Thoughts on a 15-2 Rangers win

Rangers 15, Yankees 2

• Hard to think of a better way to head into an off day, huh?
• Jump out to an early lead on a first inning grand slam, have your starter cruise, then put up a couple of big innings in the middle innings to turn it into a laugher.
• This was the 28th game of the season for the Rangers — Saturday’s game got them to the one-sixth mark of the year. 12 of those 28 games qualify as blowouts according to B-R’s definition of winning by 5+ runs. Texas is 8-4 in those games.
• The Rangers have scored in double digits in 7 of their 28 games — 25%.
• Today was the 10th time they allowed the opposing team to score exactly 2 runs. They’ve allowed their opponent to score two or fewer runs 14 times this season — 50% of the time.
• As you have no doubt seen already, the team’s +72 run differential is the best through 28 games for any team in Ranger history. It is second in MLB this year, behind the Tampa Bay Rays.
• Martin Perez went six innings. He only threw 70 pitches — however, he said in the post game that the bottom of the sixth lasted so long that they didn’t want to send him back out there after sitting all that time and his arm getting cold.
• I have to say, of all the reasons for your starter to leave a game after 70 pitches, “The offense had such a big inning that he sat too long and it was such a big lead it didn’t matter anyway at that point” is probably qualitatively the best reason.
• It was such a big lead that both Ian Kennedy and Yerry Rodriguez got to pitch. Kennedy was fine. Yerry got the first two outs in the ninth, allowed a weak infield single, walked a batter, gave up a single to our old friend IKF (raising his season line to .200/.245/.200), then walked in a run. Walking in a run in a 14 run game with two outs in the ninth is the sort of thing that vexes a manager, I think.
• But Yerry struck out Aaron Hicks to end it, so all ended well.
• Cole Ragans got an inning as well, his first outing since that disastrous 8th inning in Cincinnati five days ago. He was quick and efficient and good,
• That ugly eighth was five days ago. Feels longer, doesn’t it?
• To take it a step further…72 hours ago everyone was freaking out after losing the opener to the Yankees, extending the losing streak to four games. Yes, that was just 72 hours ago. Time is a funny thing.
• Texas scored 15 runs but only had 11 hits. Eight walks certainly helped in that regard.
• Lots of XBHs helps in that regard as well. Along with Josh Jung’s first inning grand slam, there were also homers by Jonah Heim, Adolis Garcia and Nathaniel Lowe. Heim also had two doubles, Jung had a double, and Sandy Leon, who came in for Heim in the late innings, chipped in a double.
• So I have concluded that lots of walks and lots of extra base hits is a winning formula.
• Martin Perez threw a four seamer that hit 94.0 mph. Ian Kennedy reached 93.8 mph. Cole Ragans maxed out at 98.0 mph. Yerry Rodriguez hit 99.7 mph.
• Jonah Heim’s homer was 106.3 mph, and he had a 103.0 exit velocity on a double. Josh Jung’s homer was 101.1 mph, his double was 103.5 mph, and he had a 99.6 mph fly out. Nathaniel Lowe’s bomb matched Jung’s at 101.1 mph, and he had a 100.0 fly out. Adolis Garcia’s home run was 103.5 mph. Ezequiel Duran had a 105.9 mph single. Sandy Leon’s double was 102.4 mph.
• The Rangers remain in sole possession of first place. I’m continuing to enjoy this novel sensation.