April 17, 2022 - Game 9
W - Mike Mayers (1-0)
L - MartÃn Pérez (0-2)
S - None
HR: TEX: GarcÃa (2)
Time of Game: 3:25
Game Recap
After a game on Saturday where the Rangers didn’t play well, Sunday’s was marginally better (at points). The Angels scored first on a Mitch Garver passed ball where a MartÃn Pérez fastball kicked off Garver’s glove, scoring a run. Texas countered with a run in the second inning on a Willie Calhoun RBI double. Willie’s 2022 on paper hasn’t looked great, but he’s strung hard contact with timely walks, equaling a lot better season than the stat sheet shows. The Angels worked another starter in the third inning, similar to Taylor Hearn Saturday. "It was more strategic today to get MartÃn out of there," Rangers manager Chris Woodward said after the game. "I thought the matchups were better." Pérez’s third lasted thirty pitches, allowing three runs and four straight base runners with two outs. The Rangers answered with two runs in the bottom of the third inning off José Suárez on an Adolis GarcÃa two-run home run. The Angels suffered a scary injury, though, in the fifth. Their star center fielder Mike Trout left the game after a slide hit Trout on the left hand. There was a delay in reaction by Mike, but it was evident in the discomfort that it didn’t look good. The Angels threatened with two on but couldn’t score in the inning.
It was a curious decision for Rangers’ manager Chris Woodward to take MartÃn Pérez out after four innings. Pérez was at the sixty-seven pitch mark, and with the state of the bullpen, it was about trying to get length out of a starting pitcher. MartÃn Pérez’s afternoon ended, allowing four runs in four innings (three earned runs), three walks, five hits, and struck out five. Brock Burke came into the sixth inning and walked the leadoff hitter. The Angels added two runs, tagging Burke with the first runs allowed this season on back-to-back RBI singles by the eighth hitter Andrew Velazquez and ninth hitter Tyler Wade. Then in the eighth, Nick Snyder struggled with two walks and a single and lifted for Brett Martin. Martin was able to get out of the inning by initiating three groundouts. The Angels scored two to pad their lead to 8-3 in the eighth inning. Rangers threatened in their half of the eighth with two on and two out, but Willie Calhoun hit into the Angels left-handed shift and the Rangers got turned away.
Texas falls to 2-7, one of two teams in MLB that haven’t won three or more games (Cincinnati Reds). The homestand ends going 1-5 against the Rockies and Angels. "All of these years I've been a part of good starts and bad starts," Marcus Semien said after the game. "There's ups and down and now we're starting with down. It's not for a lack of effort. We can use this series as information against a division opponent, see the arms they have, and adjust." "We're going to be fine and we have to learn from these ten games," MartÃn Pérez said.
Postgame Notes
The longest outing by a Texas Rangers starter remains Dane Dunning on April 9th against the Blue Jays. That outing is the only one to go five or more full innings.
Adolis GarcÃa’s homer in the third broke a string of twenty-three straight half innings without a homer by the Rangers. Corey Seager’s two-run shot in the fifth inning Thursday was the last home run (107 straight plate appearances).
In eight games, Mitch Garver recorded his sixth and seventh walk of the 2022 season. He entered the 2022 season with 114 career walks in 309 career games.
The Angels attempted five stolen bases on Sunday. They stole three, got caught twice, and the Rangers picked them off once.
Rangers were 9 for 53, with runners in scoring position during the six-game homestand.
The sixth inning and eighth inning remain the two innings where Texas has not scored yet this year.
Five of the eight runners scored by the Angels reached base by Rangers’ walks.
Angels stole three bases in their first eight games of the season, they stole six bases today against the Rangers.
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