037 slugging percentage, becomes the first Texas player to win the weekly award since catcher Bengie Molina did so last July after hitting for the cycle in Boston.

A six-time All-Star, Young tied a career-best with home runs in three consecutive games against the New York Mets over the weekend.

In addition, Young recently passed Rafael Palmeiro for the most games played in a Rangers uniform (1,574), and he’s on pace to break Palmeiro’s franchise record for runs scored (958) sometime next month.

Davis Sizzling at Round Rock

At the minor-league level, infielder Chris Davis has been on a hitting tear for the Triple-A Round Rock Express this week, batting .444 (8-for-18) in four games against Oklahoma City with four home runs, five runs scored and eight RBIs.

Davis, 25, was named to the Pacific Coast League team for this year’s Triple-A All-Star Game in Salt Lake City. He is currently tied for fourth in the PCL with 19 home runs in just 33 games while batting .374 with 52 runs batted in.