Texas
Final thoughts from Texas Rangers’ fifth straight loss: A light at the end of the tunnel?
ARLINGTON – Buried deep beneath the rubble of their fifth straight loss, perhaps the heartbeat of the Rangers’ offense started to beat once again Tuesday.
Adolis García’s bat has been located.
García homered and doubled in the Rangers’ 7-4 loss to Cleveland. It was double his previous total for the first two weeks of May in which he had a lone double. He hadn’t homered since April 28. He was in a bad way with 11 strikeouts in 21 at-bats over the previous five games. As he is prone to do, García was in a stretch of chasing fastballs out of the zone. And the deeper the funk of the Rangers’ offense became, the more García tried to do, which only exacerbated the problem.
“He’s been trying too hard,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy had said before the game. “And when things aren’t going well, he can get a little down on himself because he wants to help the team. He’s set the bar pretty high for who he is.”
Though García is so physically imposing, he is at his best when he doesn’t try to overpower fastballs, particularly those above the strike zone. When he falls into that habit, an extended slump can follow. He went through a stretch like this late last year. He does his most damage on secondary stuff. Both his homer and double came on sliders from Ben Lively and Scott Barlow. On the homer, it’s worth noting that Lively had tried to get García to chase with three straight fastballs either wide of or above the zone. García did not swing.
It’s also worth noting that with García’s homer in the second and Corey Seager’s in the third, it marked the first time this year the Rangers’ best homer-hitting duo both homered in the same game. If Seager and García get hot at the same time, the offense becomes exponentially better.
Alright, that said, here are some other VERY IMPORTANT observations from the Rangers’ loss Tuesday:
Best silver lining: Jack Leiter’s loss was a chance for others to gain, namely Jonathan Hernández and Yerry Rodriguez, both of whom were called on to pitch multiple innings. Both have struggled with command and to come out of the gate firing their best stuff. Bruce Bochy has all but begged for them to step up.
Granted, coming in with a big deficit is the definition of low leverage, but both were very effective. Rodriguez especially so. He entered the game throwing 97 mph, compared to 95 mph over the weekend in Denver. Bochy had mentioned the need for him to bring his max velocity with him rather than needing a hitter or two to ramp up.
Pitched four hitless innings, allowing only a hit batter who was then erased on a double play. Even made a nice reaction on a hard-hit comebacker off his glove that knocked his hat clean off his head.
“When you are aggressive and attack the zone, good things happen,” Bochy said. “We need these guys to step up. And they did.”
Worst prediction: The Rangers are going to need a relief arm to boost the bullpen on Wednesday. There is only one healthy reliever on the 40-man roster, lefty Antoine Kelly. Put those factors together and it’s easy to believe Kelly will be the callup. He might be, but here’s why he might not: Kelly, who returned from a three-week stint on the IL just 10 days ago, still hasn’t pitched two full innings and hasn’t pitched on consecutive days.
Think the Rangers either need somebody who can go two-plus innings or somebody who can pitch on consecutive days. Think it makes it just as likely that either veteran Shaun Anderson or Gerson Garabito, signed to a minor league contract this winter after pitching the last two seasons in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic, would be added. It would force the Rangers to create a spot on the 40-man roster. Reliever Austin Pruitt (knee) would seemingly be easy enough to move to the 60-day IL since he’s not even around the team right.
So, if I’m making a prediction for who replaces Jack Leiter in the short-term on the 26-man roster, I’m as inclined to go with Anderson or Garabito as I am with Kelly.
Worst collision: The collision between Cleveland shortstop Brayan Rocchio and center fielder Ty Freeman was hard to watch. From the summit of the Globe, you could see the two converging on Adolis García’s pop to shallow center in the fifth and you kept thinking ‘’uh, nobody’s slowing down.”
Rocchio hit Freeman in the face with his extended glove and also in the elbow with his own face. Both crumpled to the ground. I was sure somebody had a broken jaw. Honestly, was also amazed that Freeman held on to the ball. And more amazed that after being visited by athletic trainers, both stayed in the game. It was scary and about as solid contact between two players as I’ve seen in some time.
Freeman took a beating Tuesday, getting hit twice by pitches and also making a diving catch in center field.
Worst stretch: Final score from Colorado this week: Stars 9, Rangers 6. Which tells you something about both teams, just how well the Stars played in Denver and just how poorly the Rangers did.
Worst sign of the apocalypse: When I got home from the ballpark, did another check of Ebay, just to see what people were seeking for Corey Seager World Series replica rings. Mind you: This is a replica. The stones are not real. The metal is not gold. It is a replica. It says so on the box. There were people on Ebay asking for $800 and $1,200 for their rings. Granted, they included “or best offer” in their ads. The going rate appeared to be about $125 a pop from what I saw. This was two hours after the game ended. What a racket.
Twitter: @Evan_P_Grant
Find more Rangers coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
Click or tap here to sign up for our Rangers newsletter.
Texas
Texas A&M to be without star guard Wade Taylor IV against Alabama
Texas A&M will be without its leading scorer for this weekend’s top-10 matchup against Alabama. The Aggies listed senior point guard Wade Taylor IV as out in its SEC-mandated availability report on Friday night.
Meanwhile, Alabama will be without backup guard Houston Mallette, who was listed as out for the matchup against Texas A&M. Earlier on Friday, Alabama head coach Nate Oats said Mallette is having his knees evaluated as the team decides whether or not to sit him for the rest of the season and apply for a medical redshirt.
Taylor leads Texas A&M in both scoring (15.7 points per game) and assists (4.8 per game. The 6-foot, 180-pound senior has scored in double digits in all of his 13 games this season. During Texas A&M’s 100-75 loss at Alabama last year, the Tide held Taylor to 10 points and five rebounds on 4 of 15 shooting, including 2 of 5 from beyond the arc.
According to a report from KWKT FOX 44, Taylor experienced knee tightness during Texas A&M’s 80-60 win over Texas on Jan. 4. The guard left for the locker room during the second half against the Longhorns but was able to return to action, finishing with 13 points on 25 minutes. Taylor did not play during the Aggies’ 80-78 win over Oklahoma on Wednesday. He was replaced by senior Manny Obaseki in the starting lineup.
With Taylor out, Texas A&M leaned on senior guard Zhuric Phelps, who scored a career-high 34 points against Oklahoma, making 11 of 25 shots from the floor, including 6 of 10 from beyond the arc.
Alabama (13-2, 2-0 in the SEC) is set to tip off against Texas A&M (13-2, 2-0) on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT inside Reed Arena in College Station, Texas. The game will be televised on ESPN.
Texas
Revisiting the three prior meetings between Ohio State and Texas
On Friday night, two of college football’s iconic programs will meet with a spot in the College Football Playoff National Championship game on the line.
The Ohio State Buckeyes and Texas Longhorns have their fingerprints all over the sport’s history yet somehow have squared off only three times.
A Fiesta Bowl meeting after the 2008 season. A home-and-home series in 2005 and 2006. That’s all the history the Buckeyes and Longhorns share on the gridiron — until they take the field in the CFP Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Friday.
Here’s how each of those three matchups played out.
Jan. 5, 2009: Texas 24, Ohio State 21
Although the 2009 Fiesta Bowl experienced a low-scoring first 30 minutes (the Buckeyes led 6-3 at halftime), the fourth quarter offered an ending to remember.
First, Ohio State roared back into the lead with 17 unanswered points after entering the final period trailing 17-6. With just two minutes to respond, Texas put together an impressive 11-play drive that culminated in quarterback Colt McCoy finding wide receiver Quan Cosby for the winning touchdown with 16 seconds remaining.
The McCoy and Cosby connection dominated all game, with the pair linking up 14 times for 171 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Sept. 9, 2006: Ohio State 24, Texas 7
McCoy’s first encounter with Ohio State wasn’t as pleasant as the Fiesta Bowl.
In a battle of the then-No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the land, it was the top-ranked Buckeyes who made an early-season statement against the defending national champion Longhorns on the road in Austin. Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith, who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy that season, threw for 269 yards and two touchdowns as the Buckeyes scored in all four quarters of the win.
Sept. 10, 2005: Texas 25, Ohio State 22
The first meeting between the Longhorns and Buckeyes came with nearly the same high billing as the 2006 contest, with the two squads squaring off as the No. 2 and No. 4 teams in the country, respectively.
As in 2006, it was the higher-ranked visiting side that came out on top, although the game itself proved to be much closer. Texas jumped out to an early 10-0 lead, but Ohio State battled back and eventually entered halftime, and then the fourth quarter, ahead.
Said final quarter, however, belonged to the Longhorns. Quarterback Vince Young’s 24-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Limas Sweed proved to be the winner, with Texas adding some insurance in the game’s final moments with a safety-inducing sack of Troy Smith in the end zone.
The top-five win was the Longhorns’ first major statement in a campaign that would end with a national championship.
Texas
Hazardous road conditions expected as North Texas snow event ends Friday morning
NORTH TEXAS – This week’s snow event will end with a “few flurries” during Friday’s morning commute, according to CBS News Texas meteorologist Jeff Ray.
“But roads will have frozen over,” Ray said.
Expect hazardous road conditions in the morning, as it will be “the worst” the roads have been since the event started on Thursday morning, Ray said.
Late in the morning, temperatures will rise above freezing, which will “help drivers get around the Metroplex,” Ray said.
A cold front is expected Friday, he said.
“We are going to have wind chills in the 20s all day,” Ray said. “By nightfall on Friday, temperatures will drop quickly and water will re-freeze on the roads across the evening. This ice will remain until mid-morning on Saturday before the sun and warmer temperatures in the mid-40s clear the roadways.”
CBS News Texas will continue to provide updates as information becomes available.
-
Business1 week ago
These are the top 7 issues facing the struggling restaurant industry in 2025
-
Culture1 week ago
The 25 worst losses in college football history, including Baylor’s 2024 entry at Colorado
-
Sports1 week ago
The top out-of-contract players available as free transfers: Kimmich, De Bruyne, Van Dijk…
-
Politics1 week ago
New Orleans attacker had 'remote detonator' for explosives in French Quarter, Biden says
-
Politics1 week ago
Carter's judicial picks reshaped the federal bench across the country
-
Politics6 days ago
Who Are the Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom?
-
Health5 days ago
Ozempic ‘microdosing’ is the new weight-loss trend: Should you try it?
-
World1 week ago
Ivory Coast says French troops to leave country after decades