Josh Hamilton homered and delivered the tiebreaking sacrifice fly for the Texas Rangers in a 5-3 victory Friday night to snap Tampa Bay’s four-game winning streak.
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A pitching career that began at Arlington’s Martin High School and continued at Texas Tech University will come full circle with Karns’ first full season as a starter with Tampa Bay.
“The opportunity is definitely something I’ve dreamt about for a long time”, he told MLB’s official website.
On the other side, the Rays have a record of 29-32 when they are the underdog and are -41 overall with the money line. The 26-year-old permitted three runs over six innings without factoring in the decision against the New York Mets on Sunday and has notched 37 strikeouts in his last four starts. 327 for the Rangers.TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, Sun Sports (Tampa Bay), FSN Southwest (Texas)PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays RH Nathan Karns (7-5, 3.52 ERA) vs. Rangers LH Martin Perez (1-2, 5.81)Karns is unbeaten in his last four starts, recording three victories while allowing seven runs over 21 1/3 innings with 22 strikeouts and six walks. It’s his sixth this season… the Rangers won two review replay challenges in the same game for the first time this season.
Beltre scored and Moreland moved to 3rd, the place he simply scored on a single by Elvis Andrus.
“We needed that one, ” Moreland said.
The momentum would carry over into the eighth where the Rangers ultimately took the lead. Hamilton rejoined the lineup Friday after an MRI on his left knee showed no structural damage and celebrated by knocking in two runs, including the go-ahead tally, as the Rangers rallied for a 5-3 win.
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Having grown up in Arlington, Karns was excited to make his first “home” start, with 30 relatives and around 100 friends, former teammates and coaches expected in the stands. After going 0-2 with a 10.50 ERA in his first three outings, the left-hander has gone 1-0 with a 1.88 mark in his past two. Adrian Beltre grounded into a double player to score DeShields for the innings only run. 356 with three homers over his last 11 against Texas. 296 with 13 home runs while scoring 5.6 per game over its last seven. Cabrera is hitting. 500 (27-for-54) since July 28. He’s batting. 409 over his last six games. The shortstop has also gone 7 for 17 in his last four against the Rangers. A single from Desmond Jennings scored Cabrera.
