Defensive lapses and pitching struggles derailed the Texas Rangers in their series finale against the Atlanta Braves.
The Texas Rangers gave up three runs in the seventh inning as they managed to erase any doubts that they'd be able to come back in this game.
In their first series out of the All-Star break, the Rangers dropped two of three to the Atlanta Braves. On Sunday, the Braves defeated the Rangers 8-5.
The Rangers may not have officially had an error in this game, but Cam Cauley, someone who replaced Evan Carter, was unable to come up with a catch in center field, and a Josh Jung mental error led to the Braves jumping out to a 7-3 lead.
Sure, the seventh inning stands out, but the Rangers allowed one run in each of the first four innings. Texas put up a three-spot of their own in the fifth, and added runs in the eighth and ninth, but at that point it was far too little too late.
Takeaways from Rangers' 8-5 loss
Nathan Eovaldi did not look great, but the bullpen didn't exactly have a great game either. Eovaldi, 36, had picked up a win in four of his last five starts. He was coming off a 10-strikeout game, and had struck out at least nine batters in each of his last four.
Against the Braves, Eovaldi struck out only two batters in his four innings of work. The Texas native allowed four earned runs on six hits and was pulled after it took him 81 pitches to record 12 outs.
From there, the final three Rangers pitchers all allowed runs. Tyler Alexander was charged with a pair in a disastrous five-pitch outing.
Peyton Gray allowed a run to score, though it's worth noting he recorded two outs in nine pitches, eight of which were strikes. Finally, Ben Peoples needed 26 pitches to record three outs, allowing two hits and a run in the process.
Wyatt Langford had a monstrous 3-for-5 night at the plate with a pair of runs and RBIs. Nicky Lopez added three hits of his own while Joc Pederson and Jake Burger each had two hits apiece.
The defensive blunders were noticeable, to say the least. Dallas Morning News' Evan Grant recapped the events perfectly: "Defensive decision-making was not great in the seventh. Not great is being kind."
Of course, the Rangers did end up allowing another run in the eighth, but there's no doubt the seventh inning changed everything. In total, this Rangers pitching staff allowed runs in all but the fifth and sixth innings, which simply isn't acceptable for a team trying to win their respective division.
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