If the Rangers miss the playoffs this key failure will be the reason why

The Texas Rangers are just half a game back of the Baltimore Orioles for the third American League Wild Card spot and two games back of the Houston Astros for first place in the American League West. Yet, the Rangers are three games under .500 with a 61-64 record and have a -47 run differential. A playoff berth is well within reach for Texas, but there's one major reason the Rangers may miss out on playing in October: they are terrible in road games vs. the American League West.

After Sunday's 5-2 loss to the Athletics at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento, California, the Rangers' division record on the road fell to an awful 6-17.

Rangers' poor play in AL West matchups is concerning and may cost them big time

Texas lost two of three games to the Athletics this past weekend after losing three of four to the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.

What makes the Rangers' poor play in road matchups against their division opponents even more concerning is the fact that the American League West is undoubtedly the worst division in baseball. The fact that the Astros are two losses away from being a below-.500 team, yet lead the division, perfectly describes the state of the AL West.

The Mariners are in third place in the division with a 59-66 record but are only four games behind the Astros. The other two teams in the division, the Athletics (49-75) and Angels (49-76), are two of the worst teams in baseball. Yet somehow, the Rangers just lost series against both teams.

If we could take away the Rangers' road record against division opponents, they'd be 55-47. For whatever reason, Texas' weakest opponents have given the team the most trouble.

It's important to note that with how jumbled the wild card race is, with six teams within 2.5 games of the final AL wild card spot, it might be division or bust for the Rangers playoff hopes. In that case, the poor showing against division foes on the road could come back bite them in tie-breaker scenarios.

The Rangers have just one more road series against an AL West rival this year, as Texas is set to play a three-game series against the Mariners at T-Mobile Park in Seattle Sept. 8-10. Other than that, their only other division matchups remaining are a three-game series against the Angels (Aug. 21-23) and a three-game series against the Athletics (Aug. 31-Sept. 2), both at Globe Life Field.

If the Rangers miss the playoffs by just a few games, it'll be difficult not to look back at their road record against AL West teams. Hopefully, Texas will make the postseason, and we will all forget about the club's poor play in division matchups on the road.

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