Rangers host Angels for a wild West finale

It all comes down to this. Four games for the American League West title.

The Texas Rangers host the Los Angeles Angels for a season-ending series at Globe Life Park, beginning Thursday night.

The Rangers (86-72) need two wins to clinch their first division title since 2011. The Angels (83-75) have to sweep the Rangers to have any chance of winning the division. If Texas wins just one of the four games, Los Angeles would finish a game behind. The Angels have won 10 of 15 against the Rangers this season.

The Houston Astros (84-75) are off Thursday before finishing with a three-game series at the Arizona Diamondbacks. If Houston sweeps, the best they can finish is 87-75. If the Rangers win just once against the Angels (and the Astros sweep the DBacks), then Texas and Houston would meet for a one-game tie-breaker to decide the division. That game would be played at Globe Life Park on Monday. The loser would earn the second wild-card spot.

The Angels have won seven of their past eight games but lost Wednesday night to fall a half-game back of the Astros and three back of the Rangers in the West. The Astros beat Seattle late Wednesday.

“I’m not surprised by anybody. Heck, I bet a lot of people are surprised that we’re in first place,” said Rangers pitcher Derek Holland, who starts Thursday’s game against the Angels. “We have to worry about ourselves. If we go out there and we win then we control our own destiny, we don’t have to worry about theirs.”

That’s true. The Rangers, who have a magic number of two, don’t have to worry about the math if they take care of business. Texas clinches the West title with any combination of wins and Astros’ losses that equals two. The soonest the Rangers could clinch would be Friday night. That would require the Rangers to beat the Angels Thursday and Friday. They could also beat the Angels Thursday, lose Friday and still clinch if the Astros lose late on Friday in Arizona.

Rangers’ doomsday scenario

If the Angels swept the Rangers and the Astros swept the Diamondbacks the Rangers would be left holding their rosin bags while Houston and Los Angeles would play a tie-breaker game for the division. The loser would earn the second wild-card spot.

“They’re a pretty dangerous team. They have a lot of experience and have good pitching,” Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus said of the Angels. “We know the last four games are going to be as exciting as the past week. We’re still in first place and we have the future in our hands and that’s all we can ask. Hopefully, playing games like this will help us in the playoffs.”

A look at the Rangers-Angels pitching matchups (with TV):

Thursday: LHP Derek Holland (3-3, 4.99) vs. LHP Andrew Heaney (6-3, 3.29), 7:05 p.m. (FSSW)

Friday: LHP Martin Perez (3-6, 4.77) vs. RHP Jered Weaver (7-12, 4.76), 7:05 p.m. (FSSW/ESPN)

Saturday: RHP Colby Lewis (17-9, 4.53) vs. LHP Hector Santiago (9-9, 3.52), 12:05 p.m. (KDFW/Ch. 4)

Sunday: LHP Cole Hamels (12-8, 3.72) vs. RHP Nick Tropeano (3-2, 3.82), 2:05 p.m. (FSSW/TBS)

This story was originally published October 1, 2015 at 2:27 AM with the headline "Rangers host Angels for a wild West finale."