The Texas Rangers on Thursday finally achieved the .500 record that had eluded them with a 4-2 series-clinching win over the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO.

Despite a lengthy rain delay before the game, Texas had just enough from both its offense and defense to secure the victory and achieve a 34-34 record, its first time at the .500 mark since being 16-16 after a win over the Detroit Tigers on May 1.

The Rangers wasted no time striking first in the matinee conclusion of the series, and they would strike two more times before the Royals would get on the board.

With two outs and Corey Seager on first base in the top of the first inning, Brandon Nimmo stepped up to the plate. With a 2-0 count in his favor against Royals right-hander Michael Wacha, Nimmo drove a double down the first-base line that scored Seager and gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead.

In the top of the second inning, after Ezequiel Duran and Jake Burger got on base via a single and a walk, respectively, Evan Carter flew out to right field and advanced Duran to third base. From there, Elias Diaz laid down a successful bunt that scored Duran and gave Texas a 2-0 lead.

In the top of the third inning, Seager immediately jumped on Wacha with a lead-off solo home run, marking his ninth of the season to extend the Rangers' lead to 3-0. Seager’s home run capped off an effort in which Texas put a run on the board in each of the first three innings while holding the Royals scoreless.

While things were going well initially for right-hander Kumar Rocker and the Rangers’ defense, the Royals eventually produced a response. 

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Rocker loaded the bases after allowing two singles and a walk. Quickly, Kansas City was threatening, and the Rangers had no outs to work with.

Subsequently, Rocker was able to get Royals second baseman Michael Massey to ground into a double play, but it did not come without consequence as Kansas City got on the scoreboard and had a runner on third after making it a 3-1 game. From there, Rocker gave up an RBI single to Kameron Misner, which led the Rangers to cling to a one-run lead.

After both teams went scoreless in the fifth inning, Nimmo led off the sixth with his second double of the game, but was later thrown out at third base in a fielder’s choice situation that saw Duran reach first base. Afterward, small-ball tactics began working in the Rangers’ favor.

With Duran on first, Burger singled to left field to advance the former to second base. Then, Carter singled to right field, which gave Duran enough time to get across home plate and make it a 4-2 game. 

With Rocker’s afternoon having ended in the bottom of the fifth inning, it was up to the bullpen and the defense to hold off the Royals after they found momentum in the fourth inning, and Texas would do just that.

The Rangers relied on three relievers: Robby Ahlstrom, Cole Winn, and Jacob Latz to get them through the rest of the game, and they did not disappoint. Ahlstrom, Winn, and Latz combined for 4.1 innings and four strikeouts while only allowing one hit and one walk.

After sweeping the Royals less than two weeks ago, the Rangers took care of business on the road. Thursday’s victory also capped off their fourth-straight series win, and they will travel to Boston to face the Red Sox for a three-game series beginning on Friday at 6:10 p.m. CST.

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