July 27, 2022 - Game 97
W - Marco Gonzales (6-10)
L - Jon Gray (7-5)
S- Matthew Festa (2)
HR: SEA: Rodríguez (18)
Time of Game: 2:40
Game Recap
The Rangers and Mariners completed their three-game series as Texas couldn't wait to leave Seattle. Reports came that the Rangers clubhouse had a power outage before the game wasn't a metaphor, although using that as a metaphor was accurate. On the mound, Texas sent Jon Gray coming off a great start against the Miami Marlins last Thursday and another road start. The Rangers saw their familiar friend, Marco Gonzales, making his fourth start against the Rangers in 2022. "I thought [Gonzles] did a good job," Rangers manager Chris Woodward said. "We faced Marco a lot over the last three or four years and he's had days where he executes really well. [I was] looking at the video and he didn't give us much in the middle of the plate. The pitches he did give us in the middle I thought were hit hard."
Seattle struck first on three softly hit balls. Then, JP Crawford with a looping hit off the end of the bat to center field, followed by a bunt single by Adam Frazier. Next, Sam Haggerty drove in the run with two outs on a jam-shot double down the left field line scoring Crawford. Seattle had a slight chance with a runner at second and two outs in the fourth inning. However, Jon Gray struck out Luis Torrens to keep the game at a 1-0 Mariners lead. Gonzales held the Rangers off the hit column until the fifth inning. Then, Adolis García singled and stole second base. He scored on a Charlie Culberson double down the left field line, evening the game at one.
In the sixth, Jonah Heim laced a double to left field, scoring Elier Hernández to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead. Then, the floodgates opened in the seventh inning. With one out, Cal Raleigh walked, Sam Haggerty doubled again, and Julio Rodríguez capped it with a three-run home run against Jon Gray. "[Jon] was electric. You can see the velocity [and] the stuff," Chris Woodward said in leaving Gray out to face Julio Rodríguez. "He ran into trouble [in the seventh]. If [Gray] executes the pitch to Julio, he's got him every time. It slipped up out of his hand a little bit and eft a pitch out over the middle of the plate [and] Julio didn't miss it." It extended the Mariners' lead to 4-2. Texas had an opportunity with two on and one out, but Corey Seager and Jonah Heim both popped out stranding Nathaniel Lowe and Marcus Semien on base. In the ninth, the Rangers had another chance with two on base. However, Josh Smith grounded out and the Rangers drop all three to Seattle this week.
Jon Gray had some of his best stuff of the season. Gray's fastball hit ninety-nine at one point and ninety-eight constantly. The run allowed in the second was on a bloop double. However, Jon allowed a big home run to Rodríguez, and his day allowed five hits, four runs, four walks, and eight strikeouts. Brett Martin replaced Gray and had a bounce back outing after a rough ninth inning Tuesday. He got Jesse Winker to ground out and struck out Kyle Lewis. Jonathan Hernández allowed a hit but retired the Mariners in the eighth to keep it a two-run game. "We need [Hernández] right now," Woodward said. "I want to put him in those roles and see if he can handle it. It's amazing, the sinker [and] the shape of the slider is really good. He's getting a little bit more consistent in his execution."
Postgame Notes
Texas has dropped nine of their last ten against the Seattle Mariners
With the loss Wednesday, the Rangers are now 14-3 in the last seventeen games that Jon Gray and Martín Pérez start (other losses were July 3rd at NYM and July 14th vs. SEA).
Charlie Culberson is 10 for 22 with four extra-base hits, two RBI, and only two strikeouts in his career against Marco Gonzales.
Julio Rodríguez is 10 for 31 (.323) with three home runs, a double, twelve RBIs, and seven runs scored in his last eight games against Texas.
Elier Hernández scored a run in the sixth inning. Its Elier's first run scored since his first MLB at-bat, a single against Seattle on July 14th. He scored on a sacrifice fly.
Jonah Heim is 22 for 69 (.319) with five home runs and fifteen RBIs against left-handed pitching.
Jon Gray has struck out eight or more in six of his last eleven starts. In his first seven, Gray struck out eight or more one time.
Since June, the Rangers are 5-14 vs. the American League West. They were 13-14 in April and May against the AL West.
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