Mitch Moreland homers twice again as Rangers beat Orioles

In the end, the Texas Rangers held true to their word that Joey Gallo’s first big league stint would be only temporary, and Round 1 came to an end Tuesday afternoon.

Maybe when he comes back for Round 2, he can be as good as Mitch Moreland has been over the first two games at Camden Yards.

Moreland connected for two home runs, both two-run shots, for the second straight game, and the Rangers hit four homers for the second straight game as they beat the Baltimore Orioles for a second straight game, 8-6.

Shin-Soo Choo connected for the second straight game, as did a Rangers catcher. This time, it was Robinson Chirinos.

Rangers manager Jeff Banister wants the offense to be able to score without the long ball, but he’s not going to give back the runs when one is hit.

“There’s no defense for a home run,” Banister said. “I like to see it. They’re quick runs. The fact is some of the walks we were capable of getting and we’ll take the singles when we can get them. But those walks and singles lead to those home runs. When they come, we’ll take them. I’m not going to say anything bad about them.”

Moreland is the eighth player in Rangers history to have back-to-back multi-homer games and the third in the majors this season, joining probable National League All-Stars Bryce Harper and Todd Frazier.

His two two-run shots countered the two two-run shots Chris Davis hit for Baltimore. Davis is with the Orioles because the Rangers believed in 2011 that Moreland was their first baseman of the future.

Moreland, though, struggled in past seasons while dealing with injuries and inconsistency. This season he leads the Rangers with 14 homers, is batting .305, has hits in 33 of his past 39 games and is injury-free.

All it took was for Moreland to trust himself rather than make regular swing adjustments as groans from outsiders mounted. The tweaking has stopped, and he has realized that what has helped him be successful in the past works just fine.

“The biggest thing is I’m trying to go up there and keep it simple,” said Moreland, who thought his second homer was just a routine fly ball. “You can complicate it really quick because there are some outside distractions. Everybody’s criticizing you. It doesn’t matter who it is.

“You’ve got to know yourself as a player and know what you’re trying to do at the plate. It’s not going to work every day. You’ve got to be able to take the bumps and keep moving forward, and trust in yourself is the biggest thing.”

Said Banister, on Monday: “If anybody has been stubborn with their approach all year long, Mitch has been that guy. He has been rewarded. Anytime that you can stay with your approach, it’s doing to give you consistency.”

The Rangers want Gallo to stick with his approach after he was optioned to Triple A Round Rock to make room on the 25-man roster for Josh Hamilton, who was reinstated from the 15-day disabled list and collected two singles.

Beltre came back last week, Hamilton was back in the lineup, and Gallo was sent back to the minors to continue to develop into an everyday major leaguer.

That might not take very long after a first stint that was complete with big swings that connected, many that didn’t find their target, and a first impression that left its mark.

“He’s a highly talented guy, and I believe he’s going to be a superstar in the big leagues,” Beltre said. “I don’t think that he’ll stay in the minor leagues very long. He’s going to be up here helping us win ballgames. He’s just that talented.”

Gallo, 21, batted .218 (19 for 87) with five homers, 13 RBIs, 11 walks and 43 strikeouts in 25 games after being promoted from Double A.

The Rangers turned an experiment in the outfield into regular duty there. Gallo played 10 of his 25 games in the outfield, including one start in center field, after playing only six games in left field in the minors.

The objective now is for Gallo to take all that he learned in one month and apply it at Round Rock. He knows he needs to reduce his 50-percent strikeout rate and be better with two strikes, and he can accomplish that by remembering how pitchers attacked him and taking the advice he was given by Rangers veterans.

Gallo, who was scheduled to depart Tuesday night to join Round Rock at Iowa, is ready for the next challenge.

This story was originally published June 30, 2015 at 10:56 PM with the headline "Mitch Moreland homers twice again as Rangers beat Orioles."