Jonah Heim hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning to lift the host Texas Rangers to a 7-2 win over the Cleveland Indians Saturday night in Arlington.
Texas (60-101) may be ending another losing season — the Rangers’ fifth consecutive sub-.500 campaign — but could end things on a high note by taking the final series of the year Sunday.
The Indians (79-82) secured their first losing season since 2012 with the loss.
Sunday’s season-finale against the Rangers will be Cleveland’s final game known as the Indians. The team will be known as the Guardians beginning next season.
Texas opened the scoring when Willie Calhoun led off the home-half of the first by hitting a 3-1 pitch from Triston McKenzie (5-9) a dozen rows into the left field seats.
Cleveland tied the score in the third. After Yu Chang was hit by a pitch and moved to second, Myles Straw drove him in with a single.
Texas broke the game open in the third. Nathaniel Lowe led off with a single and moved to second when Andy Ibanez walked. Both came home on the homer to right.
The Rangers added to their lead after loading the bases to lead off the eighth. Charlie Culberson removed any hope Cleveland had of a ninth-inning rally by driving a pitch from Sam Hentges off the wall in right scoring two more.
Cleveland came into the ninth with only two hits, but got three in the ninth with Franmil Reyes driving Straw home for the final run on a two-out single.
The Rangers, who took two of three from the Angels before playing host to Cleveland in the final series of the 2021 season, got a strong effort from starter Jordan Lyles (10-13) who went seven innings and gave up one run off two hits with eight strikeouts.
McKenzie went four innings, giving up four runs off four hits with two strikeouts.
–Field Level Media
