Rangers recap: Yankees power way to series-opening win

The New York Yankees slugged two homers off Texas Rangers starter Matt Harrison to power their way to a 6-2 series-opening win at Globe Life Park on Monday.

Pitching: The Yankees responded with three runs in the top of the third after the Rangers had taken a 2-0 lead. Didi Gregorius’ two-run homer to right tied it and Brendan Ryan followed with a triple to the left field corner. He scored on Chris Young’s sacrifice fly to left to give New York a 3-2 lead. Matt Harrison got out of the inning with a 5-4-3 double play off the bat of Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez added to the lead with a line drive opposite field homer to right in the sixth to make it 4-2. The Yankees added two more in the seventh after Harrison walked Carlos Beltran to start the inning, followed by a Chase Headley double. Sam Freeman replaced Harrison to face Gregorius, who blooped the first pitch for a two-run single into shallow right to score both to make it 6-2.

Hitting: The Rangers struck first with a two-out rally in the second. Josh Hamilton singled and scored on Elvis Andrus’ double to the left field corner. Andrus scored on Leonys Martin’s single up the middle to give Texas a 2-0 lead. Texas has the bases loaded with one out in the fourth but Leonys Martin tapped to first for a force out at home and Robinson Chirinos grounded out to short.

Notable: Martin was 1 for his last 22 with runners in scoring position before a run-scoring single in the second ... Rodriguez hit his sixth-career homer on his birthday. He turned 40 on Monday.

This story was originally published July 27, 2015 at 10:11 PM with the headline "Rangers recap: Yankees power way to series-opening win."