Late-Inning Magic Lifts Rangers over Angels

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images

September 7, 2024

Rangers 6, Angels 4

ARLINGTON, Texas (Sep. 7) — The Texas Rangers came from behind to beat the Los Angeles Angels, 6–4, on Saturday evening. An RBI double by Josh Jung in the eighth inning gave the crowd of 31,501 something to cheer about as this long 10-game home stand winds down. The Rangers will aim for the series win on Sunday afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 1:35 pm Central at Globe Life Field. Right-hander Caden Dana (1–0, 3.00 ERA) will take the hill for the Angels, while the Rangers will counter with lefty Andrew Heaney (4–13, 3.81 ERA) in the finale of this four-game set.

Quick Start for Angels

The Angels scored before most people found their seats in the top of the first. On a 1–1 pitch from Rangers starter Jack Leiter, Taylor Ward sent one over the wall in left-center to lead off the top of the first. On deck was Zach Neto, who was hit by a pitch. He stole second right before Nolan Schanuel flied to left. A wild pitch from Leiter advanced Neto to third. Anthony Rendon plated Neto with a sacrifice fly to right.

The Rangers tied it in the bottom of the fifth off Angels lefty Tyler Anderson. Wyatt Langford reached on a fielding error by Rendon at third. Moments later, Anderson issued a free pass to Nathaniel Lowe. Langford scored two batters later on a sharp double to center by Ezequiel Duran. A fielding error by Neto at short on the relay throw moved Duran to third.

The Angels took a 4–2 lead in the top of the sixth. Neto led off by drawing a walk, prompting Rangers manager Bruce Bochy to bring in Andrew Chafin to relieve Leiter. Neto scurried to second with his 29th stolen base of the season. A wild pitch on a full count from Chafin simultaneously scored Neto and walked Schanuel. Rendon grounded to second, advancing Schanuel to third. Mickey Moniak drove him in with a single to center.

Rangers Leapfrog Angels

The Rangers took a 5–4 lead in the bottom of the seventh against Angels reliever Victor Mederos. He got Lowe to ground to second and Jonah Heim to fly to left, respectively. Moments later, Mederos walked Duran, bringing up Carson Kelly, who was pinch-hitting for Justin Foscue. Kelly advanced Duran to second with a walk of his own. Up next was Marcus Semien, who allowed Duran to score with a single to center. Semien moved into scoring position with his fifth stolen base of the year. Kelly and Semien both scored on a single to right by Josh Smith.

The Rangers tacked on another run in the bottom of the eighth off Angels reliever Roansy Contreras. It was Star Wars Night at Globe Life Field, so it was appropriate that Josh Jung opened the frame with a double to center on his “Jung Jedi” bobblehead night. He moved up 90 feet when Adolis Garcia grounded to third. Langford brought Jung home with a double to center.

What Went Right for the Rangers

The Rangers were relentless against the Angels on Saturday. They found themselves in an early hole, but they were able to dig their way out. The RBI hits by Semien, Jung, and Smith played a big role in this victory as well. The bullpen had another good night as they tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings.

Reliever David Robertson fanned Schanuel leading off the eighth, recording his 1,143rd career relief strikeout to surpass Francisco Rodriguez for sole possession of 11th place on the all-time relief strikeouts list. He is now chasing Lindy McDaniel, who resides in 10th place with 1,165 career relief strikeouts.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The leadoff homer by Ward was not the way the Rangers wanted to start this contest. They also allowed various base runners and RBI hits, and that is one thing they need to do better with, especially in the early innings.

Leiter Tosses Five

Rangers starter Jack Leiter did not factor into the decision, yielding three runs, all earned, on two hits over five innings. His line was 1 HR, 2 BB, 6 K, 86 pitches/51 strikes. In similar fashion to his previous outing on Monday against the New York Yankees, he allowed two earned runs over his first five frames before allowing the leadoff batter in the sixth to reach and departing in favor of Chafin.

Leiter fanned a career-high six batters. He induced 20 total swing-and-miss strikes, tied for fourth-most by a Rangers starter this season and most since Andrew Heaney on August 21 against the Pittsburgh Pirates (23). This included 12 swings and misses on his four-seam fastball. Leiter averaged 96.5 mph on his heater on Saturday.

After coming on in relief in the top of the sixth, reliever Jose Leclerc notched his sixth win after pitching 2/3 of an inning, striking out one. His record is now 6–4 with an ERA of 4.55.

Closer Kirby Yates shut the door against the Halos in the ninth with one strikeout, earning his 28th save of the year.

Anderson’s Outing

Angels starter Tyler Anderson also took a no-decision on Saturday. His line on the evening was 5 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 0 HR, 92 pitches/58 strikes. He tossed 4 1/3 hitless frames to open the game before surrendering a double to Duran in the fifth. Anderson held an opposing team hitless through four or more innings for the sixth time in his career. He last did it on September 3, 2023 against the Oakland Athletics.

Anderson has the most innings pitched (167 1/3) by a Halos pitcher since Andrew Heaney (180 IP) in 2018. His 2.23 ERA on the road paces the majors among qualified pitchers. He has seven or more strikeouts in seven starts this season.

After giving up the lead in the seventh, Mederos (0–1, 11.81 ERA) was saddled with his first loss of 2024.

Postgame Comments

After the game, Bochy put an emphasis on winning. “We know where we’re at, and so it’s up to us to keep going out there and playing hard, trying to win ballgames,” he said after the Rangers’ 32nd comeback win this season.