– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
Follow @Koiki_Sport Follow @ALOST_Official
ARLINGTON, TEXAS — Remember the Texas Rangers, who were supposed to find their World Series form of two years ago but got out to such an uneven start that most observers had written them off as also-rans just about a month ago. You may want to check the object on the rearview mirror that’s going at a rate of knots given that the Rangers are one of the hottest teams in baseball and just completed a dominant homestand.
Jack Leiter allowed just two hits in six innings of work as the Rangers supported him by scoring all eight runs in the first three innings during their 8-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves to complete a three-game sweep inside Globe Life Field. Josh Smith had three hits, including a two-run homer in the second inning, as Texas moved a season-high six games above .500 while finishing up their nine-game homestand at 8-1.
Just three weeks ago, on July 7, the Rangers were 11 games back of the Houston Astros for first place in the American League West. After Sunday’s play, Texas is now just four games behind the Astros in first place while pulling into a tie for second place in the division — and for third-place in the Wild Card standings — with the Seattle Mariners.
Texas’ starters have been the bedrock for the team all season, keeping the Rangers floating around the .500 mark as the offense had floundered for the most part of the season, a development that prompted a chance at hitting coach last month. Leiter continued the dominance amongst the Texas starters, who sport an MLB-best 3.13 ERA, including an MLB-best 1.63 ERA (nine earned runs in 49 2/3 innings) in the second half.
“Winning is really fun,” Leiter said. “This was a great homestand. We had a good finish to the second half in Houston. The whole year, there’s never been panic on our side, I don’t think. Everybody’s got each other’s backs, and there’s a lot of good guys in the clubhouse. The vibes get better when we start winning more games. And we’ve been able to do that.”
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Sunday afternoon’s game, with photos taken by ALOST photo editor Ross James. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page. Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 24 pictures in total.
Follow @Koiki_Sport Follow @ALOST_Official
