The Texas Rangers scored eight runs while the Northern California Athletics scored one run.
Maybe the most surprising thing about tonight’s game, especially as it was unfolding early, was that A’s starter Luis Severino ended up pitching six innings. Or maybe it was that the A’s eventually scored at all.
In the game’s first frame, following an out, Severino walked the next two Texas hitters and then Jake Burger blasted a three-run bomb that looked destined to bounce off the team bus for a big early.
Severino appeared to slip on the mound at one point and had the trainers check on him in the inning before allowing a couple more hits that the Rangers stranded.
In the top of the 3rd, Burger took Severino deep once again, a solo shot for his second of the game and fourth of the year. And that was all the scoring for a couple of hours until the Rangers broke through again for four more runs in the top of the 8th on RBI hits from the Joshes Smith and Jung.
As for the A’s? Well, they weren’t ever especially close to touching home for most of the game as they ran into vintage Nathan Eovaldi. The A’s lone run scored on a solo Lawrence Butler home run off Luis Curvelo an inning after Eovaldi had exited an 8-0 game.
Eovaldi, who had a couple of uncharacteristically poor outings to begin the year, looked solid in a win over Seattle in his last outing but he stepped it up to 2025 levels of good tonight against an A’s team that came into the evening sharing a lead with Texas in the American League West.
With Burger doing damage early, and the bats adding on late to combo with Eovaldi’s mastery, the Rangers are back alone atop the AL West as they evened their record on the current West Coast road trip.
Player of the Game: Joc Pederson had three hits so you know it was a good night. And while Burger deserves praise for providing the bulk of the scoring and carrying the bats when the game was still in question, the work put in by Eovaldi was sensational and I simply refuse to let an opportunity pass to appreciate Nasty Nate.
Overall, Eovaldi went seven shutout innings and allowed just three hits and a couple of walks while striking out seven on 84 pitches.
I imagine the Rangers might have tried to squeeze another inning out of Eovaldi but with a long top of the 8th, they decided to turn to a ’pen that was surely grateful that the veteran starter had gone deep in the game.
Up Next: The Rangers and Athletics will play the second game of this four game set with LHP MacKenzie Gore ready to go for Texas opposite former Rangers left-handed hurler Jeffrey Springs for the Sactown squad.
The Tuesday evening first pitch from Sutter Health Park is scheduled for 8:40 pm CDT once again and you can catch it on the Rangers Sports Network.
