David Murphy scored the tying run on Sunday in the Rangers’ 2-1 victory over the Cardinals.
Making their first visit to St. Louis since losing Games 6 and 7 of the 2011 World Series, the Rangers left town early Monday morning with a weekend sweep over the Cardinals, who have maintained the best record in baseball for more than a month.
Derek Holland gave up three runs in the first inning Friday and another in the second but rebounded to avoid further damage while pitching through the seventh, and Texas chased St. Louis starter Tyler Lyons with four runs in the top of the second.
The two clubs stayed tied until the ninth inning, when the Rangers mounted a go-ahead rally against Trevor Rosenthal. An Ian Kinsler single, a throwing error on an attempted Elvis Andrus bunt and a wild pitch put runners at second and third with nobody out, and Nelson Cruz followed with a two-run single to help propel Texas to a 6-4 win.
Left-hander Martin Perez was called up from Triple-A Round Rock on Saturday to start opposite Cardinals rookie Shelby Miller, and although he was scored upon in each of the first two frames, Perez was backed by two-run homers from Cruz and A.J. Pierzynski en route to a 4-2 victory for the Rangers.
A rain delay of nearly three hours preceded Sunday’s nationally-televised series finale, and right-handers Nick Tepesch and Adam Wainwright engaged in a scoreless duel until Matt Carpenter gave St. Louis a 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the sixth.
David Murphy connected for a two-out double off Wainwright in the top of the seventh inning and scored the tying run when he was singled home by Leonys Martin. An error then allowed Jurickson Profar to reach, and Ian Kinsler put the Rangers ahead for good with an RBI single into left field.
After an off day in New York on Monday, Yu Darvish took the mound Tuesday against the Yankees’ Hiroki Kuroda in a matchup of Japanese right-handers, and both pitchers threw well but did not factor in the decision.
Texas and New York traded single runs in three middle innings and stayed tied, 3-3, going into to bottom of the ninth. Rangers reliever Tanner Scheppers then retired the first two men he faced before Ichiro Suzuki homered to give the Yankees a 4-3 walk-off win.
On Wednesday, Justin Grimm received early offensive support in the form of two-run doubles from Adrian Beltre and A.J. Pierzynski in the top of the third, and Nelson Cruz later added a two-run homer before Scheppers, Neal Cotts and Joe Nathan pitched scoreless relief, helping Texas beat New York by an 8-5 final.
Thursday afternoon’s rubber match saw Derek Holland toss the Rangers’ first complete-game shutout this season, holding the Yankees to just two hits with seven strikeouts while Jurickson Profar scored both Texas runs in a 2-0 victory.
Broken Hand Sends Gentry to DL
Outfielder Craig Gentry was put on the 15-day disabled list Sunday (retroactive to Jun. 21) with a non-displaced fracture in his left hand, and the club recalled Engel Beltre from Triple-A Round Rock to take his spot on the active roster.
Gentry had been hit in the hand by a pitch from Oakland’s Jarrod Parker last Tuesday, and an MRI taken over the weekend revealed the fracture.
The 23-year-old Beltre made his major-league debut as a pinch-runner late in Wednesday’s game at Yankee Stadium (and was promptly thrown out trying to steal second base), then went 2-for-3 in his first career start the following afternoon.
In 72 games as the regular center fielder at Round Rock this season, Beltre was batting an even .300 with 13 stolen bases and a team-leading 44 runs scored.
Ortiz Optioned to Clear Spot for Perez
In order to make room on the active roster for left-handed starter Martin Perez, the Rangers optioned southpaw Joe Ortiz back to Round Rock prior to Saturday’s game at Busch Stadium.
Ortiz, 22, opened the season with Texas and began the year on a roll before encountering issues with his control and effectiveness last month.
He was sent down to Triple-A earlier this month when Alexi Ogando made what turned out to be a short-lived return to the rotation, and Ortiz had appeared in two games since getting recalled on Jun. 18.
Nate's Notes 
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