Up until very recently, the Texas Rangers were outsiders in the Major League Baseball postseason race. Slowly digging themselves into a hole, the team's performance was dismantling any hope of bringing playoff baseball to Arlington.
However, that coin has flipped.
The Rangers went 3-6 in their past nine games of the month (leading into this week's four-game sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays). They were effortlessly slaughtered by their in-state rivals, the Houston Astros, finding themselves on the wrong side of a 36-10 series run total.
August was also a nightmare, sinking the last bit of optimism left with the club. The month brought a record of 15-12, which is positive. Three games above .500 is certainly welcome, yet uninspiring. An eight-game slide was simply a "wrong place, wrong time" situation, as the other teams vying for American League wild card spots were making their respective pushes.
What went wrong? The offense went cold and the bullpen was horrendous. Save situations and extra-inning games saw no confidence and were not helpful to the club.
What turned the page?
As mentioned, a four-game set north of the border against the streaky Blue Jays was the turning point for the Rangers. The series was very playoff-relevant, as both clubs are in the hunt as the final weeks of the regular season move with haste.
With the team struggling around that time, the expectations were not equal to the outcome. The offense exploded and diminished Toronto's status in the wild card race, forcing them out of a spot altogether. The Rangers outscored Toronto 26-7 in the first three games. Dane Dunning did his thing, striking out seven across six innings of work. What also helped is that Chris Bassitt struggled mightily for the home squad across 5.1 innings.
Max Scherzer took the bump for the second game, but exited in the fifth inning due to what is being labeled as a (regular) season-ending shoulder injury. A foursome of relivers picked up where he left off to secure the victory. In a much closer match, Davis Schneider drove in one of three runs with a home run, along with RBI from Cavan Biggio and Ernie Clement. This was not enough for Toronto, as Texas took the 6-3 win.
Game three was a bomb show with Texas smashing three dingers, and winning a 10-0 shutout with Jordan Montgomery picking up the W. The Rangers wrapped it up and completed the sweep in Toronto, winning six-straight games and reviving playoff hopes.
Notables
- the Rangers have five series left: Guardians, Red Sox, Mariners, Angels, Mariners again
- Max Scherzer was placed on the 15-day injured list Wednesday after being diagnosed with a low-grade strain of the teres major muscle in his right shoulder. He will miss the remainder of the regular season, and is questionable to return should the Rangers reach the postseason
- entering Friday, September 15, the Rangers occupy the second wild card spot in the American League
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