Rangers relieved to top Astros, scratch back to .500

Here’s one takeaway after two games this week between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros: If there’s a game to be played, either high-scoring or low, it’s going to be a long one.

Here’s another: The Rangers have pushed themselves back to .500 and pushed their way back into contention for one of the two American League wild-card spots.

Granted, they have 56 games left to play and four teams to jump, but the Rangers are trending the right way after a 4-3 victory Tuesday night and are doing the things they need to stay in the postseason race.

“We were asked that question early on when we got back to .500 the first time —.500 is not where we want to be,” manager Jeff Banister said. “It’s just a number that we’ve got to get to to go where we want to go.

“It’s significant in a sense that it’s a game we had to play tonight against a tough opponent, a team that’s in first place in our division. We needed to put a foot down and play quality games.”

The victory, their third straight and their sixth in seven games, included enough starting pitching to win, production throughout the lineup, and, believe it or not, scoreless work from the bullpen.

Naturally, that wasn’t easy, but closer Shawn Tolleson got three straight outs in the ninth inning to strand the tying run at third base and post a fourth straight zero from a bullpen that entered the game with the worst ERA in the majors.

“We’re not perfect, but we grow up and we make pitches,” Banister said.

The Astros scored runs in the second and third against Yovani Gallardo, who again struggled with his command and worked at a deliberate pace but found ways to limit the damage.

He ran out of pitches in the sixth, when Carlos Gomez opened with a homer and Carlos Correa followed with a walk, but Gallardo exited with the 4-3 lead.

Sam Freeman had the toughest assignment, replacing Gallardo (8-9) and surrendering a single to Preston Tucker. After striking out Evan Gattis, Freeman walked Colby Rasmus to load the bases with one out.

Freeman, though, got Luis Valbuena to pop out to left field in a lefty-vs.-lefty situation, and Marwin Gonzalez bounced to third to end the Astros’ threat.

“What a gutsy performance by Sam,” Banister said.

Tolleson, working for the sixth time in seven games, walked Rasmus to start the ninth, and Valbuena’s shift-beating singled move Rasmus to third with no outs. But that’s as far as he got.

Marwin Gonzalez followed with a sharp grounder that first baseman Mitch Moreland plucked for one out, freezing Rasmus at third, and Tolleson struck out Jason Castro and Altuve for his 20th save.

“It’s a comfort to know that you have a pitcher on the mound that really doesn’t get rattled,” Banister said. “He’s shown all year long that he’s in control of the moment, and he’s got pitches and he’s got command. I felt comfortable, even with the first-and-third situation, that he would go make quality [pitches]. He did.”

With the Rangers down 2-0 in the fourth, Prince Fielder opened with a homer off Dan Straily, and Texas scored three times in the fifth. Chris Gimenez opened with a single and stole second on the next pitch on a play in which a sign might have been missed.

Delino DeShields followed with a triple over Rasmus’ head in right field to tie the game, and Rougned Odor delivered an RBI single for a 3-2 lead.

After consecutive fielder’s choices, the second as Adrian Beltre beat out the back end of a potential inning-ending double play, Moreland walked and Josh Hamilton dumped an RBI single in front of Rasmus.

The bullpen, believe it or not, did the rest. Naturally, it wasn’t easy.

“They did a great job today,” Gallardo said. “They picked me up, that’s for sure, especially there in the sixth inning. There are a lot of guys who can pitch back there.

This story was originally published August 4, 2015 at 11:24 PM with the headline "Rangers relieved to top Astros, scratch back to .500."