Rangers Edge Athletics, Tied for AL West Lead

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images

April 25, 2026

Rangers 4, Athletics 3

ARLINGTON, Texas (Apr 25) — The Texas Rangers knotted up their three-game series against the Athletics, 4–3, Saturday night, putting themselves back into a tie with the Athletics for the AL West lead. A two-run blast by Josh Jung sealed the deal for the home nine. This gives the Rangers the chance to nail down their second consecutive series victory in a Sunday matinee with first pitch scheduled for 1:35 pm Central at Globe Life Field. Right-hander J.T. Ginn (0–0, 3.74 ERA) will take the mound for the Athletics against righty Kumar Rocker (1–1, 3.48 ERA) for the Rangers. The winner will leave Arlington as the AL West leader.

Welcome to the Jung-le

The Athletics got on the board first in the top of the second against lefty MacKenzie Gore. Jacob Wilson lined a one-out double to left. After Gore struck out Max Muncy swinging, Darell Hernaiz scored Wilson with a single to left.

The Athletics scored again in the top of the third. A leadoff single by the Rangers’ lifelong bestie Shea Langeliers set the tone for the inning. Nick Kurtz followed with a walk. Up next was Colby Thomas, who plated Langeliers with a sharp single to center. Both runners moved up 90 feet thanks to a 4–3 groundout by Tyler Soderstrom. That brought up Wilson, who proceeded to drive in Kurtz with a sacrifice fly to right.

The Rangers broke into the run column in the bottom of the third off Athletics lefty Jeffrey Springs. Danny Jansen was hit by a pitch to lead things off. He moved to second when Evan Carter drew a walk. Sam Haggerty advanced both runners by beating out a soft bunt that rolled back to Springs. Jansen later scored on sacrifice fly to left by Brandon Nimmo. Carter scored two batters later thanks to a single up the middle by Corey Seager.

The Rangers took a 4–3 lead in the bottom of the sixth. Seager led off with a single to right. He scurried to second when Jake Burger flied sharply to left. In stepped Jung, who got the crowd of 35,810 to their feet when he blasted a two-run homer to the seats in right-center only a few feet to the right of the Rangers’ bullpen.

What Went Right for the Rangers

One of the bright spots for the Rangers was that they stayed in this one. Gore battled throughout his five innings but the defense supported him every time he took the mound. Jung’s home run in the sixth lit a spark both on the field and in the dugout. When something like that happens, the noise in the ballpark and morale on your team skyrockets.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The RBI single by Hernaiz loomed a little in the top of the second. Ranger fans started stirring in their seats when that happened, as they most likely had visions of Friday’s 8–1 loss still fresh in their minds.

Up and Down Night for Gore

Rangers left-hander MacKenzie Gore had a final line of 5 IP, 6 H, 3 R-ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 106 pitches/72 strikes. He tossed a season-high 106 pitches and held the Athletics to three runs, stranding seven runners on base over his five frames. Saturday was his 18th start of 100+ pitches since the start of 2024, fifth-most by any left-hander. Gore took a no-decision for his effort.

After pitching the sixth inning, reliever Cole Winn picked up his second win of the season. He pitched a perfect inning with one strikeout to bring his record to 2–1 with an ERA of 4.50. Jacob Latz took over in the ninth with one strikeout to earn his first save of the year.

Springs’ Evening

Athletics lefty Jeffrey Springs shouldered his second loss of the season after allowing four runs, all earned, over six stanzas. He now owns a record of 3–2 with an ERA of 3.79. His line was 5 H, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 HR, 91 pitches/58 strikes. Springs has taken losses in back-to-back outings, allowing 11 earned in 11 innings over that stretch.

This comes after pitching to a 1.46 ERA across his first four starts of the season. He entered the sixth inning with a 3–2 lead but allowed the go-ahead two-run shot to Jung, flipping the score. Jung’s dinger was the first allowed by Springs this season.

Schumaker’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Skip Schumaker went over Gore’s evening. “I thought he had really good stuff,” Schumaker said. “He just had a 30-pitch inning in the third and a couple of two-out walks that really hurt him later in that inning. That drove his pitch count up, but he struck out a lot of guys. I thought there was soft contact but the two-out walks hurt the most. The important thing is that he kept us in a position to win, and that’s all you can ask of your starter.”