Once again, the Rangers snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, and avoid a sweep at home with a walk-off home run.
Evan Grant notes that this was the first walk-off homer of Young's career, and wonders if it might spark a turnaround for a club that appeared to be in bad shape most of the weekend.
Ron Washington certainly has to hope so, since, as Grant points out, another bad April may well cost him his job. Gil LeBreton seems to think the calls for Washington's head aren't entirely warranted, and says that for many who are criticizing Washington, his fatal flaws are that 1) he was hired by Jon Daniels, and 2) he isn't Trey Hillman.
LeBreton and Grant, though, both touch on the bad body language the team was exhibiting this weekend, the slump-shouldered attitude of defeat the players seemed to carry, and that's the sort of thing that does end up coming back, rightly or wrongly, on the manager.
Marlon Byrd says that the Rangers are expecting to win both of their series on the road this week...if that happens, they are going to be back in the A.L. West mix, where only the M's have a winning record right now.
Anthony Andro notes that one of the most significant things about yesterday's win was the beleaguered bullpen giving the Rangers four shutout innings, to keep the team in the game after Vicente Padilla's early departure. Andro also has a few other notes up, including Padilla mentioning that he's concerned about his lack of velocity, although he feels he is healthy.
Richard Durrett points out that the last time the Rangers finished out a series at home with a 1 run win against the Royals, Ron Washington's future was in doubt, and the team then went out and won 5 of 7 on the road to help right the ship and quiet the calls for Wash's head. Durrett has some quotes from Josh Hamilton in support of Washington, and regardless of the other issues the manager has, it seems pretty clear that the players support him.