Jon Gray Rolling for Texas Rangers
Jon Gray is on a serious roll.
One of the two main holdovers from last season’s Texas Rangers rotation is more than holding his own, especially after an uneven start to the season.
In his last four starts, including Friday’s 12-2 series-opening win at the Baltimore Orioles, Gray has allowed just three runs in 27 innings. That’s a 1.00 ERA. Understandably, he’s 4-0 during that stretch.
Against the Orioles, the 31-year-old right-hander went seven strong innings, giving up just one run and tying a season-high with eight strikeouts. Baltimore catcher Adley Rutschman hit a first inning home run, but after that it was all Gray.
“He was on top of his game,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “The one mistake – and you can’t really say that was a mistake – it was 3-0 and he just went after him and gave up a home run. But after that he was nails. Just threw the ball so well. He’s on a good roll. That’s a tough lineup he had to get through.”
Gray has seen his ERA drop from a season-high 4.40 before the current four-game run to 2.81, which is eighth in the American League. (Rangers teammate Nathan Eovaldi is seventh at 2.60.)
Gray and Martín Pérez were the only starters from 2022 to begin this season in the rotation, though Dane Dunning has since joined with the injury to Jacob deGrom. The first month or so didn’t go as well as Gray would have liked, as he failed to go at least seven innings in each of his first six starts.
In the last four outings, he’s reached that threshold three times.
“It’s felt good to do that because the first couple weren’t that great,” Gray said. “It feels good to put a couple of good ones in a row, but each start really doesn’t feel the same and I like that because one start maybe I’m using the slider more, using the changeup another start more.
“I just feel like we have a lot of weapons to use. They feel different, but they feel good.”
Gray used the fastball to set up his slider against the Orioles, who managed four hits while he has one the mound. The Rangers being up 10-1 after an eight-run fourth inning also takes the stress off.
“It makes it easy,” Gray admitted. “I feel like the whole feel of the game changes after that. So I feel like they really flipped the switch and the momentum was on our side after that and we just got to go play baseball.”
The AL West-leading Rangers (32-18) can win another series Saturday behind Andrew Heaney (3-3, 4.13). Dean Kremer (5-1, 4.61) starts for the Orioles, with first pitch at Camden Yards scheduled for 3:05 p.m. CT.
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