TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:
WINS AND LOSSES: Texas suffered a walk-off loss to the Astros last night, 10-9, dropping the opener of this 6-G, 7-day road trip to HOU (0-1 + 2 G) and SD (3 G) with an off day on Thursday…TEX has dropped 3 of 4 after a season-high 6-G win streak (7/14-19) out of the break, club’s longest since going 6-0, 6/22-28/19…team’s 7-3 (.700) to start the 2nd “half”, T3rd-best record in MLB: MIN is 9-2, BAL is 8-3, TEX/HOU/ MIL are 7-3…the 3 losses are T2nd-fewest in MLB since the break…TEX is 8-5 in last 13, 9-9 in last 18 G, and 10-11 in last 21 G…team is 19-22 (.463) beg. 6/7, a stretch which came after club reached season high point at 20-over on 6/6 (40-20)…team’s 45-31 (.592) record since 4/28 is still 2ndbest in A.L. and 4th-best in MLB over that span (ATL: .653, 47-25; LAD: .603, 44-29; BAL: .600, 45-30)…TEX is 49-36 in last 85 G and 54-38 last 92 G (beg. 4/9).
- At 59-42 (.584), TEX owns the 3rd-best record in the A.L. and 4th-best in MLB (ATL: .653, 64-34; BAL: .620, 62-38; TB: .592, 61-42)…59 wins rank 3rd in A.L. and 4th-most in MLB (64-ATL, 62-BAL, 61-TB, 59-TEX).
- The 59-42 mark matches the 2nd-best 101-G start to a season in Washington/Texas franchise history (see chart below).
STANDINGS: TEX owns a 2.0-game lead in A.L. West over 2nd-place HOU, losing 2.5 G on the lead over the past 5 days…TEX has owned a lead of 2.0+ G in the division for 63 consecutive days beg. 5/23, as last smaller lead was thru 5/22 (+1.0 GA)…TEX was 4.5 GA last Tues.-Wed., which was largest advantage since 7/1 (5.0 GA)…current division lead is 2nd-smallest in MLB (MIL is +1.5 GA in N.L. Central)…season-best 6.5-G lead in West after win 6/23 at NYY, which was largest division lead since winning the West by 9.0 G in 2016…TEX has had sole possession of 1st place for 80 straight, 87 of 88, and 100 of the last 102 days beg. 4/14.
- TEX has been alone or tied atop the division for 116 of the season’s first 117 days (exception: 4/8).
SERIES STUFF: The weekend series loss vs. LAD followed back-to-back sweeps to open 2nd “half” (vs. CLE and TB), but club is 2-4-0 in last 6 series and 2-5-1 in last 8 series… TEX is 4-7-1 in last 12 series following a stretch of 6 straight series victories from 5/19-6/7, longest span for team since club-record 10 straight series victories from 5/20-6/20/16…is 19-11-2 overall in series this year, going 10-5-2 at home and 9-6-0 on the road…is 15-8-2 in last 25 series and 18-9-2 in last 28…on the road, team has lost 3 straight and is 1-4-0 in last 5 road series after winning WSH/TEX franchise-record 6 straight away sets from 5/5-31…team has dropped 3 straight road series.
ON THE ROAD: The Rangers have lost 3 straight, 5 of 6, 7 of 9, and 11 of last 17 away games…this is just 2nd time in ’23 to lose 3 straight away tilts (0-4, 4/24-5/5)…club is still 25-22 (.532) on the road this season, good for the 4th-best away record in the A.L. (BAL: .640, 32-18; HOU: .585, 31-22; TOR: .537, 29-25)…club has still won 14 of 27, 16 of 30, and 19 of last 34 on road.
- Rangers rank 2nd in MLB in R/G (5.45) on the road this season, but have 3-or-fewer runs in 5 of last 9 away tilts…club’s .751 road OPS is 3rd-highest in A.L. (.785-LAA, .766-TB), but still nearly 100 points lower than OPS at home (.849).
VS. HOUSTON: Texas is 3-5 vs. HOU in the 2023 Lone Star Series for the coveted Silver Boot, losing 4 of last 5…TEX has lost season series in 5 of last 6 years (tied 5-5 in 2020)… TEX is 4-6 in last 10 G vs. HOU, but has lost 10 of 14, 21 of 29, and 29 of last 39 G (beg. 6/15/21)…the April series win here in Houston snapped a span of 10 straight series losses at MMP…TEX is 7-31 (.184) in last 38 G at MMP since start of 2019, lowest win pct. at any A.L. park in that span.
HOWARD ADDED: Prior to tonight’s game, the Rangers recalled RHP Spencer Howard from Round Rock (AAA) and optioned RHP Alex Speas to Round Rock…Howard will be in his 2nd stint w/ Texas in ’23 (also 6/5-9).
JUNG AT 20: The home run by Josh Jung in the 1st inning last night was his 20th of the year…Jung’s 20 HR lead all A.L. rookies, 2nd in MLB to ARI’s Corbin Carroll (21), and he is just the 6th rookie in Washington/Texas franchise history with a 20-HR season.
ROOKIES WITH A 20+ HR SEASON, WSH/TEX HISTORY
HR Batter Year
31 Adolis García 2021
30 Pete Incaviglia 1986
26 Mark Teixeira 2003
22 Dave Hostetler 1982
20 Nomar Mazara 2016
20 Josh Jung 2023
EARLY RUNS: Despite a 1-3 record over the last 4 G, the Rangers have scored 1st-inning runs in 4 straight…while Texas continues to lead MLB in runs (589) and R/G (5.83), the team’s 61 1st-inning runs are T6th-most in MLB: 100- ATL, 78-LAD, 72-HOU, 67-SD, 64-WSN, 61-TEX/ARI/TB.
BURKE STILL GOING: Brock Burke posted a perfect 8th inning last night, as he has retired each of his 7 BF over his last 3 outings…Burke has 6.2 SHO IP over his last 7 G and a 1.59 ERA (4 ER/22.2 IP) in his last 19 appearances…Burke has not issued a non-intentional walk since 4/21 vs. OAK.
A LATE LOSS: Last night was the Rangers’ 5th walk-off loss this season, 1st in over 2 months…the others: 4/24 at CIN, 4/26 at CIN, 5/5 at LAA, 5/12 at OAK…the 9 runs scored for Texas marked most in a walk-off loss since 9/29/22 at SEA (10-9 loss in 11 innings)…it was the Rangers’ 4th walk-off defeat here at Minute Maid since the start of 2021 (also 5/13/21, 6/15/21, and 9/7/22), tied with T-Mobile Park for most in any venue over that span.
NOT ENOUGH: The Rangers are 20-2 this season when scoring 9-or-more runs, and those 2 losses have come over the past 2 games against the Astros (7/3 at GLF and last
night at MMP)…those 2 games account for 2 of the Rangers’ 3 highest run totals in July (12 R on 7/14 vs. CLE).
- With a 12-11 loss on 7/3 vs. HOU and a 10-9 loss last night, the Rangers have dropped consecutive meetings with the Astros despite scoring 9+ runs in each contest…it marks the 1st time in Washington/Texas franchise history that the club has scored 9+ runs in back-to-back contests against a single
opponent and lost both games. - This marks the 1st time for Texas to have back-to-back meetings against one opponent in which both teams scored 9+ runs since Aug. 1-2, 2012 vs. LAA, when Rangers posted wins of 11-10 (walk-off in 10 inn.) and 15-9 over the Halos.
KNOW WHEN TO HOLD ‘EM: Texas has allowed 10+ runs in 3 of the past 4 games beginning Friday, and the 41 runs allowed in that 1-3 span are the most since 9/24-27/19 (41)… it is the 6th instance of a team allowing 41+ R in a 4-G span in MLB this season, also done by COL (2x), PHI, OAK, and CWS…the Rangers’ last 3 losses account for 3 of the 9 instances in which TEX has allowed 10+ runs in 2023.
AN OPENER: Tonight’s start for Yerry Rodríguez marks 1st time for TEX to use an opener since Jesus Tinoco on 10/4/22 vs. NYY-G2, when Tinoco allowed HR no. 62 to Aaron Judge…TEX has used just 7 starting pitchers all season (Braford, deGrom, Dunning, Eovaldi, Gray, Heaney, Pérez), T3rd-fewest individual starting pitchers used by any MLB team in 2023 (6-TOR/WAS, 7-TEX/BAL).
SHORTS: Rangers did not hit a double last night after having a two-bagger in 30 straight games (6/18-7/23), 2nd-longest span in team history (34 G, 6/19-7/26/96)…Marcus Semien has a 17-G hitting streak at Minute Maid Park (beg. 5/7/21).
TONIGHT’S PROBABLE PITCHER – #61 Cody Bradford, LHP (2-1, 4.78)
TONIGHT: The 25-year-old left-hander is expected to make the 11th appearance of his MLB career tonight in game 2 of 3 here in Houston…is expected to pitch multiple innings at some point after ‘opener’ (Yerry Rodríguez) this evening, though he is 1-1, 4.94 ERA (13 ER/23.2 IP) in 5 traditional starts this season… has had 3 stints with Texas in 2023 (5/15, 5/27-28, 6/13-current), his 1st career MLB action…will work tonight on 3 days’ rest, as he last pitched in a relief app. on Fri. vs. LAD (1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R-ER) as part of an 11-5 Rangers loss…has posted a 3.67 ERA (11 ER/27.0 IP) with 26 SO/6 BB and .217 opp. BA over his last 9 G/4 GS to lower his season ERA figure from 10.80 to 4.78…has gone 8-1 with a 1.82 ERA (12 ER/59.1 IP) in 10 G/GS for Round Rock (AAA) this season…opened the ‘23 campaign by going 5-0 with a 0.64 ERA (2 ER/28.1 IP) in his first 5 starts at Triple-A, earning PCL Pitcher of the Month honors for April…entered this season ranked among the top prospects in the Texas farm system by both Baseball America (no. 22) and MLB Pipeline (no. 26)…was named a 2021 Texas Organization All-Star by MiLB.com in his 1st professional action…missed the 2019 and 2020 campaigns due to injury and the pandemic respectively…owns a lifetime 24-12 record, 4.00 ERA (122 ER/274.1 IP), and 302 strikeouts over 56 starts in the minor leagues, and has spent all 3 seasons (2021-23) of his professional career in the Rangers organization…he was originally selected by Texas in the 6th round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Baylor University, where he went 12-11, 3.86 (76 ER/177.1 IP) in 32 G/31 GS from 2017-19…the native Texan prepped at Aledo (Tex.) High School and grew up as a Rangers fan idolizing Derek Holland… TEX is 3-7 in Bradford’s 10 appearances this season.
LAST OUTING: Stranded 2 of 3 inherited runners pitching the 7th and 8th innings of Texas’ 11-5 defeat on Fri. vs. LAD (1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R-ER)…entered with bases loaded and none out in the 7th, retiring all 3 BF in the frame, but allowed go-ahead run to score on Max Muncy’s RBI groundout.
AS A STARTER: Has gone 1-1 with a 4.94 ERA (13 ER/23.2 IP) in his 5 starts with Texas this season, posting at least 4.1 IP in each outing…has allowed 2-or-fewer runs in 3 of 5 starts…opponents have batted .258/.313/.506/.819 (23- 89) with 4 HR in his starts…1st career win in start on 7/7 at WAS (W, 5.0 IP, 1 R-ER)…recorded career-high 8 SO in start on 6/29 vs. DET (ND, 4.1 IP, 3 R-ER).
AS A RELIEVER: Is 1-0, 4.32 ERA (4 ER/8.1 IP) with 9 SO/0 BB in 5 relief outings this season, holding opponents to a .172/.200/.448/.648 (5-29) slash line…3 straight and 4 of last 5 app. have come as reliever…awarded 1st career relief win on 7/16 vs. CLE (W, 3.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R-ER, 0 BB, 4 SO, 1 HR).
VS. HOUSTON: Tossed 2.1 SHO IP out of the bullpen in only previous outing against the Astros on 7/3 vs. HOU (2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 SO)…retired 7 of 8 BF spanning innings 5-7 (Kyle Tucker HBP) in Rangers’ thrilling 12-11 defeat.
FIRST MLB START: Bradford took the loss in his Major League debut on 5/15 vs. ATL against a tough Braves lineup (5.0 IP, 7 H, 6 R-ER, 2 BB, 3 SO, 2 HR, 90 pitches/56 strikes)…became just the 2nd Texas pitcher to make a ML debut with a start since the beginning of 2022 (also Cole Ragans on 8/4/22 vs. CWS: ND, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R-0 ER, 4 BB, 3 SO)…it marked the 10th time since the start of 2016 for a Ranger to have a ML debut in a start with Texas, and only one of the 10 in that span have earned a win: A.J. Alexy on 8/30/21 vs. COL (W, 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 SO)…additionally, Bradford became the 4th native Texan ever to make his ML debut as a starting pitcher for the Rangers in Arlington: Glenn Otto on 8/27/21 vs. HOU (ND, 5.0 IP, 0 R), current Rangers Executive Vice President & General Manager Chris Young Chris Young on 8/24/04 vs. MIN (ND, 5.2 IP, 3 R-ER), and Jim Gideon on 9/14/75 vs. CWS (W, 5.2 IP, 6 R-5 ER).
HOUSTON ASTROS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Astros and Rangers will play the middle game of their three-game series tonight with Houston now trailing the Rangers by just 2.0 games in the AL West division… RHP J.P. France will get the start for the Astros tonight in what will be his first career appearance against the Rangers…he’ll be opposed by fellow rookie RHP Yerry Rodriguez, who will serve as an opener tonight.
VIVE LA FRANCE!: RHP J.P. France has been one the top rookie starters in the Majors this season following his promotion in early May…he enters tonight ranking second among Major League rookies in ERA (3.13) and third in opponent batting average (.251) (min. 75 IP)…in his 13 starts, France has amassed eight quality starts and has nine starts of 6.0-plus innings.
IN THE STANDINGS: Thanks to a 7-3 start to the second half, the Astros are a season-high 13 games over .500 at 57-44 and trail the first-place Rangers by just 2.0 games in the standings…with a win tonight, the Astros would move to 1.0 game out of first place, which would be their smallest division deficit since they were also 1.0 game out after a win on May 22.
THE SKIPPERS: Astros manager Dusty Baker and Rangers manager Bruce Bochy have a long history together with the two facing off against each other as managers in 199 total games entering today…per Elias, Baker owns the advantage, posting a 115-84 record against Bochy’s squads…Baker currently ranks eighth all-time in wins (2,150) immediately trailing Bucky Harris (2,158) for seventh on that exclusive list.
THE SILVER BOOT: In the Lone Star Series, the Astros have claimed the Silver Boot/season series vs. TEX in each of the last six seasons (2017-22) and are 5-3 vs. TEX thus far in 2023…Swinging Pendulum: These two Texas teams each have had stretches of dominance in the Lone Star Series, which began in 2001…in the first six seasons (2001-06), the Astros held the upper hand with a 20-16 record…that was followed by a long stretch of dominance by the Rangers, who went 79-33 vs. HOU from 2007-16…in 2017, the Astros reversed that trend and are 75-38 vs. TEX since then.
LAST NIGHTS BARN BURNER: The Astros and Rangers played a wild one last night with the Astros walking off with a 10-9 victory in the 9th…the game included four lead changes and two ties before DH Yainer Diaz ended it with a walk off single, the first walk-off hit of his MLB career…LF Chas McCormick (2×3) had a huge game, as he posted a career high six RBI, the most by an Astro this season…3B Alex Bregman (3×5, 2R) and RF Kyle Tucker (1×2, 3 BB, 4 R) also had big games for Houston.
URQUIDY CONTINUES REHAB: RHP José Urquidy (right shoulder discomfort) will make an injury rehab start with Double A Corpus Christi tonight in their 7:05 p.m. CT game at San Antonio (Padres affiliate)…this will be Urquidy’s third rehab start after posting a 3.60 ERA (2ER/5IP) in his two rehab starts for Triple A Sugar Land, which included a 3.0-inning outing (45 pitches) in his last appearance last Wednesday.
INJURY UPDATES: The Astros have been working through several injuries…below are a few updates on sidelined players:
- 2B Jose Altuve (left oblique strain) has participated in full pregame workouts on the field over the last several days, which included hitting off a high-speed pitching machine yesterday… he’s scheduled to hit off the high-speed machine again today.
- LF Yordan Alvarez (right oblique discomfort) has played in three minor league rehab games so far, last playing on Saturday (1×2, BB, RBI), had a scheduled off day on Sunday and worked out with the club yesterday, which included running the bases… he is scheduled to hit in the batting cage today.
- OF Michael Brantley (right shoulder surgery) hit on the field on Saturday at the Coliseum and again yesterday at Minute Maid Park…these were his first two times to hit on the field since prior to the All-Star break…he has a scheduled off day today.
GETTIN’ SPICEY: Among players with 225-plus plate appearances, OF Chas McCormick ranks fifth in the AL in OPS (.902) and seventh in SLG (.531)…among Astros players, McCormick ranks second on the club in OPS and SLG, trailing only the injured OF Yordan Alvarez (.978 OPS, .589 SLG).
CHAS’ CHOMP:OF Chas McCormick, the AL Player of the Week for July 14-16, is off to a hot start to the second half of the season, hitting .412 (14×34) with five homers and 14 RBI in his 10 games since the break…McCormick’s success goes back even further, as he’s collected 20 RBI this month, which ranks second in the AL, trailing only Red Sox 1B Justin Turner (21).
STREAKING!: All-Star RF Kyle Tucker has hit safely in 10 straight games since the All-Star break, hitting at a .432 (16×37) clip…his streak ranks as the third-longest active streak in the AL and is three games shy of his season-long 13 game streak set from June 23-July 7…Tucker also owns an active 20-game hitting streak in road games.
THE 100 CLUB: Astros closer RHP Ryan Pressly recorded his 100th career save on Friday at OAK, with 99 of those coming as a member of the Astros…he needs one more save to become just the fourth player in club history to reach the 100-save plateau, which would join him with LHP Billy Wagner (225), RHP Dave Smith (199) and RHP Brad Lidge (123).
SIGNED UP: The Astros have signed IF Xavier Casserilla (Seminole State) and RHP Alejandro Torres (Miami) as non-drafted free agents today…they are the fifth and sixth free agents signed by Houston since the draft…additionally, the Astros have signed 19 of their 20 selections in the 2023 MLB Draft class.
TONIGHT’S ASTROS STARTER: RHP J.P. FRANCE
2023 MLB SPLITS:
Home/MMP: 1-1, 4.91 ERA, 5G/GS, 16ER/29.1IP
Away: 4-2, 2.05 ERA, 8G/GS, 11ER/48.1IP
Day: 1-0, 3.79 ERA, 3G/GS, 8ER/19IP
Night: 4-3, 2.91 ERA, 9G/GS, 19ER/58.2IP
Longest Win Streak: 3, 6/29-current
Longest Losing Streak: 2, 6/16-6/23
LAST START – 7/20 AT OAK: matched his career high of 7 IP and allowed just 1 run while striking out 5 batters to just 1 walk…logged his 7th quality start in his last 8 starts and logged 6+ IP for the 8th time in his last 9 starts… also extended his career-long winning streak to 3 games.
ROOKIE LEADERBOARD: among AL rookies (min. 70 IP), ranks 2nd in ERA (3.13), trailing only CLE RHP Tanner Bibee (3.04)…is also 1st in walks-per9-innings (2.55), 2nd in WHIP (1.24) and 2nd in opponent OPS (.692).
QUALITY STUFF: logged 6 consecutive quality starts from 6/4-7/5 and logged 6+ innings in 7 straight starts from 5/29-7/5…the last Astros rookie with 7 straight starts of 6.0+ was RHP Chris Sampson, who had a 9-game streak in 2007…the last Astros rookie with a streak of at least 6 straight quality starts in a single season was also Sampson, who went on a 7-game streak (May 11, 2007-June 13, 2007)…the only other Astros pitcher with a longer quality start streak this season was a 7-game streak from LHP Framber Valdez (4/4-5/9)….is T-4th for most quality starts (8) through his first 13 career outings in Astros history…is 2nd of MLB rookies with 8 quality starts this season, trailing only teammate RHP Hunter Brown (9).
SOLID START: his 3.13 career ERA is the 4th-lowest from an Astros pitcher through their first 13 career appearances (min. 70 IP), with RHP Lance McCullers Jr. posting the lowest ERA (2.48) over that stretch in their career in Astros history
VS. TEX: will be making his 1st career appearance vs. TEX…has recorded a 1.54 ERA (4ER/23.1IP) through his first 4 career starts vs. AL West opponents.
