FORT WORTH (CBSNewsTexas.com) – As bad as Sunday was for the Cowboys, it was so, so good for the Rangers.
They went into Baltimore and did what no team has done to the best team in the American League all season — they swept two games at Camden Yards.
Literally and figuratively, it turned into a walk in Orioles Park on Sunday when Rangers hitters patiently coaxed 11 walks out of Baltimore pitchers. Corey Seager, the leading “first pitch” hitter in baseball, set a major league postseason record with five walks in one game.
Veteran designated hitter Mitch Garver made the Orioles pay for three straight base on balls in the third inning by slugging a grand slam home run to give Texas an insurmountable 9-2 lead.
Baltimore did make it somewhat interesting in the ninth inning when Aaron Hicks cut a six-run lead in half with a three-run homer off Jose Leclerc, but the new Rangers closer preserved the 11-8 win.
So, a Rangers team that has been on the road for 14 straight days comes home needing just one win to advance to its third American League Championship Series in club history.
Staff ace Nathan Eovaldi, who won the decisive Game 2 of the Wild Card Series at Tampa Bay, is coming off his best start since suffering a strained right forearm muscle in July and will start Tuesday night’s Game 3.
It figures to be a glorious night for baseball with game time temperatures in the upper 70s and no rain in the forecast, which will allow for the roof to be open for the first Rangers postseason game at Globe Life Field. First pitch is set for 7:03 p.m.
If needed, Game 4 is scheduled for Wednesday at 6:07 p.m. And, if the Orioles win two games here, the series would shift back to Baltimore for Game 5 on Friday night.
Rangers fans should not be overconfident. The last time Texas owned a 2-0 lead in a Division Series was in 2015 against Toronto. That year the Blue Jays came to Arlington, won two straight, and then took Game 5 in Toronto.
