Dominating the surging Chicago White Sox propelled the Texas Rangers back to first place in the American League West.
The Texas Rangers once again reached .500 on the season as they improved to 66-66 with a landslide victory over the Chicago White Sox.
The White Sox fell to 68-63, and this is nowhere near the same team that put forward the worst record in baseball history a few years ago.
To see the Rangers defeat them 11-0 is quite impressive, and that's putting it lightly.
After the win, the Rangers reclaimed first place in the American League West. No one knows what to expect with the 65-66 Houston Astros, but the Seattle Mariners continue to be in the conversation as they're only three games back of the Rangers.
So now, the question is, how long can the Rangers maintain their spot as the AL West division leaders?
Rangers have won four of their last five
Coming off an 11-run shutout victory, the Rangers are on cloud nine. Not only did they get back to .500, a record that has eluded them since August 11, but they also dominated the team that currently has a two and a half game lead in the AL Central.
Remember, the White Sox were 41-121 in 2024, so to see them play at this level is remarkable. That said, they looked like the same team from two years ago when the Rangers came to town for the series opener.
Now, the Rangers have another Jacob deGrom start to look forward to in game two. deGrom has had great success this season, to no surprise, and he's coming off a tremendous six-inning start where he struck out 10 batters and only allowed one walk and one hit against the Washington Nationals.
AL West is a toss-up
Truth be told, there's still a strong case to be made for the Rangers, Astros, and Mariners to all win the division. A three-game lead for the Rangers doesn't feel like that much, and obviously, them only being up half a game on the Astros means they could lose first place as soon as tonight.
This division is more about what teams have done in their last 10 games, as they seemingly struggle to get to .500 and have a winning record.
There's a very real possibility the winner of the AL West won't be decided until the final week of the season, if not the final game.
Throughout the rest of the year, all the Rangers can do is focus on themselves and hope the Astros and Mariners run into a few rough patches down the stretch.
