The Rangers' secret weapon against the Dodgers was a delightful (and necessary) surprise

Lina Portman3 weeks ago

0 1 minute read

There was a lot on the line for the Texas Rangers heading into their series with the Dodgers. The Rangers struggled, especially on offense, and injuries continued to pile up, including Corey Seager's lingering hamstring issue. However, Texas defied all odds and managed to win the series after winning 3-1 in Los Angeles on Thursday.

Even without Seager in the lineup, a lot of things went right for the Rangers on Thursday. Wyatt Langford showed off his game-breaking athleticism with a pair of hits, two stolen bases and two RBIs. Josh Smith, Marcus Semien and Adolis Garcia also did a good job setting the table at the top of the lineup.

However, the Rangers were able to win the Series not because of their offense, but because their beleaguered pitching staff stepped up considerably, including two standout performances from Michael Lorenzen and David Robertson.

It's safe to say that Texas must be tickled by the way Lorenzen has pitched for them after signing him late in the offseason. Thursday night was no exception, as Lorenzen went seven solid innings and allowed just one run against a Los Angeles team that is among the best in baseball. With this outing, Lorenzen has now allowed two or fewer earned runs in his last five starts. The lack of strikeouts could be a problem in the future, but it's hard to argue with his results.

As for Robertson, he proved to be the kryptonite of Los Angeles' best hitters as Thursday marked the second straight day he came out of the bullpen and struck out Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman – a feat foolish. Robertson has been doing well since the Rangers signed him to a one-year deal last offseason, but his performance against Los Angeles gives hope that he could be an anchor for a turnaround this season.

Combining the exploits of Lorenzen and Robertson with the game Texas had to pitch on Wednesday (Jon Gray was limited to three innings), the Rangers' pitching staff showed up when they needed it most. Don't look at how the first game of the series went. We'll pretend it never happened.