Ex-Texas star plays hero for new team, much to Rangers chagrin

It wasn't necessarily a bottom-of-the-ninth grand slam to win the game by a run, but the Texas Rangers and their fans got a small taste of what it could mean to have Leody Taveras playing, and succeeding, for the hated AL West rival Seattle Mariners.

The man who punched his ticket as the center-fielder more than anyone in team history got a chance to deliver for his new team, and he delivered in a big way.

It came in the top of the 8th against Chicago White Sox reliever Mike Vasil. Taveras barreled a pitch out over the plate and hit it 391 feet over the right center field wall to give the Mariners a 6-5 lead and they would win by that score.

We've seen the speedy center-fielder drop the barrel of the bat like that and deposit the ball over the wall, so that is nothing new. However, the Rangers had a chance to not lose any ground on the first-place Mariners and were denied by the former Ranger.

Let's not get carried away, though. It's not like Taveras has been tearing the cover off the ball for his new employer. He is now hitting an even .200 (7-40), and this was his first round-tripper and third extra base hit since he arrived in the Pacific Northwest on May 7.

Taveras ended the game 2 for 4 with the 2 go-ahead RBIs. It was also his first multiple-hit game playing for the Mariners.

The Texas Rangers will welcome the switch-hitter back to Arlington for a weekend series when Seattle visits Globe Life Field on June 27-29. We'll see what kind of form Taveras is in then, but don't be surprised to see him tag this vulnerable bullpen in a high-leverage late-inning situation when he gets here.