Tag Archives: Nathan Karns

Three is Not Rangers Lucky Number

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The 4 game winning streak came to an end last night for the Rangers when they lost 8-2 in the second game of this 4 game series against Tampa Bay. There was a lot that happened in this game, but in my mind the result was determined based on the outcome of three pitches. I know that may seem incredible in a game that featured 304 pitches between the two teams, but if you change the result of these three pitches the outcome of the game might be different. Let’s take a look at each situation and see how it impacted the game.

The first pitch occurred in the second inning when David Dejesus came to the plate against Yovanni Gallardo. The score was 0-0 at the time. The Rangers have not trailed since the first game of the trip when they were behind 1-0 till the 8th inning on Monday against Dallas Keuchel. Then Dejesus took Gallardo deep on 2-1 count to put the Rangers behind 1-0. They already were facing a pitcher in Nathan Karns that they had not seen before and now they were behind. If he gets Dejesus there instead of leaving it over the plate then he doesn’t give up a run till the 6th inning and who knows what would have happened.

The second pitch happened in the 6th inning. It was thrown by Alex Claudio against Brando Guyer, but before we get to that lets setup what happened before it. Gallardo had been rolling along after the Dejesus home run until the 6th. He retired 11 of the next 13 hitters and had not given up any other hits. In the 6th though he ran into some trouble following a Elvis Andrus error. He followed that up by allowing a single to James Loney and an RBI single to Evan Longoria to make it 2-0. He was then removed for Alex Claudio. Claudio was brought in to face Dejesus, but he was replaced by right handed batter Brandon Guyer. Claudio proceeded to give up a long 3-run home run to Guyer on his first and only pitch of the game. That made it 5-0 and with the way the offense was struggling against Karns was going to make it near impossible to come back. If Claudio is able to make a better pitch there and get out of the inning the rally the Rangers would have made would have tied the game and possibly go ahead in the 8th inning. He didn’t and the comeback fell short in that inning.

The third pitch took place in the 8th inning. The score was 5-2 following a home run by Adam Rosales and a sac fly off the bat of Adrian Beltre that nearly tied the game. Then it came down to Carlos Peguero against Kevin Jepsen with the bases loaded. Peguero has been pretty solid on this trip, but after fouling off some tough pitches he was finally struck out by Jepsen with a 94 mph fastball on the outside part of the plate. A base hit there would have brought them closer and changed how Banister might have approached the bottom of the inning. He might have went with Kela or Tolleson there in order to keep the game close. Peguero struck out and he decided to keep Pimentel out there who struggled in the bottom of the inning and the Rays tacked on 3 more runs to put away any chance the Rangers had at coming back. Change the outcome of any one of those pitches into the Rangers favor and things might have been different. The fact is though that it happened to go in the Rays favor and so they won the game. That is how it goes sometimes. Game 3 of the series is tonight as the Rangers still try to work toward another series win.

Other Game Notes

  •  Nathan Karns had the Rangers hitters confused all night. His stuff seemed pretty average but with the deception in his delivery the Rangers could not pick up the path of the ball in time. He had 9 strikeouts in his 7+ innings and several of them were looking or swinging at his straight fastball on the outside corner. I am sure if you asked several Ranger hitters they would say he pitched well but they still should have hit him better than they did. His fastball did not move at all yet they could not make contact or they would just look at it. I am sure if they face him again this season they will fare a lot better than they did last night.
  • Roughned Odor sat the bench again last night and this time was noteworthy because it came against a right-hander. It continues to seem likely when Moreland is eligible to come off the DL next week that Odor will be sent down. Word is that they are working Deshields jr at 2nd in order to play both him and Rosales at 2nd. That also allows them to keep Deshields and his speed on the team even when Moreland and Hamilton come up later this month.
  • Speaking of Deshields he played well last night in the loss. He followed up his 3 steal performance on Thursday with another stolen base last night. He also collected two hits. That was more hits than anyone else in the lineup had. He has played real solid in Martins absence. He is proving himself very valuable to this team and he will not get sent back to Houston or down the minors if he continues to play well.
  • The team plays again tonight a little earlier than last night. They play at 5:10 ct. Ross Detweiler will be trying to follow up his best start of the season with another good start and get the team back on track. He will be opposing Matt Andriese. Jake Odorizzi was scheduled to pitch but he is being replaced due to fly-like symptoms. Andriese will be making his 3rd start of the season. Should be interesting. Go Rangers!!!!!!

Make that 4 in a Row for the Rangers

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The Texas Rangers won their 4th game in a row last night 5-4 over the Tampa Bay Rays and secured a winning road trip. These past few games the Rangers have started to appear like the team that we all thought they would be. A good offensive team, with good starting pitching, and a decent bullpen. This week they have had all of those things. Ross Detweiler, Wandy Rodriguez, and Colby Lewis all combined to hold the Astros to 3 runs over 23 innings. Last night it was Nick Martinez who helped pitch the Rangers to a win. He wasn’t as dominant as the other three. He actually had to be taken out with 2 outs in the 5th inning. He had already given up 3 runs in the inning and had thrown 35 pitches and so manager Jeff Banister decided to go to the bullpen to help pick him up in that situation. The bullpen was able to come in and shut the door and help the Rangers get the victory. The Rangers now sit at 12-16 and sit just a 0.5 game out of second place. The climb to get back to .500 continues. It may not happen this quickly but they are starting to trend back in the right direction and reinforcements to the lineup are on the way.

It was a good win last night. The offense took advantage of their opportunities early and the bullpen was able to hold on late. The offense really made Chris Archer work last night. Archer prior to this start had been one of the hottest starting pitchers in the AL. He had a sub 2.00 ERA and lead the league in strikeouts, but last night the Rangers really made him work. They did a good job laying off the slider that was off the plate, especially Delino Deshields Jr. He had a great at-bat in the second inning when he drew a bases loaded walk that gave the Rangers their first run of the game. It was an 8 pitch at-bat that Archer really tried to get him to chase and Deshields refused and worked the walk. Choo followed that up with another walk to make it 2-0. Then Elvis Andrus lined a single up the middle to score Roughned Odor and Shin Soo Choo. It was a hit that in April the team couldn’t seemingly get. They would make the pitcher work, but then couldn’t follow through with a big base hit that plated multiple runners. Last night they did though. Prince Fielder also got a RBI single in the 4th following a Deshields walk that led off the inning. That made it 5-0 and would be enough for the win. The Rays made it interesting late with a Kevin Kiermaier home run to make it 5-4, but Feliz came on in the 9th and was able to lockdown the win. Still a long way to go in this season, but it is clear since the calendar turned to May the team has had a renewed energy and spirit about themselves. The body language has been better and they are looking like they are having more fun with the game. It seemed like at least to me in April that everyone was feeling pressure to deliver and when they didn’t everybody would just be feeling really down. No more though, the team is loose, they are having fun, and they are collecting wins along the way.

Other Game Notes

  • I said earlier reinforcements are on the way. It appears Mitch Moreland and Josh Hamilton will both be playing for Round Rock this weekend as they both try to make their way back to the big league team. Moreland if he shows he is healthy at the plate and in the field could be back as soon as early next week. I imagine with Hamilton the team will take their time with him, let him get back into game shape. It could be probably a week to 10 days for him, unless there is an injury that necessitates a roster move being made. It will be interesting to see who the Rangers decided to drop to make room for these guys. Carlos Peguero has been playing much better on this trip. He is 5-9 in the last 3 games, with 3 home runs and 5 RBI’s. I would have said him before, but not now. Deshields Jr. has been showing the patience that the team wishes Leonys Martin had. He has also been stealing bases and getting a couple of hits. It would be hard to drop him off the team. Kyle Blanks with the way he is hitting and being right-handed will not be sent back. It looks like it will probably Jake Smolinksi that will get sent down when Moreland is ready. I don’t know who when Hamilton is ready though. Stay tuned to that.
  • Nick Martinez was very sharp for 4 innings. He was doing what he normally does. He was pitching inside, pitching to contact, and allowing his defense to make the plays behind him. Then it all came unraveled in the 5th. He started to try to get the hitters to chase and was missing the plate. The hitters were being patient and they were taking advantage when he would fall behind in the count. It led to 4 base hits, 3 runs, and a walk. After 35 pitches in the inning Banister decided he had seen enough and brought Alex Claudio in to face James Loney, and he got him to ground out to end the inning. It is definitely a growing moment for Martinez. We sometimes forget that this is just his second season and he is going to have moments like that. The good thing though is that the team won and improved to 6-0 in starts made by Martinez. Hopefully he can learn from that and be better in his next appearance.
  • Tonight the Rangers go for win number 5. It will be Yovanni Gallardo on the mound going up against Nathan Karns. Gallardo has pitched well this season, but has not recorded a win since April 17th. He has mainly been let down by his defense in his last 3 starts. The Rangers committed multiple errors in each of those games. He is a pitcher that tends to get lots of ground balls and if the defense is leaky it can look like he pitched a lot worse than he actually did. If the defense can continue the solid play that we have seen in these last 4 games he should pitch pretty well. We shall see though. Game time is at 6:10 tonight. Go Rangers!!!!!!!