Nimmo, Rangers Beat Athletics

Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

September 1, 2026

Rangers 8, Athletics 5

ARLINGTON, Texas (Sep 1) — The Texas Rangers claimed their three-game series with the Athletics with an 8–5 win Tuesday evening. Brandon Nimmo turned in a great effort with four hits and five RBI. With the win, only one game separates the Rangers and the AL West-leading Houston Astros, 5–1 losers to the Chicago White Sox Tuesday. The Rangers will go for the ever elusive three-game sweep Wednesday afternoon with first pitch slated for 1:35 pm Central at Globe Life Field. It will be a battle of left-handers as Jacob Lopez (5–4, 4.82 ERA) will face Cody Bradford (0–3, 3.42 ERA) in the series finale.

Rangers – Athletics Game Summary

The Rangers opened the scoring in the bottom of the first. Reliever Brady Basso was on the hill as part of a bullpen game for the Athletics. Corey Seager hit a one-out double to right and moved to second on a fly-out to right by Wyatt Langford. Nimmo stepped in and brought Seager home with a double to left.

The Athletics knotted things up in the top of the third against lefty MacKenzie Gore. With two outs in the inning, Zack Gelof reached on a single and advanced to second on a throwing error by third baseman Cody Freeman. On deck was Lawrence Butler, who scored Gelof with a single up the middle.

The Rangers regained the lead in the bottom of the third. Seager doubled to right for the second time of the night, once again with one out. This prompted Athletics manager Mark Kotsay to bring in Scott Blewett to relieve Basso. After Langford struck out swinging, Nimmo drove in Seager with a sharp single to right.

The Rangers tacked on three more in the bottom of the fifth. Joc Pederson, pinch-hitting for Justin Foscue, led off with a single to left. Seager moved him to second by drawing a free pass. Up next was Nimmo, who brought Pederson and Seager home with a single to right. Langford scored on the next play when Ezequiel Duran grounded to second.

More Offense for the Rangers

The Rangers extended the lead to 8–1 in the bottom of the sixth off reliever Jose Suarez. Evan Carter opened the stanza with a soft bunt back to Suarez, who had trouble picking it up. On deck was Elias Diaz, who advanced Carter to third with a double to left. Logan O’Hoppe entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Pederson and moved both runners up 90 feet with a sacrifice fly to left. Seager followed suit with another sacrifice fly to left to score Diaz.

They Rangers weren’t finished yet. Langford stepped in and lined a double to right and trotted home on a single to right by Nimmo.

The Athletics inched closer in the top of the seventh against reliever Adam Macko. After signaling for an ABS challenge, which was successful, Gelof trotted to first with a leadoff walk. Macko struck Butler out swinging before giving up a single to right to Jonah Heim. Michael Stefanic brought home Gelof with a single to right. Back in the second inning, Stefanic was brought on as a pinch-hitter for Tommy White, who left the game with lower back soreness.

Too Close for Comfort

The Athletics scored again in the top of the eighth off newly signed reliever Trevor Williams. He was added to the Rangers’ roster before Tuesday’s game having been granted his release by the Washington Nationals Sunday. He allowed a one-out infield single to Carlos Cortes, who sent a soft ground ball to Freeman at third. Up next was Henry Bolte, who advanced Cortes to second with a single that Seager had trouble with at short. Gelof loaded the bases with a walk before Butler sent Cortes home with a sacrifice fly to center.

The Athletics gained even more ground in the top of the ninth. Stefanic led off with a single to center and Jeff McNeil sent a 1–1 pitch to right-center for his seventh home run of the year.

What Went Right for the Rangers

The Rangers scored on timely hits and a couple of miscues from the Athletics. As previously mentioned, Nimmo drove in five of the Rangers’ runs as his batting average now sits at .269. That may not be the flashiest number in the league, but Nimmo has produced a lot of those hits for his team in 2026. The lineup as a whole went 5-for-14 with runners in scoring position.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The Rangers took their foot off the gas in the late innings on Tuesday. The homer by McNeil was the big blow. There was also the sacrifice fly by Butler and the RBI single by Stefanic.

Good Night for Gore

Rangers starter MacKenzie Gore earned his eighth win of the season. He is now 8–10 after firing 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball. His line on the night was 5 H, 4 BB, 4 K, 95 pitches/57 strikes. The lone damage against him came on Butler’s two-out RBI single in the third. Gore did not produce a 1-2-3 inning but held Athletics batters to a 2-for-11 clip (.182) with runners on base Tuesday. He improved his home ERA to 2.89 and ran his home scoreless streak to 14 consecutive innings with zeroes in first and second frames Tuesday, the third-longest such run by a Rangers pitcher in ‘26 to only a pair of 17-inning streaks by Jacob deGrom and Cal Quantrill.

Reliever Jacob Latz came in to get the last two outs of the ninth to record his 28th save of the year. Those two outs were both strikeouts.

Rangers Lasso Basso

Athletics starter Brady Basso made his 21st appearance and fourth start of the year, tossing 2 1/3 frames. The loss brings his record to 0–2 with a 4.75 ERA. His line was 4 H, 2 R-ER, 0 BB, 2 K. He allowed a run in the first after Seager and Nimmo doubled in the inning. Basso matched a season high in innings. He holds a 4.50 ERA in four starts this season. The Pearland, Texas native owns a 7.88 ERA in four career games against the Rangers.

Schumaker’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Skip Schumaker spoke highly of Nimmo’s night. “You knew he was going to come through,” Schumaker said. “After kind of a tough road trip, a lot of guys were kind of feeling it a little bit there, and Brandon has been working hard. He always works hard. That’s nothing really new.”