The Rangers now cling to a one-game lead over both Seattle and Houston.
Smith wore it, but he was hardly the only problem. Josh Sborz, called on to start the eighth, allowed consecutive hits to tie the game. While Smith stared into his locker postgame at one end of the clubhouse, Sborz did the same at the other end.It was the Rangers’ 23rd blown save in 47 attempts this year. If you aren’t doing the math at home, it’s a 51.1% conversion rate. It ranks 27th of 30 teams in the majors. The only teams worse are all at least 25 games under .500.
For much of the season, Smith had been part of the solution, not the problem. He stepped into the closer’s role in April when José Leclerc and Jonathan Hernández failed. Bochy trusts Smith, who pitched for him in San Francisco. He’s got the mentality of a closer. But not the stuff. His fastball is below average, but he lives more on his secondary stuff. Thursday’s implosion demonstrated how risky that is. Both pitches were sliders. Both were located in almost the same spot. Left-handed hitting Max Kepler reached out and rolled over it for a double-play grounder. To right-handed pinch hitter Ryan Jeffers, though, it was in a perfect spot for him to turn on it.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Houston Heat: City of Houston to enter stage 2 of Drought Contingency Plan on SundayThe City of Houston will enter Stage 2 of its Drought Contingency Plan starting on Sunday. Water customers are urged to prevent the loss of water.
Read more »
Houston City Council approves funding for Houston Fire Department resource advancementsThe Houston City Council has approved the purchase of new vehicles and station upgrades for Station 101.
Read more »
Houston traffic: Loose spool blocks 2 inbound lanes of Katy Freeway at Houston Avenue bridgeHouston drivers are well-acquainted with these incidents in the past, but what's another one, right? See where exactly this is unfolding.
Read more »
Gallen y Pham guían a Diamondbacks a 5to triunfo seguido; 6-3 ante RangersZac Gallen repartió 11 ponches durante seis innings destacados, Alek Thomas realizó una atrapada espectacular con un lance en la zona de seguridad para el primer out del noveno episodio, y los Diamondbacks de Arizona derrotaron el martes 6-3 a los decaídos Rangers de Texas.
Read more »
Texas Rangers are not a team likely to panic, just look at Corey SeagerThe Rangers have lost six in a row. The American League West, which they led by five games at the start of July, is now essentially a three-team dead heat.
Read more »
Seattle visits Indiana after Mitchell's 28-point gameIndiana faces the Seattle Storm after Kelsey Mitchell scored 28 points in the Indiana Fever's 83-73 victory over the Phoenix Mercury.
Read more »