Hamels delivers gem and Chirinos, Gallo go deep twice for Rangers

When somebody mentioned to Cole Hamels the other day that the Rangers were 5-10 before starting their 10-game homestand, his reaction pretty much summed up everything you need to know about the mental state of the clubhouse.

While not dismissing the information entirely, he genuinely had no clue other than where they stood in the standings. He was also genuinely unalarmed.

For a veteran such as Hamels and some of his older teammates, including Mike Napoli, Adrian Beltre and Elvis Andrus, the rough start was more a pesky annoyance than reason for concern.

Hamels, for example, has tended to start seasons a little slow and knows as well as anyone in the clubhouse how to ride the highs and lows of a 162-game season.

His performance in the Rangers’ 6-2 win over the Kansas City Royals at Globe Life Park on Friday night was a manifestation of that veteran savvy.

After allowing a run in the first inning, Hamels worked efficiently through the Royals, retiring 12 consecutive hitters between the first and fifth innings and holding the KC to three hits and two walks over eight innings.

It’s the first time a Rangers starter has thrown eight inning this season, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The Rangers’ bullpen was thin after using six relievers in Thursday’s 13-inning win.

“I think it was big for all those guys out in the bullpen,” Rangers manager Jeff Banister said. “Big night for Cole. He did a great job of playing on their aggressiveness. After [the first inning] he was very efficient with all of his pitches. He made an adjustment around the third inning and found a nice rhythm.”

Hamels stayed ahead of hitters for much of the night with first-pitch strikes, and used an effective changeup in the deeper innings.

“After the [first inning], he was throwing strikes, getting ahead of everybody, and when that happens with that kind of stuff it’s going to be a good night for him,” said catcher Robinson Chirinos, who, along with Joey Gallo, hit two home runs as they drove in five of the six runs.

“That’s kind of what you expect from that kind of guy. I think everybody knows the bullpen threw seven innings [Thursday].”

Gallo leads the club with five homers. His two-run shot in the second gave the Rangers a 3-1 lead. His solo homer in the fifth made it 5-1. He also heaped praise on Hamels.

“It’s fun to play defense and be behind a guy who is working like that, throwing strikes and working quick,” he said. “It definitely helps the offense out when you’re not standing in the field for 30 minutes.”

The Royals were had only two hits in their last 25 at-bats against Hamels, who improved to 1-0 and lowered his ERA to 2.77.

“I think guys now are in a better place to play baseball,” Hamels said before Thursday’s game. “We’ve been with each other for a couple weeks in the season, so we’re going to get in that rhythm. It’s back being in front of the crowd that we love, in front of Arlington.”

The Rangers have started the homestand 2-0 and shaken off their 3-6 road trip, just as the 33-year-old veteran predicted.

“I wanted to try and get really quick outs. Being able to do so, we were kind of able to get into a good rhythm for us as at the plate,” Hamels said.

“It’s always nice to be able to see what Chirinos and Gallo did. Man, I wish I could hit balls like that. They definitely put on a show. That was fun.”

This story was originally published April 21, 2017 at 11:15 PM with the headline "Hamels delivers gem and Chirinos, Gallo go deep twice for Rangers."