DeGrom fans 8, Rangers rout Athletics 8-1
Jacob deGrom struck out 8 over 7 scoreless innings and Justin Foscue homered as the Rangers routed the Athletics 8-1, pulling within 1.5 games of the AL's final wild-card spot.
DeGrom's 8 strikeouts, Foscue's homer power the win
Jacob deGrom was dominant in an 8-1 win over the Athletics on August 31, throwing 7 scoreless innings with just 1 hit allowed, no walks and 8 strikeouts. Justin Foscue went 1-for-2 with a home run and an RBI, and the offense gave deGrom more than enough support behind him.
Athletics8-1The win came a day after a 7-4 win over Milwaukee, and Texas is 2-3 in its last 5 games — but the two are its last two, back-to-back wins over the Brewers and Athletics that pushed the club to 68-70 on the season.
1.5 back of Cleveland, tied with Toronto for the spot
Texas sits at 68-70, 1.5 games behind the Guardians for the American League's third and final wild-card spot, tied in the standings with the Blue Jays, who hold the same 1.5-game gap. The Orioles sit a half-game back of Cleveland at 69-69, making the race for that last spot a 4-team scramble entering September.
The elimination numbers tell a different story about how much time each contender has left: Texas' sits at 23, more than double Toronto's 11, despite the identical gap in the standings. The Twins, 3.5 back at 66-72, carry an elimination number of 19 — the same as the Mariners, who are 5.5 out.
Upcoming
MacKenzie Gore takes the mound as the Rangers host the Athletics tonight, opposite Brady Basso. Gore is 7-10 with a 4.40 ERA and was rocked in his last start against the White Sox on August 26, allowing 4 earned runs on 8 hits over just 3.2 innings with 4 strikeouts and 4 walks. Basso enters at 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA and was even shorter in his last outing, an August 23 no-decision against the Astros in which he lasted 1.0 inning and allowed 3 earned runs on 4 hits over 22 pitches.
Texas is favored at home, and the total points to a low-scoring game — a read that lines up with two starters who have each struggled to finish the fourth inning in their most recent turns. If that number holds, it will take one lineup doing more against a shaky arm than the other.