Texas Rangers Sink to Lowest Point All Season, Let Another Slip Away

The Texas Rangers are just a game out of the American League West lead.

And also in the lowest spot they’ve been in all season.

After spending virtually in the entire season in first place, the Rangers (75-58) are third in the division after Wednesday night’s 6-5 collapse at the New York Mets. Texas led 5-3 in the eighth inning before Jose Leclerc – who saved his first game in nearly five months on Monday – surrendered a two-run homer, signaling the meltdown that was to come.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy just praised the club’s resolve in close games the night before, but the failures in extra innings were almost inexcusable. Texas had the bases loaded in the 10th and failed to score a run.

“It would have been nice to cash in a little bit more, no question,” Bochy said, according to MLB.com. “Obviously, you’re hoping to put a game away and we couldn’t quite do it tonight, even though we had some good at-bats mixed in. We also had a couple of at-bats that didn’t go too well.”

The Mets, who have long since conceded on the season, which included trading away Max Scherzer, took advantage in the bottom of the frame. Not that they need much help. Aroldis Chapman failed to record an out and hit a batter to drive in the winning run.

The Rangers are trying to keep pace with the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros, who are tied for first in the AL West, but performances like Wednesday, especially in the clutch, don’t inspire much confidence. Playoff teams don’t let opportunities against lesser foes slip away with the regularity that Texas has shown recently.

The Mets are 12 games under .500. The Minnesota Twins and Arizona Diamondbacks – two other teams that have won series over Texas recently – aren’t exactly world beaters.

The Rangers want to be contenders. Scherzer recently called Texas a “great team.” That’s hard to fathom considering the results lately with the season hanging in the balance.

Sure the Rangers have injuries – All-Stars Nathan Eovaldi and Josh Jung are both out. But four other All-Stars remain, not to mention three-time Cy Young Award winner Scherzer. Maybe more help is needed, especially in the bullpen. Matt Moore would sure be a nice option.

But the Rangers should have enough to beat a Mets team with nothing to play for. The Mariners and Astros appear to be taking care of business on their end.

Texas, which opens a key homestand Friday against the Twins, should still make the playoffs. Eovaldi and Jung should be back relatively soon. But should a Wild Card berth and potential early postseason exit be deemed progress?

Maybe on paper. Still, it feels like an opportunity to be special is being lost.

You can follow Art Garcia on Twitter @ArtGarcia92.

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