Rangers Notes: Sweep of Rays Keeps Playoff Hopes Alive

Second baseman Rougned Odor turns a double play over Tampa Bay’s Kevin Kiermaier during the fourth inning Sunday at Globe Life Park.

A weekend sweep over Tampa Bay propelled the Rangers to a winning homestand and helped Texas remain one of the many teams in contention for two A.L. Wild Card spots.

Delino DeShields hit his first major-league home run in Friday’s series opener, a towering drive down the left-field line that tied the ballgame at 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh.

One inning later, the Rangers went ahead with two runs off Jake McGee before closer Shawn Tolleson tossed a scoreless ninth for his 22nd save of the year.

Colby Lewis was the beneficiary of a seven-run outburst by Texas in the sixth inning on Saturday, once again garnering generous offensive support and improving his season record to 13-5 in the victory.

The Rangers had already scored four times in the bottom of the sixth when Adrian Beltre batted with two on and one out, and he clubbed his 10th home run of the year off Kirby Yates to put the game away.

Beltre homered again Sunday afternoon (on his own bobblehead giveaway day) to support Yovani Gallardo, who scattered 11 hits over five and one-third innings but limited the damage to three early runs.

Rookie outfielder Ryan Strausborger also connected for his first MLB home run in the 5-3 Texas victory, a solo shot off Rays starter Drew Smyly that hooked just inside the left-field foul pole.

Facing Seattle at Globe Life Park on Monday, Cole Hamels struck out eight batters and allowed three runs over seven innings pitched, and Beltre drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the ninth to give Texas a 4-3 walk-off win.

The Mariners jumped on Chi Chi Gonzalez for three runs in the first inning Tuesday and held on for a 3-2 win, but the Rangers took Wednesday’s rubber game by a 7-2 final in Derek Holland’s return to the mound.

Holland pitched into the seventh and benefitted from a four-run frame by the Texas lineup, which hit three straight home runs (by Mitch Moreland, Mike Napoli and Elvis Andrus) off Seattle left-hander Joe Beimel.

With a current record of 61-58, the Rangers are 1.5 games behind the Wild Card-leading Blue Jays and just 4 games behind Houston in the A.L. West.

Venable Picked Up from Padres

With Josh Hamilton unavailable due to an ailing left knee, outfielder Will Venable was acquired from the San Diego Padres on Tuesday in exchange for minor-league catcher Marcus Greene and a player to be named later.

Venable, 32, had spent his entire career to this point with the Padres, setting personal highs in 2013 with a .268 batting average, 22 home runs and 51 RBIs. He has also shown speed on the base paths, averaging more than 20 steals per year over the past six seasons.

Outfielder Michael Choice was designated for assignment in order to create room on the 40-man roster for Venable.

(UPDATE: Hamilton was placed on the 15-day disabled list Thursday, and right-hander Jon Edwards was announced as the second player heading to San Diego in the deal for Venable.)

Mazara Promoted to Replace Martin

Twenty-year-old outfielder Nomar Mazara was promoted from Double-A Frisco to Triple-A Round Rock on Monday to replace Leonys Martin, who has a broken bone in his right wrist and could miss the rest of the season.

In 111 games with the RoughRiders this year, Mazara collected 22 doubles, 13 home runs and 56 runs batted in, and he departs the Texas League tied for sixth in total bases (181) with former teammate Nick Williams.

Kansas City Signs Rodriguez

Left-hander Wandy Rodriguez was signed to a minor-league deal Sunday by the Kansas City Royals after being released by the Rangers earlier this month.

Rodriguez, a career National Leaguer before joining the Rangers in late April, went 6-4 with an earned run average of 4.90 across 15 starts for Texas.

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: Cactus League Update No. 2

Tanner Scheppers hopes to make the rotation after emerging as a strong setup relief option last year.

With only two weeks to go until Opening Day, the Rangers are still trying to solidify the back end of their starting rotation and deciding which players will earn a limited number of bench and bullpen roles.

Yu Darvish will get the ball when Texas hosts the Philadelphia Phillies on Mar. 31 to begin the regular season, and he will likely be followed by either left-hander Martin Perez or righty Alexi Ogando.

Beyond that, however, the Rangers’ plans are less clear, with no fewer than six different pitchers competing for the final two or three spots.

Further complicating matters are the freak injuries suffered by Derek Holland (who tripped over his dog) and Matt Harrison (who slept on an uncomfortable mattress), as neither will be ready by Opening Day. While Holland has yet to resume baseball activities, Harrison has already seen action in a ‘B’ game and is scheduled to pitch Monday against the Royals.

“[We] haven’t come up with three starters yet,” Texas manager Ron Washington said. “That’s why we have guys out there competing. It means the competition is still going on. Guys have to push harder and not take anything for granted. But we will come out of here with five starters.”

Veterans Tommy Hanson and Joe Saunders, both of whom are in camp on major-league contracts, have the most starting experience among the candidates, and it seems that one (or both) of them would stand a good chance of making the Opening Day rotation.

The Rangers also have a pair of young relievers auditioning for starting jobs this spring in southpaw Robbie Ross and right-hander Tanner Scheppers, but the transition of either of them to the rotation would create a late-inning void in the bullpen.

Non-roster invitee Colby Lewis is trying to come back from hip replacement surgery, and while he brings a solid track record as a starter (including more postseason wins than anyone in franchise history), his early Cactus League performances have done nothing to help his cause.

Michael Kirkman and Nick Tepesch are both considered to be long shots for the starting rotation, more likely to end up at Triple-A Round Rock than on the Opening Day roster; and free-agent Ervin Santana is no longer an option after signing a one-year deal with the Braves last week.

Whatever route the Rangers decide to follow when shaping their season-opening rotation, they will no doubt be anxious for the returns of former mainstays Harrison and Holland.

Odor, Sardinas among Recent Cuts

Texas announced its first wave of spring roster cuts last Wednesday, sending infielders Rougned Odor and Luis Sardinas – along with five pitchers – back to the minor-league camp.

The left-handed-hitting Odor and the switch-hitting Sardinas both batted .267 (4-for-15) in Cactus League action this spring, with the latter seeing most of his playing time at shortstop and the former at second base.

Odor is currently ranked as the Rangers’ No. 4 prospect while Sardinas is ranked No. 2, sandwiched around outfielder Michael Choice and behind catcher Jorge Alfaro.

Also getting assigned to the club’s minor-league campWednesday were right-handed pitchers Nate Adcock, Lisalverto Bonilla, Wilmer Font, Armando Rodriguez and Ben Rowen.

Young Prospects Shine on Big Stage

Getting a chance to show their stuff in front of big-league coaches and staff, minor-league first baseman Ronald Guzman and outfielder Nick Williams have impressed with key offensive contributions over the past few games.

Williams, 20, belted a pair of home runs in Saturday’s win over Oakland, and the 19-year-old Guzman went deep the following day against the Chicago White Sox.

Both Guzman (an international free-agent signing in 2011) and Williams (a second-round amateur draft pick in 2012) spent last year with Class-A Hickory in the South Atlantic League.

Rangers Notes: In a Pinch, Grimm Wins Big-League Debut

Rookie Justin Grimm struck out seven batters in Saturday’s 8-3 victory over the Astros, with both teams wearing 1986 throwback uniforms.

Following a recent parade of Texas pitchers to the disabled list, the team called up 23-year-old Justin Grimm to make his major-league debut Saturday against the visiting Astros, and the right-hander turned in a quality start by allowing three runs over six innings of work en route to an 8-3 Rangers win.

Grimm was called into duty because Alexi Ogando — who had been starting in place of Derek Holland while he rehabs a fatigued shoulder — suffered a strained right groin while running out a bunt single last Sunday in San Francisco. Ogando was placed on the DL Tuesday, and left-hander Michael Kirkman was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock to replace him on the active roster.

To clear a roster spot for Grimm, right-hander Yoshinori Tateyama was optioned back to Round Rock on Saturday afternoon and Neftali Feliz was transferred from the 15- to the 60-day disabled list.

“It was much more than I thought it would be,” Grimm said of his debut, in which he recorded seven strikeouts while issuing no walks. “I was excited. I told myself to go out and throw the same pitches. It’s the same game, you just have better offense and defense on your side.”

Saturday’s win was the middle of a three-game sweep over Houston, with Yu Darvish striking out 11 batters in eight innings during Friday’s 8-2 victory and Ian Kinsler’s bases-clearing triple paving the way for a 9-3 win on Sunday.

Prior to the Astros series, the Rangers had won four out of six games against San Francisco and Arizona, taking two of three from the Giants at AT&T Park where Texas previously had a composite record of 0-11 in regular-season play and the 2010 World Series.

The Rangers then won the first two of their three-game set against the Diamondbacks, as Colby Lewis went the distance in a 9-1 Texas victory on Tuesday before Craig Gentry delivered an eighth-inning RBI single Wednesday to provide the difference in a 1-0 win.

Hamilton Hospitalized with Intestinal Virus

After being removed late in Thursday’s loss to Arizona because of a stomach ache, outfielder Josh Hamilton was placed in the hospital prior to Friday’s opener against the Astros with an intestinal virus and dehydration.

Hamilton — who sat out all three games of the Houston series — follows Nelson Cruz and Derek Holland as Rangers players who have missed time due to viruses this year, cases which the club says are unrelated.

To bolster the team’s outfield depth in Hamilton’s absence, outfielder Leonys Martin was called up from Triple-A Round Rock while reliever Koji Uehara was sent to the 15-day disabled list with a strained right lat muscle.

In 31 games for the Express this season, Martin is batting .344 with five home runs, nine doubles and 22 runs batted in, although he has been successful on just half of his 14 attempted stolen bases.

Top Five Draft Picks Signed by Texas

The Rangers announced last Tuesday that they had signed each of their top five picks from the 2012 MLB First-Year Player Draft, spending a reported $6.082 million worth of signing bonus money on the group.

Among the five are outfielder Lewis Brinson and third baseman Joey Gallo, who signed for bonuses of $1.625 million and $2.25 million, respectively.

The other three top picks include outfielders Jamie Jarmon and Nick Williams and right-handed pitcher Collin Wiles.