Thoughts on a 7-1 Rangers win

Rangers 7, Rays 1

• That was pretty sweet.
• It was a game that never really seemed close. Nathan Eovaldi was on from the get go, throwing strikes, mixing pitches, keeping things under control. The Rays didn’t get a runner as far as second base until the seventh inning, by which point the Rangers had already scored seven runs. Eovaldi almost made if a full seven, but a two out RBI single brought Bruce Bochy out and Josh Sborz into the game to retire the final batter of the seventh.
• 98 pitches, 8 Ks, 0 walks for Eovaldi. He looked like the guy who, early in the year, seemed like a Cy Young candidate. The Rangers got a pair of masterful performances from their two starters.
• Sborz retired all four batters he faced. Bochy went with Jose Leclerc in the ninth, even with a six run lead, because it’s a close out game and we aren’t fucking around here. Leclerc allowed a single and a double, but fanned the final two batters of the game, and there were celebrating Rangers on the field.
• Early on there was a sort of repeat of Tuesday’s game, with the Rangers having opportunities but not cashing them in. Corey Seager doubled in the first but was stranded. A one out Jonah Heim single in the second was followed up with a line drive by Leody Taveras which looked to be a double, but Yandy Diaz made a terrific snag, allowing him to double off Heim. The third started with a Josh Jung double and an Evan Carter walk, but a Semien GIDP followed by a Seager IBB brought up Robbie Grossman (third place hitter Robbie Grossman), who fanned.
• But it was just a matter of time. Adolis Garcia led off the fourth by taking Zach Eflin deep, making it 1-0. The with two outs, Leody singled, stole second, and came around to score on a Josh Jung triple. Evan Carter followed that up with a home run of his own, leading to his trending on Twitter and winning hearts and minds everywhere. 4-0, Texas.
• Texas scored a run on a ground out in the fifth, making it 5-0, then got doubles from Jung, Semien and Seager in the sixth to make it a 7-0 game. Everything was fun. Dogs were kissing cats. We were all happy.
• The rest of the way there was just a Nathaniel Lowe base hit and an Evan Carter HBP. Evan clearly felt it and got checked out while we all fretted about the Rays trying to hurt Our Favorite Rookie. He appeared to be fine and stayed in the game, in what was the tensest moment of the final couple of innings.
• Everyone in the lineup got a hit. Josh Jung had three extra base hits. Evan Carter reached three times.
• Texas dominated the two games. Texas outscored Tampa 11-1. Texas pitchers issued just one walk in 18 innings. The bats came alive.
• Let’s revel in the joy of a near perfect pair of games, a performance that sends Texas to the next round.
• Nathan Eovaldi topped out at 96.1 mph on his fastball, with an average fastball velocity of 95.1 mph. Josh Sborz hit 96.9 mph on his fastball. Jose Leclerc reached 98.3 mph on his sinker.
• Adolis Garcia’s home run was 108.7 mph off the bat, and he also had a 101.4 mph groundout. Josh Jung had a 107.7 mph double. Corey Seager had a 105.9 mph double and a 103.5 mph double. Nathaniel Lowe had a 104.1 mph lineout. Jonah Heim had a 103.1 mph single and a 100.6 mph fly out. Evan Carter’s home run was 102.5 mph. Leody Taveras had a 102.1 mph single. Marcus Semien had a 102.0 mph double.
• The Rangers win a playoff series for the fifth time in their history. On to Baltimore.