ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Martín Pérez retired all 16 batters after taking a 97 mph liner off his right leg, lowering his majors-leading ERA with seven scoreless innings in the Texas Rangers’ 3-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night.
Corey Seager homered for Texas’ first hit in the fourth inning, with Adolis García adding a two-run shot two batters later as the Rangers won for the first sixth time in seven games and reached .500 (24-24) for the first time this season.
Pérez needed a few minutes to recover after Taylor Walls’ scorching infield single in the second. The left-hander stayed in, got Vidal Bruján to fly out with two runners on and pitched five perfect innings from there.
John King pitched a perfect eighth inning, and Joe Barlow did the same in the ninth for his ninth save as the Rangers retired the final 22 batters.
The 31-year-old Pérez is in his second stint with the team that signed him as a teenager out of Venezuela. He extended the longest active streak in the majors without allowing a homer to 66 1/3 innings.
With his eighth consecutive start allowing no more than one earned run, Perez dropped his ERA to 1.42. He has allowed a total of four earned runs over 55 1/3 innings since giving up three in each of his first two starts, both of his losses.
Perez (4-2) struck out five with no walks in his first start against the Rays since they homered off him three times when he was with Boston last season in a 7-3 Tampa Bay win.
Randy Arozarena, Yandy Díaz and Mike Zunino went deep in that game last July in Florida. Those three managed just a single from Díaz in eight at-bats against Perez, and Zunino had two of his three strikeouts.
Ryan Yarbrough (0-2) gave up six hits and three runs in 6 2/3 innings. He hit Josh Smith with a pitch twice a day after Smith had three hits in his major league debut.
