Rangers Finally Put Tigers Away - 8-6 In Extras

A two-run home run by Nelson Cruz (above) in the 14th sealed a late-innings win for the Rangers. The win is the first for Texas in Detroit since 2007. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

After nearly six hours of baseball, the Texas Rangers (54-39) finally pulled it out with a clutch, two-run homer from Nelson Cruz.

"It was starting to rain, and I was getting hungry," Cruz said jokingly. "It was a great feeling to see that ball go over the fence, especially since we hadn't scored since the seventh."

Cruz homer raced just over the right field wall, and the Rangers' dugout went crazy as he rounded the bases.
For the game, Cruz went 3 for 6 and knocked in half of the Rangers eight runs.

Texas jumped out to a 5-2 lead going into the bottom of the third, but starter Scott Feldman (ND) was unable to hold the lead. 'Scooter' gave up five runs on seven hits (three homers) in only five innings and it appears his spot in the starting rotation may be in jeopardy.

The hero of the Rangers' pitching staff would have to be Matt Harrison (W, 2-1). In spot duty, Harrison pitched four innings, from the 10th to the 13th inning, and allowed no runs while striking out four to get the win. While he did get into a jam in the 11th, allowing the Tigers to load the bases with only one out, Harrison coaxed a grounder from Tigers second-baseman Carlos Guillen that led to an inning-ending double play.

"Matt Harrison did exactly what we badly needed him to do," manager Ron Washington said. "He gave us four innings, and got through the heart of their order a couple of times."

Facing one of the toughest schedules right out of the break, the Rangers have shown some grit in taking four of five right off the bat on the road.

Texas looks to continue it's roll Tuesday night as they take on Detroit in game two of the three game set. The scheduled start time is 6:10 p.m., with Tommy Hunter (6-0, 2.39 ERA) getting the start for the Rangers and Armando Galarraga (3-2, 4.45) taking the mound for the Tigers.

News and Notes:

• Scary moment in the sixth inning: Rangers' reliever Dustin Nippert took a line-drive off the side of his head. Thankfully, Nippert was able to walk off the field under his own power and it's uncertain whether or not he will go on the disabled list.
  
• Neftali Feliz struck out two batters in the rain in the 14th for his 25th save of the season, tied for tops in the American League.
• Josh Hamilton went 4 for 6 for the game with a run and an RBI, increasing his Major-League leading batting average to .353.

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