The Rangers Are 17-9

Another day down, and another day the Rangers stave off reaching double-digits in the loss column on the young season.

– On a night where Yu Darvish (5-1) clearly didn’t have his best stuff, he still managed to strike out 9 White Sox hitters in 6 innings of work, though the 4 runs and 7 hits he allowed were both season-high’s.

– Mitch Moreland was the offensive standout of the game, reaching base 4 times in as many at bats, including a 3-3 burst against two different left-handed pitchers. At a critical moment with one out in the bottom of the 6th, Moreland sliced a lined shot over the left fielder’s head, scoring go-ahead runner Geovany Soto. The Rangers ultimately crossed the plate 6 times in the 6th, which gave them a commanding 10-4 advantage with only 9 outs left in regulation.

– Tanner Scheppers allowed his first run of 2013 which bolstered his ERA to whopping 0.66 on the season.

– Through the first 17 games of the season, the Rangers’ season-high run output was 7. In their last 9, they’ve posted double-digits in runs 3 times.

– The Athletics, who are currently 2.5 games behind the Rangers, are beating the Angels 5-3 in the bottom of the 6th. Because both bullpens are at play, and frankly because LAA’s bullpen sucks, you have to believe the A’s have the clear edge in holding on to this one.

– Over the next two nights in Arlington the White Sox will essentially be throwing their two best pitchers (Chris Sale/Jake Peavy) against Texas’s two rookies (Nick Tepesch/Justin Grimm). I’m excited to see how the games play out, but to be realistic it would be nice to split over the next two games before Boston comes into town.

Yes, the two best teams in the American League will play each other this weekend at The Ballpark in Arlington. The Rangers will feature Derek Holland, Alexi Ogando, and Yu Darvish in that order.