Reds Finish Off Sweep of Rangers
· Yahoo Sports
Things were going pretty well for the Texas Rangers when the 2026 MLB regular season recently kicked off. But they hit a skid over the weekend, losing three straight to the Cincinnati Reds at Globe Life Field.
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Their latest loss came on Sunday afternoon, when the Reds managed to eke out a 2-1 victory. Rangers starter Jack Leiter went five innings, allowing just four hits, one run, and striking out nine Reds hitters.
But the disconcerting part could be that the Rangers might be slipping back into their old behaviors from last season. Rangers beat reporter Kennedi Landry of MLB.com pointed out that MacKenzie Gore, Kumar Rocker, and Leiter really came through for the Rangers.
The offense, though, appeared to be MIA. That's a bit of a leftover from last season, Landry pointed out. In fact, Texas just scored four runs all weekend long, not really putting a dent in the idea that the Rangers were going to be different this season.
Designated hitter Joc Pederson hit a solo home run, accounting for the Rangers' lone run on Sunday.
"[Reds starter] Chase Burns has a really good arm, but I think we're a better offense than we showed,” Pederson said after the game. “There's no excuses. We still got to score some more runs.”
Rangers manager Skip Schumaker came into this season having a desire to change the mindset of his players.
Here's another Rangers statistic that will grab some attention. Texas has just scored two runs in the last 25 innings. They've gone 1-for-16 with runners in scoring position during that time as well.
"I thought, for the most part, the ABs were good against a really tough pitcher," Schumaker said. "We struck out a few times to get it, but we also had the chance to win, and that's all you can sign up for is giving yourself a chance to win every night.
"I felt like we had that in all three games in the series," Schumaker said. "We had a chance to win with traffic on bases, on the bases, and just didn't get that big hit.”
In the top of the fourth inning, the Reds' Eugenio Suárez hit an RBI single to center field. Reds phenom Elly De La Cruz scored, giving Cincinnati a 1-0 lead. Pederson answered in the seventh inning with his first home run this season, a shot to right field.
But, in the top of the eighth inning, De La Cruz single to right and brought home Matt McLain for a 2-1 Cincinnati lead.
The Rangers were trying to mount a rally in the bottom of the ninth, but Kyle Higashioka struck out with one out. Then, Sam Haggerty struck out on a foul tip to end the ballgame.
Texas now sits 4-5 for the season and heads out on a road trip. First stop for the Rangers is T-Mobile Park in Seattle. The Rangers go up against Cal Raleigh and the Seattle Mariners in a three-game series. Then, Texas goes down to Dodger Stadium for a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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