Texas Rangers 14, Oakland A’s 6

by PegNews wire

The Texas Rangers whipped the A's soundly Friday night, defeating them 14-6 in Oakland. The win improved the Rangers to 53-50, a half-game above the A's for second place in the AL West.

The Rangers were leading 6-5 heading into the ninth, when they exploded for eight runs to blow the game wide open. Rangers starter Vicente Padilla was the primary beneficiary of the run explosion, turning an otherwise mediocre outing into his twelfth win of the season. Padilla lasted just six innings, giving up five runs and seven hits. Padilla walked four and struck out nine while improving to 12-5.

Unsurprisingly, many Rangers had terrific days at the plate. The team as a whole collected 17 hits, 8 walks, and three home runs, and every Ranger finished with at least one hit --and all but three finished with multi-hit games.

Josh Hamilton hit a two-run home run in the top of the fourth to reach 100 RBI on the season. Hamilton leads the majors in RBI with a comfortable double-digit margin, and has now hit 23 home runs.

Rookie phenom Chris David probably had the best day of any Rangers batter, going 3-for-6 with three runs, two RBI, a double and a home run. Fellow rookie phenom David Murphy also had a great day, going 2-for-5 with a home run, three RBI and an outfield assist.

Michael Young collected three hits, two RBI and a double, while Milton Bradley went just 1-for-2 with a run scored and four walks.

Posted by Todd M.