And Another One - Rangers Beat Pirates 6-3

Texas wins it's ninth straight thanks to some more solid pitching and a three-run home run from Julio Borbon along with a solo homer from Josh Hamilton (both pictured above). (AP Photo/Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Kelley Chinn)

The Texas Rangers (42-28) just keep on trucking as they continue to thoroughly dismantle their sub-par counterparts. The Pittsburgh Pirates (25-45), while they put up a good fight for the first few innings, were simply no match for Texas on Tuesday night.

In his first start since leaving a July 16 start against the Marlins after only 2 1-3 innings due to a strained hip flexor, Tommy Hunter (W, 3-0) gave the Rangers six innings of three run (two earned) baseball. Hunter scattered nine hits, walking none, while striking out six batters. Josh Hamilton and Julio Borbon provided the offensive pop, knocking in four of the Rangers' six total runs as Hamilton pushed his career-high hitting streak to 17 games.

"I feel like everything I'm doing in practice and my routine is helping me prepare for the game," Hamilton said. "I don't have to think about it, I just react."

Micheal Young got things started for the Rangers in the fourth with a smash to right field for a solo home run. The very next inning, Borbon gave Texas a lead they would not relinquish in the form of a three-run homer - his second of the season. Borbon is hitting nearly .300 (.294) as he's come a long way since batting near the Mendoza line for the first month of the season (Borbon's batting average was .194 on May 8).

"You have to give Julio credit for the way he's battled, the way he's hung in there, and the way he's put it together," manager Ron Washington said. "He has got a lot of confidence right now ... That was a big three-run homer, it really was."

It seems like the whole team is hitting it's stride at the right time. The lineup, starting pitchers, and even the bullpen have given Texas exactly what it's needed in the past two weeks - consistency.

"We're a team right now," Hamilton said. "That's a good place to be."

Game two of the three game set against the Pirates is Wednesday night with a 7:05 p.m. start time. Dustin Nippert (2-3, 5.01 ERA) gets the nod for Texas while Paul Maholm (4-5, 3.77) takes the mound for Pittsburgh.

News and Notes:

• Nelson Cruz returned from the disabled list for his first game-action since May 30. Cruz went 0 for 3, but did have a sac fly in the eighth that gave Texas its' final run of the game.
• If Texas wins it's next game, it will be the longest winning streak for the franchise in nearly 19 years.
  

(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)