Rangers Fall Short in Sweep Bid of Yankees

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images

August 6, 2025

Yankees 3, Rangers 2

ARLINGTON, Texas (Aug 6) — The Texas Rangers came close to sweeping the New York Yankees Wednesday afternoon, but it wasn’t to be as they lost, 3–2, in front of a crowd of 35,565. The bright spot for them, however, is that they are 12–2 on their home field since the beginning of July. Meanwhile, a pinch-homer by Paul Goldschmidt in the seventh inning was the deciding factor for the Yankees in this businessperson’s special. With an off-day Thursday, the Rangers set their sights on the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies for three games, starting Friday with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm Central at Globe Life Field. Left-hander Cristopher Sanchez (10–3, 2.40 ERA) will toe the slab for the Phillies, while righty Merrill Kelly (9–6, 3.22 ERA) will make his home debut for the Rangers.

As for the Yankees, they’ll fly back to the Bronx to face the Houston Astros for three games, also starting Friday with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm Eastern at Yankee Stadium. Righty Hunter Brown (9–5, 2.47 ERA) will get the ball for the Astros, and right-hander Cam Schlitter (1–2, 4.58 ERA) will take the hill for the Yankees.

Back and Forth

Both teams traded zeroes for the first two and a half frames. The Rangers scored first in the bottom of the third against lefty Carlos Rodon.

Ezequiel Duran led off with a sharp double to left. Sam Haggerty followed with a single to right that plated Duran.

The Yankees tied it in the top of the fourth off right-hander Jack Leiter. Cody Bellinger opened the inning with a walk. Two batters later, Jasson Dominguez drew a free pass. Up next was Anthony Volpe, who drove in Bellinger with a single to left.

Moments later, the Yankees pulled off a double steal. Dominguez went to third and Volpe swiped second, and a throwing error by catcher and former Yankee Kyle Higashioka scored Dominguez.

The Rangers knotted things up in the bottom of the fifth. Duran reached on a one-out bunt single that Rodon had trouble with. Haggerty advanced Duran to second with a walk. On deck was Corey Seager, who moved both runners up 90 feet with a single to left.

That brought up Marcus Semien. He plated Duran with a sacrifice fly to center.

The Yankees took a 3–2 lead in the top of the seventh off reliever Robert Garcia. With one out, Goldschmidt came off the bench to pinch-hit for Austin Wells. Goldschmidt promptly took Garcia deep with a solo shot to left.

What Went Right for the Yankees

One of the main takeaways for the Yankees on Thursday was once they got the lead in the fourth, they kept it. There were times when the Rangers threatened with men on base, but the Yankees held their ground and ultimately slammed the door on the home nine.

As mentioned earlier, Goldschmidt’s dinger in the seventh was key. It was his second blast of the series. He led off Monday’s game with a long ball as well.

What Went Wrong for the Yankees

The Yankees were bitten by Duran on Wednesday. The first instance came in the third inning on Haggerty’s single that scored Duran from second. They had more trouble when Semien hit his sacrifice fly that plated Duran in the fifth.

Tough Day for Leiter

Rangers starter Jack Leiter labored through 3 1/3 innings but somehow allowed only one earned run. He took a no-decision for his effort. His final line was 3 H, 2 R-1 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 68 pitches/33 strikes. His 48.5% strike percentage was the lowest by a Rangers starter since Glenn Otto on July 1, 2022 against the New York Mets. Wednesday marked his third start of four innings or fewer this year, second most by a Rangers starter in 2025.

Garcia was saddled with the loss after giving up the solo shot to Goldschmidt in the seventh, bringing his record to 1–7 with an ERA of 3.38.

Rodon’s Afternoon

Yankees starter Carlos Rodon made his 24th start of the season but did not factor into Wednesday’s decision. He allowed two runs, both earned, over five innings. Rodon exited after walking Langford in the sixth.

He has completed five innings in 23 of his 24 starts and entered play with the second-most outings of five or more innings in the majors this season.

Reliever Mark Leiter Jr. earned the win after hurling a perfect sixth inning. He now owns a record of 5–6 with an ERA of 4.29.

David Bednar tossed an inning and two thirds to notch his 18th save of the year. He walked two and struck out five during that stretch.

Bochy’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Bruce Bochy elaborated on how well his team played in this series despite the loss on Wednesday. “I think this shows the fight in them,” he said. “We’ve had some tough losses, and I keep saying that they’re doing a great job of bouncing back.”

“It’s all about being resilient,” Bochy continued. “They came in here and won two really hard-fought games that really could have gone either way, with both teams having a tough time scoring today. It’s great to come away with the wins the way we did. You could get frustrated … but you keep fighting, and that’s what they’re doing.”