Texas Rangers, Marcus Semien Open Game 2 of ALCS on Historic Offensive Tear
After scraping by with a win in a pitchers' duel on Sunday, the Texas Rangers made sure to do plenty of damage early on Monday.
The Rangers scored four runs in the first inning of Game 2 of the ALCS, giving them an early advantage over the Houston Astros. According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, that breaks the franchise's postseason record for runs in a first inning.
Second baseman Marcus Semien got the ball rolling with a leadoff single up the middle. He came around to score on a throwing error by pitcher Framber Valdez before the Astros were able to get an out.
Three ensuing RBI singles gave Texas a 4-0 lead, and they were able to go one-through-nine in the lineup before the inning came to a close.
After pitcher Nathan Eovaldi sat the Astros down in order in the bottom of the frame, Semien led off the second with another single. Semien once again got a hold of the first pitch he saw, making history in the process.
Per the FOX Sports broadcast, Semien became the first player in postseason history to lead off the first and second innings with a hit.
The All-Star infielder hit .276 with 185 hits, 29 home runs, 100 RBI, an .826 OPS and a 7.4 WAR this regular season. Semien was only batting .148 with a .429 OPS in the playoffs entering Monday.
The Rangers and Astros have traded solo home runs since the former's first-inning explosion. While Eovaldi remains on the mound in the fifth, Valdez was chased off with two down in the third.
Texas currently leads Houston 5-2. In addition to putting them up 2-0 in the series, a win would help the Rangers improve to 7-0 this postseason, including a 6-0 mark on the road.
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