Rangers Take Care Of Business, Take Series From Indians With 4-3 Win

Texas rebounded after an embarrassing game-one loss to the lowly Indians with a dominant 12-1 victory and now a comeback 4-3 win to take the series two games to one. Julio Borbon (above, center) was key to the win as he knocked in the go-ahead run with two-outs in the sixth inning. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

The Texas Rangers (50-34) just keep going about their business. After a shaky 1-3 start to the month of July, the Rangers have rebounded, taking two of three from the lowly Cleveland Indians (33-51) and pushing it's lead in the American League West to 5.5 games.

It wasn't exactly easy for Texas, as this team had to claw it's way back from an early 3-1 deficit. Indians outfielder Jayson Nix had a solo home-run for the second straight game, and Cleveland had a 3-1 lead going into the bottom of the fifth inning.

A reinvigorated Micheal Young, who had gotten his first day off of the season Tuesday night, put the Rangers right back into the game in the bottom of the fifth with a two-run blast over the right-field wall.

"When you play baseball as much as these guys do, sometimes one day's all you need," manager Ron Washington said.

The very next inning, Julio Borbon knocked in a run with a clutch, two-out single that scored Matt Treanor and put the Rangers up for good at 4-3.

Neftali Feliz (S, 23) didn't make it an easy ninth, however. After striking-out the first batter he faced, Feliz lobbed the first pitch in the heart of the plate to Indians first-baseman Andy Marte and he nearly made him pay. Marte launched the ball deep into the left-field corner, just inches away from the foul pole. Feliz retired Marte two pitches later, but it was an uneasy feeling watching that baseball soar towards that left-corner.

Texas has only four games left before the All-Star Break, and the Baltimore Orioles will travel to Arlington with the series starting Thursday night. The Orioles have the worst record in baseball at 25-59.

Thursday's game has a scheduled 7:05 p.m. start time with Tommy Hunter (5-0, 1.98 ERA) taking the hill for Texas and Jeremy Guthrie (3-10, 4.64) getting the start for Baltimore.

News and Notes:

• Colby Lewis (W, 8-5) pitched six innings for the Rangers and gave up only two earned runs while striking-out eight batters. Lewis is seventh in the American League with 105 K's this season.
  
• Texas now has the most home-wins of any team in baseball this season at 31-15.
• Vladimir Guerrero and Josh Hamilton are each in the top-5 in both RBI and home-runs. They are the only teammates even in the top-10 in both categories.
• Texas has the third-best run differential in baseball (+84), behind only the New York Yankees (+107) and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (+103).
• The fan who fell from the second-level at the Ballpark on Tuesday, Tyler Morris, is expected to be released from the hospital soon. The 25-year-old firefighter received the foul-ball he missed on the play personally from Nolan Ryan.

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