GAME THREAD: See How Rockies Beat Rangers on Tuesday
The Texas Rangers continue their six-game road trip on Tuesday with the first game of a two-game series with the Colorado Rockies at 7:40 p.m. central at Coors Field.
The Rangers are playing their next-to-last Interleague series of the season, with the finale set for 2:10 p.m. Wednesday. The Rangers will go to Miami for a day-night doubleheader on Sept. 12.
The Rangers took three out of four from the Minnesota Twins, a series that ended on Monday. The opener saw the Twins win, 2-1. The Rangers won the next three games — Saturday, 4-3, in 10 innings; Sunday, 7-0, as Kohei Arihara and Taylor Hearn combined for the shutout; and 2-1 on Monday as Adolis García hit a home run and extended his hit streak to 19 games.
The Rangers are now a week removed from the firing of former manager Chris Woodward and the promotion of third-base coach Tony Beasley as interim manager. Beasley is now 5-3 in his interim role. Wednesday marks the one-week mark since the Rangers fired team president Jon Daniels and installed general manager Chris Young as the overseer of all baseball operations.
On Thursday, the Rangers get an off-day before hosting Detroit starting on Friday.
Scroll down to get ready for tonight’s game.
Texas Rangers (56-66) at Colorado Rockies (53-70)
August 23, 2022, Coors Field, Denver, Colo., 7:40 p.m. (CDT)
Starting Pitchers
TEX: RHP Dane Dunning (3-6, 4.06)
Vs.
COL: Germán Márquez (6-10, 5.05)
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Rangers Pre-Game Transactions:
RHP Dennis Santana activated from 15-day Injured List
RHP A.J. Alexy optioned to Round Rock (AAA)
Rangers Injury List:
P Jon Gray (15-day, left oblique strain), placed on Aug. 2. He is eligible to return, but his recovered was expected to take 4-6 weeks.
P Spencer Howard (15-day, right shoulder impingement), placed on Aug. 10 (retroactive to Aug. 8), eligible to be activated on Aug. 23.
P Joe Barlow (15-day, right index finger blister), placed on Aug. 19 (retroactive to Aug. 18). Eligible to be activated on Sept. 2. Note: This is the second time Barlow has been on the injured list due to a blister in the past two months.
OF Eli White (60-day, right wrist fracture), placed on June 13. He is expected to return at some point this season.
C Mitch Garver (60-day, right forearm flexor tendon repair surgery), placed on July 11. He is not expected to return this season.
Follow the Game
TV
Rangers – Bally Sports Southwest
Rockies – ATT SportsNet-RM
Radio/Internet
Rangers – 105.3 The Fan, KFLC 1270
Rockies – KNRV 1150-AM, KOA 850-AM
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Texas Rangers Starting Lineup
1. 2B Marcus Semien
2. SS Corey Seager
3. 1B Nathaniel Lowe
4. DH Adolis García
5. RF Kole Calhoun
6. CF Leody Taveras
7. 3B Ezequiel Duran
8. C Meibrys Viloria
9 LF Bubba Thompson
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Colorado Rockies Starting Lineup
1. 3B Ryan McMahon
2. 2B Brendan Rodgers
3. DH Charlie Blackmon
4. 1B C.J. Cron
5. SS José Iglesias
6. RF Randall Grichuk
7. C Elias Díaz
8. LF Sam Hilliard
9. CF Wynton Bernard
Top of First
Germán Márquez (COL) pitching
Marcus Semien led off with a solo home run on a 2-1 pitch from Márquez, giving the Rangers a 1-0 lead. Corey Seager followed that with a single. Nathaniel Lowe then hit his 19th home run of the season with a two-run shot on a 2-0 pitch. Adolis García, trying to extend his hitting streak to 20 games, struck out. Kole Calhoun followed by lining out to third baseman Ryan McMahon. Rangers center fielder Leody Taveras then reached first on a bunt and then advanced to third on a throwing error by Rockies catcher Elias Díaz. But, Rockies right fielder Randal Grichuk backed up the throw and threw out Taveras at third to end the inning. Rangers 3, Rockies 0
Bottom of First
Dane Dunning (TEX) pitching
Dunning started his first inning by striking out McMahon swinging. Brendan Rodgers lined out to Semien at second base for the second out. Charlie Blackmon then stepped in against Dunning and he flew out to Rangers left fielder Bubba Thompson in foul territory. Rangers 3, Rockies 0
Top of Second
Rangers third baseman Ezequiel Duran started the inning by lining out to Rockies center fielder Wynton Bernard. Catcher Meibrys Viloria followed by grounding out to Rockies shortstop José Iglesias. Thompson struck out swinging to end the inning. Rangers 3, Rockies 0
Bottom of Second
C.J. Cron gave the Rockies their first hit of the game with a single to center field. Iglesias followed with a fielder’s choice groundout to Seager, who threw out Cron at second base. Iglesias was safe at first. Dunning then hit Grichuk with a pitch, which moved Iglesias to second base. That was followed by Díaz, who homered for the seventh time this season, taking an 0-2 offering from Dunning to left field to tie the game. Sam Hilliard flew out to Taveras in center field for the second out. Bernard followed with a single, one that was deflected off of Duran. McMahon was at the plate as Bernard tried to steal second and Viloria threw him out, with Seager applying the tag. Rangers 3, Rockies 3.
Top of Third
Semien led off the third by striking out swinging. Seager then grounded out to Rodgers at second base. Lowe, who homered in the first, flew out to Hilliard in left field. Rangers 3, Rockies 3
Bottom of Third
McMahon led off by grounding out to Lowe at first base. Rodgers followed by striking out swinging. Blackmon then doubled to left field. Cron, with a runner in scoring position, struck out swinging. Rangers 3, Rockies 3.
Top of Fourth
García led off by doubling to left field, extending his hit streak to 20 games. Calhoun then struck out swinging, though Diaz had to throw Calhoun out at first. Taveras struck out swinging, but García stole third to become a 20-20 player. Duran grounded out to end the inning. Rangers 3, Rockies 3.
Bottom of Fourth
Iglesias started the frame with a groundout to Duran at third base. Grichuk followed with a groundout to Duran. Diaz then doubled to right field to put a runner in scoring position for the second straight inning in a tie game. Hilliard struck out to end the inning. Rangers 3, Rockies 3.
Top of Fifth
After Viloria struck out to lead off the inning, Thompson singled to right field and promptly stole second base for his sixth stolen base of the season. Semien then hit an RBI triple to score Thompson from second base to give the Rangers the lead. Seager then drew a walk. That led to a Rockies mound visit. Lowe hit a slow rolling grounder to Cron at first, which allowed Cron to force out Lowe. But Semien scored to give the Rangers a two-run lead. García then singled to left field, poking a ground ball between shortstop and third base. That gave Seager the chance to score from second and allowed García to move up to second base on the throw home. Calhoun grounded out to Cron to end the inning. Rangers 6, Rockies 3.
Bottom of Fifth
Bernard led off the inning with a single to left, as the Rockies started working to get back in the game. McMahon lined out to Taveras in center field. With Rodgers at the plate, a Dunning wild pitch allowed Bernard to move to second base. Rodgers then grounded out to Lowe at first base, but that did allow Bernard to move to third base. It was a sharp bit of fielding by Lowe, who had to go well to his right to backhand the grounder and then toss it to a running Dunning at the bag. Blackmon then singled to center field, which scored Bernard to cut the Rangers’ lead to two runs. It was Blackmon’s 70th RBI of the season. With Blackmon at first, Cron stepped to the plate and popped out to Duran in foul territory on the third-base side to end the inning. Rangers 6, Rockies 4.
Top of Sixth
Taveras led off the sixth with a groundout to Rodgers at second base, while Duran followed with a three-pitch strikeout swinging. Viloria lined out to left field for the final out. Rangers 6, Rockies 4.
Bottom of Sixth
Rangers Pitching Change: Josh Sborz for Dane Dunning
Dunning Pitching Line: Five innings, seven hits, four runs (earned), no walks, four strikeouts, 72 pitches, 48 strikes.
The Rangers opted to hit the bullpen instead of having Dunning face the Rockies one more inning. Sborz induced a groundout from Iglesias, followed by a single by Grichuk. Diaz struck out swinging, which prompted a mound visit from Rangers co-pitching coach Doug Mathis. Hilliard grounded out to Semien at second base to end the inning. Rangers 6, Rockies 4.
Top of Seventh
Rockies Pitching Change: Justin Lawrence for Germán Márquez
Márquez Pitching Line: Six innings, eight hits, six runs (earned), one walk, seven strikeouts, 90 pitches, 60 strikes.
Lawrence started his first inning of relief by facing Thompson, who struck out swinging. Semien then struck out swinging. Seager struck out, as Lawrence struck out the side. Rangers 6, Rockies 4.
Bottom of Seventh
Rangers Pitching Change: Brock Burke for Josh Sborz
Sborz Pitching Line: One inning, one hit, no runs, no walks, one strikeout, 14 pitches, eight strikes.
Bernard led off the inning by reaching first on an error by Seager at shortstop. McMahon then grounded into a fielder’s choice force, with Seager actually fielding the ball and tossing it to Duran, who was playing in the shift, to force out Bernard at second. After Rodgers flew out to Taveras in center, Blackmon singled on a soft ground ball to Seager, which allowed McMahon to move to second. Garrett Hampson came in as a pinch-runner for Blackmon. Cron then turned on Burke’s first offering a turned into a three-run home run to right field to put the Rockies up for the first time in the game. It was his 24th home run. Iglesias grounded out to end the inning but the Rockies now had the lead. Rockies 7, Rangers 6.
Top of Eighth
Rockies Pitching Change: Dinelson Lamet for Justin Lawrence
Lawrence Pitching Line: One inning, no hits, no runs, no walks, three strikeouts, 16 pitches, 11 strikes.
Lowe led off the inning with a groundout to Rodgers at second base. García struck out swinging for the second out. Calhoun extended the inning with a walk. Taveras struck out to end the inning, leaving the tying run at first. Rockies 7, Rangers 6.
Bottom of Eighth
Rangers Pitching Change: Jonathan Hernández for Brock Burke
Burke Pitching Line: One inning, two hits, three runs (none earned), no walks, no strikeouts, 26 pitches, 15 strikes.
Hernández came in to try and keep the Rangers within a run, and the inning started with Grichuk legging out a ground ball to Duran at third base. The throw appeared to pull Lowe off the bag. The Rangers did challenge the call, but the call was upheld. Diaz grounded into a fielder’s choice that forced out Grichuk at second base. Hilliard then struck out swinging, but Diaz advanced to second. Bernard singled to extend the inning, with the ball deflecting off Hernández, which kicked the ball into right field. Diaz went to third. With McMahon up, the Rockies tried a double steal. Bernard stole second base, but Seager cut off the throw and cut down Diaz trying to steal home. The Rockies decided to challenge the call. The call was confirmed and the inning ended with no Rockies run. Rockies 7, Rangers 6.
Top of Ninth
Rockies Pitching Change: Daniel Bard for Dinelson Lamet
Lamet Pitching Line: One inning, no hits, no runs, one walk, two strikeouts, 17 pitches, 10 strikes.
With the Rockies’ closer on the hill, Duran led off the inning by grounding out to Rodgers at second. Jonah Heim came in to pinch-hit for Viloria and doubled into right field. That led to another pinch-hitter, Brad Miller, for Thompson. Miller struck out and that left Semien as the Rangers’ last chance. Semien grounded out to McMahon to end the game. Final: Rockies 7, Rangers 6.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard
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