Rangers win again with Napoli in left field

Once again, the good and the bad of Mike Napoli playing left field were on display in a Texas Rangers stretch-drive game, all within a matter of minutes at O.co Coliseum.

The good won out Tuesday night. Again.

Napoli was in left field for the sixth time against a left-handed starter rather than at first base so that Mitch Moreland could be in the lineup. The theory is that the Rangers’ lineup is stretched out, more difficult to pitch to and better equipped to score runs.

The defense? The Rangers are willing to risk it.

Moreland took care of a costly Napoli error in left field by swatting a game-tying two-run homer in the sixth, and the Rangers collected four sacrifice flies in an 8-6 victory over Oakland that stretched their lead in the American League West to two games.

A lefty is scheduled to start for the A’s on Wednesday. Napoli, it seems, will be back in the outfield.

“We continue to evaluate it,” manager Jeff Banister said. “Again, if Nap’s not in left field, he’s probably at first base and Mitch isn’t in that situation. Against these left-handers we need to get all our bats in the lineup.”

It’s hard to argue with the numbers. Napoli has started seven games in left field, including one against a right-hander. The Rangers are 6-1, 5-1 against lefties, and have scored 58 runs.

Moreland said that he has found a rhythm knowing that he’s going to be in the lineup against lefties after sitting against most of them after Napoli was acquired Aug. 7.

The offense has, too, doing all it can to muster up runs.

“I like to say that we’ve been able to put some runs on the board,” Moreland said. “It stretches it out a little more and gives us more firepower all the way through. It’s been a good run.”

Four relievers combined on four scoreless innings in relief of Martin Perez, who allowed five runs and saw each of the three batters he walked score, before Shawn Tolleson yielded a run in the ninth. Chi Chi Gonzalez (4-5) earned his first career relief win with two scoreless innings.

“Chi Chi in relief doing what he did tonight was the biggest key for us,” Banister said.

But it didn’t look good for the Rangers after the A’s scored three times in the second to erase a first-inning RBI single by Adrian Beltre and added another run in the fourth.

The Rangers scored two in the fifth, on sacrifice flies by Shin-Soo Choo and Beltre, but Oakland scored an unearned run in its half of the fifth after a miscue by Napoli.

Brett Lawrie was a third with two outs when Josh Reddick sent a high flyball down the left-field line. Napoli ran into position, but the ball popped out of his glove and Lawrie ran home for 5-3 lead.

“I’ve got to catch that ball,” Napoli said. “I’m going to keep working at it. That’s all I can do. I’m not going to give up on it.”

Napoli, though, legged out an infield hit to start the sixth, and Moreland followed with a blast to center field to forge a 5-5 tied. The homer was Moreland’s team-best 23rd of the season, matching his career-high, and it resulted in a warm hug from Napoli.

“I didn’t think I could love Mitch Moreland any more, but it happened tonight,” Napoli said.

The Rangers tacked on another run in the sixth, on a Delino DeShields sacrifice fly, and scored two more in the eighth on an RBI single by Rougned Odor and another DeShields sacrifice fly on a sliding catch by Lawrie just into the outfield grass behind second base.

Odor scored the running, tagging as soon as Lawrie gloved the ball and hit the grass. It was one of several examples of the Rangers aggressively running the bases and taking advantage of opportunities.

“If we don’t play it like that tonight, we don’t win,” Banister said.

They also don’t win if Napoli isn’t in the lineup, even if his defense is a liability. The offense is simply that much better.

This story was originally published September 23, 2015 at 2:04 AM with the headline "Rangers win again with Napoli in left field."