Texas Rangers 5, Toronto Blue Jays 2

by PegNews wire

ARLINGTON — The Texas Rangers won with dominant pitching Tuesday afternoon, defeating the Toronto Blue Jays 5-2 at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The game was the first of a doubleheader, and improved Texas to 73-58.

Rangers starter Dustin Nippert set the stage, surrendering just two runs on five hits over six solid innings. Nippert, who walked one and struck out four, improved to 5-2 with a 3.91 ERA.

He was relieved by ridiculous pitching phenom Neftali Feliz, who added to his growing legacy by striking out four over two perfect innings. Feliz has now struck out 26 batters and walked just one in 11 appearances, and lowered his ERA to 0.46. Frank Francisco pitched a scoreless ninth for his 20th save.

Four Rangers hitters carried the bulk of the offense for Texas. Ian Kinsler got the party started with yet another leadoff home run, his 29th home run of the season. Chris Davis went 3-for-4 with a two-run single in the bottom of the fourth, while Nelson Cruz went 2-for-3 with a run scored and two RBI. Ivan Rodriguez also collected two hits and scored the eventual game-winning run.

Michael Young went 0-for-2 with a pair of walks, ending his hitting streak at 18 games. It was the longest active hitting streak in the majors. His 23-game home hitting streak also came to an end, tied for the franchise record with Ivan Rodriguez.

Posted by Todd M.