Texas takes another step back in the chase for a division title as Cliff Lee gets rocked, while Nelson Cruz (above) and rest of the offense manages only one hit against the A's. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)West coast pitching has not been kind to the Rangers.
For the the third straight game (fifth in the last seven overall) the Texas Rangers (84-68) have been held to one run or fewer in a nine-inning ballgame.
Oakland A's starter Dallas Braden (W, 10-13) shut Ranger batters down for eight innings for his third straight win against Texas. The loss drops Texas to 2-5 thus far on the 10-game road trip, and the Rangers' magic number stays at four as the losses keep mounting up.
"There's no obese lady in sight, and I can't hear any singing," Braden said.
Nelson Cruz reached base on an infield single in the first inning, and that's the only baserunner the Rangers would have until the eighth inning. Braden retired 19 straight batters (striking out six of them) before walking two to start the eighth. The A's starter then got three straight outs, finishing his eight-inning outing, fittingly, with a strikeout of Rangers' catcher Taylor Teagarden - his seventh of the game.
"The walks at the end kind of ticked me off because they prevented me finishing the game," Braden said. "Every arm I can save in the bullpen is crucial."
It's an extreme long shot for the A's to make the playoffs, considering they would have to likely win out and hope the Rangers win less than four out of the final 10 games. However, as any Rangers' fan knows, with this team, a collapse of this proportion would not shock anyone.
Braden, who also has a 18-inning scoreless streak going against Texas, outpitched Rangers' starter Cliff Lee (L, 12-9) who struggled with his control in a brief, five inning outing. Lee, who had allowed only two runs in 16 innings (two starts) since returning from lower-back stiffness Sept. 12, walked two batters (back-to-back to start the fourth inning) and allowed four runs on six hits in a dissapointing performance.
"For whatever reason I lost a little command there and walked a couple of guys," Lee said. "I'm not happy walking anybody, much less the first two guys in a 0-0 game. They scored a couple of runs and that was it. I have to make adjustments."
While he has been solid, walks have been an issue since returning from the injury. Lee has walked six batters in three starts since returning from the injury, equaling his total for his previous 11 outings with the team.
While the offense's frosty road trip, along with Lee's poor start, is certainly disheartening; I still believe Texas has what it takes to close out the division in this series. The Rangers only need to split two of these four games. Even with a sputtering offense, Texas has what it takes to outscore the A's who, judging by the 614 runs they've scored this season (sixth worst in the Majors), aren't likely to score five runs again this series.
"We've been in some tough situations before and we'll figure a way to get out of this," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "We just haven't scored any runs. I don't think it's frustration. We have to get it done between the lines. Dallas Braden just shut us down tonight."
Game two of the three-game set will take place Friday night, with a 9:05 p.m. start time. Tommy Hunter (12-4, 3.92 ERA) will get the nod for Texas, while Bobby Cramer (2-0, 2.54) will take the mound for Oakland.
News and Notes:
- One big reason why the Rangers have struggled to score runs as of late: the first and second batters in the lineup (Elvis Andrus and Michael Young) are hitting a combined .200 in the month of September.
- Texas has lost five of the past six games this season against Oakland.
(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)
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