Thoughts on an 18-3 Rangers win

Rangers 18, A’s 3

• Friday’s game was great for an inning, and sucktacular the rest of the way.
• This game was sucktacular for a half inning, and then great the rest of the way.
• Look, in the top of the first, I was expecting another fiasco. A leadoff ground rule double of the foul line that it looked like Adolis Garcia should have been able to get to, followed by a single, a HBP, and a walk, and I was gearing up mentally for another cursed game against the A’s. Bases loaded, no one out, one run in, first inning, Andrew Heaney showing shaky command.
• A sac fly made it 2-0. I was blaming the City Connects, even after a GIDP ended the inning. This shorthanded offense wasn’t going to do anything, I was sure.
• And I was wrong.
• Two runs in the bottom of the first. Five runs in the second. Four more in the third. It quickly became a blowout, one that would could enjoy and revel in for most of the game.
• Adolis Garcia led the charge, of course. Three homers, two doubles, and a HBP. Eight RBIs. His 16 total bases was second best in a single game for a Ranger, behind Josh Hamilton’s 18 in Josh’s four homer game. It was one of the best single game offensive performances you will ever see.
• Adolis had gotten off to a slow start, though the slow start is no more. His OPS jumped from 642 to 877 by the end of the game.
• Every Ranger starter got a hit except for Brad Miller. Miller was 0 for 5, though in his final at bat it looked like he might have taken James Kaprielian deep. Sadly, the fly ball to right died just short of the wall.
• Even Josh Sborz got to hit. Since Miller moved from DH to first base for the eighth inning, allowing Nathaniel Lowe the rest of the night off, the Rangers lost the DH and Sborz had to hit in Lowe’s spot. Sborz faced Jace Peterson, normally an infielder, though he had instructions not to swing and ended up with a backwards K.
• Andrew Heaney topped out at 93.6 mph with his fastball, averaging 92.0 mph. Ian Kennedy hit 92.4 mph. Josh Sborz reached 96.9 mph.
• Adolis Garcia’s big night saw him register 109.1 and 108.1 mph on two of his homers, and 107.3 mph on one of the doubles. The other homer was 99.8 mph, and the other double was 96.8 mph. Ezequiel Duran had a 109.3 mph single, while his home run was 100.3 mph. Jonah Heim had a fly out at 104.1 mph, while Travis Jankowski had a 103.5 mph single. Josh Jung had a 101.8 mph single. Josh Smith had a 100.2 mph single.
• That got the taste of the Friday night loss out of our mouths. Now to win the series on Sunday.