Rangers Take Series from Astros

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images

September 7, 2025

Rangers 4, Astros 2

ARLINGTON, Texas (Sept. 7) — The Texas Rangers closed out their series with the Houston Astros with a 4–2 victory Sunday afternoon in front of a crowd of 35,449. A two-run home run by Jake Burger in the sixth inning was the difference maker in this one. This was a three-game series in which the Rangers had to win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. They currently sit four games out of first in the AL West, and a game and a half out of the wild card. With this series in the books, the Rangers host the Milwaukee Brewers for three. That set will start Monday with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm Central at Globe Life Field. Left-hander Jose Quintana (11–5, 3.72 ERA) will take the hill for the Brewers, and lefty Jacob Latz (1–0, 3.15 ERA) will get the ball for the Rangers.

As for the Astros, they’ll embark on the second leg of their current nine-game road trip with three games against the Toronto Blue Jays. That series will begin Tuesday with first pitch scheduled for 7:07 pm Eastern at Rogers Centre. Right-hander Luis Garcia (1–0, 4.50 ERA) will take the hill for the Astros, while the Blue Jays have yet to name a starter as of press time.

Burger Bomb

The Rangers scored in the top of the second on a play you don’t see every day. With two outs and Framber Valdez pitching for the Astros, Dylan Moore reached on a sharp single to right. He swiped second moments later for his 13th stolen base of the year. Up next was Jonah Heim, who struck out swinging on a ball in the dirt. It got away, momentarily, from catcher Yainer Diaz who committed an E2 to first to allow Moore to cross the plate. His throw hit Heim in the back while he was trying to complete the strikeout.

The Astros tied it in the top of the sixth off lefty Patrick Corbin. Mauricio Dubon led off with a double up the middle, his 20th of the season. Jeremy Peña scored him with a single to left.

The Rangers took a three-run lead in their half of the sixth. Cody Freeman led off with a single to left, and Josh Jung quickly drove him in with a double to to center, his 17th of the campaign. On deck was Burger, who blasted a two-run homer to right-center to give the Rangers a 4–1 lead.

The Astros got one back in the top of the seventh off reliever Phil Maton. A leadoff double by Christian Walker set the table. Jake Meyers grounded to short to move Walker to third. Another groundout, this time to third, by Diaz plated Walker.

What Went Right for the Rangers

The Rangers did very well at keeping the Astros at bay Sunday. They shut down numerous scoring chances the Astros had, and to top it off, they were able to get in Valdez’ head, which is something few teams can do.

Burger’s two-run shot really helped put some distance between the two teams.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The Rangers were cruising until the top of the sixth when Peña hit his RBI single. Baseball is a complex game. Sometimes it takes a while for a team to find a hole in their opponent’s armor.

Their only other blemish was the RBI groundout by Diaz in the seventh.

No-Decision for Corbin

Rangers lefty Patrick Corbin took a no-decision after tossing 5 2/3 frames of one-run ball. His line was 5 2/3 IP, 3 H, 1 R-ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 82 pitches/53 strikes. He induced a season-high 17 swing-and-miss strikes, his most in a single game since September 11, 2023, against the Pittsburgh Pirates (18).

Corbin held the Astros 0-for-13 to open the game as he did not yield his first hit until the fifth inning. Sunday signaled the southpaw’s first time to toss at least 4 1/3 hitless innings to begin an outing since April 18, 2019, against the San Francisco Giants.

Maton earned his third win of 2025, improving to 3–5 with an ERA of 3.04. He tossed an inning and a third, giving up one run that was earned on three hits while walking one and striking out five.

Reliever Shawn Armstrong also threw an inning and a third to notch his seventh save. He had one strikeout.

First Time for Everything

Astros starter Framber Valdez suffered his first career loss at Globe Life Field to bring his season record to 12–9 with an ERA of 3.42. His line on the afternoon was 7 IP, 5 H, 4 R-3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 1 HR, 97 pitches/59 strikes. He yielded three runs with two outs in the bottom of the sixth after cruising through 5 2/3 frames. Valdez was 5–0 with a 2.06 ERA in 6 previous starts at this ballpark. He surrendered two hits and one unearned run before allowing three consecutive hits with two outs in the sixth.

Bochy’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Bruce Bochy mentioned that what really stood out to him was Freeman’s enthusiasm after he got his single in the sixth. “He is a catalyst,” he said. “He’s a spark for the club with the way he plays. Sure, you can look at the average, whatever, but there’s always more to that story. I think that’s the case with him.

“We want our guys to go out there and play with fun and play with passion,” Bochy continued. “He certainly does that. I think that’s contagious, just like hitting or pitching. He’s bringing that every day.”