Rangers Grab Another Walk-Off Win over Athletics

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images

September 1, 2024

Rangers 6, Athletics 4

ARLINGTON, Texas (Sep. 1) — The Texas Rangers beat the Oakland Athletics, 6–4, on Sunday afternoon in their second consecutive walk-off win. The hero in this one was Josh Jung, who sent the crowd of 33,309 home happy with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning in the series finale. It is the eighth walk-off victory for the Rangers this season, and it improves their record in extra-inning affairs to 9–2. It also earned manager Bruce Bochy his 2,158th managerial win, matching Bucky Harris for eighth place on baseball’s all-time managerial wins list.

With this series win in the books, the Rangers welcome the New York Yankees to town for a three-game set. The series will begin on Monday evening for a Labor Day matchup. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 pm Central at Globe Life Field. Right-hander Gerrit Cole (5–3, 3.86 ERA) will toe the rubber for the Yankees, while the Rangers have yet to announce their starting pitcher for the series opener. The Athletics, meanwhile, will head back to Oakland for a four-game series against the Seattle Mariners that will also get underway on Labor Day. First pitch is scheduled for 4:07 Pacific. Righty Logan Gilbert (7–10, 3.09 ERA) will get the ball for the Mariners, while fellow right-hander Osvaldo Bido (5–3, 3.21 ERA) will take the hill for the Athletics.

250 Doubles for Seager

The Rangers scored early in the bottom of the first off Athletics righty Mitch Spence. Marcus Semien led off by grounding to short, bringing up Corey Seager. On a 1–0 pitch from Spence, Seager sent a ground ball down the right-field line for the 250th double of his career. After Josh Smith struck out swinging, Seager crossed the plate on a double to center by Adolis Garcia.

The Rangers extended their lead to 2–0 in the bottom of the third. Justin Foscue opened the frame with a walk. Up next was Leody Taveras, who struck out swinging to bring up Semien, who advanced Foscue to second by drawing a free pass of his own. Seager nudged Foscue over to third by grounding into a 3–6 force play. On deck was Smith, who plated Foscue with a sharp single to right.

Athletics Make it Interesting

The Athletics scored in the top of the fifth off Rangers reliever Jose Ureña. It was a bullpen game for them on this particular Sunday. Jacob Wilson led off with a double to left. Lawrence Butler followed with a single to left. Up next was Brent Rooker, who singled to right for his sixth hit of the series, driving in Wilson along the way.

The Athletics knotted things up at two runs apiece in the top of the eighth off reliever David Robertson. He got two quick outs by getting Daz Cameron on a called third strike and Seth Brown on a sharp fly to right. On deck was Zack Gelof, who doubled to right. He scored moments later on a single to center by Max Schuemann. Schuemann tried to stretch it to a double, but Taveras got him out at second with a great throw from center to retire the side.

Déjà Vu All Over Again

Fast forward to the top of the 10th, when the Athletics took a 4–2 lead. Matt Festa came on in relief of Jose Leclerc for the Rangers. Shea Langeliers came in as the ghost runner at second. Festa struck out JJ Bleday and Cameron to start the frame. Langeliers scored on a triple to right by Brown. On deck was Gelof, who scored Brown with a double to left.

In the bottom of the 10th, Semien was placed on second as the ghost runner with Mason Miller on the mound for the Athletics. Miller struck Seager out swinging and and retired Smith on a fly to center. Moments later, Garcia drove in Semien with a single to center, cutting the deficit to 4–3. Travis Jankowski entered the game as a pinch-runner for Garcia. He swiped second for his 10th stolen base of the year and the 101st of his career. Miller walked Wyatt Langford next, bringing up Jung. On a 1–1 fastball, Jung connected, sending his third career walk-off homer over the wall in right.

What Went Right for the Rangers

Extra-inning wins seem to be a theme for the Rangers in 2024. As previously mentioned, they are now 9–2 in extra innings this season. Jung’s walk-off blast did the trick when it seemed like the Athletics would walk away with the series win. The RBI hits by Garcia and Smith were big factors also. In addition, Seager’s hustle in the third paid dividends. He beat the relay to first on a double play attempt, keeping the inning alive for Smith to drive Foscue in with the single. Had the Athletics turned the double play, the Rangers would not have scored in that inning.

On the defensive side, the bullpen worked through some fatigue to keep the game from getting out of hand for the Rangers.

Longest Outing for Ureña

Right-hander Jose Ureña fired 4 2/3 innings of one-run relief. His line was 8 H, 1 BB, 2 K, 69 pitches/48 strikes. Urena’s 4 2/3 innings signified the longest relief outing by a Ranger this season, surpassing his own mark of 4 1/3 innings July 27 against the Toronto Blue Jays. His six relief outings of four-plus this season are second most in the AL to only Tyler Alexander of the Tampa Bay Rays, who has nine. It’s also the seventh most in Rangers history.

After coming on in the 10th, Festa earned his third win of the season. He is now 3–1 with an ERA of 6.30. He gave up two runs, one earned, on two hits. Festa also struck out two in his outing.

Spence’s Afternoon

Athletics starter Mitch Spence did not factor into the decision despite exiting with a 2–1 deficit. He surrendered a pair of runs in five innings. His line was 5 IP, 5 H, 2R-ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 0 HR, 87 pitches/47 strikes. The 26-year-old rookie fell behind early, permitting the RBI double to García in the opening frame. Spence issued three free passes on Sunday and has now walked 23 batters over his last nine starts. Spence also walked one and struck out one. His record now sits at 1–2 with an ERA of 2.52.

After giving up Jung’s walk-off homer, Miller took his second loss of the year. He surrendered four runs, three earned, on three hits.

A Fun Coincidence

This reporter met Langeliers’ high school guidance counselor after the game. She retired from her faculty career in 2023, and now she is one of the Press Box elevator operators at Globe Life Field.

Postgame Comments

After the game, Bochy reflected on the recent trend of late-inning victories that his team is enjoying. “I think we’re getting used to it,” Bochy said. “It’s kind of our style now. We changed it from last year, now playing a lot of tight ballgames and having to execute pitches, make plays, and do little things to win the ballgame. They are doing a good job of that. We like to put up some big numbers, but that really hasn’t happened for the most part this year, so you got to play the game they are playing well and win these tight ballgames.”