The Texas Rangers responded after dropping the series opener to beat the MLB-leading Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday afternoon.
Corey Seager racked up a career-high five hits and drove in four runs, as the Texas Rangers responded with a convincing 8-4 victory Saturday afternoon over the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field.
The American League West-leading Rangers (41-22) dropped the series opener 8-3 on Friday, but came back to snap a two-game losing streak and even the series going into Sunday’s rubber match. Texas owns the second-best record in the Majors and improved to 13-7 following a loss.
The Rays (47-20) sport baseball’s best record and had their seven-game winning streak come to an end.
Nathan Eovaldi improved to 9-2 with his eighth consecutive win, which is the longest for the Rangers since Sunday’s starter Martín Pérez won nine in a row last season. Eovaldi extended his scoreless streak to 20 innings after blanking Tampa Bay for the first three frames before running into trouble in the fourth.
The Rays scored four runs in the inning, with Francisco Mejia drilling a three-run homer to right. Eovaldi buckled down from there, going 6 1/3 innings and striking out six. The four earned runs allowed matched his total given up for all of May and were the most since giving up six on April 12 against the Kansas City Royals.
Josh Sborz relieved Eovaldi in the seventh inning and helped the Rangers get out of a bases-loaded jam with Isaac Paredes up. Paredes, who had six RBI in the series opener, grounded out to end the inning.
Seager carried the load as Texas jumped out to a 6-0 lead. His two-run double in the second plated Travis Jankowski and Leody Taveras. Seager turned on a 93-mpf fastball from Rays reliever Jalen Beeks, blasting a 387-foot two-run shot in the fourth that scored Ezequiel Duran.
Seager finished 5-for-5, improving his average to a team-high .352. The shortstop also had a double and scored twice.
Adolis García added a two-run double in the sixth. Jankowski scored twice.
The Rangers put their six-series winning streak on the line in the finale with Pérez (6-1, 3.97) going opposite Rays ace Shane McClanahan (9-1, 2.02). First pitch is set for 12:40 p.m. CT.
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