The Texas Rangers defeated the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday, 5-1, at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.The win is the Rangers’ fourth in a row, and, at 59-58, their recent surge has gotten them back above .500 after recently suffering a six-game losing streak. How did they get it done on Saturday?Jacob deGrom’s dominanceRight-hander Jacob deGrom got his 22nd starting nod of the season, and the 38-year-old looked like the vintage version of himself.Through five innings, deGrom was dominant. In that span, he notched nine strikeouts while only giving up three hits, one walk and one earned run.To start his outing, deGrom struck out the first two batters he faced before giving up a solo home run to Jackson Holliday. After that, the Orioles could not do any more meaningful damage to him.In the top of the second, deGrom responded by striking out the side, and he notched a fourth strikeout in a row in the third before getting Gunnar Henderson to fly out and Pete Alonso to ground out, which retired the side in order.In the fourth, deGrom got his revenge against Holliday by striking him out, and he continued to work effectively up until he was relieved of his duties in the sixth inning. The type of performance deGrom provided for the Rangers was emblematic of what made him a two-time Cy Young Award winner in the past and a five-time All-Star. If he can do that for them even a little more consistently down the stretch of the season, it will be incredibly beneficial.Seager deliversWhile deGrom was doing his thing on the mound early in the game, Texas was able to respond to Holliday’s solo home run.The Rangers stole the lead back from Baltimore when Ezequiel Duran hit a single before subsequently getting to third base thanks to an errant pickoff attempt by Orioles pitcher Kyle Bradish. Then, Evan Carter got Duran home on a fielder’s choice that tied the game.A wild pitch by Bradish advanced Carter to second base, and Jake Burger hit an RBI single to make it a 2-1 game and provide deGrom with additional support.However, the real damage done by Texas’ batting order occurred in the eighth inning.Even though Austin Wynns and Nicky Lopez struck out in the bottom of the eighth, the Rangers capitalized on the balls thrown outside of the strike zone by Orioles reliever Grant Wolfram in the form of walks drawn by Justin Foscue and Wyatt Langford.Corey Seager seized the opportunity of having two runners on, and he delivered a devastating right hook when he mashed a three-run home run to right-center field to make it a 5-1 game.The Orioles won Saturday’s game largely because of veterans like deGrom and Seager stepping up. It was specifically a much-needed moment for Seager, who has really struggled this year with injuries and production.
Content Source: Yahoo News
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