Rangers See Double against White Sox

Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images

July 23, 2024

Rangers 3, White Sox 2

ARLINGTON, Tex. (Jul 23) — The Texas Rangers are now on a legitimate winning streak as they beat the Chicago White Sox, 3–2, on Tuesday night. This makes three wins in a row for the Rangers, who utilized a double steal by Josh Smith and Adolis Garcia to help secure the victory. The Rangers will aim for the series win in this four-game set on Wednesday evening with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm Central at Globe Life Field. It will be a duel of righties as Chris Flexen (2–9, 5.22 ERA) will take the hill for the White Sox, while Nathan Eovaldi (6–4, 3.36 ERA) will get the ball for the Rangers.

Double Steal

The Rangers scored quickly in the bottom of the first off White Sox starter Garrett Crochet. Moments after Marcus Semien grounded to short to lead off the inning, Robbie Grossman singled to center. He was driven in by Smith, who hit a sharp single to right. Two batters later, Garcia reached on a single to right, advancing Smith to third. On the next play, Smith and Garcia pulled off a double steal, Garcia stealing second and Smith stealing home. This gave the Rangers a 2–0 lead.

The White Sox cut that lead in half in the top of the third against Rangers right-hander Jon Gray. Korey Lee started the frame with a sharp double to right. Gray struck out Luis Robert Jr., and Andrew Benintendi flied to Smith at third. That brought up Andrew Vaughn, who scored Lee with a single to left.

The Rangers added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth against White Sox reliever Tanner Banks. Semien led off with a single to left. Leody Taveras moved him over with a sacrifice bunt up the first base line. An errant pickoff attempt at second advanced Semien to third. On deck was Smith, who plated Semien with a double to right.

The White Sox cut the lead to one run in the top of the ninth off reliever Josh Sborz. To lead things off, Benintendi stepped to the plated and belted a solo shot to the seats in right.

What Went Right for the Rangers

The Rangers were riding the momentum that they built up in Monday’s win. The double steal by Smith and Garcia took everyone by surprise. It proved to be as entertaining as it was effective, getting the sellout crowd of 39,240 on their feet. That was a feat in itself considering most of them probably couldn’t lift their hands to push themselves out of their seats with the Adolis Garcia replica World Series rings on their fingers. Those were given out to the first 29,000 in attendance. The insurance run brought in by Smith proved to be invaluable when the White Sox showed signs of life in the ninth.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The Rangers did their part to hold on to the lead even though there were a couple of uneasy moments along the way. The RBI single by Vaughn and the homer by Bentintendi could have spelled disaster. That seemed like it fueled the Rangers, and their bullpen was able to end the evening with a 2–0 series lead.

What a Catch

The Rangers’ dugout went wild as Gray recorded the second out of the eighth. They weren’t cheering for Gray, however. In fact, Gray raised his hands and clapped as he walked off the mound, cheering for Rangers shortstop Jonathan Ornelas, who perhaps made the play of the season for the Rangers. The ball off the bat of Tommy Pham seemingly skipped through the 6-5 hole. Ornelas made a dazzling backhand catch before leaping and firing across his body to throw to first. It reached Nathaniel Lowe comfortably for the second out of the inning, ending Gray’s magnificent night on a high note.

Have a Day, Gray

Rangers right-hander Jon Gray made his first start since facing the Los Angeles Angels July 8. He twirled 7 2/3 masterful innings, permitting one earned runs on four hits with no walks and five strikeouts. Gray threw 80 pitches, 63 of which were strikes, on his way to earning his fifth win of the season. His record is now 5–4 with an ERA of 3.73. He recorded career strikeout number 1,200 when he fanned Paul DeJong in the second, becoming the 31st active pitcher with 1,200+ strikeouts. Gray worked out of a jam with runners on the corners in the second by inducing a pair of strikeouts and a popout to escape the threat unscathed. The lone run he allowed came on the RBI single by Vaughn in the third.

Gray did not permit a baserunner in the wake of Vaughn’s knock. He retired the final 15 batters he faced before giving way to Sborz and the Rangers ‘pen in the eighth. He posted a 78.8% strike percentage on Tuesday. That marks his highest mark this season and second-highest of his career to only an 86.7% figure on September 12, 2022 against the Miami Marlins in the second game of a doubleheader. In two career starts against the White Sox, Gray has permitted two runs, both earned, in 13 2/3 innings. Pitching in his third consecutive game, Kirby Yates earned his 18th save of the season after recording the final two outs in the top of the ninth, one of which was a strikeout.

Crochet Uses the Wrong Pattern

White Sox lefty Garrett Crochet made his 21st start of the season and first ever against the Rangers. He yielded two runs, both earned, in four frames to shoulder the loss, bringing his record to 6–7 with an ERA of 3.07. His line on the evening was 4 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 7 K, 0 HR, 74 pitches/49 strikes. Tuesday marked the second time that Crochet has allowed two runs or more in the first inning this season. The 25-year-old lefty paces the junior circuit with 157 strikeouts this season. That is the highest total by a White Sox pitcher in his first 21 career starts. Crochet has fanned five batters or more in 18 of his 21 starts. He has allowed two runs or fewer in seven of his nine starts on the road.

Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Bruce Bochy reflected on Gray’s performance, and the extra rest that he has had. “Sometimes a guy needs a reset, especially if he gets in a little bit of a rut,” Bochy said. “He got that and went out there and that was what he did tonight. He went out there with a sense of determination. And what a job he did, huh? He went deep in the game, just a terrific job. Good stuff, commanded fastball and slider. He gave us what we needed because the bullpen had been used a lot. It’s good to see Jonny go out there and pitch the way we know he can.”